30 Thankful Days in Photos: Day 3

It is really cold today. It has been cold for two days now, but today marked the first day that was colder than freezing. I couldn't stand having no heat any longer. We both sat here with jackets on and not able to get warm. So, I set out to figure out how to turn on the heat.
Each room has a space heater built in with a "thermostat" with numbers from 1-5. They use water with designated pipes for the heaters to heat the metal elements, and that heats the room. They say we are supposed to open the windows for 10 minutes/day to prevent mold. Can you imagine? Dead of winter and we have to open the windows. This is the norm in Germany.
If it were just a matter of turning the numbered knob on each space heater, there would be no problem. However, we found out that is not the case. So, I went across the street to the German neighbor to ask for help, but her son answered the door and told me to call the landlord when I asked. I don't want to call the landlord. Jer didn't either.
So, we went down to the basement and flipped a switch. No dice. This shut off the gas. No gas = no hot water. Then Jer took the panel off of a box thing (see pic--the normal water heater can be seen to the right of it) and messed around with it and found an "On" switch. We now have heat!
While the heating system is not as convenient as I'm used to in the States, I'm so thankful I don't have to survive the cold months without heaters--like people had to before the 20th century. I'm thankful for heat that is fairly simple to attain. I'm glad we don't have to chop down trees every day to heat the house by fire.
We've never had a fireplace before we moved here. We have one now, and it's sort of a novelty to us. Jer started a fire and I love it! I love the ambiance a fire brings. I love that we can sit comfortably warm on the couch, drinking hot chocolate and enjoying the evening together.