psa

i don't often like to tell people what they should do, but this is an important one.

last night, after shabbat dinner guests had left and we were just about asleep, we heard a horrible beeping noise. in the 1+ year that i've lived here, i've only heard the fire alarm go off, and it is in the hallway (i.e. not in the apartment). but this was LOUD. we saw a device in the apartment that was high up on a wall. it was beeping and blinking like crazy. i pulled it off the wall and saw that it was a cardon monoxide detector. i didn't even know it was there, but thank goodness it was. i took the battery out just to stop the noise. we turned off the heat and oven, and opened all the windows.
when i called to the doorman downstairs, he was pretty unreassuring, and just said to open the windows and we'd be fine. but i was concerned, so i called 911 to get the fire department to come out. it was kind of cool to hear the sirens and see the fire truck speeding down columbus and knowing they were coming to our apartment. so, 3 firemen, complete with picks and hats and suits come up to our apartment. after about 30 seconds of walking around the apartment and using a device to detect for more CO in the apartment, they determined that it had all dissipated. but they were very nice and told us we were right to call them. i still slept with my windows wide open though.
here's the cheesy part: carbon monoxide is, as i'm sure you know, odorless and colorless (i.e. you will have no way of detecting it yourself). i won't go into what higher levels of ppm can cause in humans. all you need to know is - get a carbon monoxide detector if you don't have one. if and when you do, be sure to test the device and battery regularly. you'll be glad you did.