Zap!

I decided today I have had enough. The dry air is bad enough by itself without the static electricity I generate as I shuffle across the floor to grab the nearest metal doorknob, beloved family member, or dog. We have experienced enough shock treatment this winter to light a small village in northern Clay County.
Every time I walk across the room to kiss my kids goodbye in the morning, or kiss my wife goodnight, I have to first stop and touch something with conductivity as it is much more bearable on my fingers than my lips. I decided I need a humidifier, but I am too cheap to buy a real one. I am sure that most fortunate homeowners have a more modern HVAC system built right into the furnace, but unfortunately I am working with a system that is going on 25 years old. I found an old air pump and air stone from an aquarium I sold on craigslist a couple of years ago. I stopped by Lowe's tonight and picked up 20 feet of airline tubing and a 12 gallon Rubbermaid bucket for $9.18, place it strategically next to the heater and abracadabra, my own version of a redneck humidifier. Let's see if she works, shouldn't be too hard to raise the humidity from the current 17%. If not, we can dump it out and stuff our Christmas ornaments in there at the end of the season.