Heat warning today: forecast high of 32 degrees Celsius, or 88 degrees American -- a mere bagatelle by Texan standards. It comes with a high likelihood of thunderstorms, however, and the humidity is correspondingly high, generating a Humidex of 41C. In short, not fun, but typical for mid-June. Things don't get horrible until the night-time low temperatures consistently hover above 20C.

A burglar alarm technician is on the ground this morning. As security companies look for new services to offer, their systems expand with new capabilities and new potential problems. My system includes smoke and carbon monoxide sensors that beep relentlessly at the slightest provocation, and fail surprisingly often. This always happens on the weekend, when the B team is on duty at the monitoring station. They promise to refer the issue to the tech support team who will call on Monday. They never say which Monday. The sensor crapped out five weeks ago.

Today's mini-crisis is ending well: the sensor had a five-year replacement guarantee with two more months to run. Sweet!