A Grumble with the Radiator

The house started settling into that annoying evening chill, so I took my frosty mug and dragged myself up to the windowsill behind the curtains. Lo and behold, the old radiator right underneath clanked to life like an agitated pipe organ. It whistled, shook, and finally started pumping out dry, stubborn heat. I wedged a stray plastic clothes peg into a rattling seam to shut up the worst of the vibration, then propped my elbow against the sill. The glass pane was cold, the pipe was warm, and down below, night fell without asking anyone's permission. Just how I like it.