furnace troubles again

The extended cold snap we've been having is wreaking havoc not only on my utility bills, but also on my sanity. My furnace can't keep up with the demand, so it tends to shut down for hours [and in this case, a day and a half]. It's apparently a "safety feature" that kicks in when it has been on consistently...the trouble is that it doesn't seem to be coming back *on* afterwards. So far, the only thing that has been working has been to switch the thermostat to "off" for 10-30 minutes, then cross my fingers as I turn it back on [and of course when I tell the landlord about it, it magically works again by the time she comes over].

So this morning I woke up to a house that was 47 degrees in the inner portions, and 32 by the outside walls [seriously...I'll post a pic of the space heater's display a little later].

Brrrrr.

Thank the gods for my heated lap blankets and most especially for my heated mattress pad...those are the only things keeping me going right now.

UPDATE: Here's the promised pic: