Household Bills

When I came home from choir rehearsal earlier this week, the first thing I noticed when I walked in the door was that it was really hot inside the house.   At first, I was glad.  After all, it was after 10:00 pm and it was cold outside.  But, then I started wondering, “Why is it so damn hot in here?”  You see, I have my heat on a timer.  At that time of night, it should have only been about 70 degrees.  So, I was really confused as to why it felt like a sauna when I walked in the door.   Imagine my shock when I checked the thermostat and found that someone had the audacity to set the temperature to 80 degrees!  80 degrees!  In the middle of April!

Now, I won’t lie.  It was cold outside, but it wasn’t cold enough to justify setting the temperature to 80 degrees.  Of course, you know I had to find out who changed it:
                Me:                        “Who turned the heat up to 80 degrees?”
                Daughter:            “Not me.”
                Son:                       “Me.  It was cold in here.”
                Me:                        “Turn on the space heater in your room then.” 
                Son:                       “No.  It was cold downstairs.”

Here’s where I get annoyed (to put it mildly), I was on the first floor.  My son was yelling to me from his attic bedroom.  Attic. Bedroom.  He wasn’t even downstairs anymore, and it didn’t appear as if he was coming back down any time soon.  I calmly explained to him that heat is not free and this is costing me money.  My quick thinking, (or smart ass, whichever you prefer) son asked, “If the temperature was already at 74, how much more would 6 more degrees cost?”  You know I wanted to hurt him, right?  For all you parents of teenagers out there, you would have been so proud of me.  I kept it together and didn’t revert to banshee mode.  Believe you me, I was sooooo ready to go there. 

It’s the same issue with water.  I just don’t get it.  Why is the shower running when no one is in there?  I can understand that you may want to run the water so it can heat up before you get in.  After all, not too many of us like a cold shower.  But, come on.  After 15 minutes, the water is probably hot. 

Not only do I have to pay for the water they use in the shower, but I also have to pay for the water they use to wash the clothes.  Do you think they think of that?  Of course not.  I can tell by how they do the laundry.  When we first moved into our house.  I taught them how to work the washer and dryer.  I specifically remember explaining to them that if you have a lot of clothes, set the water on high.  If you have only a little bit of clothes, use the low setting, or better yet, wait until there is a large pile of clothes and wash them all at one time.  Then use the large setting.  Do you think they listened?  No.  One day my son had the nerve to wash three shirts … on the high setting!  Do you understand how much water was wasted?  Apparently, he didn’t care about my pocketbook or the environment.

And here’s another one, why do kids feel the need to stand in front of the refrigerator with the door open for 10 minutes?  Really?  Like new food is going to just magically appear?  After a quick scan, you know what’s in there.  So, open the door and take a look inside.  If you really can’t decide what to eat in 30 seconds, close the door, decide what you want, open the door, and then get the food.  See how easy that was?

Now, I'm venting about all this to not only get it all off my chest, but to also warn you future parents and parent wannabes.  Get ready.  When you have kids, your household bills are going to substantially increase.  You may as well start saving your money now. 

So, now you know, and you can …
Consider Yourself Warned!