yay candy!

I may have asked about this before, but I have this weird problem with my electricity use going WAY up without me being able to figure out why. I am doing almost nothing differently and my usage looks like this:

2/12/2007 RGE 1522
1/11/2007 ESTIMATED 232
12/12/2006 RGE 615
11/8/2006 ESTIMATED 228
10/11/2006 RGE 659
9/6/2006 243
8/8/2006 429
7/6/2006 231
6/5/2006 348
5/3/2006 148
4/5/2006 280
3/3/2006 163
2/3/2006 177
1/5/2006 249
12/5/2005 145
11/3/2005 254
10/5/2005 559
9/2/2005 168

WTF? All I have going is my TV, from about 6 pm - midnight, a DVD player, an alarm clock, the computer from about 6 pm - 8pm, the microwave for about 5 minutes per night, the stove for about 10 minutes per night, and a couple of lights, from 6 pm - 9 pm-- and the fridge.

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I wonder if they have get-togethers?

Probably not anymore, as I imagine most would be unable to travel for such an event.

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One of the more interesting books I've read came out in 1999 and was called Centenarians, and was interviews and photos of (you guessed it!) people who were born in 1899 or earlier. They included a woman who was Strom Thurmond's babysitter (!), a man who, when he was 7 years old, spent part of a train ride through Wyoming chatting with an old guy across the aisle who he found out later was Buffalo Bill, and other really fascinating people.

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I may have asked about this before, but I have this weird problem with my electricity use going WAY up without me being able to figure out why.

Do you perhaps leave your computer or monitor on when you're not using it? That can suck up a lot of power over time.

Otherwise, you might want to ask your utility company. Maybe you have electricity thieves. Or maybe the meter reading person is lazy or screws up (in which case, the errors should cancel out over time).

eta: Also, some electronic devices (some TVs, chargers, etc.) will continue to suck power even when they're not on.

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Alright, screaming silently in my head.

If I kill someone, will y'all take up a pay-pal donation for my bail?

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Thanks tommy- I just can't figure out how my average use per month last year at this time was 213kwh, and now it is 877!!! I leave nothing on all day and turn my heat down to 60, so the fan is never going on. I didn't use my crock pot or even my oven this month. I have a gas water heater.

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Thanks tommy- I just can't figure out how my average use per month last year at this time was 213kwh, and now it is 877!!! I leave nothing on all day and turn my heat down to 60, so the fan is never going on. I didn't use my crock pot or even my oven this month. I have a gas water heater.

Hmm... could also be something like a bad fridge motor that is running continuously or something.

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Hmm... could also be something like a bad fridge motor that is running continuously or something.

I guess the first step would be to call the landlord, the second the electric company. I hate doing stuff like that, but I can't afford this!

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Do you have access to your electrical meter? If so, you could check it from time to time to see if the little wheel thingie suddenly is spinning faster. Or if it is always fast, you could unplug things one at a time and see when it gets slower.

I did that at my last place. Actually, I would shut off one of my computers, look at the meter, shut down the other computer, etc. I was amazed at how much power they used.

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If nothing has changed for you lifestyle-wise, Sophia, something is going on. That's crazy.

One of the more interesting books I've read came out in 1999 and was called Centenarians, and was interviews and photos of (you guessed it!) people who were born in 1899 or earlier. They included a woman who was Strom Thurmond's babysitter (!), a man who, when he was 7 years old, spent part of a train ride through Wyoming chatting with an old guy across the aisle who he found out later was Buffalo Bill, and other really fascinating people.

I'll have to pick up that book. My dad's father was born in 1899. He died in 1990. I remember watching all the hubub about the Berlin Wall with him, and being struck when he said, "I remember when that wall went up." He was a WWI Vet, too.

Even the WWII Vets are getting scarce -- which makes me kind of weepy.

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