Utilities

I was cleaning out some old files the other day and came up with an old water bill from 1990. According to this bill my household used 28,000 gallons over three months in 1990. There were more people in the household then than now but even at that it seemed like a lot of water. The total cost was about thirty dollars which is about what I pay today for between one and two thousand gallons that I use each month now. This lead me to mull over my use of utilities and why I make the choices that I do.

I am adament that I will not water grass with drinkable water. It is such a waste to treat water only to have it go on the ground to keep something growing that wll bounce back whenever we get rain. Houston floods at least once or twice a year so I am confident that I will never be in the situation of seeng a dust bowl forming in my yard. I will water new plantings but after a month or two they have to figure out how to make it on what mother nature provides. I try to run the dishwasher and clothes washer only when they are full and have been known to sleep without a down comforter in winter until my sneakers are ready for the wash so that the sneakers will be available to fluff the comforter in the dryer. I don't have a clothes line but I am selecting a spot for one in the yard that will meet the needs of my HOA and still meet my need for air dryed sheets.

I just put in a very effiecient HVAC system which seems to have cut my electric bills by about half BUT I will need a few high cooling months to prove that out. When I was officing out of the house it never bothered me that upstairs, where my office was, was always warmer than the downstairs. Now that I am also using the upstairs for much more activity during the day, this tendency had begun to really bug me. My solution is to install a curtain at the top of the stairs. I had some wonderful fabric, designed in New Zealand, distributed by Free Spirit on sueded broadcloth. I love the bold graphics in muted colors with such a soft hand. It seems to be keeping the cool air upstairs and the dogs have finally figured out how to get get by it. Their first few attempts were hilarious and I wish I had taken a picture of their noses on the top stair poking into the upstairs area. It even looks good folded behind the quilt hanging from the bannister to the left of the stairs for winter days when heat is encouraged to be upstairs.

I also have this fabric in four different read and cream prints and I am having fun deciding what to do with them. But I digress.

My other effort to beat the cost of cooling is planting tress in previous years to block out the hot afternoon sun. The oldest is now almost as tall as the eaves and I look forward to many years of its shade. Two others that I planted started as twigs from the local garden club. They will take a bit longer to have any cooling benefit but they are doing well with the ten mature trees (pine and sumach) on my lot. I do not close the blinds against the sun unless it is really oppresive. It seems odd to me to close blinds and curtains then to have to turn on lights to see. Solar screens and films just don't stand a chance against the Texas sun.

My old method of beating the heat was to go out for a drive to some eatery. With gas prices the way they are I am trying to avoid these mindless trips by planning three stops/errands for each trip. I have actually gotten more errands done by challenging myself to be a better planner. Not that I don't cheat, once in a while, when my grocery shopping has not kept up with my needs.

One thing I have not been able to do to beat the heat is to train the hot water bottles (aka Alex and the Girls) from draping themselves on me every time I sit down. They do feel good but all my efforts will be wasted if I cool the house just to offset their needs.

Here's wishing that the dome of heat over Texas finds someone else to bless!