GOOD GRIEF!!!

Today's high temperature was: 62 degrees

Sunny and lovely all day

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I had no neck, shoulder, scapula, arm or chest pain all day.  What a relief.  I just might cancel my next visit to the Chiropractor if it takes me a week to recover from the deep tissue massage!

Everything was going along pleasantly today.  I did three loads of laundry, a load of dishes in the dishwasher, cleaned out my air purifiers and ordered new filters and got the mail.

After my Soap, I opened the mail and there was my gas bill.  Account balance: $271.64.

"WHAT?"

I looked at the usage scale.  I used 13.3 thousand cubic feet in January, 10.2 in February, and 11.0 in March.  It showed 27 for this month's bill.

'HOW CAN THIS BE?  THEY TOLD ME THE NEW FURNACE WOULD SAVE ON MY GAS BILL!!"

I looked at the top of the bill.  It was an "actual" meter reading, not estimated.  7858 was the reading in March, 8128 on April 4th.

"THIS CANNOT BE POSSIBLE.  I HAVEN'T USED 27 UNITS ALL THE TIME I'VE LIVED HERE!"

So, with shaking hands, I called the gas company and after being transferred forty eleven times I finally reached Dorothy.  My mother's name--I began to feel a bit more comfortable.

"My goodness...this bill can't be right," she said.

"I know," I wailed.

"Okay--I want you to go outside and write down the numbers on your meter now.  I'll wait."

So I scooted out and read 7949 and came back in and told her.  

"Human error," she said.  "Someone put in the wrong numbers."

"But...it's read by the digital meter reader they hold in their hand.  They put it up to the meter and it reads it automatically."

"Well, something went wrong.  Can you hold a minute?"

and I did.

I held for 18 minutes and she finally came back on.

"I have called too other departments.  They promised to straighten this out, but....it will take four to six weeks because they are so back logged."

"What amount should I pay?  The reading I took today is a five week reading instead of a four week reading.  I don't know how much to pay."

"You could pay half, just to be on the safe side?"

"I can't afford to pay half.  I will just pay my normal monthly budget plan payment of forty-nine dollars this month.  Okay?"

"Okay.  I have all my notes here and what we talked about and I will be sending them over to the other department."

"Next month is my recalculation month for my budget plan.  What if this incorrect bill makes that payment go up.  What should I do then."

"They will do a new meter reading on May fifth.  Your new budget payment won't show up until your June bill.  It should be straightened out by then."

"Okay, but....after the meter reader leaves, I am going to go out and write down the numbers on the meter---just to be sure it's correct."

She laughed, "Good idea.  Stay on top of things."

<Yeah Dort.  You can be sure of that!>

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I walked up to Pearl's and we chatted a bit.  I told her about the gas bill fiasco and then asked if she would let Merle know I had taken down the insulation from the back door and whenever he had a chance, I would appreciate it if he would come down and unscrew the 1 x 3 at the bottom (that we stapled the insulation on.)

"I can't unscrew it," I said.

Pearl says, "You can't UNscrew it or you can't screw?"

"I can't do either," I said.

Just then Merle walked in.  Pearl says, "Go ahead, tell him."

You know, he is a slow speaker--he is a slow mover--very easy going, kind of an "aw shucks" person.  So I asked him and he says,   "Ya mean...ya can't get that...ah... board outta there?"

"Well Merle," I said.  "I don't screw anymore.  Can't screw anymore because of the arthritis in my wrists.  So I need help screwing."

Pearl just about fell out of her chair in laughter.  I mean she was yelling with laughter.

With that dead pan look he always has on his face, Merle replied, "Well, I guess...I'm gonna have to help you with your problem.    Pearl has that problem too....but....it's usually 'cause she has a headache."

Then Pearl and I both guffawed and he ambled off to the back of their trailer.

Such fun!  You know--you couldn't be like that if you were in your 40's--even 60's.   Men might take it the wrong way and their wives wouldn't like it probably, but here we are, in our mid 70's and it is all very light hearted and funny to kid around.  

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These kids came to visit the last of the peanuts I put out.

Gray Squirrel came by

...and when he was full, little Red Squirrel came for a snack