Slightly Better News...
I have just had a letter from NPower and it appears that I have misheard on the phone what I pay for my energy. They allow £42 per month for electric and now my monthly payment for gas has been increased to £15 so I am paying £57 per month in total(£14.25 per week)I thought I was paying £67 per month.
Due to a mix up, I was £35 in credit on the electric but owed £72 for the gas(but that could be covering two months rather than just one)but when they worked things out on the phone and took the £35 credit from what they said I owed on the gas, I only owed £16 so I paid it off so it is a clean slate for the next Direct Debit in December. And if you add the £35 and £16 together that still only comes in at £51 which is still less than the £72 they quoted originally...£21 less. If it stays that low perhaps I can keep the heating and/or the electric on longer and if there is any credit from not using the electric it can go towards the gas bill.
Perhaps I can save more in the Summer months...then use more in the Winter. All I get for that £57 is enough electric to power a PC, DAB radio, an energy saving lightbulb overnight and left on for safety, occasionally a hot meal in a slow cooker or microwave and to power the fridge/freezer over the year. Perhaps once a month a full load of washing and a quick dry in a Tumble drier(lets change that to every two to three weeks for the sake of some who like to leave negative comments)I don't make an exact science of when I do the washing...central heating perhaps for an hour or two daily(but often not at all)So how people afford to use more I do wonder. Well we know that many don't and have to do as I do wear warmer clothes, wrap themselves in blankets, duvets, use hot water bottles etc...
Of course on a low income even £51 is quite a lot to find and fuel prices will always rise and as other changes come, you think you can save a little extra from one area to afford something else, this may have to be reduced still further. On the other hand money from a lodger staying here may mean financially things improve.
posted by The Great Gildersleeve | 6:42 am
9 Comments:
You only do a wash once a month ? I'd have thought if you change your underwear every day that alone would fill a washing machine !
How on earth do you get clothes, sheets, towels etc dry all in one go, & does that mean you only change your sheets & towels once a month ? !
Sorry, but that sounds rather unhygienic !
I don't need change bedsheets every week and I do change clothes quite regularly(well underwear as you put it)You can wash underwear by hand you know...if I had not had to buy a washer/tumble drier at the instance of the Social Worker/District Nurse...during Mum's illness I was managing fine using the bath for big items, the sink for small items and the washing line outside/radiators indoors...
It was cheaper too...don't forget I am watching what I spend and my income is limited. I have a variety of T-shirts, shirts, thermals, under pants, causual trousers that can double up as bed wear, four sets of Pyjama's.
It has been said here before, if you are not doing work where you are getting filthy. Not sweating a lot etc...you can be too obsessed about what you mention...
It's like towels...if you have had a good wash and used plenty of water and soap. You use the towel to dry yourself so if you are clean what are you putting on a towel that means it needs washing immediately?
Different matter if you are covering it in dirt or perhaps blood if you have cut yourself shaving etc...
I suspect many living alone are not on top of everything. Or live in homes as seen on many of the TV shows.
I suspect many people get a few days out of their clothes unless they are going out or have a special event to attend.
If I was flush for cash and had a family that is different and I could quite understand some households having a daily wash or every couple of days...
Do singles/couples do a wash every day?
http://tlc.howstuffworks.com/home/how-often-should-you-clean3.htm
Might be of interest...been thinking, if you wear PJ's or other bed attire as opposed to being naked, also have a mattress protector, I wonder how much of the so called dead skin cells get into the bed? Also if you wash regularly and change your clothes...
I have been known to do smaller washes but my washer does not have a programme that runs for a shorter time than around 90 mins at a temperatire that suits most fabrics so I usually just go for the one that generally cleans everything. I sometimes wash items that say they should not be done in a washer and so far no disasters...
Well I agree with anon. It's a matter of good hygiene. If you are wearing all of the clothes you say you do, you must be sweating and you can't wear things indefinitely. If you are strong enough to wash bedding and towels in the bath and lifting them out wrung out by hand, you could hold down a part time job.
I can't believe I've just read that!
Rubbish, how much does it take wash one sheet at a time? And it is not a task you are doing day after day and naturally now I have a washer it is being used. How big/thick do you think my towels are? So many assumptions are made...
If I am wearing all the clothes that I am and changing them often I am less likely to be sweating, if I was sweating my body temperature would drop because I would be damp and you are told if that happens to change them...
I only layer up when it is really cold. And it is mainly my hands and feet that get cold...
You know even people who are ill and have serious problems often have to adapt.
You have to be hot to sweat. That is something that I am not in this house and being economical with the heating...
I never said I do everything together as the first comment suggests...that's you assuming again. Remember now there is only myself so what I have goes further because only one bed is being used...that also helps explain why I can do fewer washes...
Oh my god. I cannot even believe it. Now you're having to defend how often you wash your f*****g clothes! :o/
Jeez, Gildy! Who do you have reading this blog for goodness sake?
It is NOT odd or unhygienic to wash your sheets once a month, especially since you are alone and aren't doing strenuous work everyday.
How dirty are you people for cryin' out loud? :oP
I think you've fallen, hook, line and sinker for those soap ads people!
And here's another thing that burns my butt...you folks need to realize there is a difference in what a person with a disability can do ONCE every now and then as opposed to doing the same thing over and over for eight hours a day five days a week or even part-time. AND you don't see what it costs in pain and recover time AFTER you've done that thing ONCE!
He still has to live, ya' know, AND he's by himself...who the hell was gonna wash the sheets for him? You gonna come over and do it? H*ll no you're not! So what's he supposed to do?
Man...I WISH I lived in your world. Talk about being sheltered....pssh!
Jan
Thanks Jan,
I hope changing how you post on my blog is not causing much trouble for you, I may go back to the old way soon.
I thought this may stop or reduce some comments because you have to really want to leave a comment by going through a procedure...
I am sometimes amazed at what is said and cannot decide if it is meant and believed or to cause a reaction...
I have heard it said when you attend one of these assessments, if you manage to look half decent that can go against you, yet if you look unkempt they'll say you are lazy.
There are no correct answers...but plenty to trap you. And they do...
No worries, Gildy. Whatever extra time is worth every minute if it saves you from some of this ridiculousness.
Sorry for the rant...but I just couldn't believe some of these comments.
:o/
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