Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Looking A Gift Horse in The Mouth

I know, they say you should never do it....but I am!

I can honestly say the only saving grace Florida has are it's people.   I am thankful every day that the people I have met have been absolutely incredible. 

A gallon of milk costs more than a gallon of gas.  I think the lowest I've seen milk here is $3.29 and it's usually closer to $3.79.  I think I need to buy a cow!

Then the trash company who charge an arm and leg doesn't pick up anything that's not in the trash can...unless you call for a bulk pick up.  But if you have moving boxes stuffed with packing paper and other miscellaneous debris...you have to empty them into said trash can (leaving no room for actual trash) and then break down the boxes for them to be picked up.  SERIOUSLY?!  If it fit in my trash can, I wouldn't be calling for a bulk pick up.  Then the topper...trash day is on Tuesday and I always think it's Monday.  So I set my trash on the curb Sunday night...I go to bring it back today (it was a lazy day yesterday and I didn't even go check the mail) and it's full.  REALLY?!  You pick up all the trash in the neighborhood except mine?!  WTH?!

I also just got my first full month's electric bill.  I use the Energy Select program and keep the house between 75 and 78 degrees.  I do all my laundry early in the morning or late at night.  I run the pool pump during the medium price range because apparently it should be ran from when the sun up to sun down.  I run ceiling fans to reduce the cooling costs and use as much natural sunlight to brighten the house as possible.  Yet my the bill was over $250!!!  The kicker is their fuel charge was more than what I was billed for use of electricity.  Never in my life have I ever had an electric bill that high...not even if you combined our electric bill with our gas bill!

Umm...so yeah...if y'all could keep the get a job vibes coming my way....I'd totally appreciate it!  Hubster's pay alone can't support the cost of living down here.  I'm also running out of places to apply to...there's not even any nursing home ads up right now and you can almost always count on a job there in nursing.  :-/

8 comments:

  1. sweetie I can't chanage the cost of living but try this site for a job search www.indeed.com

    good luck

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  2. Thanks Barbara and Drazil!

    I have a lead tomorrow for a home health position and after that I'm heading to the base to deliver my resume in person. One of the wonderful people I've met here is watching Monster for me and not charging me. Thank you, Lord, for the small things!

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  3. What area of Florida are you in? I am in Orlando, FL. *Maria*-Blogger from "This one time at band camp..." Check out my blog at mybigfatbandgeeklife.blogspot.com

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  4. Yes, Florida can really suck sometimes. First off, aren't you over on the Gulf Coast? I would contact your power company and ask them about "Budget Billing". I have that with Florida Power and Light and what that does is that they do an average of your bill and bill you relatively the same every month. You may use $250 of power in the Summer months, but they only bill you $175 because in the winter months when you use less power (maybe only $125) your bill would stay around $175. It helps keep an average and easier to budget on a monthy basis. For your pool in the summer, the pump only needs to run 8 hrs a day. In the winter, it can go down to 4 to 6. I have been a pool owner for 5 years here in Central Florida. Just make sure you keep your checmicals in check otherwise you will get a "mustard" algae bloom. Wal Mart usually has the cheapest prices on Milk, but look for sales of $2.99 a gallon at Walgreens, it is usually advertised on their outdoor signs.

    It's funny, I came to Florida because it was cheaper than where I was in Atlanta!! Sorry it's taking a bit to adjust! :)

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  5. Thanks, ladies...sometimes I just need to bitch and I do it so well! LOL

    Yes, Stephanie, we are about 45 minutes north of Fort Walton Beach. I will definitely call about the budget plan because I figured since there's no gas here, our electric would average the two bills combined and boy was I wrong. We ended up getting phosphates in the pool and it was eating all our chlorine despite doing what the pool store said, so I've turned it over to a guy who comes weekly and does the scrub, clears the lines, tests and adds the chemicals. Much easier (and believe it or not, cheaper)!

    I was running the pool pump at night on the Energy Select program, but the pool store said it's better to run it during the day to help fight off the algae...and with all the rain we've had, the mustard algae has been a bit of a battle...when I was doing it myself...but the pool guy makes it look like it's a cinch!

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  6. Hi ~D~,

    Good luck with finding a new job. I think you are so resiliant with all the moving and managing things on your own the way you do.

    I just wanted to shock you with my combined gas and electric bill...oh we have no pool either living in freezing old blighty! my last quarters bill was just over £1000.00 How bad is that? Our house is largish by English standards but not ginourmous by American standards by any stretch of the imagination. I didn't realise that it was soooo much cheaper in other country's hhhmm, options, options. xx

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  7. Okay, Sparkler - You win!! I know conversion wise that is a whooooole lotta moola! I used to order my bras from bravissimo.com which is in the UK and had to convert from USD to pounds (sorry, I don't know how to make the symbol).

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