Chilly today, hot tamale…

First fire of the year. I’m splurging because I went through my annual fight with the propane  delivery service. Every year I buy 1,200 gallons, pre-paid, for the heating season. My “Paula Bunyan” wood exploits are well documented, and a weekend of splitting and stacking is scheduled. It is September and time to start thinking about the next chapter.

As to the propane, last year I worked the phones for an hour, negotiating prices between three vendors. My supplier for the last ten years always caves in the end, saying it is cheaper to give me a discount than to find a new customer. This year, they asked what I wanted to pay (basically, it was worded as, “do you have competitive quotes and what are they?”). After too much on-hold-muzac, kind Tammy responded that they would be happy to meet that price and did I want my contract emailed, faxed or mailed?

I felt a little cheated, should have gone lower, called another competitor…

The reality is last year I paid $2.29 per gallon. This year I am paying $1.85.  Not factoring in the economics of inflation, this year’s heating bill is already $528 dollars less than twelve months ago.

The chill has brought out the “stupid” in our local rodent/outside toy population. Beyond the myriad squished frogs on our walk today, Alice and I spied several really dumb chipmunks. Nature’s Speed Bumps I call them.

So I am celebrating with a nice fire in the fireplace as the ambient temperature is in the upper 50°s. The forecast says 80°s by Wednesday. Chilly Today, Hot Tamale!