But still a single mum.  My wayward 6 year old son returned home on wednesday from his summer visit with his dad.  He looks like a long haired hippy!  He is getting a haircut saturday for sure, I've got the clippers all oiled up and ready to go.  Now with my son home I have to find more ways to save money on stuff I normally do or buy for myself so I can buy him things like fresh fruit and pay for activities like swimming pool passes and summer camp classes (I'm a poet!).  Just received notice that electicity is going up to $0.54 per kwh here, we have a deisel power plant...thats gunna hurt big time.  last electric bill I belive it was up to $0.42 from $0.36, so its climbing steadily and will continue to do so because of course, the power plant is the only source of electricity on our island so they have the monopoly. I'm going to have to find a way to cut costs somewhere.

I've seen you mention how expensive it is to live in Alaska and as you have mentioned before the remoteness means you have no choice but to pay up. We've taken to unplugging every appliance that is not in use. We don't mess with the stove or dryer because thats on 220 current but everything else gets unplugged. TV/dvd/vcr player, computers, washing machine, light fixtures, etc. Anything that is plugged in draws current. Some say the amount is too small to make a difference but our bill went down. Its frustrating that you have to go to that extreme but it may help a little.

Hi,

I was wondering if you had enough natural light (since grow-lights are out because of that electricity cost - I hate monopolies!) inside your home to grow a tomato vine, or parsley or carrots, small onions, whatever, in containers near your windows.  You could start them inside and put out when it got warm enough, to lengthen your growing season, which must be pretty short!

Sorry if this is totally unrealistic; I don't know just where you live.  Not on the strawberry coast, probably, or you'd have a garden anyway.  Or, do you? 

juditur

frugal_alaskan:

He looks like a long haired hippy!

Laughing!!

Sorry I have no ideas besides what has been mentioned in the earlier posts.  I also started unplugging everything in my house when it was not in use this included all lamps except one per room.  I also used night lights in the bathrooms and flurescent bulbs everywhere.  I use a heating pad at my back when sitting at the computer for a long period of time and lots of blanket during the winter time and I am comfortable however I live in Texas and not Alaska.   I considerably lowered my electric bill by these measures.