Good morning!!!!

[RedNeckGeek]

The Tundra has been detailed. It took 4 hours, but I did not see anyone wearing a hazmat suit nor respirator working on it. The truck probably saw more soap yesterday than it has seen during the previous 11 years. They used disposable drier sheets to remove the dog smell. Now the Tundra smells like a clothes drier. I do not know which smell is worse, but Wifey is happy.

So does this mean Brogen rides in the truck bed from now on, or are you gonna fix him up with doggie coveralls and surgical mask?:laughing:

 

[Bird]

Got my bill for last month. $187. Up from $162 previous month. Bill includes gas usage.

There are no natural gas lines in my neighborhood. There are a couple of very old homes in the area with propane tanks in the backyard, but everyone else is total electric.

Bird, they sure sell power cheap in Texas!

I think we have a much less than honest system. I'm one who has stayed with the old original electric company; TXU Energy. We have many other companies with all kinds of pricing plans, some of which sound like good prices until you include all the fees, taxes, etc. With TXU Energy, each year they send me a message that my "Plan"; currently called "TXU Simple Rate 12" is expiring and "recommending" a plan with a much higher rate. I go online to see what all plans will be currently offered, then I call on the phone, and when they think I might change companies, they tell me about an unpublished plan for less money, as long as I sign up for 12 months with a $150 penalty if I change companies before the 12 months are up. So we play this game once a year; next round is next April.:laughing: My current plan is supposedly 11.9 cents per KWH. But with taxes and such, it's varied from 12.0 to 14.11 cents per KWH each month so far this year.

 

[farmer2009]

79 this morning and headed to 88 today. .75 inches of rain yesterday.

Have more trees to cut up later. Currently waiting my 15 minutes after allergy shots at the doctor office. Will try to light brush pile today.

Hopefully we get an update from Toppop soon.

Are you all limiting power bills to residents? I’ll have to look at mine.

 

[RedNeckGeek]

7Are you all limiting power bills to residents? I’ll have to look at mine.

Rick's the one that turned this into a competition...:confused3:

Personally, I'm more interested in the cost per kilowatt hour and how much it varies across the country. Especially Hawaii!

If I had to venture a guess, Farmer, I'd say you probably use more power in your chicken ranch than most anyone here, but probably pay among the lowest cost per kilowatt hour. That's pretty typical for a commercial account from what I understand.

 

[RedNeckGeek]

Currently waiting my 15 minutes after allergy shots at the doctor office.

FWIW, I've been getting those shots for so long they let me leave immediately, no wait. Not sure how long it'll be for you, but you might want to ask so you'll know if you have something to look forward to.

Also FWIW, I just finished a round of retesting, and learned that my sensitivity to a few things has actually increased over the years. The confusing part is that they can't just change the antigen makeup any time they like. They only do it once a year. Here's the confusing part. Instead of just incorporating the new doses into the new batch, they'd have to give me two additional injections, for a total of four, until new batch time comes around again next year. Then next year they can incorporate the new antigens into the other two injections. I haven't gotten a straight answer as to why they can't just drop me back to a lower dose and build up to the maintenance dose for the new two shot this year, so I'm passing on the four shot "opportunity" now. I suspect that the real reason is that the allergist is having a new swimming pool installed in his back yard.:laughing:

 

[daugen]

Nice morning with Miss Daisy, who enjoyed helping to design which plant went where.
And then since I was soaked in sweat and dripping on the floor, she thankfully left and off went the shirt into the washer.
Surprising how much dry underwear improves your outlook on life.

Little prayer for Toppop today, here's the latest:
I知 going today to get two stents and come back later for TAVR valve replacement procedure.

Interesting article on Texas power grid being almost maxxed.
Normally "peaking" units come on at 95 percent,
system is built using 95-100 range, not
100-105. 101 is a brownout... So if they got up to 97.5% of capacity, sure not a lot left over...
In many states this is when big old GE and Pratt jet engine generators crank up, creating awful air pollution.
NJ and NYC were known for this, NYC had banks of those big gens floating on barges. Watched a few crank up.
Yellowy brown exhaust punching a hole in the ozone all the way up...in addition to being hugely noisy.

Jersey's were along the Turnpike near Newark, visible even through the Newark Airport smog.
I used to get home from a day driving up there
and my eyes were burning along with a lingering odor on my dress clothes.

I wonder if NJP&L bit the bullet and bought all new Tier V peaking units.
Several of my relatives from long ago buried in a cemetery near the Newark Airport.
Poor them, not a decent night's sleep ever...

 

[hawkeye08]

Was pretty sore last night from all the activity yesterday, slept better than expected. Had to run the saw a bit (cross cut some on cedar 1x6).. it sure is nice. Wife is as excited as I am, she was already talking about how to change shop layout so I can use the saw this winter..

Work projects took a turn for the worse this morning, they want a bunch of reports for management meeting Monday (reports that I don't have and have to ask others for).. I am supposed to be on vacation Thursday and Friday, but it appears I will be taking my work computer and putting some time in so they have the information they need.

Prayers for those in need, stay safe.

 

[jbrumberg]

Good Morning Everyone!!!!

A showery 61ºF for today’s low temperature; 72ºF presently with ongoing intermittent rain showers; and I suspect I’ll be dealing with a showery afternoon in the mid70ºF’s for today’s high. I see a lot of rain shower activity through the weekend around here.

Roy- I am sorry to read about the BP challenges. I hope the doc can figure out what’s driving the vertigo Thursday. Good luck..

“… How does Brogen like his clean Tundra?”- Billy He has not yet been inside, but he did mark the tires. He will get his first ride Saturday for the dump run and then a trip to the doggy gulag as we are going up to the Adirondacks for a week’s vacation starting Sunday.

RNG- Good luck with the allergies. Now that I am allergic to myself most of my allergies have diminshed. I think in MA I’d be probably be charged with animal cruelty if I transported him in the truck bed. The other problem is that he is aggressive to other animals. He’s tried to jump out of the back cab more than once to go after other animals. You will definitely appreciate going solar. My last “bill” from Eversource was -$99.67. We used 285kW and produced 825kW. So far this year We still have a -$236.47 balance + $2085.51 in the 1/4ly generated cash dividends. Our system can in theory produce 11.88kWp at maximum output. Last year we paid a total electric bill of ~$34.00 only because We had to resort to full electric heating with our mini splits due to our central heat failing during the coldest week of the Winter and I was unable to maintain the wood stove due to my knee. Since we went operational in January 2017 we have produced 17.48MWh.

Drew- Nice planing arrangements. I am fond of succulent plants. Thanks for sharing and for the Randy updates.

I hope that everyone is having a decent midweek. My + thoughts, wishes and prayers.

My special + thoughts, wishes, and prayers for Roy, BEF, Randy & Ellen, Ron & Betty

 

[buckeyefarmer]

Yep. You’ve got 9 days to figure it out.

So my student PT lady's last day is also the 23rd, so i recruited her for inside help to get to the roof. Will give her a ride out also..

 

[Scrambler82]

Haven't posted in Good Morning for a while now but hope all is well with everyone !

To start temp's are going to triple digits for a few days, probably won't be getting out side much, at least not in the barn, should have got a few things done over the last few days... but water over the dam !

Electric Bills, I know this will sound funny but when I lived in Gloucester, MA, five+ years ago, I had retained all of my Electric Billing Data on an Excel Spreadsheet... for 25 years... I know ! The things that struck me about the whole billing structure was the actual cost of electricity changed only by a couple of cents over that time, went from $0.09 to $0.11, not too bad right... ! What did change and in turn raise the cost of electricity in my area were the Fees and Taxes. The Federal and Local Governments, in their attempts to control the Electric Company's pricing have added a considerable amount of COST to the bill; which had nothing to do with the Electric Company.

I used to hear people complaining about the Electric Company and the costs but it IS really the government agencies that are at fault for the rising costs. Of course now-a-days, fuel charges (including addition taxes) are sending pricing for a major loop but the point is "the cost of electricity hadn't change much over the last thirty years or so" and the reason is the governments wouldn't get THEIR share.
OK nough said... !

Sitting on the front porch, watching Hot Air Balloons go up and down (not many though - outside air is too warm), drinking the morning coffee, dealing with the idea that my dog, my friend, is on her last legs. Thinking what will I do in the 100+ degree weather... and deciding I will do as little as possible. I will write some stuff in this Site and maybe get on Facebook, maybe not, and I think it will be a good day for a nap; (been up a few time last night, the old girl needed to go out and she couldn't make up her mind once out on what to do, so inside we went and back out an hour later). I guess we all get that way when we get older, got to go more often and can't remember what we wanted to do once we get somewhere, if it is even where we wanted to go in the beginning. But I promised my friend, that she could go out when she wanted to so getting up in the middle of the night a few times isn't too bad.

Sorry got carried away there !

Thanks for listening to my ranting and my thoughts, nothing will get done today, so the little lady and myself will be hip to hip for the day.

 

[jbrumberg]

".... I am supposed to be on vacation."- Hawkeye I am sorry to read about Management creating chaos. I worked for "crisis dependent" managers myself and I was lucky if I did not get a call or 2 during my vacations. The saw reads like a major + score. Good luck.

Scrambler- I am sorry to read about your dog. I tear up just thinking about yours and about my pack waiting at the rainbow bridge. It's never easy. Good luck for the both of you- Jay

 

[buckeyefarmer]

I also have 20+ yrs of electric bills in excel. I compare current to past. Also track daily average temp that is on the bill.

 

[sodamo]

70°F and .02 inches rain.
Extra prayers for Randy and his Doc today.

Had an unusual power outage yesterday. Wired connection gone bad on DC side of power system, drained batteries to shutoff point. Luckily, I was able to diagnose and replace in about half hour.

Prayers for all
Be safe
Have a great day

 

[Thomas]

rlgustafson
Found out last evening that we have guests coming this afternoon for a two day visit.

Now what was Gomer Plye famous saying.....
.............................................................................

Thomas ...... I'm wondering if Boo Boo has installed his own game cams and is watching you?

He has left signs of visiting but done nothing yet....hmmmm. :confused3:

 

[Thomas]

Scrambler... indeed tough call when it comes to love one which can pull the heart strings.

 

[txdon]

I also have 20+ yrs of electric bills in excel. I compare current to past. Also track daily average temp that is on the bill.

August Electric game contest rules:
1st place Winner is most KWH used
2nd place Highest electric bill $US currency rate

Only electric. Gas or batteries (solar) cost can NOT be added.

Residence and garage or workshop only and only if on one meter.
The Coverage can be for part of July but the final total and bill must end on or before September 3rd. 2019, and not cover more than one billing cycle and not extend over 32 days. The billing cycle must be your utilities billing cycle and not be fabricated from partial billing cycles. More rules available as needs arise.

Current listings
(note this is not the final)
( rounded to nearest dollar US)

Bird 1600 KWH @ $200 (estimated)
RNG 898 KWH @ $256
Rick 3340 KWH @ $376

edit: not a complete list

 

[Scrambler82]

Scrambler- I am sorry to read about your dog. I tear up just thinking about yours and about my pack waiting at the rainbow bridge. It's never easy. Good luck for the both of you- Jay

Thx.
I use to live in Eastern MA, Gloucester, all of my life up to five or so years ago.
Miss the area, lived on the water, but don't miss the snow.

God Bless

 

[jbrumberg]

Grev- Our friends bought a condo in Rockport. The whole coastal area around Gloucester is beautiful with many decent restaurants. We are about as far away from the ocean as one can get in MA. Good luck with your dog, I can definitely relate. A lot of the frequent posters here can relate as well. Our pets ask for so little and give back so much more in return. Hang in there.

 

[RedNeckGeek]

August Electric game contest rules:
1st place Winner is most KWH used
2nd place Highest electric bill $US currency rate

Only electric. Gas or batteries (solar) cost can NOT be added.

Residence and garage or workshop only and only if on one meter.
The Coverage can be for part of July but the final total and bill must end on or before September 3rd. 2019, and not cover more than one billing cycle and not extend over 32 days. The billing cycle must be your utilities billing cycle and not be fabricated from partial billing cycles. More rules available as needs arise.

Current listings
(note this is not the final)
( rounded to nearest dollar US)

Bird 1600 KWH @ $200 (estimated)
RNG 898 KWH @ $256
Rick 3340 KWH @ $376

edit: not a complete list

Pretty funny, Rick.:laughing:

You know how much this bunch loves to break rules, right?:confused2::shocked:

So if you wanna play by MY rules, divide the monthly cost by the number of kilowatt hours used, and the winner is the one with the smallest number. Or not. After all, rules are made to be broken!:laughing:

Also, Bird and others make a great point about fees and other costs jacking up the bill. My bill is broken down into:
Generation
Transmission
Distribution
Electric Public Purpose Programs
Nuclear Decommissioning
DWR Bond Charge
Competition Transition Charges
Energy Cost Recovery Amount
Taxes and Other

Generation, Transmission, and Distribution make up 92.4% of the bill. But this is still a good example of how government meddling have shaped the activities and costs associated with producing electricity.

 

[RedNeckGeek]

While we're on the subject of electricity, I found this in my Twitter feed today:



It happened in Chico, CA yesterday, and shows what happens when our local utility, PG&E, doesn't safely maintain their power equipment.

Just to :stirthepot:, I posted it up to our neighborhood Crime/Fire Facebook group, and it's so far gathered over 100 reactions and 50 comments. Most seem outraged that this kind of thing is still happening, especially after watching all the tree crews every day, and the huge increases that are forecast for our power bills to pay for it. But there are some folks out here that apparently just love our utility, and seem oblivious to the negligent management practices that have been found in courts of law to have produced the problems we're having now. They suggest that instead of holding the utility accountable, we instead disconnect from the grid and see how well we like it. I'm doing the best I can to do just that, but I'll still have a power line running through an easement across my land. What am I supposed to do, cut down the poles and sever the line? Talk about sticking your head in the sand!