January has been so snowy and so cold....it's almost mind-numbing! This is a picture I took from my front door a few minutes ago. We've never had icicles like these before. The longest measures about two and a half feet long!
I realized how lucky I am the other day when I woke up and saw that the outside temperature was 1 degree, but it was warm and toasty in my house. As much as we all complain about the cost of heating our homes, it's actually pretty amazing that our power companies can supply us all with the fuel we choose to use and deliver it right into our homes at the touch of a dial on our thermostats. During the prolonged frigid weather we've experienced this month, all of us would reach deep into our pockets if necessary to keep our families comfortable. Like you, I love complaining about rising utility bills, but this month I'd like to send a special thank you to the companies we deal with.
Dear Jersey Central Power and Light, Public Service Electric and Gas, Osterman Propane and Connecticut Light and Power, thank you for providing the gas, electric and oil we needed during the coldest January in my memory. I appreciate your constant service and that of your employees, many of whom often have to brave the elements to keep everything running. If I was a drinker, I'd raise a toast to you. As it is, although I know that I'll be complaining about your statements in April when this cold and snowy January is just a bad memory, it will be a pleasure to send you my payment this month. Warm regards (emphasis on warm) from a customer.
I can joke about the cold and keeping warm but there are many families experiencing serious financial problems in this economy and basic necessities like keeping your family warm are beyond their budgets.
I hope you'll consider making a donation to N.J. Shares, Inc. They're the only statewide, nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization which provides grants to pay the energy and utility bills of households in need, through a statewide network of more than 262 community-based social service agencies. You can view their website and even make a donation at njshares.org
If you live outside of New Jersey, you can find a similar group by contacting your local social service agency or by searching on Google.
Stay warm and hope you're reading a good book tonight!
What a wonderful entry. So true - we so often fail to thank those who provide us with our creature comforts!! An excellent idea to donate NJShares!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the reminder!
I love this! What a great idea, thanks for posting.
ReplyDelete