The heavy, wet snow we got yesterday is melting as the sun is shining. That sun is also keeping the furnace from cutting in much. Natural gas bill for next month should be a bit lower I hope.
I also hope that using small appliances like the electric roaster and toaster oven will bring down the electric costs as well. Especially since our costs for electric will be rising 5% starting April 1st.
Got our extra medical insurance cost as well. It will of course be going up since we are aging. It went up for Harvey in June of last year, and is going up for me in May. It is getting pretty darn expensive, and I may look into the costs for other insurance, if I can find something that covers us for prior conditions.
A few of the seeds I planted last week are starting to sprout. I am hoping to save just a bit this year on perennials and plants for my pots. Then next year saving a bit more by using one shelf on Harvey's set up with grow lights. Now if I could remember to save seed, that would even be better.
We were under overall budget for the month once again, but I was very close to going over on the grocery budget line. The fact is I probably will go over budget for the month of April. I want to stock up on items that are going to be very expensive due to transportation costs.
Where we live in Saskatchewan, every single thing has to be transported. It either comes from out of province or from one of the four larger cities here.
This, plus the fact that we live in a city where there is lots of oil and people can make a great deal of money does not make it inexpensive to reside here. Per capita, I have heard there are more millionaires here than anywhere else. Not sure if I believe that, but from the homes built and the vehicles driven I can see that many are not hurting at all right now. We did have a problem when the oil bombed, but things have picked up once again.
I plan on stocking up on canned meats, fresh meat that is on sale (to build up freezer stocks once again), and things like flour, sugar, cheese, toilet paper, paper towels (for the messy things). If I can find olive oil with an extended use by date I will get a couple of those as well. Perhaps some instant coffee will make the list at some point as well. Prices seem to go up each and every week and that is concerning.
Until the price of fuel falls (if it ever does) I think life is going to be tough for a great many people.
Everybody have a wonderful evening.
God bless.
That is my big fear too, Jackie, that until the price of gas falls things are going to be tough. I've been wanting to save seeds too. My grandfather could scrape tomato seeds into a pot of dirt and grow tomatoes. He had such a green thumb.
ReplyDeleteGlad you were under budget for the month - that is great. Hope it warms up soon for you and your area.
ReplyDeleteI am pleased the sun is shining & your seeds are sprouting Jackie - that is positive. Yes its going to get a lot tougher everywhere I fear. xx
ReplyDeleteIt's the same here in UK, prices rising on everything, we keep a good store cupboard, I don't over stock the freezers just in case of power issues.
ReplyDeleteAlways prepare for the storm before the storm hits, eh? That's something we believe in a great deal but occasionally it feels too inconvenient to execute.
ReplyDeleteI suspect it will be a long time before fuel prices drop. Much of the infrastructure in the Middle East has been destroyed, and re-building will take a long time and can't begin before this ridiculous war is over. Those countries, including Canada, cannot supply the rest of the world. What it might do is create more opportunities for renewable sources of energy. Time will tell.
ReplyDeleteWe saw lots of melting too, with the sun, but today is overcast. Hopefully it warms enough to see more of it go away!
It certai, y is a worry world wide. The price and/or scarcity of fuel reflects in so many areas, transportation and growing of food, manufacturing, farming, just to name a few. Probably many more than we realise.
ReplyDeleteI'm thinking of doing an extra stock up shop this week as I have a voucher which will give me £5 of free food if I spend £70. It will all get eaten at some point and may save me doing a big grocery shop next week.
ReplyDeleteWe definitely went over budget in March for groceries because we are trying to stock up our pantry a bit more. I think April will be over as well because there are still some things we need to add.
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