Fixin' To Hibernate

I don’t know a lot of people who get excited about composting or building a water collection barrel but I do. If I could install big ol’ solar panels on my roof or have my very own mini windmill farm I’d do that too. So when my energy company installed Smart meters that allow me to go online and check my energy usage down to the hour, I was ecstatic at the potential of this new gadget! 

Okay so a borderline OCD person who hates being cold gets a smart meter (Yes borderline, stop judging me), so what do you think happens next, hmm…? Well, I have become absolutely consumed with insulating my home. Last winter I suffered with drafty windows and doors so I took steps this year to nip that in the bud. I have made so many trips to Home Depot that I think I have contributed to the demise of Lowe’s. Light switch panels and outlets have been insulated. Weathering stripping has been added to old windows. Seals around doors have been replaced, and in some cases beefed up, the wood pile is stocked and the screen porch is in the process of getting insulated as well. 

It is just a shame that there isn’t some way to use leaves to heat your home or some other viable function. If there were maybe I wouldn’t complain about cleaning them up every dang weekend, but I doubt it. I really, REALLY  hate leaves. Sydney got excited on my behalf yesterday when she saw a huge grey squirrel run down the tree, take a single leaf out of our yard and jump the fence. “Hey mom, there’s one less leaf for you to mow!” All I know is those leaves better make my garden soil top notch next spring. My neighbor down the street also has big mature trees and he must have had close to 25 composting bags full of leaves lined down his drive and along the curb to be picked up this morning. The kicker is there are still more to fall so he isn’t done either and that makes me feel a little better. Fortunately we don’t use compost bags very often because I have a 90 gallon trash cart, a ladder and a man who wears a size 12 shoe. You figure it out.