Pellet stove madness

Folks, it's getting crazy around my house. The temps outside are in the 90's, but we went out and bought a pellet stove this week. Now, my living room is tore up, stuff all over.

Why are we doing this? Well, hubby and I have been talking about getting a pellet stove for a few years. Our electricity costs have been unacceptable to us for a while now, and the cost of electricity is rising. When you use significantly LESS electricity now than the year before, and the bill is higher....it's time to make a change. Plus, the threat of the Energy and Cap Tax (you should google it!) and prices possibly going up due to that, we decided to go for it. At least with a pellet stove, you buy the pellets in the late summer, and there's the bulk of your costs for the winter heating.

Surfing on Craigslist for stoves. Checking prices for new vs used. Researching how to install them. Fun stuff!

This is also a good time for me to reevaluate what is important to me. Our living room is small, and some things HAVE to go to make space for the stove. The treadmill that I have had for over 6 years but haven't used in nearly a full year...time to go. The cabinet that holds my art supplies and candles....gotta go. Weeding through the videos and DVD's to get rid of ones we don't watch anymore, in order to make space for the things I am saving. I actually enjoy this process. It feels good on some level to consciously say "I don't need this anymore. I am getting rid of these things in order to make space for things that I DO need at this time." I do not enjoy how time consuming it is to do this, or having to ask the kids and hubby "do you want this? How about this one?", but I like clearing a shelf for the essence of what is important. It clarifies things for me.

Back to the stove. I am proud and happy to have a handy husband. I am relieved that he researches what he needs, measures 30 times and cuts once. I have trust that he will do the job properly. But, good golly, he gets cranky sorting it out! Hubby becomes frustrated when he cannot easily find the information that he wants, and he mutters to himself about it. He doesn't take his irritation out on me or the kids, but it isn't always pleasant to live with. Fingers crossed that he sorts the issues out soon.

So...it's our newest big project. Just another layer in our attempts to be more self-sufficient here in the suburbs. Now, once we are done with this, I'll see if we can begin working on the solar panels, inverter, and batteries to store energy to run the stove off the grid. That would be totally sweet!