I am a Water Snob

A couple of years ago the town put the water and sewer lines down our street. It's not mandatory to hook in, but even if you don't you have to pay an assessment. I was also told that at some point in the future the town may require that everyone hook in to the water and sewer lines.

My husband decided that since we were being assessed for this that we should hook in. He also thought we would save money on bottled water and the savings could be put towards the tax. I'm not sure of the exact amount of the assessment, but I do know that we were spending approximately $36 each month on the 5-gallon water bottles which translates into $432 a year on bottled water. Our assessment may be twice that.

Anyway, here's my story. I was not happy that he wanted me to give up the bottled water. Water is my beverage of choice. I don't drink soda or juice. When I reach for a beverage, I reach for water. I tried drinking the tap water, but I could honestly tell the difference.

I think we hooked into the city water in November. I believe that it takes at least three weeks to begin to change a habit. I gave it until the beginning of March. I just couldn't do it! I considered adding the bottled water to my grocery budget. But I was afraid I'd get the silent treatment if I just showed up at home with the 5-gallon bottles of water. So, I started buying 2-3 one-gallon jugs. When there was no reaction from my husband, I decided I would give him the money and ask him to go buy the 5-gallon jugs of water.

Last Saturday, I put $20 on the kitchen counter and I asked him. He asked me, "What's wrong with the tap water?" I said, "I don't like it." Now, you have to know my husband. He's an extremely calm person. In fact, he's almost comatose. But after almost 25 years of marriage, I can tell when he's not happy, and he had that unhappy look on his face. All he did was take a deep cleansing breath and went on with his day.

When I came home from snowflaking Saturday night, there was a water contraption on the counter. The next day he hooked it up. It has it's own spout for the drinking water. He said, "Here's your filter. Now the water should taste better to you."

I have to admit...the water really does taste better.

Everybody's Talking

Everybody's talking about the tax rebate that we're supposedly going to receive. It seems that very few people think that it's a big deal. Does anyone really believe it's going to "stimulate the economy"? What exactly does that mean anyway? Once the economy is "stimulated" then what? Will the national debt go down? Will the price of oil and gasoline go down? What?

Most of the people I talk to are going to use their rebate (if we get it) to pay down debt. That's how I plan to use mine. My local newspaper surveyed people over the weekend and many of them said the same thing: pay bills. If the majority uses the rebate to pay bills, will the economy be stimulated? I've only heard one person say the he would buy a Nintendo Wii with his rebate. I was shocked. I shouted at him, "No! No! No!" I think he thought I was a lunatic.

My state governor and lawmakers want to stimulate the state's economy. I don't think we're getting a rebate, but they believe we need a tax break. It appears that the politicians can't agree on exactly what to do.

What about your state? Is your state government trying to ease your financial burden?