it’s kind of a mix of everything.

I grew up poor. like, “take a nap for dinner” poor. I was afforded great opportunities that allowed me to become comfortably wealthy, as in I can freely go to the store and just buy groceries without concern. This is important because I always promised myself that when I grew up I would live comfortably.

I keep my house between 68F-72F year round. I don’t open my windows because I have terrible allergies (that my kids have also inherited). at least half of my bill is just heating and cooling. the other half is likely a mix of the servers and the regular appliances.

I have family ranging from 30-60 years old. when I told them how much I spend on power their eyes popped out. they don’t run their hvacs as much as I do, and actually use their windows and attic fans. they also don’t have the allergic reactions I have either so 🤷.

in my old home, 1600sqft, our highest bill was around $300, and that was still high for the area. our neighbors were average between $100-$150. they were in their 70s though, so likely they didn’t use their hvac as much either, nor the technology I was running.