After reading Bill Lewin’s letter about woodsmoke (The NEWS, Nov 26), I would like to ask him to help lobby the gas companies for us people who don’t have natural gas and whose own lobbying has fallen on deaf ears for many years. I would love the warmth and comfort of this utility.
Next, how about lobbying the electric companies who jacked up the bill some 30 per cent in the last few years? Last year, I froze and was still paying $1,200 for power for the months of winter. By the way, there are only two people here and we turn off lights and try to consume as little as we can.
Yes, I do think of people who struggle with woodsmoke when I light the fire. There you are all warm and cosy in your natural gas heated home and cooking on that nice gas stove while the floor of my house feels like the inside of the fridge.
There you sit criticizing us in the paper for trying to stay warm while not understanding the truth. The people who burn wood do so because they can’t afford the alternatives, or there is no alternative.
Does Lewin or anyone else have any answers as to how to restore the feeling to my frozen feet? I battle a runny nose all night too and fight off death sleeping in my frozen house. I’m having heart problems every time I pay the electrical bill and suffer asthma-like symptoms while opening the envelope which contains the bill.
Last year I paid more than $8,000 for electricity. I would gladly use natural gas.
If the smoke bothers you so much, how about lobbying for those of us who the gas company doesn’t deem profitable enough to supply?
Mark FisherQualicum Bay