I live in a 4 room house (room, not bedroom)
We use gas for heating about 2 hours a day, if that, and for washing up. The shower is electric. Now please justify a 725% increase in the gas price to me. Please do, because I'd fucking love to be enlightened.
(BelladonnaAnodyne Melissa's gonna wet herself, I swear..., Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:27, 4 replies, latest was 15 years ago)

maybe you or your predecessors have been underpaying for years
driving prices up for the rest of us? nobody WANTS an office job. most of us leave school thinking we'd rather slit our wrists. but then we have to grow the fuck up. the sad fact of the matter is, unless you happen to be very good at thinking of some entrepreneurial scheme, or you are stunning enough to make it in front of a camera.... if you want to be able to pay for things like gas and food and clothes..... most of the jobs are going to be in an office!
( rachelswipe with a fork, Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:31, Reply)

And not all office work is as shit as I make it sound
While I do complain about the shit times here, I don't tend to mention the fact we have a cracking laugh a lot of the time because I know you'd find it fucking boring
( Agnostic Antichrist Baltimora, Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:33, Reply)

I'm not completely retarded, thank you.
But I'd posit that there's a difference between a job I would do happily, that happens to be in an office, and an 'office job'.

Out of curiosity, how old do you think I am? Because unless you actually think I'm 12, please don't fucking talk to me like I am.
(BelladonnaAnodyne Melissa's gonna wet herself, I swear..., Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:34, Reply)

don't get all arsey with her
the way it comes across is that you are bitching about the cost of stuff, but aren't particularly willing to take a job that would help sort it out.

Now, it's very likely that is not the whole story, but that is certainly how it seems.
( Vipros. clever got me this far, then tricky got me in, Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:36, Reply)

Fine, sorry.
I'm not bitching about the cost of stuff, I was bitching about being given a week to find the money for a 725% price increase - which I think you must be able to agree is pretty fucking shit of them.

Also, I'm not 'unwilling to take a job that would help sort it out', there are plenty of jobs I'd do. My remark about how I'd 'rather starve' was supposed to be glib - of course I wouldn't rather starve, I'd rather not get shafted by the gas company.

Do you honestly think that when I graduated nearly a year ago, I thought I'd be in this situation now?
(BelladonnaAnodyne Melissa's gonna wet herself, I swear..., Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:42, Reply)

ok
1. If you stopped swearing all the time and spoke like a grown up we may treat you like one
2. Sell some of your shoes if it's that bad.
( TGB checking Off Topic is still shit at, Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:44, Reply)

the unpleasant truth is that times are fucking hard
I've just come through a period of redundancies in my company, which could quite easily have seen me not able to pay my mortgage and thus lose the house that I've worked pretty hard to have.

Utility companies are fucking shit, we've argued with them like motherfuckers to keep our bills down, when they try and do similar things.

Usually there are people who work in them who are't complete cunts, and you might want to try and get hold of them.

As far as I know they can't suddenly say you owe them that money, so if they are saying they will increase your direct debit or whatever, tell them fine, you are taking your business elsewhere. See what they say to that.
( Vipros. clever got me this far, then tricky got me in, Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:46, Reply)

Try this link
scottishpower.metafaq.com/help/sp-online-engy-serv/enter_my_reading_online

That will give you instructions on how to enter a meter reading, if you've got an online account with them. That way, you can argue against your bill. If not, get one.
( Agnostic Antichrist Baltimora, Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:48, Reply)

They decided last year that I owed them two grand on account of undercharging and all that.
They're fucking serious fucking cunts, I paid them a grand and _still_ had to pay £170/month.
( G/PP 💩💩💩💩💩&#128, Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:55, Reply)

Yeah
It's more the fact that they seem to have arbitrarily and from no-fucking-where decided that they want *all* our money that's particularly galling.
(BelladonnaAnodyne Melissa's gonna wet herself, I swear..., Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:57, Reply)

Say to them "Right, you've got two options, #1 is to take me to court who will see my finances and make me pay you £10/month for 2 years until it's written off...
... or you can be resonable and give me an affordable figure".

Speak to their "Debt Recovery Department", they're generally more sympathetic.
( G/PP 💩💩💩💩💩&#128, Tue 8 Mar 2011, 14:17, Reply)

i would guess you are about 25
so if you went to uni - and i am sure i remember a colourful little rant about your legal ambitions, so i think that you did - that means that you are at the prime age for junior jobs in any office. you can't just walk into any career and do it "happily"; nobody will hand you something on a plate that you think is Good Enough for you.

actually, vipros put it very well indeed!
( rachelswipe with a fork, Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:41, Reply)

Sorry.
See above.
(BelladonnaAnodyne Melissa's gonna wet herself, I swear..., Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:43, Reply)

fair enough!
i suggest a formal letter back to them asking them to come and read the meter again but in the meantime any action they might take will be vigorously defended. reserve the right to show the letter to the court on the question of costs etc etc.
( rachelswipe with a fork, Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:57, Reply)

Check your meter. We've just finished winter, and if they haven't actually checked they'll tend to "estimate" that you've just hacked one of your pipes through to make a handy kitchen flamethrower.

(wellgroomedwookiee is a filthy-minded hobgoblin, Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:34, Reply)

^^This
Definitely this
( Agnostic Antichrist Baltimora, Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:38, Reply)

This
I got a bill through for £300 for a winter quarter in my old three-room flat. When I gave them the actual meter reading it went down to about £65.
(berk, Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:44, Reply)

You're here?!
Where's my gaz telling me how much you've missed me since Sunday??
( TGB checking Off Topic is still shit at, Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:47, Reply)

I've been asleep.
And I'm only popping in here between GOING OUT TO PLAY IN THE SUNSHINE.
(wellgroomedwookiee is a filthy-minded hobgoblin, Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:48, Reply)

I hate you

( TGB checking Off Topic is still shit at, Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:53, Reply)

*huggles*

(wellgroomedwookiee is a filthy-minded hobgoblin, Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:55, Reply)

whatevs
I'm going to go smoke in the sun
( TGB checking Off Topic is still shit at, Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:57, Reply)

Write a formal complaint, they have to record all that shit for the regulators.

(PsychoChomp, Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:35, Reply)

Kill fewer Jews?

( JeffTheDogFucker Can you dig it?, Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:39, Reply)

Surely she should get a reward for doing that?
You know, services to the public, and all that.
( Agnostic Antichrist Baltimora, Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:41, Reply)

Oh, so not only do they want *all* my money, I have to give up my favourite hobby too?

(BelladonnaAnodyne Melissa's gonna wet herself, I swear..., Tue 8 Mar 2011, 13:44, Reply)