One for the nearly 40 "something" or 40 "something" males?

Question

How normal is it to follow people around my house switching off lights after them and getting obsessed with the "Economy 12"?
I have read books that telling me it is OK to obsess and it comes to all men about my age (39 BTW). Will it pass?
It's not an Eco friendly thing it is simply mean....I think.

Answer 1

Yes, you are getting crotchity [sic], which will become more of a question as you age, no doubt!
I have more problems with a man calling himself, 'Bubbles', dude!

Answer 2

Hi. I'm a '40 something' woman. Its not only you men that do this. I follow my hubby round each room switching lights off after him, it drives him mad, especially when he's working in different rooms. I also go round shutting the doors to keep the heat in the rooms. I also tip sauce bottles, shampoo bottles, hand creams etc upside down to get the last drop out of them. Its not an obsession, its called 'saving money'. I hate to see money going down the drain. So don't worry. You're just being sensible.

Answer 3

I'm not, but then again I put in CFL (Compact Fluorescent Lights) that use about one tenth the amount. I am no psychologist, but it sucks shelling out money that is getting harder to come by. Want to be Eco friendly, get the CFL bulbs, and you won't have to worry so much about switching them off. Take it easy

Answer 4

Economy is common-sense, esp. if you are the one paying the bills. Obsession is when it interferes with your normal life, that what you are doing must be overridden by your innate need to get up and fulfill a reasonably unnecessary task. So you need to assess your problem given the definitions. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder can be treated by medication; if not treated, it will nearly always escalate and be debilitating, and annoying to others. I have a neighbour who, when it rains at night, will walk over to the nearby sewer drain and look in, and stay there, assumedly to ensure water flow, and he trained his son to do so. Like clockwork, he starts his truck in the rain, turns the lights on and off, pulls in and out of his driveway multiple times, gets out, checks the doors and gets on the ground and looks under the truck, over and over again. It drives his next-door neighbours to distraction. I'm told he doesn't take his medication. So if you are diagnosed as such in lieu of frugality, and are put on medication, be sure to take it.

Answer 5

Yes, I switch lights off too. I also switch off the stand-by button on the tv whenever it's not being used. This is because I pay the bill and because I read that stand-by buttons require 3 power stations to keep them going.

Answer 6

This is perfectly normal behaviour. Don't worry. You'll be flicking the central heating thermostat down a notch or two before you know it. It's a realisation that it's you that pays the bills while those around you don't seem to give a Donald Duck.

Answer 7

Wow so many weird people with similar hang ups in one place.
Hey get the fluorescent bulbs and forget shutting them off.
I seldom use the minimum wattage to overcharge the flat rate.
Summer time when I use power tools.. Bet you got air condition and heat pumps or electric central air.

Answer 8

i don't know anything about "economy 12" , but i follow every one around the house turning off the lights because i'm the one who pays the light bill.

Answer 9

I think it just should be a common pledge at any age because energy and environment is a binomial to observe anyway!
Today there's too profligacy and wastefulness at any level.
Undoubtedly, 40 is too late for beginning such right struggle.

Answer 10

PMSL . . . keep having a go at wor lass for that and no it gets worse, you start to turn lights off when you're in the room reading etc