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I live in south Georgia, where the heat and humidity of July and August are constantly competing to see which can attain the highest number. When these two join forces, which occurs on a daily basis for most of the summer, they create a "sauna" effect. Just stepping out your door in the afternoons feels like walking into a giant steambath. Everyone is miserable in this siuation - especially me. I am extremely hot natured. I prefer my home's interior to hover around 68 degrees - all year. Since I can't afford an $800 power bill on my teacher's salary, I've had to come up with some ways to remain comfortable and still be able to afford luxuries like food and clothing.

BE A TRAFFIC COP
When I was a kid and would leave the door open, or go in and out repeatedly, my dad would always yell, "Close that door! Do you think we can cool the back yard? I don't own Georgia Power!" I thought he was just being an old fogey, but now that I'm the resident old fogey in charge of paying the power bill, I understand. I know this is pretty basic, but I don't think people realize how much cool air they lose when an outside door is opened. This same rule applies to oven doors, refrigerator doors, and freezer doors.

BE A FAN OF FANS
Fans create the feeling of cool by moving body heat and by helping evaporate perspiration. We have ceiling fans in almost every room. We also use portable fans beside our beds at night. They're not exactly chic decor, but we just hide them in the closet if we're entertaining. It's great to feel that nice breeze blowing when you're trying to fall asleep.

A BUDGET'S BUDGET
Check with your power company about budget billing. Ours offers this service, thank goodness. With budget billing, your power bill will be the same every month of the year. For example, without budget billing, our bills for the hottest months would be astronomical. Since we only have a few weeks of cold weather, however, our late fall and winter bills would run about $100. Never knowing how much our power bill is going to be would play havoc with my monthly budget, but with budget billing, I know my bill will be $260 a month for the whole year.

SUNBLOCK FOR YOU HOME
Keep the sun's rays out of your home during the hottest part of the day. If you can find some insulated drapes in a light color that won't make your house look like your grandmother's, they are the most effective for keeping out the heat and keeping in the cool. If all you can find are heavy curtains that remind you of the fifties,

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