A not very merry, but then a Merry Christmas. Putting up Christmas lights can increase one's electric bill, but not by that much.
http://www.tucsonnewsnow.com/story/37136365/woman-receives-284-billion-electric-bill
Wow! Two things really stood out in this article. First, it goes to show you that decimal points do matter. And second, you gotta love the author's opening line: "...a 12-figure electric bill gave one Pennsylvania utility customer the shock of a lifetime." (Where was that Tucson News columnist back when we were doing all those electricity puns on that other thread?)
BTW, Spoiler alert below if you haven't read the story yet!
Way better than paying the original billion dollar amount, but I find even the $284.46 bill excessive! Almost three hundred bucks for electric in a month? - maybe they did in fact put up the Christmas lights wrong!
Wow, $284 is a lot, esp given that the power rate is 10.15 cents a kWh. Might be on electric heat/water heater/stove, using incandescent bulbs, and leaving lights and TV on all day.
Tucson average bill is $120.
$284 does sound high. Perhaps more was misplaced than decimal points. Perhaps this was a bill for a small business rather than a residential bill. Pennsylvania can get cold, and if one heats only with electricity, a $284 bill is not that absurd. The article leaves a lot of loose ends dangling. But eerie things might happen in Erie.
Good thing the bill was corrected and this person's electricity was not turned off.