Sep 10 2008
Wanting to save money and ended up spending more
In his rush to get to work, Francesco forgot the cooker on. He was always been careful with things like this and always notices the switch if they are on. But this particular day, fate played fould on him.
I usually get my breakfast right after he leaves for work when he is in the morning shift. But this time I stayed longer in bed and got up at 9 AM. Looking in the cupboard I was going to grab the granola and warm it but I decided I better finish the leftover pasta from last night. I went back to the room and got online.
Two hours later I decided it’s time for gym so I went back to the kitchen to fill my water bottle. Reaching for the pitcher that was next to the cooker I felt something warm. To my surprise, the smallest burner was on and even if it was in the lowest, looking at the clock, it had been on for more than 5 hours. My heart sank at the thought of wasted gas and money.
I tried to recall if I turned it on but I used the microwave to heat my food. There are three of us in the house, Felipe, Francesco and Me. Felipe is always in the morning shift. I was curious which of them must have left the burner on.
I thought of texting Francesco but I know it was gonna anger him and he might get distracted at work. So I told myself that I would wait till he gets home.
At 1 pm I got back from the gym and made lunch. The thought of wasted gas was disturbing me as it could have cooked two pans of chicken soup and more. At last Francesco came but I thought that it was not a good timing to tell him about it. So I fed him first and asked him if he used the cooker in the morning. When he affirmed it I broke the news. He was in disbelief. Finally, he confessed, “Maybe because I was rushing because I was running late. I used the bike to save money…” He sighed. He didn’t continue his sentence but I knew what’s in his mind. He wanted to save money but he ended up spending more.
Sometimes we tend to do commit the worst mistakes for wanting to make things perfect. Then we blame and curse ourselves for being inadequate and inefficient. We get so hard on ourselves as if we had done nothing right. But instead of wasting time dwelling on our mistake let’s just try to learn a lesson from it.
