GULF COAST – Today the Public Service Commissioner approved a 40 million dollar interim increase for Gulf Power. As Channel 3′s Anthony Pura reports, it’s part of a bigger 95 million dollar rate hike request made by Gulf Power.

Starting in September, the average Gulf Power household bill will see an increase of about 4 dollars and fifty cents. By April that increase could be up to 12 dollars.

It will soon cost you a little more to turn on a light bulb or flip on the AC.

Sid Braunstein
“4.50 means to me 50 dollars a year, which is the only way I know how to look at it because I’m on a fixed income.”

Sid and Pat Braunstien pay about 230 dollars a month on their Gulf Power bill.
It’s been that way for as long as they’ve had Gulf Power. The electric company has kept its customers rates the same for the past 10 years.

Pat Bruanstein
“I’m still wondering why now? Why such a chunk?”

The simple answer, the price of everything has gone up in those 10 years.

Jeff Rogers, Gulf Power
“There’s been about 25 percent inflation. And other commodities, a lot of the things we need to conduct business has gone up.”

Then there’s also the cost of investing in future technologies

Jeff Rogers, Gulf Power
“Smart grid technology, smart meters that can make electricity even more reliable.”

And depsite the increases, the Braunsteins say they probably wont change the way they use their electricity.

Pat Bruanstein
“We have a kilowatt sucking swimming pool that we wouldn’t change for anything, so there you go.”

In December, the Public Service Commission will look at approving another 8 dollar increase, so that will be about a 12 dollar increase on an average bill. Reporting in Escambia County, Anthony Pura, Channel 3 News.

Source: http://www.weartv.com/newsroom/top_stories

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Xcel Energy says conditions have improved in the companys Texas and New Mexico service territory, but officials are still asking that customers cut back on their use of electricity. The company issued an energy alert early Tuesday due to high electricity demand and maintenance issues at area generating plants.

Xcel Energy says some of the generating units have already come back online and others are in the process of coming online. However, the company is continuing to urge customers to conserve until 8 p.m. Tuesday. Customers are being asked to turn off lights and appliances unless it would harm their health. The company says it declares an energy alert only when a reduction in electricity use is urgently needed to maintain the electricity system and service to customers.

Source: http://m.lufkindailynews.com

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The sun is an incredibly powerful source of energy. It showers the earth with billions of kilowatts of energy every hour. Yet with minimal protection, say a hat and some sunscreen, you can bask in the sunlight with few negative effects. The sun generates loads of power, but it is diffused over the entire solar system.

On the other hand, a laser is a relatively weak source of energy. It generates only a few kilowatts per hours, but focuses it in a cohesive stream of light, producing intense heat and power. With a laser, you can drill a hole in a diamond or even defeat certain types of cancer.

So, as you think of your personal goals, your team or your family, ask yourself, “Am I a sun or a laser?”

Saying “No” to activities that do not support your goals help maintains a laser-like focus.

Saying “No” helped Walgreens outperform the stock market average 15 times between 1975 and 2000. At one point, Walgreens owned more than 500 restaurants. They decided their future was in convenience drug stores and that they would be out of the restaurant business in five years – they redefined their boat. They courageously stuck to their commitment, which required saying “No” many times to ensure a redirection of resources to their new future.

Saying “No” also applies to the day-to-day decisions we make as leaders. For example, if we spend two hours in a meeting that does not help our team achieve its goals, we pay an opportunity cost by spending time on non-value-added tasks. If we find ourselves saying, “That was a waste of time,” or “Why was I attending that meeting?” – these are signs we need to say “No.”

Meetings are an important way to conduct business, but think about the salaries of each attendee and the potential time they could be working on other important goals instead of being in the meeting. Since leaders decide how to use their employees’ time, they must ensure a good return for their time investment. Meetings can be both necessary and useful, but they can also diffuse our focus.

When we know when to say “No”, we keep a laser-like focus that lights our path to success!

Serving You,

Lee J. Colan, Ph.D.
The L Group, Inc.
Leadership at every level

Find out more about lee at http://www.thelgroup.com

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When it was all over, after Martensdale-St. Marys solidified its spot in history and finished a perfect high school baseball season, players performed one more act — somersaults.

Top-ranked Martensdale-St. Marys won its second consecutive state title and national-record 87th straight game with an 8-3 victory Saturday over Kee of Lansing in the Class 1-A state tournament final at Principal Park.

“This is what we set out to do and we did it,” Blue Devils pitcher and outfielder Ethan Westphal said. “I guess it’s a sigh of relief that we got it.”

The win capped off another season of perfection, an undefeated 44-0 mark and a run to the top of the national record books. The 87 consecutive wins are the most by any team in the nation. Earlier in the season, the team passed Portsmouth (N.H.), which had the previous mark of 83 straight wins.

Three members of Blue Devils’ team — brothers Robert and David Walker and teammate Dillon Coates — celebrated the final out, a strikeout by Westphal, by doing flips.

The three, along with Westphal, planned the final act in the dugout before taking the field for their last three outs of the season.

“We were trying to find something new and kind of hip to do,” said Westphal, who matched a state tournament record with former Kee pitcher Kip Peters with eight career victories.

Their run at history hit snags during their first two days of the state tournament. The Blue Devils survived a late scare by English Valleys, a come-from-behind 2-1 victory in the seventh inning of Monday’s quarterfinal. They played with fire again, edging No. 6 Coon Rapids-Bayard with a 5-4 win in Thursday’s quarterfinal.

On Saturday, they didn’t wait. The Blue Devils took a 2-0 lead in the first inning on run-scoring singles by JD Nielsen and Robert Walker.

The lead didn’t last long. The Hawks answered with a run in the first inning and took the lead in the second.

They scored two runs on a run-scoring single by Jordan Milton and a run-scoring groundout by Cole Carroll to make it 3-2.

The Blue Devils tied it again in the fourth inning when Brad Nauman laced a double to left field to make it 3-3.

“We had four pretty good innings,” said Kee coach Gene Schultz, who owns a national-record 1,675 wins.

“They’re just a tough, tough, lineup. They hit the ball well.”

He found out how well in the fifth inning when the Blue Devils broke things open and welcomed Kee relief pitcher Jon Heiderscheit with four runs.

Robert Walker, who finished 2-for-4 with three RBIs, got two of them when he drove in a pair with a double in the inning.

“We had been preparing the last two days for him and the type of pitches that he throws,” Blue Devils coach Justin Dehmer said. “Hats off to our guys. He came in and we just started hitting him right off the bat.”

Westphal pitched four shutout innings in relief, allowing just one hit, to get the win.
He roused the crowd once with his game-ending strikeout of Carroll and then again when he pointed to each of his teammates.

“I’m kind of sad that I don’t get to stay in high school and do it all over again,” Westphal said.

To do it all over again, Martensdale-St. Marys will have to win next season without its two seniors, Westphal and Coates.

State tournament scores and schedule

Dehmer said he isn’t worried about the streak continuing.

“It won’t be about the streak,” Dehmer said.

“You guys will hype it up and talk all about it and whatever it’s worth. It’s great to be part of it, but our job will just be to be the best baseball team that we can be.”

TEAM COULD FACE DISCIPLINARY ACTION
Martensdale-St. Marys deployed an unusual triple play following the team’s 8-3 win over Kee of Lansing in Saturday’s Class 1-A final.

Three infielders simultaneously performed somersaults on the field after the final out.

The athletes had discussed doing something special to joyfully celebrate the win.

Iowa High School Athletic Association officials weren’t amused. The display was witnessed by at least three administrators.

Officials had not yet discussed what action, if any, to take. But one possible penalty would be a letter of reprimand sent to the school, said Todd Tharp, IHSAA assistant executive director.

Tharp said the conduct could be considered unsportsmanlike because it was non-spontaneous and orchestrated.

Several players involved said they planned the flips in the top of the seventh inning.

— John Naughton and Tommy Birch

Source: http://www.desmoinesregister.com

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