Gas Prices going up, up, up!

Although prices at the pump may be on the wane, the prices Californians pay for the natural gas which is pumped into their homes continues to climb. PG&E warns:

With nighttime frost already dusting Northern California, the region's largest utility predicted that its average residential customer will spend about $83.40 each month on gas for cooking, heating and hot water this season, compared to $75.41 last year.

There was a 26.8 percent jump in the average bill last year. And since December 2002, PG&E's natural gas bills have soared by nearly one-third.

Southern California is experiencing record-cold, so I imagine that combined with increased usage, the higher prices will pack a double-punch.