Gas up to $3.19 today- what are you NOT buying because of gas prices?

[undeterred]

A couple of restuaurants near where I work have gone out of business, so I'm guessing there are less people eating lunch out.

The raise in the price of gas has forced me to carpooling and bringing lunch. Not using the AC as much as I'd like.

I got three letters from great candidates in the mail today, so anything extra is going to them. We've got to get out of this mess.

[The Straight Story]

1. gas :) (nt)

[catzies]

2. I lost 20 lbs. on the ExxonMobil diet. Gas in the tank=less food in fridge

I'm not even kidding.

[cynatnite]

4. Same here...

There is less food and less of just about everything else.

Not only are we not buying gas, we're not going much of anywhere unless we absolutely have to.

We didn't used to have to budget gas consumption, but now we do.

[Broken_Hero]

24. same here...

I never use to budget gas, ever...now its very crucial...its sickening, when I have to spend over 40 effing dollars to fill up a dodge intrepid...I don't know how these big rig drivers deal with it, honestly.

last month, I took my wife, brothers/sister, and a couple of friends up to KC for a ball game, in my gmc vandura...it cost me 81 dollars to fill up the van...and it cost me another 15 bucks, on the return trip, because I got stuck in traffic outside of KC for an hour. And I know these big rigs, aka hummers, any big truck has a gas tank at a minimum of 20 gallons, and it just amazes me that people driving those vehicles can afford gas...

[wanpete]

29. ditto that.

[NMDemDist2]

3. i completely changed my lifestyle just in time

I went from 2 tanks a week to 2 tanks a month so I'm OK for now

[Ian David]

5. People are selling their guns to buy gasoline...

saves those anti-gun Democrats the trouble of TAKING them away, dang nabbit!

:sarcasm:

[tandot]

6. Gas. I am taking the train to work. And we rarely go out to eat anymore.

[undeterred]

7. And that hurts restaurants

I suspect the extra things like movies and dinner out will be among the first to go. Bush and his billionaires can sit back and talk about how great the economy is doing while small consumer driven businesses are closing one after another.

[msongs]

8. you mean gas is DOWN to $3.19? that's good news because

it hasnt been that low here in quite a while.

Msongs
www.msongs.com/2007politicalcalendars.htm

[Retrograde]

19. ya beat me to it!

tell me more about this $3.19 gas - the station closest to me is at $3.29 regular, $3.49 premium - and I've see higher.

Actually, since Mr. Tardigrade's involuntary retirement last week (along with several thousand of his co-workers), we're planning on more local driving to nearby parks - but still only 1 trip a week. Walking the two miles to the grocery store every few days is great exercise, at least until winter sets in.

I've been taking the train to my city gig for years now, mainly because I (1) hate driving in San Francisco and (2) my driveway is sometimes the closest parking place :-). The train's gotten quite crowded recently.

[greguganus]

9. I'm buying less lottery tickets. n/t

[nosillies]

16. I'm buying MORE lottery tickets

In the hopes that a win will allow me to drive somewhere!:D

[liberal N proud]

10. My list:

When traveling - we stop in the rest area and sleep for a few hours, then change drivers and go on. NO HOTEL sorry Best Western you missing out on my $100/night for a few hours of sleep

At Home - We are eating out less, much less, the only time we go out is Thursdays when a local restaurant has wings for $.35/ea.

No special treats - Ice Cream, deserts etc.

Work - No coffee, coke or morning pastry.

Breakfast - eating at home.

Projects that I would be doing at home are going undone. If it isn't broke, don't fix it.

I only leave the house when we must go somewhere and there are no detours in between.

[Protagoras]

11. Gas mostly.

I'm working like hell to drive less, car pool more, and got my bike tuned up.

Beyond that I'm generally thinking more about moving far away and living off the grid. Gotta develop some more practical skills first in order to do so but it seems like a reasonable thing to look toward.

[WhiteTara]

15. hope you have lots of money in the bank

cause that dream is really expensive. Start where you are. Get a large pot, or wine barrel and plant some veggies. Tomatoes and lettuce are good beginnings. Depending on your area, you could add some fresh "homegrown" food all year round, just in a small area. JMHO of course

[Protagoras]

44. Isn't it ironic

That it requires MORE money to live MORE simply? Though I suspect that skills are the real tricky part. Hard to set up something efficienty when you don't know how to design it or maintain it. Dead Tomato plants don't feed anyone...neither do broken solar panels. I gotta get back to my learnin :D

I need a good book.

[WhiteTara]

49. go to the Real Goods website

they have all the books. Meanwhile do start with some little plants. Maybe herbs. Basil is a great one and you can even use little leaves in your cooking. Just suggestions to get you started. I lived off grid with all my own systems (water, heat, roads, electricity) for about 10 years and I'm getting ready to do it again.

[Protagoras]

50. Great ideas and thank you.

bookmarking the site now.

[Robbien]

12. My bike is getting more of a workout

Before I grab my car keys now, I now think about maybe taking my bike instead. And do.

[JAYJDF]

13. The short term easiest way to make up the difference is savings

Either at your bank or at work for retirement. Heck, more are now being forced to "live for the day" instead of being able to "save for a rainy day"

[RagAss]

41. I hear ya....but it already rained.....

[union_maid]

14. Gas is not that big a part of our budget

For my husband and me, anyway, the gas itself is not that bad. We both work close to home, do errands close to home and we're pretty much homebodies by choice. How this is affecting other things, starting with utilities but ultimately including the price of everything is a different story. I'm more careful about the price of fruit. This summer hasn't brought as much in the way of low priced seasonal fruit as most summers. I'm assuming the price of oil plays a part in that. Food in general is up, but I noticed the fruit because it's summer. I don't buy so many tickets to concerts. We used to go to a bunch of folk music festivals and concerts each year. The cost of living is making that a lot harder. We didn't go out to eat all that much, but now we never do.

[NNadir]

17. Um gas?

I try to limit my consumption of gasoline, and really, really think about situations in which driving is optional. If there's any way to avoid driving, I do so.

[TheCowsCameHome]

18. Buying less gas, consolidating errand trips, eating out less

and doing whatever shopping I can online.

[kestrel91316]

20. Mostly just gas.

[Initech]

21. I stopped using my credit cards

Yup, I only use them for college-related expenses now. Nothing more, nothing less.

[savemefromdumbya]

22. not buying gas

[Broken_Hero]

23. not buying a lot of things

gas is taxing on us...its damn near our second highest bill, after mortgage and car payment...we spend at least 200plus a month on gas. We don't go anywhere, cause we can't afford to pay for any extra gas, and our more well off friends, get the impression we don't want to visit, but in truth, visiting does cost money, that we don't have...and of course, the road goes both ways, and no one comes our way either(mostly)...

[RebelOne]

25. No change in my lifestyle.

My commute to work is only 26 miles round-trip, so the gas price has not affected me that much. I only have to fill up once a week. I am a single person and the only family I support is my 2 dogs.

[Cha]

26. I finally gave up my car..

but if it's not one thing it's another as the story goes. I'm cutting corners all over the place and setting my priorities straight.

What Congress worry? Gas goes up they can just give themselves another raise and they're set for life. They got their own retirement plan, they don't need to sweat no stinking Social Security.

This may seem like a non sequitor but it made a perfect segue to me.

[undeterred]

27. they don't feel the pain

that the average American does... and they aren't willing to assign blame where its due. Didn't I just hear this morning that some retiring oil company exec got a 400 million dollar retirement package. How the hell does that make sense?

[Homer Wells]

28. I was driving down WV Route 2 this afternoon, a few miles

outside of Parkersburg, WV. Normally on a warm summer weekend afternoon the traffic is fairly steady, with families out shopping, going on picnics, or whatever.

It felt quite strange to look down the highway and see it almost deserted. There were the occasional vehicles, of course, but not what you would expect. With gas hitting around $3.09 to $3.19 here, I think most folks are just finding new things to do that don't involve driving.

I know I no longer go out for casual drives, and try to make one trip do for a lot of different purposes. Although I was born shortly after WW2, I recall reading that during gas rationing, folks kept off the roads a lot more than they had prior to the war. I guess the price increases of modern times will be doing that for us also.

[graywarrior]

30. I drive 60 miles round trip to get to & from work for a $9 per hour job

I may have to quit. But there is nothing in this area that pays as well.

[undeterred]

33. ouch!

thwt hurts... but I bet a lot of people are doing that

[TheFarseer]

31. I'm putting off purchases

like I wanted a new computer etc, but that credit card bill every month makes it seem like I can't afford it right now. Mostly driving less though. I walk places if it's under a mile. If I want something, I get it on the way home from work and no where out of the way. Those sons-of-bitches can't have any more of my money than completely necessary. Oh, and I don't drive to see my parents nearly as much anymore.

[napi21]

32. We don't drive anywhere that isn't necessary, and shop less than

the once a week we used to. I keep getting ads to visit Atlanta's museums, acquarium, etc, and there's no way I'm driving the 80 RT to do that. We never really did eat out much, and do none at all now. There are NO leisurely drives on a pretty afternoon.

I've been making my own mixes and cooking from scratch for quite a while now, since the instalation of Shrub! I keep looking for more ways to save, but haven't found any new ones lately.

[Nabia2004]

34. Its the increase cost of food that is hurting me

I don't drive that much at all, but I do love my fresh fruit and vegetables. The high cost of fuel is reflected in every commodity. I've been cutting back on my personal luxuries but I'm still falling behind. I plan on renting my extra bedrooms now.

[barb162]

37. That's what I notice a lot more

[Samurai_Writer]

35. Lots of changes here

Shop only once every two weeks instead of every week. (20 mile round trip)

Washing clothes by hand instead of going to the laundromat once a week. I go once every two weeks now. (20 mile round trip)

Consolidating trips with housemates. For example, we have to take our trash and recycles down to town (no trash or recycle pick up here). So we pile it all in one truck and take it down, instead of everyone taking their own down. (20 mile round trip)

Not buying as much groceries. Prices for groceries are going up with the cost of gas.

Not going out to eat or movies at all.

Cut down on visiting my sister from once a week to once every two to three weeks (60 mile round trip)

Spending more on car maintenance, to keep my 22 year old bronco II running. Can't afford car payments like I used to.

[barb162]

36. Nothing different at all

And I expect it to go a lot higher

[Nicole]

38. Gas

I don't work so daily driving is not a must for me anyway. I walk or ride the bus for most errands.

I filled my tank on July 4th & have driven about 20 miles since then.

[Blackhatjack]

39. So what is the US pump price at $200/barrel oil?

That is the figure being batted around if Iran is attacked.

[RagAss]

40. You know who's still buying everything they want..??.. Fucking Neocons

[Blackhatjack]

42. And the richest 1% who got the biggest tax breaks ....

I understand that yacht sales have never been higher. Think the middle class has finally scraped together the $ necessary to push up yacht sales?

[undeterred]

43. I think we're being manipulated

Watch it creep up to $5 over the next 2 months and then magically drop right before the mid-term elections, coordinated with an Osama tape.

[marions ghost]

45. less everything

less food
less clothing
less books, CDs etc
less gifts
less nonessentials
less eating out
less travelling
less house repair
less contributions

Just less all around.
But I was already living frugally by some standards, so there's not a lot of margin left now.

[undeterred]

46. ...

:hug:

[burythehatchet]

47. Escorts

[undeterred]

48. They're expensive.

[earthmama]

51. consignment sales for all daughter clothes

I used to get about 50% at consignment but know I am getting everything. cut back on HBO and movie rentals, Not eating out, cooking simple meals , buying more frozen veggies then fresh ( I hate this), not driving to any store that is more then 5 miles from my house.