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London, ON, May 2008 [Click to enlarge]
It's been a frightening week on planet earth. If you drive a car, you doubtless noticed yesterday's largest-ever single-day rise in crude oil prices, followed by this morning's echo-like spike at the gas pumps. These are historically scary times, and I fear it'll get far worse before it gets better.
Even if you don't drive a car, this affects you, too. Society is built on efficiently moving things from place to place. That takes energy, which adds cost to every step along the supply chain. Those plastic flamingoes that you bought to festoon your lawn for your kid's birthday? From the plastic pellets used to make them to the trucks used to get them to your neighborhood store to the electricity that store uses to keep the lights on...someone's got to pay the freight. Namely, you.
We'll discuss food another day. That's scary in and of itself.
Your turn: You're reading scary headlines almost every day. What are you thinking as you do? Are you frightened? Are you making changes? Do tell.
I'm lucky enough to not drive or have to drive, but I have to admit, I feel I am paying a lot more for my food than I used to (probably because I am). I'm trying to "think globally, buy locally"--hopefully my town's summer farmer's market will give me a chance to support local farms and save a few dollars.
ReplyDeleteDon't even get me started on corn. I'll go on all night.
You bet, I'm making changes. I don't go out every day and I plan my trips carefully, so as to maximize the mileage. Food is getting so high that soon we will eat nothing but beans! I haven't planted any food crops (in pots) but I may have to do that to survive.
ReplyDeleteI am glad we have only 1 car. I dont need one ..as I am working from home...
ReplyDeleteHaving just come back from France last month, I had to appreciate how much CHEEPER our gas is then in Europe...The vehicles in north america or hidiously HUGE and GAS GUZZLING!.. I think that I saw only 3 american made cars in France, the whole 3 weeks I was there...and most all cars are ALOT smaller and compact then here...GEE I wonder why? lol...We rented a Kangoo, Reneau...5 passenger vehicle, that was totally comfortable, ran on diezel and even with the prices so high there, was super economical. Maybe we can learn a few things from those Europeans lol
You might find this article interesting, Carmi. We're behind the times as far as our dependency on oil goes - THAT is scary.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.csmonitor.com/2005/1007/p05s01-woam.html
There's not much else we can do. We sold my car last year and are sharing one; there's no choice about buying gas for the Spouse Thingy to get to work...we could technically move closer to where he works IF we could get out of our lease and if we wanted to live near there. I know we're spending more than double on gas than we were 4 years ago when we moved back here. I'm not happy about that, but there's not a lot we can do. I'm sure as heck not going to let him take his bike to work. It might get killer gas mileage, but he works nights, the job can be stressful, and I'd be freaking the whole time that he'd either not be seen on the Interstate at night and be hit, or the ride home in the morning would be too tiring after a hard night.
ReplyDeleteNot sure what we'll do when gas hits $5 US here, other than suck it up and pay it. Not much choice when it comes to getting to work and buying food...
I drive. Probably too much! But, I am thankful I can still afford to buy gas.... Great post! It really is getting a little scary out there...
ReplyDeleteYes, it's scary. I certainly think twice before I get in my car to go somewhere. I certainly plan my trips.
ReplyDeleteSince I no longer go to a job every day, I don't have to drive, but it's tough on those who have to do it every day.
We've only made one small change so far: carpooling to a particular destination about half an hour away. But we're considering others. We're also trying to get debts paid off so we're not throwing money away on interest. And we're more careful about what we buy and whether we really need it. It is definitely scary.
ReplyDeletePlanning my errands and outings better and more efficiently than I often did. Besides, I really love staying at home. We're eating at home a lot more, which is healthier and cheaper.
ReplyDeleteOnce we move, we should be able to take bikes more often, which will be a good thing. Time to hit the farmers' markets and support the local economy. We also want to grow some herbs and a couple of veggies of our own.
I've also stocked up significantly on wheat.