Sunday, 9/11. On the Road Again.

Yes, today’s the anniversary of 9/11. Just like the day John Kennedy was shot (if you remember that far back), you probably remember exactly where you were and what you were doing when you heard about the World Trade Center towers being hit by passenger jets, and then watching in horror as the buildings fell, one after the other.

Unlike that day (I was at work, but found a television), today we are driving through six southeastern states. As I write this Carol is driving us north on I-81 through western Virginia.

No, I am not driving and typing on this laptop at the same time. Although I am multi-talented and can multi-task on occasion, I am not a lunatic.

Well, at least most of the time I’m not. Although Carol might dispute that.

My topic for today is the price of gas. We finally found ourselves at a point where we needed gas, and there was not a convenient opportunity to get far enough off the interstate that we could find gas below $3 per gallon.

Always before I’ve been able to “shop” for price by watching billboard ads or gas station price placards, and find gas at or below $2.99. In many of the small towns in Georgia we saw (and bought) gas for less than $2.80. The cheapest gas I’ve bought this entire trip was for $2.69, but they limited you to ten gallons.

Just now, before Carol started driving, I paid $3.02.

I know; that’s only a few cents more than $2.99. It just seems as if a line has been crossed!

I imagine you’re thinking, “Quitcher bitching!” And you’re right. I have a choice. I can always turn around and go home and wait for prices to go down. But I’m not going to do that.

No, I’ll just stay the course, pay the price they ask and have less money at the end of this trip than I had planned. Logically, though, it galls a bit. Since the small town stations can sell gas for $2.79 and still make a profit, you KNOW the stations near the interstates are getting a windfall and are resisting competitive pressure to lower prices as long as possible.

And it’s always been like that to some extent. But when the average price of gas nearly doubles “overnight,” seeing retailers squeeze an additional few pennies out of us just seems wrong.

Ah, well. Only another 150 miles to our destination. This tankfull will more than get us there, so I won’t have to buy any more gas for a few days.

Oh, yes; to finish last night’s post… It was Carol’s birthday, and we drove into Madison, GA, to the Chop House for dinner. Since I KNOW Karyn is wondering, we BOTH ordered the pecan-crusted trout. It was just as delicious as before!

Tonight, since we’re staying in a commercial campground (as opposed to a state park), I think we’ll have internet access right there without having to search for somebody’s unsecured wifi signal. If so, you’ll see this posted on Sunday (today). If not, I’ll get it up tomorrow.