Gratitude for Gas Pain? by Barbara Quinn

Gasoline is over $4 a gallon now. And while it may sound strange, I can find a little to be grateful for in this. The high price has caused us to focus on something we’ve been ignoring for many years: we need to change our spendthrift energy ways before the world runs out of oil. We need to conserve now while we have some time to develop alternative fuel sources.

Sure we can drill offshore and we can mine previously untapped gas fields. But it’s time to diversify. We are the largest consumer of oil. China is a growing economy and they are tapping the world’s supply of oil, the same supply that we are tapping. It’s way past time to work diligently on this problem.

The market is responding to the pain at the pump, and so is the public. I’ve seen articles about grassoline and Willie Nelson’s bio-diesel is becoming more popular. People are investigating wind power, wave power, solar power, and geothermal power. All of these begin looking less exorbitant and more attractive when the price of oil continues its march upward. People are biking and boating to work. I’m walking more and making sure to combine errands to minimize miles in my car. I read an article saying take out the 100 lb. golf clubs from the trunk for better gas mileage.( Gee..That means losing weight is another way to get better gas mileage.) There are fewer cars on the highway when I drive to the shore. And there are a lot of smaller automobiles.

Yes, there’s a down side to this. The price of food and milk is going through the roof because of the added expense of transportation. Anything that requires transport has gone up in price. People have less disposable income and still must pay for medicine and doctor bills, which makes life much more difficult for too many. I noticed even the dollar store is now charging $1.25 for their items. The cost of commuting has skyrocketed. With the public having less to spend, restaurants and entertainment venues are feeling the pain too. Sadly, volunteers can’t afford to drive to their volunteer jobs.

If we can put men in space and on the moon, surely we can solve this energy problem. Encourage your children to work on solutions now. And hey, it’s time to investigate the record profits being recorded by oil companies.

Meanwhile, I’m counting on that personal jet pack I read about the other day. If it gets good mileage, that sure would get me out of my Nissan!

A Lucky Day by Barbara Quinn

Today I turned into a different drive-up ATM than I normally use. The car ahead of me stopped short of the ATM machine and a man exited from the rear seat. I saw a bill fluttering on the ground near the machine, and I figured the fellow was going to fetch it. Someone must have dropped it. Ah, if only I had been a few seconds earlier, I'd have scored the fluttering bill. Lucky guy. But the man was talking on his cell phone. He used the ATM and never noticed the money. He returned to the car, still on his phone, and climbed in the back seat. The car and all its oblivious occupants drove away.

I couldn’t believe my good fortune. I stopped at the ATM, opened the door, leaned over and grabbed the bill. A twenty! It was like winning the lottery. Other than one time when I found a ten dollar bill in a cab in NYC, money hasn’t ever appeared without hard work.
(You should know I have a mail subscription to the New York State lottery, which I have only once won $20 from in about twelve years. But, hey, you really do never know.)

I was already in a good mood. My workout at the gym had gone well. Nothing was aching and I shared a cup of green tea afterward with a good friend. And then I found that twenty. I knew that I was smiling.

We never know what’s waiting for us, including a twenty dollar bill on the ground. Here’s to random good luck. May it be in your favor a few times in your life.

PS My grateful gas tank immediately sucked up the twenty.