Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
It's so infrequent for me that I really have to reason to moan and whine.
Then again, I also bought a vehicle that is appropriate for my needs and the size of my family - and one for which you don't consider 25 mpg to be fantastic. I deliberately moved to a city that offered plenty of transportation alternatives even though there is no public transportation. For 90% of my activity, I have no need to get into a car.
My neighbor, though, is elderly, doesn't need to go anywhere, is retired, and has a household size of two. He bought a ginormous gas guzzler that gets something like 15 mpg. Sure, it can seat eight - but I don't think there are ever more than three people in the vehicle. He keeps complaining just how expensive gas is - when in reality, he could have just as easily bought a different vehicle. Instead of relying on the alternatives available here, he hops into his car for absolutely everything - and blows through plenty of gas for no reason whatsoever.
Alas, that's what you see these days: The elderly used to purchase SUV's, now they buy huge pick-up trucks. All on the off-chance that they might have to "transport" something. Oh well, my neighbor has figured out by now that his purchase was foolish...He still hasn't figured out that he doesn't need to drive to the grocery store.
And that, I believe, is part of the issue: An utter unwillingness to change. It's so much easier to whine.
Agreed. Live within your means even when things take a turn for the worse. Some won't, while others are slow to change.
Why is it that few ever talk about the true cause of rising gas prices, QE? Despite a 16 year record low demand gas prices are rising as I predicted due to the Fed's unlimited quantitative easing (money printing) program. It is not the oil companies fault, they make a profit regardless of the oil price.
It's so infrequent for me that I really have to reason to moan and whine.
Then again, I also bought a vehicle that is appropriate for my needs and the size of my family - and one for which you don't consider 25 mpg to be fantastic. I deliberately moved to a city that offered plenty of transportation alternatives even though there is no public transportation. For 90% of my activity, I have no need to get into a car.
My neighbor, though, is elderly, doesn't need to go anywhere, is retired, and has a household size of two. He bought a ginormous gas guzzler that gets something like 15 mpg. Sure, it can seat eight - but I don't think there are ever more than three people in the vehicle. He keeps complaining just how expensive gas is - when in reality, he could have just as easily bought a different vehicle. Instead of relying on the alternatives available here, he hops into his car for absolutely everything - and blows through plenty of gas for no reason whatsoever.
Alas, that's what you see these days: The elderly used to purchase SUV's, now they buy huge pick-up trucks. All on the off-chance that they might have to "transport" something. Oh well, my neighbor has figured out by now that his purchase was foolish...He still hasn't figured out that he doesn't need to drive to the grocery store.
And that, I believe, is part of the issue: An utter unwillingness to change. It's so much easier to whine.
I don't quite get this rant about your neighbor. He has nowhere to go, yet he "hops into his car for absolutely everything"? If the price of gas was bothering him a lot, he could sell the SUV or whatever he drives, and buy a Ford Escort!
I don't quite get this rant about your neighbor. He has nowhere to go, yet he "hops into his car for absolutely everything"? If the price of gas was bothering him a lot, he could sell the SUV or whatever he drives, and buy a Ford Escort!
I know people like that. They have no place they HAVE to be, but they jump into their trucks multiple times a day to go to this store or that one. Then they grumble about how much gas costs. Well, duh! Combine trips, have a vehicle appropriate to your needs, and there will less reason to grumble.
I drive a 12 year old Escort ZX2. It gets good gas mileage, and when we need to haul something, we either rent a truck (Home Depot or Lowe's) or rent a trailer, as we're doing this weekend. It will cost all of $14.95 for the day's use, plus the extra gas, of course.
Despite Bernanke trying hard to crush the middle class some of us are resisting. My plastic powered truck is still motoring along just fine, thank you!
They knew my family was going on a long car trip this week, they just knew. It's a conspiracy!
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
