BellaOnline Forums Money Home Ownership How are gas prices affecting your life?

How have the gas prices affected you? Have you had to change the way you live?

There are so many cars on the road and the gas prices are so high, I often wonder how people are coping with this.

Share your thoughts and ideas on how you're coping.


Rosemary Rugnetta
Home Ownership Site

So far, it hasn't affected our life much. We are spending less in other areas and not taking any unnecessary trips. Did you know that in Europe, gas prices have been much higher than the US for years? Of course, the US is a large place.

I've never been to Europe but I do know that the gas prices are much higher than here in the US. I can't say for sure but I do think you have more efficient cars than we have here. It seems that everyone here drives a truck or SUV.

I live in Maryland. In the US, we have always had so much that we have taken for granted our what we thought were unlimited resources, but they are very limited. The gas crunch is giving us a message. Unfortunately, we have a larger car but it is fairly good on gas. We are looking at a smaller version with better fuel economy. Not ready for a hybrid until they get the technology figured out.

Fortunately for me and my DH, we both own Toyota Corollas which are freakin amazing on gas milage. It hasn't affected us one bit as both of us have just a small intown commute to work. We feel very grateful to own 2 cars that are very fuel efficient, but we do miss the days (back in 98 when gas was 87 cents a gallon) when it only cost us around $12 to fill up the tank.

I was just thinking about this very thing on my way to work today. We have definitely condensed our driving as much as possible, combining errands and trips whenever we can, and we actually sometimes pass on a social gathering that we would perhaps have gone to in the past (granted, if we're passing on it because of gas prices, we probably didn't really want to go in the first place).

I am a business owner, and I really think that gas prices and the overall increase in prices of groceries, etc, are noticeable here. I own a tutoring center, and I really think we lose some clients because they have to trim somewhere and tutoring is no longer in the budget. It's a shame because some of these kids really need it. We try to accommodate as much as possible, but a line is drawn and there are always some who still can't make it work. It's sad. I, too, miss the days of 87 cents a gallon.

We, too,have efficient vehicles which are both fairly new. My husband has an hour drive to work and alternates between the two vehicles every other week. So we only fill up one a week at a cost of anywhere between $50 to $60 a week. We also have condensed our trips and don't go anywhere that is not a necessity. Oh, the good old days when it was cheaper. Yes we miss them. It's amazing how, once in awhile (and very seldom) when the price per gallon goes down a few cents, we get all excited. I mentioned that to him about a month ago how sad it is that going down a few pennies can bring a smile to our face. Needless to say, we weren't smiling this weekend when it up over 20 cents so fast.

I bundle car trips as much as possible, and no more spur-of-the-moment drives to Lake Michigan to check on birds. I also keep an eye on the gas prices, around here they can bounce up and down as much as 25 cents a gallon from one end of the week to another, so I try to fill up on a down point and not let the tank get below 1/4 so I won't get caught short and be forced to buy when the price is high.

Hubby and I switched vehicles with each other. I drove a very fuel-efficient coupe regularly while he had an SUV. Since he travels about 30 miles round trip daily for work we decided that we should switch vehicles since I don't put on as much mileage as he does.

We still drive the SUV on the weekends when we're together. It's not horrible with fuel-efficiency and since I have arthritis it's a lot more comfortable for me to get in and out of.

Gas priced are so ridiculous they make me want to explode LOL!