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Reiss’s Pieces
Reiss’s Pieces
I had sort of promised myself not to think so much about the gas prices in 2013, but early in this new year, I changed my tune! Here is what happened…
Malcolm and I decided to take a trip to the Barre-Montpelier Road and do a few chores that we had been saving up to do. One was to go to the new Petco and buy several bags of dog food for Rufus and Lily. So, we got off 89 and came down the hill and once on the Barre-Montpelier Road, realized that we needed gas. Then we noticed that the convenience store/gas station that we often use had a gas price of $3.41. Wow, I thought, that is a lot lower than the price of gas in the Mad River Valley... a lot lower. As I pointed it out, Malcolm said “yes” we would get our gas there, but we should go to Petco first.
Now it was about 1:45pm, I think. So, he went and bought the dog food and I stopped in TJ Maxx and bought my granddaughter a pair of pants that she wanted for her birthday. After our purchases, we got back into the car and went back onto the Barre-Montpelier Rd. and planned on stopping and buying our gas. Now, probably 45 minutes had elapsed and what do you think we saw? In that 45 minutes, the price of gas had gone from $3.41 to $3.57! And I kid you not, I thought that perhaps I had had a brain fart and that the gas never really was $3.41, at least, not just 45 minutes ago. But Malcolm told me that I was correct, that in that mere 45 minutes the price had gone up 16-17 cents.
Had a World War been declared while we bought dog food? What in the world had happened that made it possible to raise the price to consumers by that much in only 45 minutes?
Well, we decided not to buy our gas there but to drive on and see what else was happening, gas price-wise as we drove down the road. And what we saw made the answer all that more confusing. As we approached a small convenience store on River Road where we sometimes purchase gas, we saw that their price was $3.42. So, I can only assume that no one told them about the horror or whatever it was that caused the price of gas right in the middle of the busiest shopping area to go up so much.
We swerved right in and filled our tank. And is this the end of the story? Of course not. As we drove along and headed toward the Montpelier entrance to highway 89, we saw another chain gas station with the price of $3.41! But what I found most interesting was the four gas stations right after this particular one all had prices of about $3.57 to $3.59.
What in the world is going on with the price of our gas? And I don’t know about you, but I just don’t have time to troll up and down and look at the prices at various gas purveyors. Not only that, I certainly don’t want to use up more gas while looking for the least expensive.
Now, I am thinking about our elected officials, at least here in Vermont, and I wonder what they are doing that is more important than figuring out what the deal is with the various and varying prices of gas. All of us consumers know that there is only really one reason for such fluctuation, and the answer is money and greed! As long as consumers continue to pay the exorbitant prices, they will remain at exorbitant levels. And, of course, most places here in Vermont make a vehicle necessary. We don’t have the mass transit opportunities that many other areas of the country have, so buying gas is not a luxury. And I would like to see our legislature and our well-traveled governor take up the issue of affordable gas for their constituents.
Am I wrong? If you think that I am just an old, complaining woman, just drop me a note and explain to me how gas can go up 16, 17, or 18 cents a gallon in less than an hour. Believe me, I would just love to know.
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