CJ: Pinched at the pump 

Your assignment: With gas prices at an all-time high, MSNBC is asking its readers to discuss ways in which they've changed their lives because of fuel costs.

Montauk blues
Although it's interesting hearing about places complaining about their high gas prices, as they hit $2.75 /gal., we, here in Montauk, on Long Island's east end, have been paying 40 - 50 cents a gallon over the national average! As of 2 p.m. Thursday, the cheapest regular gas we can get here is at an Empire station here at $2.98/gal.  Exxon and Mobil stations here are, and have been over $3.00 gal for the last month!   As of Tuesday night, the cost of home heating oil here was $2.59/ gal. I don't know what the senior citizen is going to do this winter, as well as surcharges for fuel costs on our electric bills.  I cut my usage of electricity by 1/3 during my last billing period this year over what I used last year, and my electric bill had a $48 fuel surcharge on what I used, and my bill was MORE than last year's. When will it end? Our salaries don't go up that much!
--Steve Margraf, Montauk, N.Y.

On two wheels
Fuel costs have me using my motorcycle as my primary source of transportation these days. The price at the pump inspires me to use my bicycle more often as well. Come on America, dust off those bicycles in the garage and hit the streets, it's good exercise too!
--Jason, New Franklin, Ohio

Disposable income burned up
I think that families with two incomes are not feeling the gas price pinch as those on a single income.  I am a stay at home mom and I have been keeping track of how much we spend a month in gas and it is anywhere from $430 to $465 dollars a month.  My husband drives 45 miles one way to work, and has a six cylinder pick-up.  I drive a mini-van for groceries and taking kids places.  The gas prices around me are up to $2.78 per gallon. This causes me a lot of anxiety and I think the only place to make up the difference is in our grocery spending which is already less than the gas we spend each month.  The disposable income is now in the gas tank!
--Tammy Higgins, Howell, Mich.

Transit equals freedom
I'm making my daughter learn to ride a bike without training wheels so we can make our trips to the library, park, or co-op grocery store without using the car. Fortunately, I live near work and in an urban neighborhood where I can walk or bike most places I need to go. I am struck by how many comments have come from people lamenting the lack of alternatives to the automobile, whether because of sprawl or the lack of public transportation or bike lanes. In spite of the defeatism of our elected officials, who seem to think there is nothing to do but keep supporting the all-car lifestyle, I believe that if we all work together we could create many more options. We spent two weeks in Montreal this summer in a rented flat in an outer neighborhood of the city, and we could get ANYWHERE we wanted to go using a cheap transit pass. I mean anywhere, since the combination of buses and subway lines is incredible, and they run very frequently and reliably. Canadian teenagers, elderly and disabled folks, and those who cannot afford to own a car have a freedom of movement their American counterparts can only dream about. Here in America we have chosen to throw the government's support behind the car culture -- building roads and parking lots and investing heavily in oil production and importation, but we could shift it to other priorities and make a huge difference.
--Rachel M., Syracuse, N.Y.

Shipping when possible
Whenever I've needed to purchase goods other than food, I've weighed the shipping costs versus cost of gas, wear and tear, and mileage on my vehicles. More often than not, I've recently opted to have items shipped UPS, rather than run down to Best Buy or Home Depot, if at all possible. Also, since gas (diesel) costs are infused into the retail price of all goods and services, eating out has been curtailed to offset the increased cost of food in the budget. Living in the Northeast with home heating oil expected to approach $3.00 a gallon this winter will mean curtailed Christmas expenditures as well. As Chevy Chase said in "Christmas Vacation, Hallelujah, pass the Tylenol!"
--Don, Concord, N.H.

Thinking about moving
I used to drive a Nissan Pathfinder, 11-15 mpg, but traded it on a a Toyota RAV4, 22-28 mpg. I also used to make a 30 miles roundtrip drive to work and I bought a house less than a mile from my workplace. I also purchased a motorcycle that gets 50-60 mpg. I ride bicycles to work most of the time when weather permitting. Gas costs will drive up all costs, heat, electricity, public water, food, clothes and pretty much everything else. I am seriously looking into solar energy. The days of driving whatever anyone wants is over. My next car will be a Honda Insight. Or I am seriously thinking of moving to a warm climate and just using a motorcycle to get around.
--M. Leonard, Presque Isle, Maine

Learning online
I hadn’t noticed gas prices until the other day (when my tank was beginning to get empty) and I almost wrecked my car (literally) when I looked at a station’s prices. I only have an 8 gallon tank and am a working student, which puts me on the road a lot. I seriously have no cash to buy a hybrid and my parents can’t afford to help me out, either. This is putting a huge dampening on work and school travel so I have opted to take more online courses and limit the places I go. Instead of going to places on a whim I now analyze if I really need that item or do I really need to go here, there, etc. I would love to ride my bike around town but I live in an urban sprawl area and it is not overly bike-friendly.  I can’t believe people are just sitting back and taking this. I wish energy efficient vehicles were more available (hybrid, biodeisel, hydrogen, etc.). Something has to be done about gas prices. This is absolutely ridiculous.
--Lori C., Virginia Beach, Va.

A feel for the future
I think folks are getting a feel now for the future of things to come. Perhaps they will heed the warning and start to buckle down on wasting so much fuel and energy. I bought a used Hybrid three years ago before fuel started going out of sight. I average 43 miles per gallon. I also bought a higher seer rating central heating and cooling unit with a programmable thermostat and insulated my home better. Put attic exhaust fans in with thermostats and IR paint in most of the rooms of my house. All this saved me over $265 per. month and is a lot better on the environment. Conservation is a win-win thing. If public transportation were available in my area I would use it.

It is a shame that it has taken skyrocketing fuel prices to induce people to conserve. The next step will be for the government to get on the bandwagon for nuclear energy. We are the last major country on the globe to use nuclear energy as our primary source of electric production and we can thank the politicians for that. These are things we all need to think about when we go to the polls in the next 2 years to vote.
--Rich Kaminski, Mckinney Texas

Using the internet more
Boy, did the high price of gas hurt. When it went up over two dollars I thought some people around here were going to have simultaneous heart attacks. I walk to get small items from the local convenience store, forgo eating out, get my errands all done at the same time, and, frankly, use the internet more, as communications and looking for things I know I might need. Good thing my car is good on gas, it’s paid for, and with care and such, will be a good one for some time. Other than that, with the rising cost of other things, well, what else can we all do but bite the bullet, pinch our pennies, and start working on alternative fuel sources?
--Mari Sipeer, Duenweg Mo.

Hybrid happy
I bought my 2004 Honda Insight Hybrid a year ago and I love it. I get about 44 mpg rather than the promoted 60 and I wondered why?  Just now on the TODAY show I may have learned the reason: Rather than always using the a/c, I like to drive with the windows open and get the fresh air.  But, hey! 44 is a lot better than what I used to get before I had the hybrid!  Yes, there's no back seat, but I live alone and don't need it.  And when there is a group of us going somewhere, it gets me out of having to be the one to drive!
--John Miller, Texas

MORE FROM CITIZEN JOURNALIST

Citizen Journalist Section Front

CJ Experience: Returning home to Arabi CJ: Giving Thanks CJ: Far from normal in Wilma's aftermath Frontline families' experiences CJ: A tribute to our troops CJ: Rebuilding homes and lives after hurricanes Citizen Journalist Section Front   Add Citizen Journalist headlines to your news reader: