Gas Prices

[ls317]

Since gas prices are sky high currently all over the US.. What have you had to cut back to make a difference because of higher prices at the pump!

I had to cut back on the starbucks.. Before I was going to starbucks at least 3 times a week.. Now I only go once a week....

[BulletproofLandshark]

1. Buying more store-brand products

instead of their name brand counterparts

[brystheguy]

2. I still buy the same stuff at the store

but I don't go to the store on a whim anymore. I now plan all of my trips so that I make several stop[s at once and my old mopeds are getting more use now.

[LSK]

3. i dont go out as much

Havnt cut back on much else. Im pretty much a cheapo anyways thou.

[lildreamer316]

4. I am doing some SERIOUS comparison lists

I get the grocery sale circulars and print out my price list and spend about 2 hours doing comparisons. I've also been stocking up on meat/staple 2-for-1's to conserve. It would seem that I wasn't saving money because I have to drive to 3 different stores but they are pretty close to one another and I have a honda.

[w8liftinglady]

9. I am using a LOT more coupons-

and do the comparison shopping thing too-that is my Sunday evening chore.

[lildreamer316]

14. Do you know this site?

http://www.organizedhome.com/
Go to the home notebook section and check out the printable planner pages. Love this.............

On edit: also check out the tip section.Gold.

[ls317]

18. Here is another one

http://www.gasbuddy.com

[FlemingsGhost]

5. I cut back on buying gas.

Are you walking to Starbucks?

[ls317]

6. Nope

I drive thru its on my way to work

[rzemanfl]

7. Your post trivializes this issue for people who are cutting back

on necessities to buy gas to get to their low-paying jobs. I am not one of them, but I am sure they have no sympathy about you missing out on your lattes.

[ls317]

12. For the Record

Hmmmm

Lets see this isn't about asking nor seeking sympathy in regards to missing a latte at all...
It was a general broad based question no more no less.Nothing was said about low paying jobs at all.......
Some folks have cut back of eating lunch out during the week.( ie bringing lunch with them). Some folks have cut back the number of trips to... starbucks....
Perhaps some folks have cut back there spending on extra income to make up the difference because of the price of gas

[rzemanfl]

19. Whatever. Expensive coffee just seems like such a small thing

to be giving up, like switching from imported to domestic beer. It's just my opinion, but I think someone being really squeezed by gas prices would be put off by the Starbucks comment.

[IdaBriggs]

16. The OP is helping to provide jobs, etc. by spending disposable cash.

The point (as I read it), is "how are you compensating for the decrease in your disposable income?"

You don't like the fact that Starbucks employs people? Sorry to hear it. I am a huge fan of their frappuchinos myself, and consider them "a treat." I also enjoy their Tazo tea. :)

[rzemanfl]

21. See above, and it seems like name-dropping to me. I am

sure that Starbucks does employ people who are thrilled to death to serve you your frappuchino.

Seems sad to me that we are sniping back and forth about this when the real issue is that we are all being forced to give lots of our "disposable income" to fat cat oil executives enjoying record profits.

[Raksha]

38. You're wrong. I should know because I AM "one of them..."

That is, a person living on a fixed income. I rent a room in a house because there is no way I can afford even an apartment, and I don't have a car. There have been times when I've had five bucks to last me until the end of the month with a few days left to go. Even so, I might spend half of that money on a cup of coffee at Starbuck's and count the money well spent. Of course I can pay less for a cup of coffee elsewhere, but the premium coffee isn't the main thing I'm spending the money on. What I'm really buying is half an hour when I can sit at table outside watching the world go by, relaxing and feeling like a civilized person instead of a pauper.

If anything, people who are stretched to the limit need that kind of a lift more than people in better circumstances. They certainly need it as much! So no, I am definitely NOT offended because I understand completely what the original poster is getting at.

[rzemanfl]

46. I guess I need to go to a Starbucks, I'm an Eight O'Clock black,

no sugar kind of a guy and never saw the attraction of designer coffee and the atmosphere of a Starbucks.

[ordinaryaveragegirl]

8. Stay closer to home...

I'll find ways to get stuff from places on my own side of town. I'm also making sure my tires are properly inflated, and not using a/c in my car - which is easy anyway if you keep your trips shorter.

[wli]

10. it's not hurting me yet, but

It will once electricity, food, water, and transported goods all go through the roof along with it.

[pauldavid]

11. Nothing. I sold my car two years ago

to protest the illegal war for oil.

[ellie]

13. I very rarely

leave the house anymore. I work from home so I don't have to go anywhere. I used to go to the mall or over to my mom's, but now I stay home. Gas jumped from $2.41 yesterday to $2.69 today for the cheap stuff!

[flamin lib]

15. Traded in a Lincoln Mark VIII at 22 mpg combined for a Nissan

Sentra at 32 mpg combined.

Think that's not a hell of a cultural shock . . .

[calico1]

17. I have 3 supermarkets in my area.

I study the fliers, clip coupons and then go shop. Sometimes I only go to one store, sometimes all 3. It depends. I also avoid buying all the convenience type foods. If you go early in the morning there are usually meats on sale from the day before that are marked down. They are fine. You just have to either use them that day or freeze them. I get most of them that way and save lots of money. I take my own lunch to work. Never get lunch. If you spend $5 a day getting lunch out (and many people will spend more) that is over $100 a month just to eat lunch. For cleaning I buy products that can do double duty. Instead of separate cleaners for the toilet, tub, etc. I get one. Vinegar is great for cleaning floors. Ammonia is cheap too. You can really spend lots of money on cleaning items. I have pretty much been trying to go more frugal like this for a while but it really helps now.

[soda]

23. youve got it good..for now

here in spain i pay $1.20 a litre which makes for about $4 a gallon

[shrike]

28. Don't know much about Spain, sir/madam

But I do know my geography enough to know that it is MUCH smaller than the U.S.

Britain, France and Germany have good public transport. I've ridden it myself. Wouldn't be surprised if you do, too. We don't. Many American communities have none at all, in fact.

Would suspect your communities are designed a little differently than ours, too. Most Americans live in a suburb that is only driving distance from work, school, shopping, etc. Yes, I realize much of that is our fault, but there it is, the infrastructure already in place. In short, we must spend most of our time in our cars.

Not sure if this applies to Spain, but I am told that in at least some European countries, 80 percent of the per-gallon gas price goes to taxes. Not so here, but you get universal health care out of it. And, I suspect, better schools. We get very little out of our higher gas prices save very fat prices -- for the oil companies and their stockholders, most of whom are not average, everyday Americans.

And btw, welcome to DU.

[getmeouttahere]

43. All that stuff IS our fault, shrike...

Because we either voted for pols who won't do what is good for society, or we as a society aren't willing to pay for it. And we had better be prepared to make the sacrifices necessary to change, because change we must.

[getmeouttahere]

42. Welcome to DU, Soda!

Don't let anybody give you a hard time just because you live in a "smaller" country. You Europeans have been doing it right for a long time, building fantastic mass transit systems. If we here in the U.S. really wanted it, and were willing to pay for it, we could have that too.

[MissB]

20. I've cut back on trips

I haven't been buying many "wants" lately anyway. If I need groceries, I limit it to once a week if possible - though lately it has been twice a week.

[Parche]

22. gas prices

I have bought a thousand shares of Shell oil and Halliburton.....just kidding.

[jokerman93]

24. budgeting

all home cooked mostly veggie meals
brown bag to work
food shopping at farmer's market
deserts once a week
ended hair club contract
stopped Gevalia account
reduced Netflix from 5 to 3 videos
got married
quit smoking crack

:beer:

[all.of.me]

37. hey jokerman! you lived up to your name!

hahahahaha very funny. is crack expensive?!

[jokerman93]

41. Is crack expensive?

I'm not going to TOUCH that one.

:evilgrin:

[all.of.me]

44. hehehehehe

[zoeb]

25. You gave up Starbucks??? It sucks to be you or

Wal-Mart which is whining about their sales and has Dollar General stores. Also alot of Dollar Trees or Everything for a Dollar type stores have also complained because all their merchandise must sell for a dollar even with the increased gas prices.

When these little dollar stores start complaining about sales you know gas prices are eating up much more of the household income than economists envisioned.

You know what they say: First you give up Starbucks and the next thing you know your eating cat food. Better be saving those $4 cups of java for hard times. :nopity: :donut:

[BlueJac]

26. buy less fuel

I am driving less, consolidate trips.

[orpupilofnature57]

27. My fuel provider say's $1300 in advance minimum ,to lock in at $2.26

Exclusion by wealth, is this what America has turned into.

[B Calm]

29. I drive to work and drive home. I hardly ever go anywhere, who

in hell can afford to go anywhere!

[growlypants]

32. my sentiments exactly. I spent ALOT of time sitting at home, wishing i

could afford to go somewhere. Then I think about how much gas a trip into the city will cost and I sit my ass back down.

[growlypants]

30. I had to cutback on driving.

[Blue_In_AK]

31. We don't drive around much

because my husband's retired and I work at home, but when we do go out, we try to combine errands so that we only have to make one trip. We took one long, five-day camping trip this summer instead of a couple of little ones. We're probably going to head out only one more time before winter comes.

[Beaverhausen]

33. I bought a hybrid car- a Prius

I got a 1% cut on my loan rate, a break on my insurance and money back monthly from my employers car pool program!

[Orsino]

34. Switched to hybrids early this year...

...a Prius for me and the new Accord for my wife. Two semis totaled her new car (she wasn't much hurt; another selling point), so we just had to buy a replacement. *Three* hybrid tax breaks this year!

[trekbiker]

35. buying cheaper Vodka...

[Sparkman]

36. Shipping UPS daily and I pay from $0.17 for ground and $3.62 for air boxes

So Shipping UPS ground helps.
Changing to the discount grocery stores and avoiding name brands cuts 10% off the bill. Less hamburger stand eating, more cooking at home.
Driving ancient cars saves the new car cost & new car insurance rate.
And the CALIF. DMV costs for my 65 bug is $54 annually, no smog certs.
No CD buying, but trading CD's. Shopping at thrift stores for used things is really a huge savings. Renting everything instead of buying if it makes sense. Snaking with p-nut butter, or fruit and drinking Tea instead of bottled soda. Some nuts & raisins works as snake, very cheap.

[getmeouttahere]

39. Walking to work, consolidating trips in the car....

take the Metro whenever possible. Sure it helps to live close to work, but I've decided to put my money where my mouth is, and I don't want the oil companies to get any more of my money than is absolutely necessary.

[bigwillq]

40. Haven't cut down any anything specific

I just try to do all my stops at once.

[Rainscents]

45. I been running errands much less and when I do errands, I do everything

in one trip.

[growlypants]

47. I only leave the house to go to work. Its pathetic.