Grin and Bear It ?

Happiness is when what you think, what you say and what you do are in harmony.

 
Remember this little character?  I think it says it all because we’re still in the same little dilemma standing at the crossroads with signs heading us in opposite directions.  Since I posted my other blog asking if there was a fuel crisis, prices have even jumped higher.  News channels are saying prices should start leveling off next week.  The biggest fear isn’t even the price of the stuff.  It’s more about all those stations not having fuel to pump.  

Shall we just grin and bear it?

Spending a little time on the central California coastline is something we would like to do.  However, I’m not so sure I want to travel where fuel is the highest in the nation either.  It’s more of a principal thing and I really hate it when people say “it’s the principal” of something or other but here I am doing it.   There is always next year even though we really thought we’d do it this year.  Will we?  Who knows?  We certainly don’t at this time.  Maybe that’s the reason I also came up with a secondary route through Nevada … just in case we wake up on the day of departure and decide we want to go another way.  We have no reservations so it really doesn’t matter what we do.

The gas map I posted a couple days ago is also on that blog and reflects the prices of fuel around the country.  Isn’t it amazing how one state can be so much more than another state?

We all know California has different regulations since they require special fuels.  Those regulations obviously tend to contribute to higher prices.  The other states can’t help California by trucking in additional fuel supplies when their refineries have hiccups because only summer fuels have been allowed in the past until the end of October.  The refineries outside of California don’t produce it.  Sounds like the state has put itself in this kind of a pickle.  Now with record breaking prices at the pump the state has agreed to a waiver for the rest of this month by not requiring this special summer fuel.  Isn't it about time the drivers in California start balking?  Prices are supposed to start dropping next week with this change in policy and with the news that there will be a federal probe into the cause of it.  We're wondering if the change in fuel is really going to make much of a difference.  Gasbuddy says prices should go down and availability increase.  Only time will tell.

Many states depend on fuel sales for revenue but I bet you all knew that.  Each state adds taxes of some sort to the price of fuel and those can certainly add up.  Some states have added more than just a fuel tax to the price and have been quite creative in tacking on the extra penny or two to fund extra state projects.    Check out the taxes you pay to each state when you fill up at their stations.

This is still the route we are thinking we might take.  We’ve thought about it and thought about it and thought about it.  As much as we would not like to contribute to the California economy, it still has some places we want to go.  We will wait to  decide whether to grin and bear it until a day or two before departure.  In other words .. we will definitely know next week how we’re going to head south.  We have to know since we’ll be on the road.

There are a couple things that would make us change our minds even faster than dealing with  the current cost of fuel in California.  One would be if more stations weren’t refueling their own tanks which would result in long lines at the pump.  The other would be cool, wet or windy weather.  Then, through Nevada would be our choice but we’re not excited about that one.  However, thank goodness we are flexible and can change plans in a moment’s notice.

In the meantime we are adjusting to being back in our motorhome.  The little cabin has much more space but it still feels great to be back in the RV.  We’ve almost finished up securing the cabin.  Yesterday we ordered three contraptions to help reduce moisture during the winter.  These particular ones were recommended for boats and RVs.  Dehumidifiers collect moisture in the air and deposit it into pans.  With no one around to dump those pans we could have ended up with more damage than without them.  The ones we ordered just dry the air.  Hopefully, Amazon will get the order out fast.  Once they arrive we will make our last trip to the cabin and start heading south.

In the meantime …. we have a couple more soccer games to attend.

‘Tis life on the road.