STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

nunzi182 · Kate Spade

RE: Is anyone else scared...

blubirde · Chanel

I know exactly what everyone means. Gas prices are getting insane. There's a bus that goes downtown to where I work but it's about 6 blocks away. At first I thought that was an unwalkable distance (not 6 blocks by itself but in the Texas August heat and in work clothes) but now I'm rethinking it.

As a matter of fact, I think next Tuesday will be my first bus day. I don't know the details of when it stops, how long it takes, etc., but I guess I'll find out. And once the weather cools down a bit I guess I'll get a bike. It probably won't be the most ladylike thing to ride a bike with a skirt but hey, if it saves me some bucks, I'll go for it.

I'm so glad our politicians (dems and repubs) are doing so much about this issue. Thanks guys and gals. We really appreciate it.

crystal · Kate Spade

my commute to work is 4.5 miles each way and i COULD take the bus, but i have to transfer so it ends up taking me over half an hour... do you think that it's too far to bike? i don't own a bike, but i have wanted to buy one for a long time. does anyone bike to work? do you get all sweaty? i have one semi large hill on the way to work so that might make a difference.

TheLovelyLady71 · Hermes

I live too far out (23 miles) to take a bus to work, so therefor, I must drive my car. Thankfully it's a Focus, but STILL! I drove by gas stations yesterday, it was 'still' $2.49/reg., now, this morning when I was coming in, I saw $2.59 & $2.63/reg., so it's ALREADY starting, I didn't think it would hit so quickly.

I need to find out more about these hybrid cars, b/c I'm all about not spending money on gas, or whatever. LOL

My honey and I work weird hours, if not, he and I would be carpooling, and he ALSO has a huge 8-cylinder Ford F150 - GAS GUZZLER!!

crystal · Kate Spade

blubirde wrote:

I know exactly what everyone means. Gas prices are getting insane. There's a bus that goes downtown to where I work but it's about 6 blocks away. At first I thought that was an unwalkable distance (not 6 blocks by itself but in the Texas August heat and in work clothes) but now I'm rethinking it. As a matter of fact, I think next Tuesday will be my first bus day. I don't know the details of when it stops, how long it takes, etc., but I guess I'll find out. And once the weather cools down a bit I guess I'll get a bike. It probably won't be the most ladylike thing to ride a bike with a skirt but hey, if it saves me some bucks, I'll go for it. I'm so glad our politicians (dems and repubs) are doing so much about this issue. Thanks guys and gals. We really appreciate it.

OMG, we just wrote practically the same post!! great minds think alike!

Lilykind · Hermes

NylaBelle wrote:

Farrah, $5 a gallon! OMG!! They better start upgrading the mass transportation systems!

No kidding! I was reading an article about the mass trans system that existed in LA prior to the car companies (Ford, GM, etc.) that made it possible for LA to be the 'car town' that it is now. If you see the old maps of the trolley systems in LA and compared to the freeway system we have now, it's just ridiculous what happened.

My BF and I are counting our lucky stars. He just landed his dream job at a studio that's 2 miles away from where we live...that's 1/5 of his former commutes. He has a 1997 Nissan Pathfinder with a V6, and it costs $40 (!) to fill his tank every 175 miles. I take the bus to my work (15 minute ride + 10 minute walk) and right now it is so ridiculously cheap ($10 - $12.50 a week) I almost don't even want a car.

erin · Chanel

i would love to by a hybrid as well. i don't have a gas guzzler, but when i bought a car recently, my budget kept me to used. hybrid cars still being new and in the 20s, it's just not feasible! (my car gets about 28/32 mpg)

i am way more scared for our heating bills. our windows aren't the greatest, and last year it was about 200-300 per month in the winter.

blubirde · Chanel

crystal wrote:

my commute to work is 4.5 miles each way and i COULD take the bus, but i have to transfer so it ends up taking me over half an hour... do you think that it's too far to bike? i don't own a bike, but i have wanted to buy one for a long time. does anyone bike to work? do you get all sweaty? i have one semi large hill on the way to work so that might make a difference.

I think 4.5 miles on a bike is pretty easy. I'm not sure about being hot and sweaty though. I guess it depends on the temp. where you are. We're 98+ (100+ on most days lately) here so I think it would definitely be gross to ride a bike to work. Once it gets down to the 80s, I'll totally hit the Schwin world.

cc · Marc Jacobs

blubirde wrote:

I know exactly what everyone means. Gas prices are getting insane. There's a bus that goes downtown to where I work but it's about 6 blocks away. At first I thought that was an unwalkable distance (not 6 blocks by itself but in the Texas August heat and in work clothes) but now I'm rethinking it. .

bluburdie - 6 blocks, even if they are longer blocks, is really not bad at all. I only walk 5 blocks to the subway in the morning (3 short, 2 long) but in my previous apartments I lived 8 and 10 blocks from the train. I know Texas summers are bad but it's regularly in the 90s and super humid here during the summer and it is bitter cold in the winter. As long as you dress appropriately you'll be fine. In the summers I wear a skirt with a tank top and flip flops and then put on work shoes and a sweater when I get to work. Sometimes I'm kind of sweaty when I arrive but I keep a bunch of face wipes in my desk and try to freshen up a bit in the bathroom.

And in addition to saving money you'll also be getting more exercise!

Since I don't have a car and don't pay for heat or hot water (just gas for my stove and electricity) this hasn't had much impact on my daily life yet but I feel terrible for people who live somplace where they need to drive on a daily basis and can't use public transportation.

Actually gas prices are having a big impact on my life because my boyfriend lives n France and airfares are so much higher than they were last year.

-- Edited by cc at 14:33, 2005-08-31

Escrime · Kate Spade

crystal wrote:

my commute to work is 4.5 miles each way and i COULD take the bus, but i have to transfer so it ends up taking me over half an hour... do you think that it's too far to bike? i don't own a bike, but i have wanted to buy one for a long time. does anyone bike to work? do you get all sweaty? i have one semi large hill on the way to work so that might make a difference.

A lot of my neighbors bike to work (they work at the same base my husband works at) and it's about an 8 mile trip one way. They say it takes them about 30 minutes after they got conditioned to it. They say that early in the morning, it doesn't get too hot to ride to work and they have saddlebags to carry their clothes to change into at work, in case they get dirty.

I am lucky in that I work out of my home office, so I drive MAYBE 50 -75 miles a week to run errands. I am thinking of starting to run to the gym for the cardio portion of my workout, since that is where I head the most.

kenzie · Chanel

blubirde wrote:

I know exactly what everyone means. Gas prices are getting insane. There's a bus that goes downtown to where I work but it's about 6 blocks away. At first I thought that was an unwalkable distance (not 6 blocks by itself but in the Texas August heat and in work clothes) but now I'm rethinking it.

I agree that 6 blocks isn't bad. When I lived in Philly, I used to walk 10-15 blocks one way. On really nice days I would walk all the way from Rittenhouse Square at 23rd Street to 3rd Street in Old City during one of my internships. I loved walking around the city. I miss it!! And it's great exercise.

-- Edited by NylaBelle at 15:06, 2005-08-31

laken1 · Hermes

Experts: $4 a gallon gas coming soon
Pricing analysts say consumers can expect even higher prices at the pump.
August 31, 2005: 12:46 PM EDT
By Grace Wong, CNN/Money staff writer
Special Report +full coverage
Oil Crunch
Oil sinks, gas futures spike
$4 gasoline coming
White House to tap reserves Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman says the U.S. will release oil from the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve to help refiners hurt by Katrina. (August 31)
Play video

NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Consumers can expect retail gas prices to rise to $4 a gallon soon but whether they stay there depends on the long-term damage to oil facilities from Hurricane Katrina, oil and gas analysts said Wednesday.

"There's no question gas will hit $4 a gallon," Ben Brockwell, director of pricing at the Oil Price Information Service, said. "The question is how high will it go and how long will it last?"

OPIS tracks wholesale and retail oil prices and provides pricing information for AAA's daily reports on fuel prices.

Brockwell said with gasoline prices now exceeding $3 a gallon before even reaching the wholesale level, it "doesn't take a genius" to expect retail prices to hit $4 a gallon soon.

"Consumers haven't seen the worst of it yet," Brockwell said.

He expects consumers in the Southeast and Northeast to be pinched first, following the impact of Hurricane Katrina on the Gulf Coast region.

you can read the whole story here:

http://money.cnn.com/2005/08/31/news/gas_prices/index.htm?cnn=yes

nunzi182 · Kate Spade

I just read somewher eelse though that the president actually decided to tap the reserves. This is good news! But who knows how long it will take for our wallets to see the effects of it.

crystal · Kate Spade

just a suggestion, but i just opened a credit card w/ shell that gives 5% cashback for gas. you all probably have cashback cards, but i just thought i would mention it. with the cashback it bring $3 back down to a "reasonable" $2.85!!

blubirde · Chanel

Y'all are right - 6 blocks isn't that big of a deal. I walk roughly that far to the gym everyday so why not the bus? I guess I'm just spoiled here in Texas where we drive everywhere and wouldn't think of doing otherwise. Crazy, huh? I saw a book that is all about how to live a carless existence. I should go to the bookstore (um take the bus there?) and read about it.

On a scary note (and I'm not sure I trust my friend b/c she's prone to hsyterics), my BFF lives in Georgia and she said all the gas stations are stopping selling gas there at 4 p.m. today AND that they expect to run out of gas in the next 2 days. I don't know how much of that is conspiracy (I can't see how they can RUN OUT of gas) but she was going to fill up as she was talking to me. She also said the lines at the pumps were wrapped around the stations. Definitely a huge 'wow' factor.

halleybird · Hermes

I was just thinking about this the other day. What if there was no gas? What would we do?

About 2 years ago in AZ, there was a pipeline burst and we had major shortages for about 2 weeks (2 hr + lines at gas stations, only 1/10 had gas) and there was widespread panic.

I live about 10 miles from work...not bad at all in a car, but not walkable or bike-able. There are no buses or mass transit systems here, except for downtown. It is scary.

bex · Chanel

i drive a Mini which gets about 30 miles to the gallon. I am currently filling her at about $30 a tank (with gas prices at $2.69 for me- and i have to use mid-grade- the BMW guys told me it was okay to use it instead of premium- so Farrah- you may want your BF to check with his service guys about that to save him so $$$). this morning when i left the hotel unleaded reg. gas was $2.59 and by 2 this afternoon it was $3.09!!!

anyway, my company pays for my gas (thank god) so i am not feeling the pinch. but my BF has an Envoy and wants to get the new Lexus RX400 hybrid- but there is a waiting list a mile long for it. and every other hybrid that is hitting the market right now. i have a feeling that in a couple of years you are going to see a lot of alternate means in transportation (meaning more and more hybrids)

also, BF and i were talking about how fuel runs our entire existence. everything we do, buy, etc. has fuel connected to it somehow.

Alikat · Kate Spade

I'm hoping that car companies start producing more and more hybrids and alternative fuel cars. They really need to.

Did you know that diesel cars can run on vegetable oil? A bunch of people got in trouble in Wales for using vegetable oil as fuel (I guess its illegal there) and now they won't sell more than 1L of vegetable oil per store in Britain.

There are even US companies selling it commercially, like this one: http://www.greasecar.com/ Maybe if we run out of gas we'll have to use vegetable oil and smell like french fries all day

Alegria · Kate Spade

Luv2Shop wrote:

Also I am really going to try to not use air conditioning and just enjoy the new arrival of fall. Good luck to all of you with these astronomical prices! Any other suggestions would be great!

I actually heard/read awhile ago that running the air in your car uses less gas than driving with your windows opened. I guess the drag from the wind in you car causes it to need more power/gas to keep it at the desired speed.