“Cruising in Loving Memory of Cheap Gas”

Will gas prices keep dropping? A recent drive I took ended with a very strange coincidence.  If I were superstitious, I’d regard it as a sign that we’re in for cheaper gas. 

Two weekends ago we drove our daughter to college in central Virginia.  As we started heading out, I noticed that regular at the neighborhood gas station had dropped to $3.65.  That was nice, since the price had been above $3.80 only days before. 

We got off I-66 at Gainesville, which two years ago had been the scene of a locally famous price war that for a while led to gas below $2.00!.  Filling up at that price back then had been a memorable event for me, since gas had nearly hit $3 only months before. 

Further down the road we found prices below $3.50.  We filled up—not quite as good a feeling as $1.98, but not bad.  And then, at the very end of our trip, one station was selling regular at $3.39.  I liked this trend. 

Of course, the trend didn’t continue on the way back—duh.  But then something strange happened.  We pulled into a Gainesville station just before the last stretch home on I-66, and lo and behold—there was a van parked right in front of us with this message stenciled on its rear windshield: 

“CRUISING IN LOVING MEMORY OF CHEAP GAS” 

Googling this phrase turns up nothing, so it’s not like this is a ready-made window stencil purchased by scores of people.  The van we saw may well be the only one in the country carrying this message, and we just happened to pull up behind it after driving all day idly noting gas prices. 

I’m a fan of cheap gas.  It’s good for my wallet, and it’s good for people universally.  If this was an omen of lower prices to come, it was a good omen.

Related links: 

Why fans of cheap gas are more honest than warriors against “oil addiction”

Stop kvetching about Exxon (1-minute video)