Life in the Ville by Jimmy Del Ponte

A simple cruise in your car might put you in the poor house. It’s déjà vu, sort of.

The current rise in gas prices reminds me of the gas shortage of the 70s. Long lines at gas stations looking for fuel for my ‘72 Plymouth Duster. Gas stations were selling out. It was mayhem. I pay over $100 to fill up.

Here are some memories of those trying times when there were long lines at the pumps.

“I remember the huge cardboard sign affixed to the trunk of the final customer’s car: ‘Last Car.’”

“The Energy Crisis – depending on your license plate odd even days to get gas – what a sham and still happening 50 years later.”

“I was lucky I went to the same gas station every sat morning so I had no problem getting gas.”

“I remember there were sometimes fights at the pumps.”

There was panic. A car was useless without gas. We had to make sure our cars didn’t run out of gas.

According to “Groovy History”:

Gas stations limited the amount of gas that could be purchased on any one visit. The shortage was so dire that some gas stations couldn’t even buy gas and had to close because they had no gas to sell. President Nixon asked gas station owners not to sell gas on Saturday nights or at all on Sundays. Most complied with the conservation request but plenty did not.

There were some people so desperate that they siphoned gas out of other people’s gas tanks. It’s a pretty big fear, running out of gas.

Add the gas prices to the cost of renting a hotel room near a popular vacation spot and you’ve got an expensive getaway.

So, borrow from your 401K, cash in a bond and fill your tank. Where will it end?