I bought gas today

Istiqlál (Independence), 10 Asma (Names), 165 B.E. – Friday, August 29, 2008 about 7:08 PM Pacific Time

I bought gas today and it brought back memories of my grandfather. I stopped at a self-service station and put gas in my car. I do remember Grandpa putting gas in his own car every once in a while. Usually he did that at gas stations where he knew the attendants and the owners. They would wave at him and say, "Hi, Pete." However, most of the time he would let the attendant fill the tank and check the fluids.

I can fill my own tank with gas, something I never thought I would do when I was growing up. Back then women just did not do that because putting gas in a car was a man's job. When I was growing up, jobs and other things were divided by gender. Women just did not do some things.

Of course, gas was cheaper then and there were more full service stations. Actually, I do not think there were any self-service stations then. I do not remember any in Blackwell, Oklahoma, or any of the surrounding small towns. What I do remember, is my grandfather griping when gas prices raised for $0.50 a gallon to $0.75 or maybe it was from $0.25 to $0.50. Anyway, he griped for at least a week.

Today I am grateful that I paid only $3.57 per gallon for gas. That was one of today's entries in my gratitude journal. Most of my meds cost $4.00 a bottle and that is less then the price of gas today. Most of my mother's meds cost $3.00 a bottle, which is less then the price of gas, but she has health insurance.