It's gotten so that you fear picking up the newspaper: Financial crises across the globe. Bailouts, with taxpayer money, doled out to one industry after another. Layoffs by the tens of thousands - Citigroup announced Monday that it planned to reduce its work force by 50,000 people worldwide. Charitable groups struggling to survive, when their existence is needed now more than ever.
This depressing outlook has one bright ray of sunshine: Gas prices have plummeted in the past few months. It's not unusual for the first digit in the price per gallon to be "1." At a time when residents in the region are fearing job losses and scanning want ads, this is a welcome sign indeed.
Could it really be true that prices were $4 a gallon in the not-so-distant past?
AAA announced that gas prices in Hampton Roads fell to about $1 per gallon less than last month and about $1.70 per gallon less than six months ago. Nowadays, it's not uncommon to see prices for self-serve regular unleaded gas around $1.80 at some local stations. Customers can actually pay by cash for a few gallons instead of automatically whipping out the credit card.
Some parts of the country, according to AAA, are selling gas for as low as $1.75 a gallon. Yet demand for fuel remains down. Maybe we've embraced the notion of car pooling more, cutting back on unnecessary trips, using mass transit when possible and walking if it's an option.
With next week's holiday, the drop in gas prices is but one event to be thankful for. It might be a temporary blip, but in these times of economic upheaval, we'll take what we can get.
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