$1.679

Can you believe what that little box to the right says?

Gas went up twenty cents a gallon last night — better than 10%. How in the world is that possible?

I’ve been told that the stations in Missouri aren’t supposed to change their prices until new gas goes in the tanks in the ground. Judging from what I see on my morning drive at 6am, there must be a fleet of tankers to rival that of the Air Force that do nothing all night but flit from station to station, filling the ground with gas. Jed Clampett would be proud.

In listening to the news this morning, they indicated that it was due to the extreme cold in the northeast, and that, while there was no shortage, this increase, presumably nationwide, was presumably to cover the cost of the next barrels that will be higher priced when they are drawn from the ground somewhere and delivered to a heating oil truck near you.

The only rub with that is that my understanding is that heating oil and gas come from different products, and that the price of one shouldn’t impact the other.

How silly is this? I still want my SUV so I can hilltop and take wonderful photos, but there are times when I think that my primary car should be a hybrid. At 50+ mpg, a gallon of gas approaching two bucks a gallon is a little more appealing.