Two weeks after Hurricane Ike battered Galveston, we here in the Southeast are still feeling the effects. I took the photo above the day after Ike slammed the Gulf Coast and closed down some oil refineries, but not much has changed since then.
The other day I went out in search of a gas for the Jeep, and what I found was station after station completely out. By this time, the gas light was on and I was starting to feel a bit paranoid about even making it home before running dry. As luck would have it, as I passed a station, I looked over and saw a tanker truck sitting there. I quickly pulled into the station and was one of 4 cars already in place in anticipation of finally getting some relief.
I went inside and there was already a short line of people inquiring when we might be able to fill up, and we were told that it would be about 30 minutes. No problem for me, as I didn't have any where else I needed to be.
As I sat in the Jeep and waited, it seemed that word got out and suddenly cars were streaming in like it was a rock concert. Eventually several police cars showed up to direct traffic and to keep the peace. For awhile I stood outside and talked to several people in my immediate vicinity. The girl and her boyfriend next to me with their two dogs, the woman behind me with her daughter, all of us had something in common for that short period of time. Eventually the gas started flowing and the conversations stopped.
My Jeep has a 22 gallon tank, and it took 21.257 gallons to fill it up at a cost of just over $85. I knew eventually they would start rationing the amount of gas each of us could get, so I was happy to be first in line. Since then, the station has once again run out of gas. I hear there's relief in sight, but for now, I sit at home and conserve where I can.
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