Costco Gas
Costco is raking in the money as drivers flock to their gas stations for their lower-priced fuel. Since moving to our new home, we’ve been considering fueling up at the nearby Costco to save a few pennies at the pump. At our old place we never made a point to go to Costco for gas. We would get it if we were there, but never did we purposely go there for it. But now that we are so much closer to a Costco, we thought we can now fuel up at Costco purposely.

Last night we made our first trek to Costco for gas. Bad idea! The line was 20 minutes long! I’ve never waited more than 2 minutes at a regular corner gas station. The line to get into the fueling area snaked around the warehouse’s parking lot. I had to do a double take to make sure I was in the correct lane to be in line rather than to get into the parking lot. It was ridiculous. We almost decided to leave when we saw the line. We probably should’ve.

What we saved - $2.56. Yes, we saved a measly $2.56 while waiting idle in line for 20 minutes. Instead of paying $4.15 a gallon for regular at the Chevron near work, we paid $3.99 at Costco. I’m wondering if we SPENT the $2.56 we saved just for being in idle for 20 minutes! Then add to that the 20 minutes we could’ve spent doing something else. That’s an opportunity cost that I don’t even know how to calculate. Not to be snobby, I don’t think it’s worth the agony to save $2.56. So lesson learned for us. Forget Costco. Just fuel up at the corner gas station and save ourselves the agony.

For Costco though, they are laughing to the bank with this fuel crisis we are in. Look at our case last night for example. Within the 20 minutes we were there, I estimate the line was 4 cars deep at each of the 10 pumps (that’s 40 cars) plus another 20 cars snaking around the parking lot. That’s 60 cars, each fueling an average of let’s say $65 per tank. That’s $3900 in 20 minutes. I can’t even fathom how much they make a day!

Shopping to Save the World

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24622958/

The title of this article drew me to read it. It’s about what small choices we can make to be more environmentally friendly. One big insight the article offers is that spreading the word about being eco-friendly is probably the first big thing we can do for the environment. Hence I am here spreading the word.

While I am not the biggest tree hugger on the block, I am taking baby steps towards this worldly cause. I recently brought a reusable mug to work so I don’t have to use a paper cup everyday. Next I’ll be bringing in a set of reusable utensils so that I can also cut out my plastic fork and spoon usage. As the supply buyer for our company, I’ve been searching out recycled products as best I can. Over the weekend, my husband and I opted to buy a Brita water pitcher instead of a new case of bottled water to cut down on plastic bottles. We sometimes use a reusable shopping bag when we go grocery shopping to cut down on plastic bags. Yes, I said “sometimes” because here lies one of our biggest weaknesses. We cannot totally cut out plastic bags from our household. We still prefer to use plastic bags in our garbage bins. They’re just cleaner and more convenient. If anyone can suggest a better way to go about handling our garbage, please do not hesitate to educate us.

Close Call
A grass fire broke out on the northeastern end of San Bruno Mountain yesterday, just a couple miles from our home. Though I didn't think the fire would reach us, it was a bit too close for comfort.

Here's a link to The Chronicle's report of the incident.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/05/20/BA1210PQ45.DTL&tsp=1

All Moved In
We are all moved in! Yesterday, May 7, was our official move-in day at our new house. Since we were previously in a one-bedroom apartment, we didn’t have much to move. Therefore the move was fast and easy. From the time RF left the apartment to pick up the rental truck (8am) to the time he returned the truck after the move (1pm), it was only 5 hours. That includes going to 3 cities and crossing a bridge. That’s fast. We even got a lot of unpacking done. There’s still more to do but at least the vital ones are done. We can do the rest as we continue to settle in.

Now the painful part starts. We have to look into a couple of repairs soon. That’s the downside of homeownership that everyone wants to ignore but can’t. Oh well, it comes with the territory and we have no regrets.