Oh The Pain!

I saw this graphic and at first it made me laugh. Then, when I thought about filling up the Mountaineer. . .not so much.

In 1973 I was eight years old and I have vague memories of the gas crisis. I don’t remember what kind of car we drove. I know it was along the lines of something like this and that it couldn’t have gotten more than 15 miles to the gallon.


As an eight year old, the gas crisis was just another opportunity to curl up with a good book. We sat in line to buy gas and, while I don’t remember how long the waits were, I do remember passing the time with Nancy Drew and The Bobbsey Twins!

According to Wikipedia, the method for buying gas in 1974 went like this – in the U.S., drivers of vehicles with license plates having an odd number as the last digit (or a vanity license plate) were allowed to purchase gasoline for their cars only on odd-numbered days of the month, while drivers of vehicles with even-numbered license plates were allowed to purchase fuel only on even-numbered days. The rule did not apply on the 31st day of those months containing 31 days, or on February 29 in leap years — the latter never came into play, since the restrictions had been abolished by 1976.

It also seems like I remember these flags.


More than anything else, I remember sweating in the back seat of the car, trying to read my books with a vague feeling of unease as my parents talked about oil, the Middle East and words I didn’t understand like OPEC, embargo and inflation. (The retail price of gas rose from an average of 38 cents a gallon in May of 1973 to an all-time high of 55 cents a gallon in July of 1974. Oh, the good old days. . .)

We don’t yet have rationing restrictions. I have, however, seen a couple of signs indicating that stations in Findlay have been closed for a few hours because they ran out of fuel. When I pull up to the pump these days I’m now sweating it out in the front seat of the car, mumbling words I really don’t understand like international third party investment funds, OPEC and falling U.S. dollars.

I’m also wishing I lived in a place with public transportation.