I paid 1.81 / gallon to fill up yesterday. Up in Portland, I drove by a station with regular at 2.59. Glad I got mine where I did! Nice to fill the truck for under $50, when not too long back it was $90+. I read once every penny in gas price reduced pumps $1 billion into the economy (or takes $1 billion out if the price goes up). So for the most part having those extra $$ to buy new records, for example, a good thing. Unless you have an oil-patch business, then things are looking a bit bleak. But, the petrol business has been one of booms and busts forever. In fact, it was this fact that Rockefeller originally bought up so many petrol-related companies—he thought the volitility was bad business and wanted to create a more stable sector.
My timing not always so good. Several years back my sweet wife and I decided to rent a motor home to see if we liked it. We drove from Seattle to Montana, up into Alberta and B.C., and back. I think gas averaged around $4.29/gallon, with about 8-10mpg. F-me!