Tank 215 - 19 November 2009

So I refueled at the convenient Exxon of Woodbridge last Friday on my
way home. After going 433.4 miles, I squeezed in 11.581 gallons of
regular unleaded gasoline, making for a fuel economy of 37.42 miles per
gallon for the tank. This is just 0.03 miles per gallon better than my
2008 average, so I guess that's good. But I am running out of time to
raise my annual fuel economy average to beat the reigning high average
that was set in 2007.

Thanksgiving week is upon us, so this tank should last for a while,
seeing on how I am just driving to work twice this week.

This was my 37th tank of the year. Last year I had 38 tanks of gas
total. With this tank, I surpassed my total miles driven from last
year, and have driven 15,477 miles so far this year. Yeesh! That's a
lot of miles.

However, I have spent a lot less on gasoline this year: $894.77 on 37
tanks, vs. $1,229.20 on 37 tanks of gas last year. That's like almost
27% less spent on gas this year.

Tanks 213 and 214 - 11 and 12 November 2009

I had the pleasant experience of driving over 500 miles in the last
couple days. Yesterday I got to spend 10 hours in light to heavy rain
for a day trip to Raleigh, North Carolina for a court date to seek
monetary judgment against past tenants whose security deposit did not
cover all the repair costs after they moved out.

Tank 213 was still commuting and around town driving, but I refueled the
day before my trip so that I wouldn't have to get gas on the road in the
morning while wearing my suit. So the tank was "only" 387.3 miles on
10.438 gallons, making for mileage of 37.10. Pretty bad.

But tank 214 yesterday, after going 446.6 miles in the remnants of
Hurricane Ida, I refueled in Petersburg VA on my way home with 11.293
gallons, making for mileage of 39.55 miles per gallon. Pretty good.

So it all evened out.

Still, all that driving in all that rain was not as pleasant as I would
have wanted.

I passed four cars that had lost control and apparently hydroplaned and
spun off the road. Two of those cars were missing their front bumpers.

Happily, I finished my book on CD "Dearly Devoted Dexter." I liked it a
lot and have requested the first Dexter book.

My new book on CD is "Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy." I'm more than
halfway through it now, and I am sorry to report that I really don't
like this sort of science fiction. It seems like the author (Doug
Adams, I think) just puts in the oddest thing he could think of at the
time and makes up silly backstory and stuff. It seems silly and not
silly in a good way. But, many people just love it, so I can at least be
aware of what it is, and can appreciate why they like it. Maybe the
total oddity of it is what's so compelling, like the legend of
Spearmanwich and his furious bumboozleplex gambit of the giant kumquat
uprising of Standard Unit 53,488.6.

Tank 212 - 2 November 2009

I refueled for the 212th time yesterday. I refueled at the supernatural
Exxon of Woodbridge, with 11.561 gallons of unleaded gasoline at $2.599
per gallon. In total, I spent $30.05, the first time a tank cost more
than $30 since October 21, 2008, more than a year ago!

I managed to travel 453.1 miles on this tank, the fourth most amount of
miles for a single tank of gas. Astute readers will no doubt have
figured out that my fuel economy was thus 39.19 miles per gallon, which
is not even in the top 15 for fuel economy results, but still good
enough to raise my 2009 annual fuel economy to 37.49 miles per gallon.
If I can keep this up, I will be able to surpass my annual average fuel
economy record of 37.87 mpg, set in 2007.

Election Day!