Local gas price in NW Minn. as of April 30,2011

I decided to blog about the effects of the gas prices on myself and my family. I will post each day that I fill up at the pump. I drive roughly 20 miles to and from work which ends up being roughly 50 miles with the driving around town on daily errands. Buying a fuel efficient tin can of a car is nonsense because of the winters here and the type of work that I do requires a truck or a work van. Many of my neighbors and friend and most people in Minnesota are in more or less the same predicament I am in.

I would love for someone to come up with a fuel efficient truck that I could afford. It would require four wheel drive so I and my family would not die in a snow bank when the roads drift over, something that happens in Minnesota. It would have to be able to plow snow and go off road. It would have to hall large loads and be able to pull a trailer ( I make a living by hauling stuff from time to time) It would have to last a while and be easily and affordably repaired. I just do not see Detroit cranking out practical hybrid fuel efficient four wheel drive truck. In fact I am worried that in the future we may be forced to fix our old trucks just to have something around that works as a utility when we are all forced to drive mopeds and peddle cars, and just as a thought I would like to mention how do you heat an electric car in Minnesota when it is -20F. I bet no one has even thought of this problem, because they do not live here.

The answer is probably fuel efficient oil / diesel type of work vehicles and I have done some reading on this being a solution and do know from experience that farmers and contractors in Europe do use diesel for work. Americans view oil and diesel as dirty but used correctly this is not the case and if there were a shortage we could grow oil seed crops that would meet the need for large trucks and farm vehicles. A Prius hybrid just isn't going to haul a load of grain or sugar beats.

Now today I spent over 80 dollars just filling up my work van and my wife's car. I have not filled up the old ford truck yet. I hate to think what that will cost.

Fuel cost: $3.87 per gallon

Total for today $85.53

Not much left a pop and coffee.

Trading Post on KTRF Radio

If you live north of Plummer Minnesota and East of Grygla Minnesota, chances are you have listened to KTRF's Trading Post presented in the mornings 8:35 am Monday through Saturday. Cards that are dropped off at the radio station or are put in the mail are read over the radio, with the older cards from the day before being read first. Then the next part of the show is where people can call in and say what the have for sale or are looking for.

It is fun to listen knowing how the local culture is and some times is good for a laugh. Anything can come up from some one looking to give away "good barn cats" to selling a coil for a model A Ford. The trading post is currently being sponsored by Hardware Hank of Thief River Falls. Transcripts of what was posted can be seen at: http://www.trfradio.com/trading_post . You can also listen live to the broad cast at:http://www.trfradio.com/page/listen_live.