This is a different kind of Healthy Tip on Tuesday post, but it is just as important for your overall health as any other tip, because it can cause financial stress and other stress-related issues that can affect your health and wellbeing.
If you live in the USA, then you know that the government just announced bans on Russian energy imports. Before that announcement was made, here where I live gas prices were already $4.20/gallon. Now, I am not going to go into the politics of climate consequences of oil and gas. But, you could certainly vote in favor of those topics this fall.
You are most likely going to have to conserve gas, especially if you drive a large vehicle. I think my gas tank is like 10 gallons, which means to fill my tank it would be 42 dollars. That is a huge jump from just six months ago. Since we live in a very rural area, and we have to drive at least 30 minutes to get to anything we want, you can see how expensive this could really get.
How can you conserve gas? Some of these will be related to more rural folks, than people who live in the city.
- Don’t drive. This is the most obvious way to conserve gas, though it is not that practical especially if you live in rural areas, but work in the city. If you can walk, or bike to work, that is an option. Car pooling when you can is another great option. We have two cars and while we both work in the same city, our schedules are no where near the same. So, that won’t work.
- Drive less. This will be my most obvious choice. I will try to shop in town, though their prices are high and I am not always happy with the quality of food options. I surely do not want to be buying food from Family Dollar and Dollar General. With CKD that would be a disaster for me. I will not be picking up extra shifts either, as the only thing that extra money will go for is gas. I will pray my husband does not have to return to the office for a little longer, too. Which is a good point in itself, work from home if you can.
- Combine your trips. I already do this, but I may have to be even more thoughtful of this. My doctor is 30 minutes away, both of them, and they may have to be more willing to do telemedicine since they don’t want to do it anymore with the pandemic winding down. I think this is totally dumb by the way, unless I need an actual physical exam.
- We may have to consider moving to the city sooner than we wanted to, if it persists for a very long time. The city has public transportation that we absolutely do not have access to in rural areas.
- Buy a smaller vehicle, EV, or only have one vehicle. First off I would love an EV, except I refuse to pay the price for one. The most affordable, the Nissan Leaf is almost 30,000 dollars. Sorry, I have never paid that for a car, nor will I. I already drive a smaller Kia, and my husband’s is not too much bigger. We used to own only one vehicle, back when it was feasible. That option really is no longer feasible, unless I was willing to leave my job and get a more local job, which I really do not want to do, but, again if it persists for a super long time, getting a job closer to home is a good option.
- Drive slower. Now I heard a politician suggest that on the news this morning, that going 6 to 7 mph slower would save gas. Now that is only really true if you drive at like 57 mph. Because, gas efficiency peaks at like 50mph. I looked that up. I know I am super smart, but I did not know that, lol. So, drive much slower than you are probably used to and save gas.
- Don’t be an aggressive driver. This just simply wastes gas on a whole.
- Ease into stops slower. This is something I already do, but my husband does these abrubt stops that I hate. Don’t be abrupt, it is rude, and wastes gas.
- Maintain your car with routine maintenance.
- Make sure your tires have the proper amount of pressure and rotate them.
- I know this one is hard, but keep windows, sun roofs, convertible tops, and moon roofs closed when you are driving at high speeds like on the freeway.
- Don’t let your car idle. I know I am sorry to all my northern friends who warm their cars each morning. Or, even here where we like to cool it off in the heat of the afternoon. If you are stuck in traffic for more than a minute or two, turn your car off, and then turn it back on when you are ready to move.
- For all of my camping friends, or people who carry lots of tools, lightening up the load saves a ton of gas. Pulling, towing, or packing up your vehicle with heavy items uses a lot more gas than if you lighten the load.
I hope this list helps you. If you have any other great tips please share them in the comments. I do not approve of spam, so don’t bother.
Stay safe and healthy!
Living Life With CKD 