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Last night I had a date in Paducah. I got lost on the way there, due to attempting a new route. This resulted in an 1.5 hour drive taking an extra hour, and using up the rest of my gas tank. So, after the date, which went well, I had to fill up before making the trip home.
After getting turned around again (I've been trouble since my brother demanded I give back his GPS) I got back to the highway and decided on Fivestar. I had been thinking earlier that when I got gas eventually I wouldn't fill up at BP--you know, to protest my $20 worth.
Being unfamiliar with Kentucky's branding, I pulled into the station and unscrewed the gas cap. Fivestar... was a BP station. And friends? This is a confession. While I couldn't see another gas station there was certainly another brand nearby (I confirmed this later), however I didn't even consider leaving.
"I'll just get less than $20 dollars," I said to myself, trying to appease the guilt.
I stared at the green and yellow logo while the gas pumped, and pictured in my mind the images of the spill I had just watched on television days before. I grumbled under my breath about how stupid BP was. "What an awful company." I watched the numbers flick past. 18... 19...
My hand twitched on the grip.
20...
Twitch... but I didn't release the pressure.
21. Full tank*.
--
The point? Things aren't always what they seem. A fairly innocuous-looking gas station could be a BP, and a liberal-minded girl who talks the talk might really be too lazy to do the right thing when it comes down to real life.
Maybe I'll do better next time.
*Yes, I can get a full tank for around 20 dollars. Yes, my car is awesome and gets about 30 miles to the gallon. Yes, gas is pretty cheep in the Midwest.
After getting turned around again (I've been trouble since my brother demanded I give back his GPS) I got back to the highway and decided on Fivestar. I had been thinking earlier that when I got gas eventually I wouldn't fill up at BP--you know, to protest my $20 worth.
Being unfamiliar with Kentucky's branding, I pulled into the station and unscrewed the gas cap. Fivestar... was a BP station. And friends? This is a confession. While I couldn't see another gas station there was certainly another brand nearby (I confirmed this later), however I didn't even consider leaving.
"I'll just get less than $20 dollars," I said to myself, trying to appease the guilt.
I stared at the green and yellow logo while the gas pumped, and pictured in my mind the images of the spill I had just watched on television days before. I grumbled under my breath about how stupid BP was. "What an awful company." I watched the numbers flick past. 18... 19...
My hand twitched on the grip.
20...
Twitch... but I didn't release the pressure.
21. Full tank*.
--
The point? Things aren't always what they seem. A fairly innocuous-looking gas station could be a BP, and a liberal-minded girl who talks the talk might really be too lazy to do the right thing when it comes down to real life.
Maybe I'll do better next time.
*Yes, I can get a full tank for around 20 dollars. Yes, my car is awesome and gets about 30 miles to the gallon. Yes, gas is pretty cheep in the Midwest.
