Economics For The DIY Set

We decided to drive to Kittery today in search of a rug for the room we recently reno'd. While we found some intriguing possibilities, the prices - even at outlet prices - were higher than what we'd pay at Marden's for comparable rugs, if they had ones we liked, which they do not happen to have at the moment. So we decided not to buy. Marden's is a Maine institution wherein one can be excellent products purchased from the stock of failed retailers. There motto is actually accurate - "I shoulda bought it when I saw it at Marden's" [pronounced, "Mahden's"]. We'll swing by on Sunday's for the next couple of weeks until we find one we like.

On the way home we realized that we had spent about $13 not to purchase a rug. As it happened we needed to fill up our 97' Subaru, which gets 24/25 mpg. We spent about $26 for 10 plus gallons. The trip there and back used about half a tank - bear in mind that you can find anything you want if you live in Central Maine - as long as you're willing to drive more than an hour to get it. Now god has been good to Pudentilla and had she realized the cost of gas was adding $13 to the shopping trip, the knowledge would not have stopped her from buying a rug - if she found what she wanted at a reasonable price. But as we sped back home along the turnpike, we wondered, "just what do folks with kids do when gas prices are this high and back to school shopping is around the corner."

The people wonder why il Ducetto isn't getting a poll bounce from the "good" economic news of late, we suspect, are pretty darned well-to-do.