The Life of "J"

Gas prices have plunged since oil went negative last week. Sam’s Club was selling it for $1.49 a gallon today; $1.89 at Sheetz.

In some places out West, it’s fallen below $1, something I never thought I’d see in my lifetime. The National Average is $1.74, a level not seen for any significant length of time since the 1990s (though a few cents above the New Years 2016 low) The $1.74 level is down from $2.62 at the beginning of the year, $3.99 in 2011, and over $4.00 just before the 2008 Recession. Graph from GasBuddy.com:

I took the photo above on a food run today. Wal-Mart finally got the custom stickers for their floor to direct Social distancing, and their isles are now one-way only.

I was the only car on the road several times today, simply unheard of in this college town outside of major holidays. The photos below show only three cars on the main stretch of North Atherton Street, and an empty College Avenue by the Penn State Bookstore. Both are typically bumper-to-bumper this time of day. The students have been gone now for a month.

It’s eerie out there.

Only grocery stores and take-out restaurants remain open. Malls and major retail stores remain closed, as they have for 6 weeks now. I can’t believe it’s been that long, and it’s a weird thing to continue to see.

The Hoss’s restaurant, which features a buffet, has a sign that says “SEE YOU SOON”

I’m just not sure that’s going to happen.