To "bite the bullet" is to accept the inevitable impending hardship and endure the resulting pain with fortitude". The catch phrase came from Rudyard Kipling in his 1891 novel The Light that Failed. It supposedly came from the practice of having a patient bite a bullet between their teeth as a way to cope with the pain of a surgical procedure without anesthetic during the Civil War. I just cannot imagine.
Dating back to the Indian Rebellion of 1857 (in India, not here), the phrase was "bite a cartridge". The phrase "Chew a bullet" went back as far as 1796. Today, biting the bullet holds the same meaning ... coping with the pain of the procedure, mostly nowadays fueling up your rig or trying to buy a steak for Sunday dinner.
Such was the case yesterday, as I literally stuck a glove in my mouth to muffle the scream as I put fuel in my Jeep.
Don't bother telling me it's because I live in California, and obviously this is not due to the "summer vacation" crowd. Here's the breakdown:
Fuel costs 10 months ago
$2.29/galFuel costs today 4.50/gal
Ca Taxes 10 months ago .90
Ca Taxes today .90
Cost of fuel 10 months ago $1.39
Cost of fuel today 3.60
So the actual cost of the cheapest variety of gas in town has risen $2.21 per gallon in ten months while the taxes have remained the same.
As you can imagine, I really did bite the bullet when it cost me $73.50 to fill up my Jeep. Yes I can go to Arizona and get fuel cheaper, but that too has gone up. I'm not trying to get political here, but there is obviously a problem. We've gone from being able to afford food to the highest inflation rate in 30 years, all in a matter of ten months.
That all means I haven't been going anywhere other than the grocery store and to the Elks lodge once a week. To fill up my truck would be around $220, so I'm staying rather close to home. That makes Nancy a dull girl who tries just about anything to fill the time, including filming her parrot while he's talking.
Jonathan is rather particular ... he only talks when he wants to, and rarely can I catch him on video. The bouncing of the camera is because I'm bobbing up and down, which usually gets him dancing and saying DISCO. That tells you just how old he really is.
Although people think parrots are very noisy, they are actually rather quiet unless they hear something that bothers them. Parrots have extraordinary hearing. Then they chortle and scream like a banshee, making Cooper bark at the same thing, whatever it is. Usually it's just a car driving by.
I'm also biting the bullet trying not to eat everything in sight, which happens when I'm not busy. I should probably KEEP that bullet in my mouth as I peruse the fridge every 30 minutes. I'm determined to go for a two mile walk today to at least get me out of the house. It's Cooper's favorite pastime ... smelling the smells.
In the meantime, although I have a few weeks left, I'm packing up the trailer and all those quilt tops I've made which are ready for quilting.
When you hear all that screaming coming from California, don't worry ... it's just me fueling up my truck.
I screamed when we filled up the propane tank for our barbecue. Glad we don't have the RV and have to use propane for heat.
ReplyDeleteI haven't even looked at the price of propane. I sure hope my tanks are still full!!
DeleteIt is sad to see the greatest country the world has ever seen slowly destroying itself from within. I don't know how many Brandons we can survive, but we are certainly circling the drain.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't have said it better!!!
DeleteYour answer lies in this question
ReplyDeleteOK I’ll do this one more time ? what was the Price of crude oil 10 months ago And what is the price of crude oil today Now there’s in part is the answer to your question
👉2020
In 👉👉2020, 👈👈the annual average price was 👉👉41.96 👈👈U.S. dollars per barrel.
👉2021
The oil price for Brent crude oils in November was $82.45 per barrel while the price was $83.54 per barrel in October of 2021. Over last twelve months the price has raisen 👉👉👉👉👉👉93.14%.👈👈👈👈👈👈
Now tell us again who is going to pay the $40.49 jack up price per barrel
Simple equation
If Nancy buys water for a dollar a gallon and uses 100 gallons that’s $100
. if Nancy’s 👉SUPPLIER 👈charges her two dollars a gallon now she’s going to pay $200 per hundred gallons
Another good example today go to a convenience store and price a bottle of Coca-Cola. Fl, $1.99
And then think back what you paid for it two years ago $ .98
Note : Unfortunately you do have to look at your California tax structure
A recently-released study from Stillwater Associates notes that “price increases due to taxes and fees are not insignificant,” and calculates the government gas taxes and fees add about $1.19 per gallon to the price of fuel in the Golden State.
These include the federal excise tax (18.3 cents per gallon), state excise tax (50.5 cents per gallon), sales tax applied to the price of gas plus excise tax (which is effectively double taxation), underground storage tank cleanup fee (2.0 cents per gallon), cap and trade costs (about 14.3 cents per gallon), and the Low Carbon Fuel Standard (about 22.6 cents per gallon based on current prices).
So why are we paying for all that crude oil from overseas instead of using what we can and do produce???? Or maybe even trading with Canada?? The California tax is high, but it's been the same for the last year, not affecting the price of the fuel itself.
DeleteAs a person that lived an grew up on a farm Can you tell me why my price of chicken $$ bacon $$ and beef $$ and the scarcity of chicken and bacon what’s your not on my shelf ,,, has skyrocketed in the last year
ReplyDeleteMostly because our current government does not support farmers. With their crazy covid rules, processors have had to shut down making product hard to come by. No one wants to work anymore with all the free money floating around. No workers, no product, and what's out there will be twice the price. The worst part ... farmers are not to blame. They are getting the same 99 cents per pound while the processors and grocery stores get the 9.99 per pound increase in price. Just take a look at Venezuela and you will see where we are headed.
DeleteIf you support farmers and I’m sure you do why did you all vote yes on proposition 12
Deletehttps://www.cnn.com/2021/10/17/business/california-pork-prices-prop-12/index.html
I'll stay away from including Canada's price increases other than to say I agree with you. Sadly, we need it so we buy it and for us, coming here to the U.S., we'll pay what it takes to come.
ReplyDeleteCute video of Johnathon, so sweet! ♥
Yes, Canada does have higher prices. On our way through to Alaska, Patty, Dan and I used to see whose rig would cost the most. I think we ran around $350 per tank.
DeleteOk, not being political either BUT, if you rearrange the letters in Omicron (new C O V I D variant), you come up with Moronic, which is what we all are who allow them to control us again....in my humble opinion, of course. :)
ReplyDeleteI am of the same humble opinion. Thank goodness people have finally stepped up and opened up their businesses, even in California. We are definitely on a slippery slope!
DeleteBy all means, get political. Things are ridiculous and something needs to change.
ReplyDeleteAgree 100%.
Delete