21 responses for this post

1. GeekBoy on Friday, April 28, 2006 at 9:43 am

   Awesome. After years of living in Pennsylvania, New York, and New Mexico — not to mention countless cross-country road trips — I consider one of the most backward-ass things about my home state to be the fact that one can’t pump their own gas.

   So big thumbs up from me on this idea!

2. GeekBoy on Friday, April 28, 2006 at 9:51 am

   Okay, and is this guy serious???: “Full-serve is ‘the single greatest cultural advantage to living in New Jersey. It’s why we stay here.’” Because if that’s true, then your life is very very sad.

   Then there’s the guy who says, “[we] prefer the convenience of staying inside our vehicles, keeping our hands and clothes clean and odor-free.” To him I say, dude, it’s like homosexual marriage — it’s not mandatory. Most gas stations will continue to offer both full- and self-serve. If you want to pay full price and remain odor-free (and pay full price), knock yourself out. But don’t throw the, “Don’t fix what’s not broken,” line at me and cut off my options because you’re afraid of change.

3. Susie on Friday, April 28, 2006 at 9:57 am

   This would be the happiest day of Al’s life since the invention of MythBusters.

   I grew up in NY, and it took months of living in NJ before I realized there were NO self-serve pumps in the state. I thought I just had been stopping at freaky stations. Really, I’m a genius.

   “To him I say, dude, it’s like homosexual marriage — it’s not mandatory.” Heehee.

4. Michael on Friday, April 28, 2006 at 10:02 am

   You beat me to loving on that Geekboyism, Susie. He speaks the truth.

   I can’t even remember the last time I’ve received full service…..

   ::le sigh::

5. Maggie on Friday, April 28, 2006 at 10:10 am

   I knew NJ was full-serve only because FG and GB had told us, but you forget this kind of thing because it is such an ALIEN concept to us. On one of our trips Jeremy stopped for gas and got out of the car. An attendant ran up and said, “I can’t let you do that, man.” Jeremy was like, “Why? The keys aren’t in the ignition, what’s wrong?” The attendant was sweating and screamed, “Just back away from the pump, man! Back away!” Okay, that last part wasn’t true.

6. Maggie on Friday, April 28, 2006 at 10:12 am

   Also, as a point of interest, when we drove down this past Dec, gas was cheaper in NJ despite being full-serve than many self-serve stations in NY.

7. Megan on Friday, April 28, 2006 at 10:15 am

   hahahahahahaha….Maggie’s funny.

8. Joanne on Friday, April 28, 2006 at 10:16 am

   I agree that gas is cheaper in NJ than in IN, where I currently live. Also, I really, really, really loved living in NJ and having the full serve at the same price. In Indiana, we used to have a choice between full and self serve, but it’s been easily 10 years since I’ve seen a gas station where you could get someone to pump your gas (for a WAY higher price). Plus I think it’s pro-worker to have no self service - someone has to do it, and it may as well provide someone a job. Also, we have a lot of problems with people pumping and running (dirty!) in Indiana.

9. Lauren on Friday, April 28, 2006 at 10:19 am

   When I drive down to PA I try to time my trip so that I have to stop in NJ to get gas because it is full serve (and cheaper). Full Serve gas stations in RI are hard to come by, I know of 3. Although that’s not saying much because RI is the size of a football field….

10. marjon on Friday, April 28, 2006 at 10:31 am

    I’ll say it again, we Dutch have the highest prices in the world. We pay $6,73 per gallon nowadays. So SHUT UP!

    (I don’t know why I just shouted. That part of the oil-is-so-expensive-part is not affecting me. My bicycle doesn’t run on gas and Ivon’s employer pays for his.)

11. marjon on Friday, April 28, 2006 at 10:33 am

    Oh, and I felt very weird about the full service thing in Jersey. When I had to get gas at one point in 2004, I shortly considered to drive to a different state and get gas there, but I couldn’t.

12. Chips O'Toole on Friday, April 28, 2006 at 11:01 am

    I encountered this in the other state, Oregon, a few years ago. yeah, it sure was safer. I mean that pump guy looked like he had some kind of advanced degree, if not some intense training.

13. freakgirl on Friday, April 28, 2006 at 11:04 am

    I’ve pumped my own gas ONCE, as far as I can remember. (Dirty?)

    I love self-serve, because I’m am lazy.

14. Jen on Friday, April 28, 2006 at 11:07 am

    Now now, Chips, you know they probably go to Gas College.

15. ali on Friday, April 28, 2006 at 11:17 am

    oh man, my best friend lives in philly, and every time i visit her, we drive to NJ for gas. and i always freak out b/c umm…you CAN’T pump your gas? WHAT? i’m from texas…and we not only pump our own gas…as GWB would say - we grow it.

    

16. freakgirl on Friday, April 28, 2006 at 11:24 am

    ha!

17. Michael on Friday, April 28, 2006 at 12:02 pm

    Do they wash your windshield, check your tire inflation, and check your oil, too? When I was but a teen, I worked at a funeral home where one of my jobs was to gas up the hearse and the Cadillacs. The funeral guy only went to the full service station in town and I was always uncomfortable about some old dude giving me the full service, since my car only went to the self-serve station. Across the street.

18. GeekBoy on Friday, April 28, 2006 at 12:22 pm

    Michael, if gas stations actually still did the “full service” treatment as you describe it, I’d actually be more in favor of it. But these days, it just means they fill your tank — maybe with a smile, maybe not.

19. freakgirl on Friday, April 28, 2006 at 12:25 pm

    I was always uncomfortable about some old dude giving me the full service

    Sure you were, Michael. Sure you were.

20. Michael on Friday, April 28, 2006 at 12:40 pm

    Those shirts still do it for me. You know the ones.

21. TandJ on Friday, April 28, 2006 at 5:57 pm

    When I started driving - the very first time I went to a gas station - it was a 76 and the kid came out and filled my tank and then I tipped him a dollar. I didn’t know better. When I came home and told my Aunt what I had done - she laughed and laughed. That was my first and last time doing that. I also remember that gas was .97 cents a gallon.

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