I had previously reported that we have been half-heartedly searching for a new car.

There are a number of features that we're looking for... 

• It has to seat five comfortably plus room for a large black lab on occasion. 
  
• It must have leather seats - I know, it sounds extravagant but I learned after getting a car with upholstered seats that they don't mix with todders very well.  That's right, juice stains fabric, it wipes right off of leather. 
  
• I'd prefer to have a sun/moon roof.  Again, sounds extravagant, but we don't do a lot of highway driving and hubby likes the feeling of the open air.  And the few extra hundred bucks that it adds to the car pales in comparison to the tens of thousands of dollars we'd be forced to cough up to afford a convertible to satisfy hubby's craving. 
• And the most important feature?  It must not be a gas-guzzler.

I am super-serious about the latter.  Our dependable Subaru gets good mileage.  We don't drive a lot (less than 15,000 miles per year) but when we do, I don't feel the need to add to the coffers of CEOs of energy companies or slowly destroy the environment (take your pick).  I want an energy-efficient car.

Gas prices this week tied their historical high in the US, adjusted for inflation.  If you make the adjustment for inflation, gas is now as expensive as it was in 1981 - in the Cold War era.  And, according to the experts, it is expected to soar to more than $4/gallon in the summer.  This, of course, comes at a time when energy companies are raking in tons of money and US automakers are scratching their heads, wondering why they didn't see it coming.

This whole thing confuses and infuriates me on about a million levels.  But the thing that I really don't understand is why so many people opted to purchase inefficient cars and now lament the results.  The price of gas has been slowly creeping up for a while, we are in the midst of a crisis in the Middle East - I just don't get why folks are surprised to see the numbers at the pump.  In fact, I was discussing the cost of commuting with a fellow parent who mentioned that she pays more than $100 per week in gas alone to fill her Ford Expedition.  That's more than $5000 for gas - for one car - just on commuting (she's not counting family vacations, etc.) for herself and one child.

There are so many tax incentives now to buy energy efficient cars, not to mention the gas savings, I can't imagine why more Americans won't consider purchasing a more energy efficient car.  I know that I am.