Gas prices are at $3.36 for unleaded here in San Diego! I was pretty surprised - I had no idea gas prices were on the rise again. It should really be no surprise though, given all the talk around Iran.

I've always been curious about the real MPG on my Mazda3, as well as the actual expense of owning a car for me in San Diego (gas + insurance + parking). Of course, I enjoy the warm feeling of smugness when I find out I haven't filled up my tank in three weeks (good thing I don't have a Prius, or my smugness might be too much to handle!), but it'll feel even BETTER when I can put a dollar and cents figure on it.

Starting today, I've started recording my actual gas usage on my car. This will hopefully give me an idea of how often I'm driving the car, as well as the actual MPG usage on my Mazda3. I know (based on informal "in my head" math) that at the end of its lifecycle, the mighty Taurus was averaging 14mpg ... hopefully my Mazda3 can get around 28mpg (I think by manufacturer's specs, it can do that).

You may now officially enjoy that smugness of knowing you're not a total dweeb like me!