A reader thanked us for the tips that we shared last week on going to the malls this Christmas season.
We wish we could also share with you some wise shopping tips, but unfortunately my friend, we are not good at that, so we stick to parking and coping with the traffic situation.
If you went to the malls Sunday morning, you probably had the whole parking area to yourself as even the roads were deserted as people watched the fight of Manny Pacquiao on television. Of course after the bout came the rush of shoppers, who were probably eager to spend the money they won or to simply celebrate the triumph of the Filipino fighter.
Even crimes were zilch and we hope Pacquiao will have more fights.
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A reader said that it would be a merry Christmas for motorists as the prices of fuel have gone down. She said that she used to spend almost P2,000 weekly for fuel, but now it’s down to about a little over P1,000.
“More money to spend at the beauty parlor,” she told us.
With our fuel costs going down, we are worried that the motorists would again go back to their old ways. By old ways, we mean the attitude of drivers before fuel prices skyrocketed.
Many of us changed our driving habits and even our lifestyles to cope with the spike in prices. We, for one, stopped going to places that we don’t necessarily have to go to.
By sticking to a home-office-home travel plan, we actually were able to cut down our cost on fuel even when diesel prices were in the high P50’s.
Of course there are unavoidable trips that we have to make to meetings, to events and others, but we also learned to carefully plan them out including the route to take and any alternate to avoid traffic.
One thing that drivers must know should be the layout of the streets and their intricacies like whether it is one way at a certain time, when left turn or right turn is not allowed, and many more. This way, you are better informed when going around the roads and you actually save on fuel cost.
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We once had an interesting conversation with a fellow motorist, who said that one of the cost-saving measures he implemented was postponing the Preventive Maintenance Schedule of his car.
We told him that he is saving on the wrong things. PMS is actually one way to save as you prevent major repairs that could cost you an arm, a leg, and your head sometimes hehehe.
If you think that going to the casa or the car dealer is expensive when it comes to PMS, you can find another reputable shop to do it for you and just ask them to follow what is in your maintenance booklet. Of course the people at the casa would not recommend this, but this can save you some money.
There are also some who buy the cheap spare parts that don’t last very long or might cause more damage, which does not really help you save money. Worst, these spare parts can sometimes compromise your safety.
Save wisely.
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Here’s a reminder to everyone.
With all the parties that we have to attend, please slow down if not avoid alcoholic beverages if you are driving.
We’d like to have you around reading us in 2009.
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For your comments, complaints and suggestions please feel free to contact us through 2531276 or 2538613 local 237.
You can also send email to nimrod@mozcom.com.