Well, I had a blast and wish I could’ve had a longer holiday. Isn’t that always the case? You need a holiday to recover from a holiday.

I can’t dispute it makes the car seem a lot bigger than it really is. And I notice I’ve been getting some pretty encouraging looks from the other drivers on the road. Could they be envious of how groovy my dad’s little car looks? Well, then get your own spoiler !

Before the scandal broke out, I thought cougars were part of the big cat family. Now that I know the other meaning, it conjures up images of an older woman on taking a caribbean cruise to snare a younger man. Hmm, sounds like the life of the rich and famous alright!

While sitting at Starbucks, I overheard a group of ladies discussing their plan to go on a cruise together in a group. Could this be the plot of cougars? Sounds like they’ve been almost everywhere and can’t decide where to go now. The wonders of having boatfuls of cash at your disposal!

I’m sure they’ll figure a good place to go . As for mere minions like me, I’m off to enjoy the last few days of the holiday season before the school madness starts again! I hear there are a few sales on this weekend and that’s where you’ll find me. Cheers!

The kids and I felt like celebs staying at the Hard Rock Hotel. The rooms were gorgeous, very spacious with a balcony overlooking the landscaped swimming pool below. I just couldn’t get enough of the changing sea views every day, I tell ya.

The bathroom featured a huge photo frame of Elvis and the kids were thrilled that it’s so different from other hotel bathrooms. It came with a bath tub. To be honest, I would’ve preferred those with shower enclosures instead because those are much easier for the kids to zip in and have a quick shower after their swim.

But it being the Hard Rock Hotel chain, I’m sure plenty of thought has been given to make the rooms and bathrooms some of America’s best. The bed was the most comfortable ever and we slept like logs every night, tired out from the hot days by the sea.

I still love driving except I’m beginning to feel it’s a bit of a drag especially when I go pick up Steev. Frankly driving in the vicinity of his college (or any college, I would think) is such a stress.

80% of the drivers around college kids who drive with anything but their heads. 10% are ah-sohs who are there to pick up their kids, heaven forbid! And the other 10% are people like me who’re just doin’ our best not to get hit! Gah!

I’m just hanging on and trying not to lose my love for driving, is all!

That aside, here are the few more tips I promised.

I plan my travel logistics ahead and grouping my errands so I can do them all at once instead of going out multiple times. Yes, it does take some planning but it does make a lot of sense even if I weren’t trying to save gas money.

I’m trying to drive without any sudden increase or decrease in speed. Smooth and easy does it. But this is a huge challenge, given how often our roads are being dug up and patched back. I’m coming up against all manner of grooves and potholes every two minutes or so. If you can find a way of avoiding those grooves and potholes without ending up on top of a tree, good for you .

Carpooling, walking, cycling, riding a camel, finding a cheaper mode of transportation sounds really great but it doesn’t always work out in practice. There are just too many factors involved sometimes but hey, if you can make it work, do it by all means.

I used to wonder whether I’ll waste more gas idling or if I should switch off my car engine while waiting. Well, I’m told you’re better off with the second option. So that’s what I’m doing now.

If you know of other tips to help us reduce fuel consumption and save gas money, please feel free to share. Oh and don’t forget to read part 1 of the tips I mentioned earlier here.

I’m on the road a lot running Mom’s taxi so I don’t have a choice… not unless I decide to buy a Harley ! But until I figure out a cheaper mode of transportation, I have to try and improve my gas consumption and try to make that tank last.

I try to go to the gas station in the morning when the weather is cooler. It’s not always possible to time it that way but I try. Gas is less dense when it’s cool so you gain.

I’ve chucked out all the unnecessary stuff living in the trunk of my car. A lighter vehicle consumes less gas so I’m trying to keep it light.

I don’t really have to work on driving more slowly because I always drive at below 80 kmph since I have kids in my car. I’m more concerned about safety than speed. If anyone gets impatient and wants to race ahead, I’ll happily let them pass and graciously say, “Go ahead, waste more gas, muahaha!”

I get my car’s tyre pressure checked and filled up every other week. If the pressure is too low, there’s more resistance and the car actually consumes more gas.

Just a few simple tips that I hope will help you reduce your car’s fuel consumption and save you money.

One guy is making some pretty good sales converting grease and used cooking oil into veggie diesel. Some other guys are planning to use golf buggies on the roads.

My kids were pretty excited when they heard that someone was actually doing this. They thought of this idea too. Well, that’s because they want to drive but are not of age yet. The golf buggy is the only thing they’ve ever driven and they say if buggies were allowed on the roads, they’d be qualified to drive them!

I say, haha, dream on. Golf buggies are just a shell of a car with no doors, no seat belts, …  it’s a moving violation. But it’s a cute idea and I like it.