The constant need for mindless commodities is breathlessly aggravating.  Today I went to the local gas station three times.  I got gas once…  That’s it.  I got cigarettes twice, not because I smoke that much, but simply because the closest cigarette retailer is twenty miles away.  I’m a writer in the clasp of impoverishment, and I just can’t afford the damn gas.  My vices are clear and direct:  cigarettes and citrus flavored soda.  I don’t need anything fancy.  Name brands need not apply.  One time I switched to juice, and the fairies of addiction snuck up the back of my right leg and banged multi-colored plastic mechanical pencils on my front teeth like a damn xylophone.  It’s not a pretty sight…though it would be a good conversation addition. My point is that things are just too expensive. Regular people can’t afford to fill their car with gas, and then go fill their fridge with milk. It’s one or the other. Good thing is, I hate milk. Bad thing is, my wife doesn’t. I guess my point is that things need to change around here. Minimum wage is going up, but it might as well not, because it can’t keep up with everything else. It’s instances like this one which make me wish I wasn’t some lazy critic stuck behind my computer desk eating pre-cooked bacon while my waist line slowly tumbles opposite my ass. Maybe I could make a difference. I doubt it. Doesn’t make much sense to try. I don’t have the money.