Since the New Year, we've seen 1 and 2 cent increases almost every day. At that pace, the average price has shot up into the mid $2 range.

This is a holiday weekend where people have marked off some time and set aside money for vacation. A few more bucks at the pump aren't going to dissuade them.

In a lot of ways, we begin 2006 with the same issues we had in 2005.

The news is better in that we're sort of holding steady. That's good news for the consumer, and in that regard, prices have been in the $2.40 range per gallon in Las Vegas and $2.50 range in Reno.

This is an example of how closely we are tied to the global economic chain of crude oil. We're often asked how a strike in Nigeria or an incident in Russia could have an effect on us here.

The drop in statewide prices seems to buck the trend we're seeing across the country. Every spring, Americans have an increased demand for gasoline.

In the big picture, we certainly have recovered as far as refineries being repaired and coming back online.

The increase in statewide prices, from Las Vegas to Reno, is really cause for concern.

Not only are we paying anywhere from 13 to 30 cents more than we did a month ago, but we're still more than a month away from Memorial Day weekend.