When I was a little kid, I would ride through the full-service filling station (still a few of those around) with my grandfather in his Impala, and he’d hand the man a $10 bill.

“Fill it up with ethyl and gimme a gallon of milk,” granddad would grumble. And you know what?

He’d get change back.

When gas was 28 cents a gallon, that’s the way it worked. Today, fuel prices are reaching prices many of us thought we’d never see, and they threaten far more than just our pocketbooks.

I know I am just an unappreciative lowly teacher earning that “fat” paycheck, but contrary to popular belief, I actually feel quite blessed to have a stable income. When I think of families who are busting their rear ends to just be able to make ends meet and keep some kind of food on the table, I really, truly do not know how they are able to keep ahead of what has become the skyrocketing ascent of fuel prices.

And the worst part? It’s going to get worse before it gets better — and potentially, way worse. In the past 14 days, gas prices have zoomed, increasing more than 20 cents a gallon —and the end of the lunacy is nowhere in sight.

There is actually a story on CNN this week about how some old gas pumps aren’t physically able to display above $3.99 a gallon, or $99 total. Seems no one even dreamed what we’re seeing today was even possible when they were designed.

These folks who are driving these gas-guzzling SUV’s and such … well, I just don’t know how they are doing it (or why they are doing it might be the better question). I guess if they can afford it, they are just better off than most of us. Such is life, I suppose.

I heard an oil analyst the other day say he believed there was a decent chance that oil prices would reach near $200 a barrel before Christmas. Think about that, and all the ramifications it might hold.

If oil hits that mark, we will see near $6 a gallon gasoline — $7 for diesel. Now, before you break out the crying towel in thinking about your bank account, think about your local school system, and the buses they use to get kids to and from school. Think about how much it costs to just fuel them.

Think about the trucking companies that deliver all the goods to your local stores from all over the country, or the delivery services that bring packages to your door. Airlines, taking people to and from all over the world. Shipping, bringing products from across the seas. Your power bill, from which petroleum-based fuels help run the turbines. The materials made from petroleum based products, including plastics, etc., etc.

Many of them will very soon become too expensive to run, produce, or maintain — and as a result, many of them will quite literally disappear.

Literally, the list goes on and on, and so does the potential for a huge, huge mess. When you get right down to it, the bottom line is this: life as we have known it for much of our lives may be on the verge of coming to an end.

But, in thinking about the long term effects $200 a barrel oil might have, I see something that might be silver lining.

Remember that old, outdated concept called the family farm? If things get as bad as they might, those who have held on to those farms might come out smelling like a rose.