Wouldn’t it be nice not to have the smell of gas on the hands, frozen hands in the dead of winter or never experience the sight of a  “credit card doesn’t read” message? Only three-or-so decades ago, Uncle Ron would pull up to the Shell, Standard or Conoco, drive over the black hose and a bell would ring. As a uniformed man appeared, Ron would slightly crack the window, yell “filler up with regular” and quickly roll it back up while enjoying the rest of his Marlboro.

Thousands of people back then had a career as a “Gas Station Attendant”. They pumped gas, took payment and made change. Millions of windshields are now under-washed because those guys aren’t around anymore.

Inside the gas station might have been a snack or pop machine. There was no place to mix your own multi-flavored slirpy. There was absolutely no heating lamp keeping several varieties of pizza warm. Instead there were mechanics standing by or working on neighborhood jalopies. Have you ever had car trouble at a gas station and they only service they could supply is a phone call to a tow truck? Back then the tow trucks were parked at the gas station! They even worked on your car right on sight! Too young for this concept, confused and need a reference. Watch Gomer and/or Goober Pyle on the Andy Griffith Show.