See you in October -- don't forget your hat

In Business

By Elizabeth Gabriel

(Updated: Friday, March 28, 2008, 4:23 PM)

Oakhurst Cruise and Travel has some nifty travel ops coming up.

On Tuesday (which is April 1, no jokes, please) Barbara Starkey and friends will host a slide show about the tour at 5:30 p.m. at the office. (It's in the Vons shopping center on the lower level, below Roundtable Pizza).

"We're really excited about this one," Starkey said. "For one thing it's in the U.S., where a dollar is still worth a dollar -- the dollar is taking a beating most everywhere else. For another thing, it is an election year, and we'll be in historic places including Washington, D.C. And finally, we are there during the fall color time."

The October tour starts in New York City (get yourself in the mood by listening to Sinatra or Sarah Vaughan sing "Autumn in New York") and heads to Philadelphia, Amish country, Gettysburg, the Shenandoah Valley, Colonial Williamsburg, President Washington's Mount Vernon, President Jefferson's Monticello and Arlington National Cemetery.

As an added bonus, the trip leaves from Fresno, so you don't have to haul all your stuff somewhere else before the official trip can begin.

There will be red hats and purple outfits on a short October cruise down to Mexico. The local Red Hat Ladies chapter is cooking this one up. The women are a hoot and out to have a fun time, Starkey said.

Official Red Hatters from anywhere and anyone else who would like to join in -- including daughters, granddaughters, friends (this is probably going to be one of those women-who-cruise things) are welcome to join in.

The group sails Oct. 6 on the Carnival Paradise from San Pedro for a four-day jaunt down to Ensenada by way of Catalina (listen to the Four Preps singing "26 Miles Across the Sea." If you're old enough to be a Red Hat Lady, you should be able to remember the tune, which was released in 1957).

If they get enough people signed up, they'll arrange for a bus to San Pedro.

The Red Hat phenomenon was fueled by a poem called "Warning" by Jenny Joseph. She's telling people what to expect when she turns the corner on age. The opening lines are:

"When I am an old woman I shall wear purple

"With a red hat which doesn't go and doesn't suit me."

Contact Oakhurst Cruise and Travel at (559) 683-6300 or go online at www.oakhurstcruiseandtravel.com

Gasoline pipeline

Well, it's not too bad this week. Most of the stations on the Star's Wednesday call list are holding their prices, so at least there's no across-the-chart uptick. Here's what we found out, with last week's prices in parentheses.

Bass Lake Shell, $3.69 ($3.59); Oakhurst Valero, $3.49 (same); Oakhurst Chevron, $3.65 (same); Coarsegold Kwik Serve, no answer ($3.59); Coarsegold Shell, $3.59 (same); Bootjack Market, $3.59 (same); Pioneer Texaco in Mariposa, $3.59 (same); AMPM on Avenue 12, $3.42 ($3.45).