I Left My Coffee and Protein Bar on the Counter — And I Don’t Regret It

Today, I stopped at the gas station, just chasing a simple craving. A hankering, really. I wasn’t looking for much—just a cold Starbucks Lite and a protein bar to hold me over until lunch. Something I’ve done a hundred times without thinking. But when the cashier rang me up and said, “That’ll be $10.98,” I didn’t reach for my card.

I blinked. “What?!”

She didn’t flinch. “Tariffs,” she said casually, like that explained everything. And maybe it did.

Now, I’m no economist, but I do know the price of a bottled coffee and a protein bar shouldn’t graze the $11 mark—unless they’ve started brewing espresso with unicorn tears. But here we are, apparently paying international economic penalties at the corner gas station. And just like that, I was done.

I left the items right there on the counter.

Because I didn’t vote for this.

Actually, I voted for the other sane candidate.

Not the tariffs. Not the inflated costs. Not the idea that the basics of convenience should now feel like luxury indulgences. I wasn’t going to submit to a system that punishes everyday people for simply wanting a snack and a caffeine fix.

This wasn’t about the ten bucks. It was about the principle.

We’re being squeezed. Quietly, gradually, and without much explanation. And when we ask why, the answer is always a shrug and a scapegoat. “Tariffs.” “Supply chain.” “Inflation.”

Translation? “Deal with it.”

Well, not today.

So I walked out empty-handed, my hunger unsatisfied but my spine a little straighter.

Because sometimes, you’ve got to say no. Even if it’s just to a $10.98 snack.

Have you started noticing these quiet hikes in your everyday purchases too?