A surge in gasoline prices is forcing many to rethink their daily commute to work.

Some private employers as well as local governments are offering a four-day week as a perk that eliminates two commutes a week. In the automaking heartland, the shorter workweek offers employers a way of rewarding employees when the budget does not allow a salary increase.

According to staffing service company Robert Half, some 44 percent of respondents have changed the way they commute — from sharing a ride to driving a more fuel-efficient car. Others are working from home or looking for a closer job in order to reduce costs.

What measures are you taking to reduce your commuting times?

For full coverage of rising oil prices, click here .

The freefall in U.S. home prices is forcing many elderly Americans to postpone plans to move into senior housing developments until they are able to sell their homes .

“We’ve felt the pinch,” said David Freshwater, who three years ago sold his chain to Sunrise Senior Living, and now runs a group that invests in the sector. “People don’t want to sell when they have a price in their mind and Millie down the block sold her house for that amount.”

Have you or someone you know postponed moving into a planned retirement community because of the state of the housing market?

To read the full story on how the housing market affects senior citizens, click here.

For full coverage of the housing crisis, click here.

More Americans are leaving their cars at home and jumping on buses, trains and trolleys as retail gasoline prices approach $4 per gallon, the American Public Transportation Association said in a report.

“There’s no doubt that the high gas prices are motivating people to change their travel behavior,” APTA president William W. Millar said. (For the full story, click here.)

Record high gas prices are forcing many drivers to spend less time behind the wheel. Data from the Department of Transportation on May 23 shows Americans drove 11 billion miles less in March than a year earlier — the sharpest year-on-year drop in the history of the agency’s reporting.

The government agency also reported that highway miles driven in March fell 4.3 percent from a year earlier — the first March decline since the last major oil shock in 1979.

Have you started taking mass transit more often in light of high gas prices?

Related blog: Who wants a 4-day work week?

For full coverage on the rising cost of oil, click here.

(Editor’s note: This blog was originally posted on May 23 and updated on June 2, 2008)

Reuters turned the table on executives at the Global Technology, Media and Telecoms Summit and asked them to describe what they are doing in their own lives to reduce their carbon footprint. Applied Materials CEO Mike Splinter is changing every light bulb in his home to compact fluorescents, Mozilla CEO John Lilly spends more time on the Internet than in his car and Hulu CEO Jason Kilar tries to drive his car as little as possible. Not everyone is up to the task: Seagate CEO Bill Watkins says he’s “actually doing nothing.” For the full story, click here .

Other industries have come under pressure to become more environmentally friendly. Are the tech and media industries green enough?

For full coverage of the Reuters Technology, Media and Telecoms Summit, click here .

American Airlines, the world’s largest airline, plans to charge $15 for a passenger’s first checked bag, starting in mid-June.

The airline is trying to claw back more of its extra fuel costs but the move is unprecedented for a major American carrier. (More on American’s cost-cutting measures here). Will this lead to even more of a struggle boarding the plane as passengers force their bags into overhead bins? What impact will American’s move have on air travel in the U.S.?

The road just got rockier for Hillary Clinton in her battle to win her party’s presidential nomination after Barack Obama’s victory in North Carolina and her slim win in Indiana.

“It’s full speed on to the White House,” Clinton said at a victory rally in Indianapolis, with her husband, former President Bill Clinton, standing behind her. “We’ve got a long road ahead, but we’re going to keep fighting.”

But Clinton made some conciliatory noises. “I can assure you as I have said on many occasions, that no matter what happens, I will work for the nominee of the Democratic Party … and I know that Senator Obama feels the same way,” she said.

Should Clinton drop out of the race for the Democratic nomination?

For many bankers and traders, the days of company perks such as sleek limos, cushy business seats, and fat steaks are gone.

Credit Suisse has reduced some cell phone subsidies and done away with car vouchers. Merrill Lynch has banned business class travel for some divisions. Goldman Sachs has pulled free soda and JPMorgan has upped the requirements for free meals and car rides.

Has your company scaled back on perks? Share your experience.

For more on the economy, click here.

Presidential candidates John McCain and Hillary Clinton want to suspend the gas tax for the summer to offer drivers some relief from record fuel prices. President Bush said this week that he was willing to consider a fuel tax holiday.

Barack Obama opposes the idea, saying it would not amount to much. House Democratic leaders have also shown little support for suspending the gas tax. Some experts say that a gas tax holiday wouldn’t help drivers much if service stations don’t pass on the savings to consumers.

Do you support a gas tax holiday this summer?

“Sex and the City” fans and entertainment bloggers such as Perez Hilton are peeved that the premiere of the much-anticipated flick, based on HBO’s hit television comedy about single women in New York, is going to be in London — two whole weeks before the New York debut on May 30.

The film’s producers downplayed the decision after coming under fire from New Yorkers.

London will be much smaller,” a New Line Cinema spokesman told New York’s Daily News. “The whole cast isn’t even going.”

“It was simply a question of logistics and scheduling. We’re still planning the big premiere to be in New York,” he said.

Do you think New York “Sex and the City” fans have a right to feel snubbed?

It used to be a feminist mantra: you can do it all, successfully raise a family and have a career.

Meg Wolitzer , the author of “The Ten-Year Nap,” a new novel about women who leave the workplace to care for their children, says the one-time noble goal doesn’t always work out in real life — and that is not a bad thing.

“Having everything is one of those cringe worthy concepts that sound better than they actually are,” Wolitzer told Reuters.

“Is the point of life to amass a big jackpot? I think the point is the stuff that happens along the way.”

Do you think women should strive to “have it all” — a career and a family — or is that feminist ideal overrated?

Click here to read the full story on Meg Wolitzer’s book.