The last time gasoline was 99 cents a gallon, Joe Smitherman was still mayor.

Come to think of it, maybe it hasn’t been all that long after all. Still, it’s been long enough that most Selma drivers have resigned themselves to paying a buck-fifty or more.

Not many expect to see 99-cent gas ever again.

Durrani (friends call him &uot;Aswraf&uot;) and his wife, Nusrat, own the Petro Food and Gas out on U.S. Highway 80 East. They do a good business. They know most of their regular customers by name.

Most stop by on their way to work or on their way home, fill up, maybe buy a cup of coffee or a little something to tide them over till the next meal.

For most, it’s a pleasant diversion. A chance to share a laugh with Durrani or one of the cashiers before moving on. For Durrani, it’s his livelihood. His &uot;bread and butter.&uot;

To show his customers just how much they mean to him, Durrani plans to roll back the price of regular gas to 99 cents Friday. Just Friday.

Durrani isn’t sure how many folks will show up, but he’s even put on extra staff in case the crowd is really big. Just in case. &uot;Normally, we have two who work. But Friday we will have two and me,&uot; he says. He smiles shyly.

Durrani has been talking up the big day with his customers over the past week, telling them to let their friends know.

He unfurls a banner that reads &uot;Customer Appreciation Day Gas 99 Gallon.&uot; Again the smile.

Durrani and his wife moved here from Chicago five years ago. &uot;I’m tired of shoveling snow,&uot; he says, as if that’s all the explanation anyone would need for packing up their family and moving a thousand miles.

He used to work as a respiratory therapist. He liked the work, but he wanted something more. He bought his first C-store in Chicago because, he says, he wanted his own business.

Duranni says the cost of living is cheaper here than it was up north. He works hard and he enjoys being his own boss, but he doesn’t expect to get rich. &uot;I used to pump a lot of gas,&uot; he says, &uot;but since Sept. 11 … business is slow.&uot;

Again the smile, sadder this time.

Maybe it won’t make a whole lot of difference. Maybe it won’t make any. But for one day, at least, Duranni wants to try and put things back like they were before, when gas was still 99 cents and people didn’t stare just because your name was Muhammad.