Is this a sign of maturity or have i lost it

one big thing is lower weight = more mpg

if you want to hit that magic 40mpg there is a site that has lots of stuff... some of the stuff is reasonable, some of it not too smart (leaving spare tire home, etc)
this post has lots of ideas
http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthread.php/getting-more-efficiency-out-zx2-small-list-mods-2723.html