These days my life has been simplified by the absence of an available car in my life. Allan works out in Beaverton, so it makes sense for him to drive most days. It is a whole lot easier for me to walk to Woodlawn Elementary & PUMP than for him to have to trek it to the west side. To his credit, the guy does bike & max it one or two days each week nowadays. Life without a car means that I don't make a lot of plans during the day. If I am absolutely desperate to go to the store, I can always hoof it over to Safeway or Walgreens. Many of my friends are within walking distance, so I don't feel isolated. Allan keeps talking about getting a second car, because he feels guilty to leave me without one, but I am defiant (It's good for me to walk! I don't want to pay all the extra expenses! We're killing the environment enough with our one SUV!).
Anyway...today I have the car. It is about 1:30 in the afternoon. You know what I have done today? Driven and driven and driven. I'm not sure if I really went much of anywhere. I know that I turtled it along driving Allan to work (long story why I needed to take him), and then I sat completed still for a long while come back this way. After our crawl out to Beaverton and back, we kept going on the freeway up to Ridgefield, WA to visit with a friend & her kids (now only a thirty minute visit because of the traffic delays). Drive east on SR500 for lunch at a McD's with a playland. Drive back to Northeast to get Trinity to school after lunch. Connor fell asleep in the car at some point in the last leg of the journey. I don't want to lug his huge body inside - and he always wakes up when I move him anyway. I happen to have my computer and realized that I have internet connection in my driveway! So, here I sit. I have been in this particular seat for, what?...ten hours or something today?
I think I'll have Allan take the car on Monday...
Friday, February 3
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9 comments:
Does that qualify as a driveway moment?
This is all my fault, for the record. I whined that I was too tired to ride my bike to Beaverton (I did ride yesterday), and she took pity on me and drove me in. Which, of course, blew the schedule as well as sending T into a tizzy over missing morning school. Sorry, family.
Well, I'm now joining the without car club for a while. Update soon on that story...check my blog later...
I often find myself sitting in the drive after pulling up to the house. Somehow it's as if the thoughts aren't quite done yet, and getting out of the car would ruin that process.
Allan rides his BIKE to BEAVERTON?? Well why do you need a car at all? if you have that kind of stamina you can carry your family around on your back! Sheesh, I need to start working out again...
How about one of those sporty golf cars on steroids?
We actually existed our first year in Portland with only one car. It took a lot of arranging but we did it. Sometimes I wonder how but I know it would be hard to go back to that.
If you read my ridelog, you'll see that I only ride about halfway - from NE to Goose Hollow on the far side of PGE Park, then hop on MAX to 158th. It's about a 45 minute ride to the MAX stop. Another 20 on the train, then another 15 minute bike ride to the office.
Now you could always do what I have seen in Taipei...entire families piled on to the back of a circa 1972 moped. Wild!
When we were in China one of the great modes of transport was a big rototiller with a trailer attached. I guess the government provided the tillers for farm work, but when in need...
If you will take us to the airport when we leave on our trip and pick us up when we return, you may use our car while we are gone. For obvious reasons I am not saying on a blog when or for how long.
As crazy as not having a car is, I totally see your point K-White. It would probably shock us to find out how much more time we would have for some very important things if we would do without a few "luxuries". Please come Jesus! Soon!
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