Experimenting with carlessness
Yesterday I sold my beloved Audi, and today I am left with a non-functioning 1969 VW Bus, a rusting 1977 Honda CB750F Super Sport motorcycle, and an old Trek mountain bike with road tires.
Plus, I signed up for HourCar for getting to and from court hearings and other work-related meetings when turning up in oil-stained jeans (from the motorcycle) won’t do. And I bought a bus pass for rainy-day commutes.
Why am I doing this? Mostly because I hated having a car payment, coupled with the fact that I felt compelled to care for my car like a newborn baby because it had shiny, new-looking paint. Too much stress caused by a machine, even if it did have heated seats.
I learned two things today: (1) Drivers hate bicyclists, and (2) I am ridiculously out of shape.
I plan to find out whether alternative transportation is feasible even for a lawyer who needs to be very mobile.
I went paperless for reasons of convenience, but the fact that I am using fewer trees makes me feel good, as well. I sold my daily driver because I was tired of paying for it, and to force me to get in (and stay in) shape. But I’m hoping that with a little planning, it will be nearly as convenient and more economical to go without. And if I lessen my consumption of fossil fuels as well, that’s fantastic.
Stay tuned to see how it goes.
