Car-free = Merry Christmas and Happy Birthday to me
My 32nd birthday present to myself was selling our car. Kyle and I sold our ’97 Honda CRV within 4 days of listing it on Craigslist for the asking price and now we are officially car-free! Kyle still has his motorcycle, but it’s not used for necessary travel, but leisure during the warm months. It has been a dream of mine to be car-free for 5 years and the dream came true a day before my birthday.
We have barely touched the CRV since moving to downtown Madison in 2005. Additionally, since we have moved to Boston, we have only used our car to move and for unnecessary trips. It was definitely time for that car to be sold. All of our errands and trips to work are done on bike, foot or mass transit (Kyle’s company subsidizes part of his subway card and the rest is taken out of his paycheck pre-tax). I was a little nervous this past week with the huge snowstorm we got, but I found out our lifestyle is still doable.
On the night of the huge snowstorm, Friday, we bundled up with our ski goggles and walked 40 minutes to a friend’s cocktail party and then walked home. There is no feeling like layering on the winter gear and walking through snow and wind – the weather lets you know you’re alive.
We pretty much stuck close to home on Saturday, but had to get groceries while it was still snowing, so we got bundled up again and loaded the milk crate and canvas totes on the back of my bike. With all the double parking in Southie, the ride was pretty miserable, but we effectively loaded 0 worth of groceries on my bike and Kyle’s back and got home with no worries of finding a parking space.
Monday was an adventure and I’m still sore. We received a rainy sleet mixture on Sunday so I knew the roads were unbikable, so I decided to literally run my errands in the 15 degree chill. Everything would have been fine except for two things: 1) unshoveled sidewalks that even the walkers chose the road instead of and 2) being hard to breath because of the mucus factor…I was spitting every block. So I accomplished going to yoga, running to the post office to get stamps for Xmas cards and running down to office max to get printer ink. All in all, it was a 3.5 hour work-out.
Tuesday, I did not want to run, so I used Kyle’s mountain bike that has burlier tires. I dropped off a deposit at the bank, went to the gym and rode to Newbury street to get more ink for the printer at Best Buy. All of this while spraying gross brown and salty slush up my back and on my shoes, competing with double parked a-holes, and walking my bike on the unwalkable sidewalk. If all of this sounds exhausting, it kinda is, but guess what? I have no stress, I sleep well at night, and besides my gluten intolerance, I can eat whatever the hell I want. Plus, I get to SEE and interact with people, not get frustrated with their driving styles and honk my car horn.
An article from the AP came out on the day after my birthday entitled “Leaner nations bike, walk and use mass transit.” The secret that all of us lifestyle bicyclists and alternative commuters share is no longer a secret. We’re happier and healthier. For me, the car-free life happened without choice when I was 20. I totalled my car in college at UGA in Athens and was forced to ride my dad’s awesome Trek bike. That was the beginning of the rest of my life and although I succumbed to buying a car again (because that’s the American way of life), I am living the car-free life again.
Today’s agenda- buy Christmas tree, last minute groceries, yoga, gift for my husband, Christmas service, dinner and a movie…all on bike and foot. I hope your holiday is as blissful as mine.
