Getting Back to "Normal"

With our recent move I feel I have spent more time in the car in the last few weeks than I did the entire rest of the year all together. We have walked for several little errands as we worked to put our new home together, but with all the trips back and forth between our old place and the new as we attempt to get rid of all the excess stuff we have acquired over the last few years, we just hadn't managed to get back into our usual routine, especially concerning grocery shopping. But today we had a day where we just planned on staying put and relaxing. No moving related work, whatsoever. This gave us the opportunity to slow down just enough to allow for a leisurely walk , instead of drive, to the nearby Whole Foods for the few grocery items we were needing or once seen, seemed to need (unfortunately we were hungry when we shopped!) This was a direction we really hadn't set off in before so there were many discoveries along the way, one of the great benefits of walking places. In a 9 to 10 city block area we discovered a local Italian restaurant that seemed to be doing a Thanksgiving Day feeding program, a creperie with organic ingredients on the menu, an apartment in a courtyard with a bird feeder that was being enjoyed by a wingless "bird" with a grey fluffy tail and a huge flock of Bushtits and Chickadees foraging in a very nicely landscaped area in front of a building. It's only on foot or maybe on a bike that I really get the opportunity to enjoy all the nature that graces a busy city like Seattle.

I look forward to the last couple trips being over with and a full return to "gettin' around" the way we so very much prefer.

We've got press, yes we do!

We've got press, How 'bout you!

While we've been busy, um, not updating the blog, we've gotten a bit of press.

First off, we were mentioned in the October issue of the newsletter for the Washington State House of Representatives: In the House (see article on page 7).

A little over a week ago, we were awarded "Site of the Month" on 365 Days of Trash.

Not bad for neglecting the blog, eh?

Update: We've not given up!

Well, it's been a while since I've updated. We've not given up the project, but life's been a bit crazy.

In week 12, I posted that I lost my job, and by week 14, we were looking at housing options in Seattle. Well, since that last post, we have found a place to live and moved. I'm also looking for work. This month plus has seen more use of the car, what with trying to cram in as many housing options to look at as possible into one day, trips to clean out a storage unit, and trips to Goodwill to donate things we didn't bring with us.

We're nearly settled now, so our car use should drop back off.

I've gotten sloppy about keeping track of my statistics lately, so I can't give a good accounting of our car use and non-use for this gap. Sorry for those who are curious about that.

More posts coming soon!

14th Week Statistics

Dates: September 26 – October 2

Here are the statistics for the week:

• Gas in Olympia, WA this week: $3.68 per gallon
• Total distance for each mode of car-free transportation
• Walking: 3.26 miles
• Bicycle: 14.25 miles
• Bus: 261 miles

• Total car-free miles: 278.51
• Gallons of gas saved: 11.14
• Gas expense saved: $41.00
• Total transit fares: $30.00
• Total miles driven: 97
• Gallons of gas used: 3.88
• Cost of gas used: $14.28

What a week! We spent a lot of time on the road with two trips to Seattle. Since we were looking for housing on the second trip, we used my mom’s car to get from location to location. Even planning an hour and a half in between viewing appointments had us cutting it close in some cases to be on time.

After three months in which we’ve used the car very little, we found ourselves relieved to be out of the car. Running around in a steel box on wheels just feels alien to us now. It feels good to be walking and cycling around again!

Mark

13th Week Statistics

Dates: September 19 – 25

Here are the statistics for the week:

• Gas in Olympia, WA this week: $3.76 per gallon
• Total distance for each mode of car-free transportation
• Walking: 13.64 miles
• Bicycle: 9.73 miles
• Bus: 5.01 miles

• Total car-free miles: 28.38
• Gallons of gas saved: 1.14
• Gas expense saved: 4.27
• Total transit fares: $6.00
• Total miles driven: 20.1
• Gallons of gas used: 0.804
• Cost of gas used: $3.02

Well, when you take out the daily commute, the numbers change a bit. There’s a lot less distance by bike when I cut out the 4-mile daily round trip. Sunday we needed to get out, and headed to the Nisqually Wildlife Refuge. Unfortunately, there is no bus service into the delta (hint, hint, Intercity Transit!), so out came the car.

Mark

A Note from the Chief Errand Runner

Since this project began I have often had to remind myself of the pictures I've seen of stout little old ladies in neat black widow's dress hauling their daily groceries up the steep alleys and staircases of Italy.  It puts things into perspective when you're a 30-something woman with very little hill to traverse.  When I found myself starting to mumble about feeling like a pack horse while carrying bags and baskets of groceries to and from my home, those images of strong Italian matrons stopped my complaining and served me a piece of humble pie.  I realized how spoiled we really are in this society with everyone having cars that go anywhere and everywhere.  Then I think of how many women in this culture would not be able to continue running such daily errands on foot into the latter years of their lives.  They may not have remained in good enough condition, partly because of their reliance on those very cars.  So I hope to change that pattern, at least in my own life, and perhaps be an inspiration to others.  I won't just benefit from the physical exercise but also from the near daily interaction with local business people in my community who perhaps might just need a little inspiration themselves.  

12th Week Statistics

Dates: September 12 – 18

Here are the statistics for the week:

• Gas in Olympia, WA this week: $3.79 per gallon
• Total distance for each mode of car-free transportation
• Walking: 8.51 miles
• Bicycle: 21.07 miles
• Bus: 0.82 miles

• Total car-free miles: 30.4
• Gallons of gas saved: 1.22
• Gas expense saved: $4.61
• Total transit fares: $0.00
• Total miles driven: 11.03
• Gallons of gas used: .44
• Cost of gas used: $1.67

What a week! This week included the blow of losing my job, and the car was used to bring my personal things home from the office. We combined that with a trip out to pick produce from a garden we were asked to look after (it turns out we would have had quite a lot to try to bring home by bike) and a trip to get the cats’ food from Mud Bay on the Westside.

Mark