This summer I've decided to drive less often in favor of bicycling. My town is really, really not bike friendly. Sidewalks (don't even think about a bike-lane) are a luxury and the sprawl is horrible, but it's not like I'm going many places anyways. [That sounds sad because it kinda is. I wake up, have a cup of coffee, ride my bike to the public library, sit in my favorite carrel for five hours (reading for my thesis, doing research for this assistance-ship, and studying for grad school exams), go home, eat a grapefruit, go to yoga, and maybe then have social life. Everyday. ]
The final jolt of motivation to start bicycling more often came from the BP oil rig incident. As a Floridian (who grew up on the Atlantic coast but goes to college on the Gulf) I feel the pain situation. When I went to the beach in Sarasota a couple of weeks ago to watch the sunset (us Floridians are indeed spoiled) it dawned on me that this beach may not have a future. I felt nauseous, which is silly because really it's an uneasiness that I should always feel since I encounter our destruction of the natural all the time. Still, it resonated with me at that moment and then I hear people protesting BP from within their cars. Everyone says we shouldn't be so dependent on oil, but the weaning process appears to be a first step no one wants to take.
I'm going to try to get myself off the juice. It's hard to go completely car less where I live, but I'll have a go at it the best I can. Wish me luck!
So I thought, well since the monotony may get to me let's spice things up with a resolution. It's going alright. The honks, the bugs, and the heat are so far worth it. This may sound cheesy, but I'm seeing my town with new eyes! Swamp, for example, where I had no idea it had existed. It's a little lonely though, I have yet to run into another biker which I suppose only [literally] drives the point home even more; us Americans drive too much! I blame it on our city planners mostly, because of them we've mutated into a society of lazy gas guzzlers (of which I'm no exception). I guess I can also blame the Florida heat, where in the summer we don't so much spend time outside as quickly move from one air conditioned location to another. Either way though, something has got to give.
The final jolt of motivation to start bicycling more often came from the BP oil rig incident. As a Floridian (who grew up on the Atlantic coast but goes to college on the Gulf) I feel the pain situation. When I went to the beach in Sarasota a couple of weeks ago to watch the sunset (us Floridians are indeed spoiled) it dawned on me that this beach may not have a future. I felt nauseous, which is silly because really it's an uneasiness that I should always feel since I encounter our destruction of the natural all the time. Still, it resonated with me at that moment and then I hear people protesting BP from within their cars. Everyone says we shouldn't be so dependent on oil, but the weaning process appears to be a first step no one wants to take.
I'm going to try to get myself off the juice. It's hard to go completely car less where I live, but I'll have a go at it the best I can. Wish me luck!
good! i hate cars and oil and cement and all that. bicycling is the way to go, sista. seriously everyone just needs to stop driving. use public transit, walk, ride bikes, when they can. arghh.
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