First, I am totally sickened by what is happening in the Gulf of Mexico right now. I can’t even write about it. It is very, very, very bad.
But it has certainly spurred me to action, along with my super husband. You know, we drive. We all drive. We drive everywhere. I bring my own bags, I carry my own water, I buy local first. But I drive. All that other stuff is just a drop in the bucket, except maybe the buying local part, considering that otherwise food is driven across the country. I haven’t done that math on that one, though I’m sure someone has. But I know what’s going in my gas tank, and even though it is sometimes regionally produced biodiesel, 95% of the time it isn’t. And even when it is, it’s not like flowers are coming out of my tailpipe.
I see the connection between my driving and so much destruction–wars, climate change, environmental degradation, and now, full-blown catastrophe. And I am tired of living this way. My parents raised me to be honest, and this does not seem honest. That so much should be sacrificed so that I can go where I want to, exactly when I want to, at a high rate of speed & in supreme comfort just doesn’t seem just.
So, with my husband’s super powers, we are going to sacrifice the high rate of speed and supreme comfort for something else. And we are going to do it with this:
(photo from americanspeedster.com)
You can find out more about this carcycle from this website: americanspeedster.com This model is the Sidekick, and it should be noted that it can be retrofitted with an electric motor.
A friend once told me that for the cost of the bail-out every mid-sized city and up could have had high-speed rail. Imagine. And keep imaging! For months I’ve been driving and imaging how wonderful it will feel to be able to travel joyfully, with flowers coming out of my tailpipe, instead of thoughts of war and unjustified privilege. This carcycle is our first step into that dream. Only I think we’ll put a bubble machine on the back of it, instead of flowers. Just for fun.
Obviously, there’s more to come on this one!
