It is my pleasure to introduce Cass Nevada, my new guest in the BlogActs Series. Cass was one of the very first commenters on this blog, and over the months, has become a long distance friend and faithful supporter. Cass always surprises me with the depth of her writings. I feel so zen whenever I read her! When not blogging, Cass works as a consultant in social media, online customer experience and support, as well as support training and management development.
The automobile is arguably a key component to our culture–not Shopping, not Monday Night Football, but the Car. Without the automobile, Shopping and Football games would take on a whole new look. In January of 2007, while living and working in El Salvador, I realized how much I enjoyed not having a car–how it changed my brain somehow. Every time I came back to the States and resumed my normal car-focused behavior, I was aware of a growing contempt for my car. I decided then to begin a year-long project to see if I could live without my trusty car. Not all cars, just mine. That was the beginning of My Life with Car–a project that has changed a lot more in my life than just my transportation habits.
First, about “BlogActs.” I really love what La Marguerite is doing by calling out BlogActs–it’s a stellar idea! But in my case, action seems like such a…well, an active thing. And I don’t quite think of my year long project as an “action” Maybe at first I did, but I don’t now. Now it’s just part of my life, and that’s good. But I got to thinking about my project and realized, you know when you commit to change something in your life–something fundamental or maybe even not so fundamental–so many other aspects of you life change as well, not to mention your consciousness.
For example, you can’t start taking the bus or riding your bike for most errands or meetings downtown and not have that impact your thinking about how much more relaxed you are than when you’re in traffic…and wonder what other parts of your daily routine are driving you slowly out of your mind–like shopping, consuming, wanting and wanting and wanting. It’s also not possible–at least I don’t think it is–to become conscious about one part of your life without other things popping up for attention. And that’s been the interesting part of this project. Let me diagram this in my own case, my year long project to change my transportation habits and perhaps even ditch my car:
So again, I’ve discovered and re-discovered this all along the way: it’s the small steps that count. The single BlogAct I took on was to chronicle a year of learning about my transportation habits. The hundreds of offshoots from that one commitment–now that’s action.
La Marguerite 
Delightful to meet you Cass, I have been to your blog thanks to our Marguerite, she has a great way of pulling people together — doesn’t she? I have a question for you. How do you feel about safety on your bicycle. Do you feel vulnerable as you ride in traffic with cars? Have you ever gotten hit or fallen?
Mother Earth aka Karen Hanrahan
http://www.bestwellnessconsultant.com
Hi Mom! Sorry it took so long to get back to this–thanks for your comment and question, it’s a good one. Yes, I’ve been hit. I was rear-ended at a stop sign…the insurance company (covered under my car insurance) had a great time with that. It scared me, and did injure me, and has made me pretty cautious and smart about bikes and cars. The issue of riding among drivers is a HUGE debate, and many of my friends feel nearly militaristic about taking space in traffic. Me, I’ll avoid cars and confrontation with cars to the degree possible.
The vulnerability is interesting: when I don’t ride for a while, the first few days out I feel sort of vulnerable. But quickly that goes away and I love the option of being outside, feeling more healthy, more relaxed, and more connected to my town. I’m a very careful and strategic bike rider–choosing the road less traveled in all cases possible and practical.
Basically, I know I’ll be riding my bike for the rest of my life and look forward to a slow ride to the Sunday farmer’s market when I’m 80 and beyond.
It’s a radical choice that pleases me.
The military imagery is interesting. The bikers against the car people. Who shall win?
I have this dream of a place with only bikes. Cars could still be around but only on freeways and at the periphery of cities. I remember in Florence, only people with a handicap sticker can ride their cars into the city. All of a sudden, lots of folks became handicapped . . . 🙂