Go Car-Free and Feel Zenned Out, Relaxed and Lighter
Last month we found found inspiration for going car-free in a story from Los Angeles (Inspiration for Going Car-Free from L.A. Yes, That's Los Angeles, December 16, 2007) about Simon Pastucha, city planner and father of two, who went car-free. So now comes another inspirational car-free story from the city everyone associates with the automobile. This time, L.A. Times blogger Seil - who writes the environmental blog Emerald City: Siel Follows The Road To Green Living Los Angeles - shares the story of "L.A. girl Kathryn Pope" (Car-Free in L.A.: Girl Meets Motorboard, January 17) who is going car-free by using a combination of an electric motorboard scooter, public transit and carsharing. Says Kathryn:
"Then once this October, while the car was in the shop, I decided not to let my car interfere with my life anymore, and I took the bus. I read while I traveled. I watched people around me. I looked out the window. And when I got where I was going, I was downright zenned out."
The zen-like experience led Kathryn to make the decision to eventually go car-free. And now she says:
"The thing I'm enjoying most about being car-free is how relaxed I've become. It actually feels like a luxury to let someone else drive me from place to place. I feel more a part of the community, because I'm not isolated from it, and I feel considerably lighter."
Now that's very nicely said, isn't it?
You can follow Kathryn's story in Siel's "De-car-ing" series.
Chris Hamilton is the Commuter Services Chief for Arlington County, manager of CommuterPageBlog and a biking/Metro commuter from Rosemont in Alexandria.
