Earth Day III

Today I drove....... BOOOOOO..Mumble and Grumble.
When I rode my bike each day to the job I had in the early 1990's I rode because I really like riding a bicycle.
When I rode my bike to the job I had in the middle 1990's, I rode because I cared about the planet. Then after a while I saw that it made a difference in my mental well being as well as my health. When I got a new job it took some time for me to begin bike commuting again.
When I got the job I have now, it also took a while for me to start riding on a daily basis, and again, mainly because I care for the planet. I was reading books in the early 2000's about the whole energy business and politics and I was really getting angry. Angry at the system and angry at me for blindly playing within the system that I feel is wrong. You would probably yawn and stop reading this if I started ranting about my conspiracy theory of how the working masses are being played with this whole energy thing. That being the leaders of the world are using our own earnest concerns against us. You already know that the rich people don't care how much gasoline and food costs. So I won't rant about that, and just say that I realized once again the mental and health benefits I get from riding the bike. I personally don't get that in a car even if I do have a comfortable ride and good sound system. Our cultural growth over the centuries, especially this last one has been rewarded with great accomplishments and progress. Even if one was physically capable, couldn't cycle commute because of the system, safety, or distance. There are many reasons that prohibit cycle commuting, and many reasons why driving a motorized vehicle make the most sense.
I have always liked riding a bicycle, but confess that back in the day I would put a bike on the car and drive to a recreational ride. Using one for both transportaion and recreation for some reason didn't register with me. I still do that, put a bike on a car and drive to a recreational starting point. Last Sunday I borrowed my dad's truck so I could do that very thing. Perhaps it's rationalization, but when I commute practically every day, then doing some bike hauling seems not that bad.

When I move to the next job, whenever that may be, I wonder how long I will drive before I start cycle commuting. I hope not long.
I think I have a good excuse as to why I drove my car today, but doesn't feel good.
Is the soaring price of rice connected to the high cost of a barrel of crude? Have you heard anything in the news about world wide food shortages? Am I supposed to care? And if I do, should I do something about it?
On follow up from yesterday's posting, I still like the idea of using natural gas as a two or three decade transition from gasoline to other forms of transportation energy use. That is if you don't ride a bicycle. According the the pie chart, one tenth of one percent of natural gas is consumed for transportation. Let's watch it grow in the next 10 years.



This makes me smile