Bike Commute

Ok - Yesterday I did some preliminary research on the possibility of a BIKE COMMUTE to school. I chose a route that goes straight up through Fairmount Park (One of the largest urban parks in the country) using Forbidden Drive. Though it's a gravel path with lots of rocks, which probably slows me down, it saves me a huge amount of stress not to be contending with car traffic for at least 2 and a half miles of the roughly 7 mile trip.

At the beginning of the trip, I foolishly neglected to note whether I was going upstream or down along the Wissahickon and I went about 2 miles in the wrong direction. I have used Forbidden drive many times and know many of the trails and entrances to the park. Therefore, I attribute this mistake, this failure to trust my instincts regarding some familiar landmarks, my failure to simply THINK for a moment about which side of the creek I was on, to an abiding bad sense of direction, a wacky, fragmented internal map, and my lack of confidence (That'll be 5 cents, please - Thank you, Lucy Van Pelt).

Finding myself under the Walnut Lane bridge instead of at the Andorra Natural Area (Hmm, I had a feeling I was going the wrong way) changed my trip plan a bit, but it gave me more time to enjoy the park.

I did turn around and go back up to Andorra, and then found a different way back out of the park. I took Rex avenue, which likely used to host horse-and-buggy and even model-T traffic, but that was before Forbidden Drive was forbidden.

Philadelphia actually has a number of abandoned streets (or sections of streets) that were left behind upon the building of bridges or highways or train tracks. I suspect it's the reason why many of our streets stop and then start again halfway across the city. It's fascinating to be walking in the middle of the woods and suddenly find a row of old Belgian block curbstones or, in one case, a fire-hydrant and an upside-down car. Yes, in the woods - right next to the fleeing red fox. But that's another story.

The Rex avenue route is one that I will never, ever take again toting a bike for these reasons:
A. In the park, Rex Avenue consists of the same old "cobbles" (though they're rougher than cobbles, really) that it had 150 years ago, except now they are separated and the soil around them has eroded somewhat. Imagine a half-mile of miniature tombstones.
B. It's a steep uphill, so, given all the rocks, I had to walk up it with my heavy steel bike.
C. It's kind of creepy back there, like a ghost-street!

A lovely walk, though. Really! And you might enjoy the downhill version if you like heavy impact.

So, I emerged from the park into the sunlit streets of Chestnut Hill once again, had a delightful time coasting down the roads, and was almost home when (I guess I just hadn't gotten enough yet) I decided to check out the trail that goes along the stream under the McCallum Street Bridge. It's a very cool bridge, rebuilt in 1984 or so, and you wouldn't think it's pretty until you're under it. The trail is inviting, but gets VERY narrow very quickly. It reminded me of my first mountain-bike treks through the Shiawassee National Wildlife Refuge near Saginaw, MI. I need to thank my brother for convincing me that I don't need to trade in my fat tires for slick road tires just yet. Having a mountain bike made this final trail of the day an adventure instead of a nightmare!

I think I travelled maybe 10 miles during my 3 hours out, but, based on my time getting to the park, through the park, and the distance left to get to Miquon, I think biking to work will take me about 3 20-minute stretches - 1 hour. It's worth a try at least once or twice - I'd certainly get strong, but my wrists still feel a little hot today, a good reason to keep my options open, I think.

First Time!

I was so excited about my first time using PhillyCarShare that I forgot to take a picture of me and the car! Oh well. It was a Prius liftback. I borrowed it for four hours today to take my stuff over to Miquon , where the kids will be returning in about two weeks! Tomorrow I'll try getting to school by train to see how well that works.

Car-share or train, I'm definitely doing more walking! You see, I realized today that the car closest to me, right down the street, costs $4.90/hr, not $2.90/hr. But the car up at the Co-op, a little less than a mile away (about 20-30 minutes walking), is the cheap price. Same car. Guess the demand is higher over here.

Anyway, it was really fun to drive the hybrid after a brisk walk, and once I figured out how to start it (It has a POWER button!).


This car also comes with a detailed, full-color display that has multiple stats on energy use, etc. (only the passenger can safely read this display, I believe) and it switches to a camera view from the rear bumper whenever you're in reverse! That was neat, but didn't help that much as it didn't show trees and poles just to the side. The best part is when the car goes silent as you glide along. It evokes the feeling of coasting down a hill on a bike. Fun. It got my haulin' done, and I can't wait to take Julius for a spin!

Off She Goes

Well, it's done. My local "cash-for-cars" company came and picked 'er up today. Top dollar it certainly isn't, but recycling it is. I guess, considering that I recieved money (even a small amount) instead of spending the value of the car to get it fixed, I should feel some relief. I think that sense will fill out later when I'm NOT paying hundreds on insurance.


Yet, I still have that little pang of regret - that I've somehow let the little Nissan down or maybe even hurt its feelings...like when you let some other kid walk away from your garage sale with an old toy that used to be yours. Yeah. It's kinda like that. I suppose when you spend about 5 years of good and bad times relying on one constant companion to take you everywhere, your car, it almost becomes like your horse. We've been through a lot together. (A note for horse-lovers: I think I can only get away with saying this because I never actually owned or got to know a horse for real. There was that time when Crackers, my friends' old, old horse, flipped out and bolted while I was walking her - that scared me - and a horse named Budweiser who took me around a trail once in mid-Michigan, munching on grass along the way. While they were living beings with actual personalities, we didn't really have time to build a relationship.)

But enough of that. A big part of my moping is that I feel powerless without wheels. But, to look on the bright side, I got cash for the car, a small refund from GEICO, and now the confidence that my public transportation and PhillyCarShare costs will save me money compared to my old insurance, gas, and repair costs.
Next post - my first spin in a shared car (hopefully!) - maybe next week!

Bio-diesel

I was just checking out and catching up on the Online Swedenborgian Church when I browsed over to the environmental discussion board. Here I learned that one of the website's steering committee members sells older, recycled Mercedes in the greater Philadelphia area, always available for conversion to bio-diesel/veggie oil use! She notes that in winter in colder climes the bio-diesel doesn't work for starting the car - so you have to use some regular diesel. I'm just glad that I know about Sue's business. It sounds like it's not too high-maintenance, so perhaps I could try a bio-diesel car in the future...if a seller of bio-diesel fuel ever steps up in the area, that is. Apparently this is much easier in California.

In the meantime, I am still waiting to recieve my PhillyCarShare membership in the mail. Pretty soon I'm going to have to contact coworkers about this whole carpooling thing. I feel as though I must have surely saved money these last few weeks, having no car with which to go out shopping, but it's going to get frustrating if I can't access a car to at least go out and try on a few bridal gowns and such!

At any rate, I love how one thing leads to another once you set your focus in a particular direction. Not only did I pick up some info on earth-friendlier driving, I think I am learning more about people from my church by reading several little posts on the environmental page than I have gleaned from the past few years of attending the annual Swedenborgian Church convention! This is another good reason for trying to become a better listener. Maybe I can work on my small-talk skills and learn how to turn small-talk into real conversations!

Goodbye to an old friend

This is the Nissan in happier (inspection-passed) times.

Sharing cars - what a concept!

Earlier this summer, when I realized that my car was up for its annual inspection, I thought "No problem - it passed last year." I soon found out, however, that my little reliable '91 Nissan (which only had 60,000 miles on it when I purchased it, oh, 5 years ago) was worse off than I imagined. The repairs to make it roadworthy - that is, safe to drive again- would cost more than the value of the car (or at least more than I payed for it). And this is good information coming from Fred's Mt. Airy Motors, once a recipient (though not this year) of the Best of Philly Honest Mechanics award. So - I took the news, parked my car out of the way, and went on vacation.
Though my dad would say something like "The car you own is the cheapest car you can have"....(i.e. no monthly payments) - owning this car wasn't that cheap. Insurance in Pennsylvania is pretty expensive, and the need for repairs can pop up at the least convenient time financially. So, I decided to join PhillyCarShare a non-profit organization with a vision of a Philadlephia region in which the convenience, affordability and flexibility of car sharing exceeds that of owning a car. They want to make the city more about people and less about cars.
For a girl from Michigan, once the car capital of the country - maybe the world, this is a big leap! But I think this organization is the only catalyst capable of ripping from my clenching midwestern fists the addictive, though perhaps false, "freedom" of car ownership. I'm ready to embrace my urban lifestyle and commit to public transportation...at least for one year.

Based on the growing number of users and "pods," or phillycarshare parking spaces, I'd say their mission:

To maximize the economic, environmental, and social benefits of reduced automobile dependence in the Philadelphia
region through community-based car sharing.

is well on its way to becoming reality. That makes me feel like maybe I can do this for more than just one year. I just have to get into a new routine and step away from car gluttony.

Now, I'll be honest here. Julius, my fiancee, still has the Buick, so a lot of times I'll just galavant around the city with him. We had gotten into the habit of using his car with its superior sound system and working air conditioning when we go out, anyway. But our place is a distance from both of our places of work and he has tougher hours, so my commute is now going to involve a web of carpooling with coworkers, SEPTA regional rail, buses, my bike, and Phillycarshare. At any rate, public transportation, now including Phillycarshare, is just one of the things I love about Philadelphia. I'll let you know how it goes!