The weekend socializing this Labor Day requires a trip across the alley for dinner with another set of neighbors who have invited a bunch of people from the neighborhood for a barbeque. No drinking and driving here.
Oh, and it also includes a trip to Dominicks using a wire shopping cart to get some groceries we need for our contribution to the ad hoc potluck.
The Labor Day leading up to the 5:30 potluck amounts to staying around the house and relaxing.
And thinking about the Summer that, for practical and emotional, if not meteorologic reasons, has passed.
This includes the Car-free Summer, 2008.
The end of Summer always catches me by surprise and this one is no exception. When I began to consider this idea of trying car-free and pretty quickly decided to just do it with encouragement of my friend Scott Davis to keep a journal, I really didn’t have huge thoughts about what would happen when Summer ended. Now I’m staring at it and it’s staring right back at me.
Mix a little bit sad with that surprise, too.
That sadness alone, though, is probably a positive. I have truly enjoyed this Summer.
How close did I come to my stated goal?
In the next few weeks, I’d like to reflect on what I’ve learned and what I’ve enjoyed. I want to determine whether I’ve come to any grand conclusions. In turn, I want to think out loud and consider next steps. In the meantime, I want to document our transportation needs and desires as they are germane to the discussion of doing without a car.
I hope you’ll come along for the ride. It’s not over yet.
