This is me and my first (and so far only!) car - a truck named Stellar, which we sold last week.
My first car was a truck, the one we bought to build our new tiny house, T42. Prior to acquiring the truck I'd never owned a car myself and I joked that I didn't really need a car because it wouldn't suit my needs. I either needed a motorcycle to just get myself around more quickly than my bike can or a truck because when I do use an vehicle it's often because I'm hauling building materials!
Speaking of building materials, when I built my first tiny house, The Lucky Penny, I figured it wouldn't pencil out to buy a vehicle just for the project, so I rented cars and trucks throughout my build. Turns out that was one of the biggest mistakes I made building my first tiny house! I realized at the end of that project when I tallied up that it absolutely would have made more sense financially as well as in terms of convenience and time savings to have purchased an old used pick up truck that I could use for the project and sell afterwards. So when we built T42 that's exactly what we did.
We sold our little pick up truck a week ago, so now I'm back to being car-free. Or perhaps it's more accurate to say that now that I'm no longer a car owner I'm now remembering how to live a low-car lifestyle. When I tell people I don't own a car they often wonder if I can't or don't drive. The answer is that I can and do drive. Sometimes driving is the only way to get where I'm going and sometimes it's just the best option. Even in a city like Portland that has prioritized active transportation systems (we even have skateboard routes mapped out downtown!), it's still more convenient - and often, though not always, quicker - to get around by car.
So, in addition to biking, walking, and taking public transportation, I use several car share programs, including Car2Go, Zipcar, and Getaround. (I haven't tried ReachNow yet - those of you who have, how is it?) I've developed my own personal system for navigating the city. (One of my friends asked me to translate it into a flow cart of active transportation for her, so maybe someday I'll do that. If I do, I'll definitely share it here.) Meanwhile, this past week I've returned to being a more active member of the sharing economy. So far I've used: my bike, my feet, the bus, the light rail, Car2Go, and Lyft. I'm also planning to (finally!) learn to drive manual transmission so I can use Isha's car on an as-needed basis. (I know, crazy to have never learned yet, but so it goes!) By using these modes I've people watched on the bus, explored a new neighborhood on foot, met some new neighbors on my walk home from the bus stop, gotten more exercise, and met a very friendly Lyft driver with an awesome Irish accent who got my day off on the right foot with a great chat.
Living a low-car lifestyle is one of those aspects of my life that accentuates the difference between Simple Living vs. Intentional Living. At times it's frustrating and inconvenient, but for the most part I like this personal challenge. I like the financial savings, having one less major thing to worry about and care for, and now that I don't have a truck key anymore I'm once again Key Free! I have several other friends who don't own cars either (not to mention most other people in the world, of course!) so that reminds me to keep it in perspective. Yes, there are days when I think it would be easier to own a car of my own, but they're few and far between. Most days I enjoy getting around our city using active transportation and the sharing economy. So as I get settled back into my low-car lifestyle, I'll continue to share active transportation stories here on the blog because for me it's an important aspect of living an intentional life.