Not Having a Car…
I had a great discussion with some of my roommates the other night concerning the discipline of living a certain way for a period of time in order to understand the depths of a rule, lifestyle, culture, etc.
Presently, I have been without the TuckTruck (my black Ford Ranger) for 6 months now (with the exception of a 2 week stay home for Christmas…). To get around Philadelphia I rely on one of three ways.
1.) Public Transit. Subways, trains, buses. I have used them all many, many time while living in Philly. I have had just one experience of a subway breaking down and needing to walk to my destination, and I have also experienced a near hour long wait for the bus (in the cold). Public transit could warrant a post/reflection in and of itself, but I will have to get to that later…
2.) Getting a ride with someone else. Whether it is a friend from esperanza or church, if we need to get a large group of people somewhere we generally hop into someone’s car or utilize the classic 15 passenger church van. (I have only had a few chances to drive these due to stupid insurance policies…)
3.) And my personal favorite mode of transport in the city: Bicycle! Today I rode to Esperanza (4 miles) and I will ride back home shortly (another 4 miles)! Philly has bike lanes on some of its street and for the most part is a bicycle friendly city. (With the exception of bikes [or bike seats] being stolen, which isn’t as friendly).
So that is how I get around. More to come…
Grace and peace
