I am with Pepper!! I am not amused either. By the way, Jojo, I was thinking about your last post and my mom has actually given me gifts (little pillows with sayings, wall hangings etc) about the waste of time housework is- perhaps I should share some with you! Like we'd ever change;)
this is why i drive a stick-shift ford focus...this pretty much takes the air outta my favorite thing to do-travel by car; see the country; go to the places that you can't get to by flying. i was thinking of going to san diego next year...but, not if gas prices are so high. just how much profit do these gas companies really need to make? how many mansions do the oil companies' execs need to own? (i'll get down from my soapbox, now)
as long as americans choose to NOT change their consumptive habits, things will not get better. i see gas prices as the ultimate wake up call for all of us. our sloth-like behavior is finally catching up.
Annie - Public transportation is just not a realistic option for many, if not most, of us. I'm not about to waste 4 hours roundtrip of my life each day trying to take a bus from Bonney Lake to Fircrest. I did that for 3 years going b/t Fairfax & SF and vowed never again. Getting up at 5 am and not getting home till nearly 7 pm was grueling.
Just goes to show, JoJo, the US needs to completely rethink its transportation. There should be ways to get about without using the car. Bring back the horse, maybe?
val-exactly. now the u.s. will have to catch up with europe and parts of asia, in terms of efficient mass transit. the people have to push for changes. also, i predict that less people will opt for life in the suburbs. did you ever read ecotopia? like that.
Well, using mass transit or carpools is not realistic in today's society where people have to leave early if they get sick or a child gets sick at school, or they have things to do after work. I could not survive w/o my car and I don't see changing my ways unless someone builds me my own personal highway to and from work. Brian could never take public transportation to Federal Way either.
There's no way that mass transport would work out where I live, in the middle of Northeast Bumfuck. Not enough people would be able to take it to make it worthwhile, and it would take FOREVER to get anywhere. There's a couple cities here in VT that use it, and it works well enough there, but it can't reach out far enough out into the boonies.
I think that the only place mass transit really works is in cities like SF, Boston, NYC. Once you get into the suburbs, it's a horror show w/ limited service.
my point was that maybe we will all have to adapt(whatever that translates to), out of sheer survival. scary to fathom, yep. i don't know about you, but there will definitely come a point for me when gas becomes TOO high. then what? my "commute" is about 20 miles a day. i live in the sticks of northern california. the town i work in has a population of about 3000. we live in an extremely remote region. so i get the whole issue with public transportation in these places. still... something has got to give.
also, i agree ecotopia was absolutely unrealistic . the fact that i first read it at 17 says a lot. we couldn't ever pull off something like that in the real world. i do think that the concept of everyone being geographically closer to where they work, shop, etc. does makes sense, given the current downward economic spiral.
it's worrisome, since i don't pull down six figures, and my home state continues to be one the most expensive to live in. lucky me.
Annie - Why do you think we left in 1999? We couldn't afford a "real" house, only our crappy, tiny townhouse and the commute from Fairfax to Orinda was killing me (27 traffic lights b/t Larkspur Landing and Manor Drive...I counted). I can't even imagine how much it costs to live there now.
jo~my greatgrandfather settled in norcal. it's truly my home. things keep getting worse because everyone dreams of living in california, and many more act on that dream each year. too many people-plain and simple.
Pretty much...
ReplyDeleteTry the UK prices; $10 a gallon!!!
ReplyDeleteI take it Pepper has an SUV? :-)
ReplyDeleteyikes! we're not much below that tho.
ReplyDeleteI am with Pepper!! I am not amused either.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, Jojo, I was thinking about your last post and my mom has actually given me gifts (little pillows with sayings, wall hangings etc) about the waste of time housework is- perhaps I should share some with you! Like we'd ever change;)
I know it's tough, but apparently the bottom has fallen out of the gas-guzzling SUV market, which is good news for the palnet. Try to think positive.
ReplyDeleteVal - Well in the meantime it'd be nice if Chevron sent us a tube of KY with our monthly bill, you know?
ReplyDeletethis is why i drive a stick-shift ford focus...this pretty much takes the air outta my favorite thing to do-travel by car; see the country; go to the places that you can't get to by flying. i was thinking of going to san diego next year...but, not if gas prices are so high.
ReplyDeletejust how much profit do these gas companies really need to make? how many mansions do the oil companies' execs need to own?
(i'll get down from my soapbox, now)
as long as americans choose to NOT change their consumptive habits, things will not get better. i see gas prices as the ultimate wake up call for all of us. our sloth-like behavior is finally catching up.
ReplyDeleteAnnie - Public transportation is just not a realistic option for many, if not most, of us. I'm not about to waste 4 hours roundtrip of my life each day trying to take a bus from Bonney Lake to Fircrest. I did that for 3 years going b/t Fairfax & SF and vowed never again. Getting up at 5 am and not getting home till nearly 7 pm was grueling.
ReplyDeleteJust goes to show, JoJo, the US needs to completely rethink its transportation. There should be ways to get about without using the car. Bring back the horse, maybe?
ReplyDeleteval-exactly. now the u.s. will have to catch up with europe and parts of asia, in terms of efficient mass transit. the people have to push for changes. also, i predict that less people will opt for life in the suburbs. did you ever read ecotopia?
ReplyDeletelike that.
Well, using mass transit or carpools is not realistic in today's society where people have to leave early if they get sick or a child gets sick at school, or they have things to do after work. I could not survive w/o my car and I don't see changing my ways unless someone builds me my own personal highway to and from work. Brian could never take public transportation to Federal Way either.
ReplyDeleteThere's no way that mass transport would work out where I live, in the middle of Northeast Bumfuck. Not enough people would be able to take it to make it worthwhile, and it would take FOREVER to get anywhere. There's a couple cities here in VT that use it, and it works well enough there, but it can't reach out far enough out into the boonies.
ReplyDeleteOoh, and in reference to Ecotopia: I've read it, and can't see that being too realistic for rural communities either. Hence, the dystopia in it.
ReplyDeleteI think that the only place mass transit really works is in cities like SF, Boston, NYC. Once you get into the suburbs, it's a horror show w/ limited service.
ReplyDeletejojo, please forgive my rambling! :0
ReplyDeletemy point was that maybe we will all have to adapt(whatever that translates to), out of sheer survival. scary to fathom, yep. i don't know about you, but there will definitely come a point for me when gas becomes TOO high. then what? my "commute" is about 20 miles a day. i live in the sticks of northern california. the town i work in has a population of about 3000. we live in an extremely remote region. so i get the whole issue with public transportation in these places. still... something has got to give.
also, i agree ecotopia was absolutely unrealistic . the fact that i first read it at 17 says a lot. we couldn't ever pull off something like that in the real world. i do think that the concept of everyone being geographically closer to where they work, shop, etc. does makes sense, given the current downward economic spiral.
it's worrisome, since i don't pull down six figures, and my home state continues to be one the most expensive to live in. lucky me.
Annie - Why do you think we left in 1999? We couldn't afford a "real" house, only our crappy, tiny townhouse and the commute from Fairfax to Orinda was killing me (27 traffic lights b/t Larkspur Landing and Manor Drive...I counted). I can't even imagine how much it costs to live there now.
ReplyDeleteI agree, something needs to give. But how?
jo~my greatgrandfather settled in norcal. it's truly my home. things keep getting worse because everyone dreams of living in california, and many more act on that dream each year. too many people-plain and simple.
ReplyDeletecorrection: great great grandfather, not great grandfather.
ReplyDelete