It was 105 today and probably will be again tomorrow. I am so glad I did my stupid commute experiment last week. And that swim lessons start tomorrow. You wouldn't think there'd be a huge difference between 101 and 105, but there is.
The commute experiment was good. It was fun to be out in the world, seeing the same things from a different angle every day. My days seemed longer but also more full. I was forced to be more organized and conscious of time, and I was pleasantly surprised by the new set of muscles that popped up on my legs after just four days.
I thought about transportation a lot all week, from stuff as micro as calculating how many hundredths of a mile I could shave off by cutting through a parking lot all the way up to my admittedly vague understanding of the implications of transportation policy.
I realized how glad I am to live in a neighborhood and a city where I have at least some options, and that it's very nice to work at a place that provides showers, lockers, a somewhat flexible schedule, and a close, safe place to park a car or lock up a bike. The experiment also made me wish Austin were more progressive on transportation issues, although what we do have and what is immediately planned is a start.
Invaluable tools: Google Maps, with its bus and walking directions, the Cap Metro trip planner, Map My Ride, good shoes, and sunscreen.
The end result: Realistically, I've decided I will probably continue to drive to work most of the time. It's a lot faster, for one thing, and as I'm using maybe a half a gallon of gas a day to get to work and back, there's no economic incentive to switch. Actually, I think I spent more money on fuel last week than usual; the activity made me really hungry, so I was eating constantly.
Still, it's great to get out there and move my legs around a little, and it's never bad to take a car off the road, so I've decided to commit to riding my bike to work at least one day a week.
The end. There's already another experiment in the works that I'll get to later, but don't worry. That will be spread out over a year and and will not produce posts nearly as pedantic as this one.