Down to a one-car family.
@JadePlatypus (234)
Australia
August 19, 2016 6:11am CST
Some years ago, after our first trip to south-east Asia, I came back home full of resolve to pare my excesses down a little. To give away half my clothes, to stop being so wasteful, to eat less, to spend less. Basically, to live to minimum, not excess.
Naturally, that resolve went out the window and within a few weeks we were back to our normal Aussie lifestyle. Spend, waste, etc etc.
In the back of my mind though, was the thought that 'one day we could become a one-car family'. The environmental and economical savings of cutting our car ownership by half would be great, not to mention the increased fitness.
Well, that time has come, but only temporarily.
Our son is away at University, and his old car has broken down beyond repair. We've given him one of ours to use, as he can't afford a new one, so we are sharing the car that is left.
Hubby suffers from sore feet, so I have been walking to work and home. I am really enjoying it, even if it is still cold and frosty in the mornings when I leave for work. It's a half hour walk for me, and it feels like the town is just waking up.
But hubby is not happy. It's my car we are sharing, and I think my little 2-door Rav4 may be a little bit girlie-looking for him. He mentioned today that he would let our son keep the car, and he was going to look around for another.
That will happen in the next few weeks, I guess.
It may be nice, if the new car has all the whizz-bang things that mine doesn't; a place to plug in the ipod, a gps system, a reverse sensor.
However, the weather is going to change for the better, our winter is nearly finished, so I may continue to walk, at least a couple of times a week.
I marvel at the fact that when I walk to work, I arrive at work in a much more positive frame of mind than when I drive. Walking is a real spirit lifter.
And we have saved money on petrol too.
I hope my hubby cant find a car for a few weeks.
We'll have to drive to another town to get a decently priced car so it may even be a christmas present!!
5 people like this
4 responses
@Inlemay (17714)
• South Africa
19 Aug 16
I dont know what went wrong with the world at one stage that we all needed to have more than one car in a household - everyone became so independent and families did nothing together anymore. My hubby and I had one car for the first 20 years of our marriage - I had a bike and he had a bicycle too. He joined a work lift scheme because SA has no public transport. It was great fun on the bike and I kept fit, now we all have our own cars and do ABSOLUTELY nothing together - I told my daughter today that if she wants me to go shopping with her, then she fetches me - I am not meeting her at the mall in my own car. I rekindled walking everywhere after visiting Europe. Now I walk to shops and friends nearby. Enjoy the walking to work - it sounds heavenly with your thoughts peacefully getting into place with every step - very therapeutic
3 people like this
@kaka135 (14916)
• Malaysia
19 Aug 16
@Inlemay I did not know there is no public transport in south africa. We do have public transport here, though they are not really well established. There are always delay, and not everywhere you can get public transport easily. My hubby used to send me to the train station every morning, and I took the train to work. I enjoyed the time spent in the car together with him, it was great time chatting with him. We hardly have the chance now, as we have three young children with us all the time. My children are too busy talking to us, so my hubby and I don't get to talk much in the car, but it's fun time for the family too. 
1 person likes this
@kaka135 (14916)
• Malaysia
19 Aug 16
I laughed when I read you even hope for your hubby not being able to find a car very soon.
I think half an hour walk is nice, especially in the morning. Perhaps you can still walk to work even if you have a car to drive. I think it's not easy to have only one car in the family nowadays, especially when the public transportation is not well developed.
By the way, we are one-car family simply because I don't know how to drive. 
It was really inconvenient for me to go to work, as it took me around 3-4 hours on the road including time to take public transport. Glad that I am a work-from-home mom now, so I don't need to travel, and we just maintain one car until now.
I think half an hour walk is nice, especially in the morning. Perhaps you can still walk to work even if you have a car to drive. I think it's not easy to have only one car in the family nowadays, especially when the public transportation is not well developed.
By the way, we are one-car family simply because I don't know how to drive. It was really inconvenient for me to go to work, as it took me around 3-4 hours on the road including time to take public transport. Glad that I am a work-from-home mom now, so I don't need to travel, and we just maintain one car until now. 1 person likes this
@JadePlatypus (234)
• Australia
20 Aug 16
@kaka135 he does sort of take his time about things, lol, so I predict it may be at least another month. I am enjoying the walk.
@JadePlatypus (234)
• Australia
20 Aug 16
@MALUSE If I could convince him that he would have the car most of the time, he'd be fine, because some days he may have to work for 10 hours or more, and he wants to get home as quickly as he can when he finishes.
If this happened in better weather- ie no rain- maybe he might hold off for a while.
But of course, my little Rav is very girly too, it looks like a supermarket trolley on wheels. (The chaps at work call it an esky on wheels). I think that might be an issue :-)
@JadePlatypus (234)
• Australia
20 Aug 16
@JudyEv ,that's why we've given wibi (the name for the car) to our son. It will see him through Uni, and that's all he needs. It is good to have a second car, just in case.
1 person likes this
