a couple of days ago in my frustration i wrote a post entitled the downfalls of a one car family, and although it’s true that only having one car does set you up for potential disaster, there are so many more benefits that outweigh the negatives… so, in an attempt to redeem myself… here they are in no particular order:
- you save money… lots of money! no longer do we have two car payments, no longer do we have to fill up two cars with gas, no longer do we have to do two oil changes, no longer do we have two insurance payments… the list could go on and on as we have successfully reduced our automotive expenditures in half. not only that, but by downsizing to a hybrid, our gasoline costs have drastically decreased. instead of filling up two cars one to one and a half times a week, we are now filling up one car about one time every week and a half… and this is with tracy commuting about 45 minutes away. with gas prices expected to exceed $4/gallon this summer, we won’t feel the pinch nearly as bad as most will.
- its good for the environment! now that global warming is proving to be a sham [ht: bob hyatt] this may not seem as important as it used to, however it’s still a good idea to be good stewards of the resources that God has given… so, we’re being green and cutting down on pollution… drastically. in fact, our carbon footprint has been significantly reduced (we’re currently at 11.192 tonnes—down from 23.088—20.4 tonnes is the national average)!
- it forces better coordination of your schedule this is an important one for my sake. instead of constantly forgetting to tell tracy what’s going on, or constantly accepting invitations blindly, etc, etc, etc… i now have to make sure we don’t have any transportation issues which creates a better sense of communication in the home… always a good thing! along these same lines it has forced me to get up earlier in the morning… this has actually been a really nice change in my routine—sleeping in is 7:00. (i never thought i’d say that in my entire life!)
There are others… but I won’t bore you with the details. So, to sum it up… being a one car family in the suburbs of Chicago isn’t the easiest thing in the world, but I rather enjoy it and wouldn’t give it up… even though it is a hassle from time to time.
Related posts:
- the downfalls of a one car family
- Focus on the Family???
- the most hated family in america.
- Would Focus on the Family correct Jesus?
I love ya, Aaron, but I really hope your comment and link about global warming being a sham was a joke.
Take a look at a more accurate and complete chart about the average daily temperature of the earth:
http://www.nasa.gov/vision/earth/lookingatearth/earth_warm.html
Sham? No. Remember – the earth is surrounded buy the atmosphere, and in holds in everything and anything. CO2 emissions have increased greatly from coal and oil (and no, “clean coal” doesn’t exist – ignore the coal industry trying to claim this). At the same time as CO2 has increase, the rain forest and other plant life has been destroyed at an alarming rate. Plant life is the only living “being” that uses CO2 in respiration. Reduce plant life, reduce the removal of CO2.
Also – ever notice that it’s cooler in the forest? Yeah – that happens cause the sun in blocked. Less sun blocking means the land is warmer. And that warmth travels the earth.
Global warming is no scam. Global warming is the earth’s environment getting out of balance. That is why there was snow in Iraq. And the record levels of sea ice in Antartica? That is because they broke off from the continent!
And lastly, good job on that link taking the statement of the research group out of context. Here is the link from the actual site that “blog” is referencing:
http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/research/hadleycentre/news/cc_global_variability.html
Read it – you will see that the “drop” in temperature is based on the fact that we are in an La Nina phase of the ocean. I quote:
“The current La Niña began to develop in early 2007, having a significant cooling effect on the global average temperature. Despite this, 2007 was one of the ten warmest years since global records began in 1850 with a temperature some 0.4 °C above average.”
See – 2007 ranked in the 10 warmest years in history, since 1850. And that is even WITH the colling effect. And this cooling effect is not permanent.
Carbon footprint? Really, Monts? Have you really fallen for the CF nonsense? Replace your two cars with a hybrid to save money – that I can understand and appreciate. (Although I’ve read that hybrids actually cost the same amount of money in the long-run.) But don’t buy a hybrid because some prophet of environmentalism tells you it will save the world.
Oh come on rags… it’s an interesting stat and you know it! Carbon footprints are probably not the most scientific—but at least it gives us some semblance of an idea. (Yes Jeff, the link was tongue in cheek.)
I’d be interested to see how hybrids cost the same in the long run… we’re enjoying a large amount of savings! Our Corolla, on a good tank, would only get us 28mpg… now we’re getting at least 40 on a bad tank (when temps dip below freezing). All the other costs stay the same… it’s mpg’s that you see the savings on.