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By Brian, January 8, 2009 8:14 pm

Being car-free arouses a lot of derision, but after a while you get used to it. People assume you’re poor, or an alcoholic. They’ve bought into the car culture they where raised with, and to see someone getting by without ever owning a car kicks a reflex.
However, with global environmental concerns getting more news coverage and fluctuating fuel prices, people are getting less freaked out about it.

That is, until winter arrives.

Most winters, I can honestly say, I’ve been a wimp. I put the bike away and take the bus or walk to my destination. Last winter was the first time I ever rode a bicycle in the snow to get to the store. It was surprisingly easy, but I didn’t really have a bike in condition to do it on a regular basis – so I filed it away in the back of my mind.

Over the course of the summer of 2008, I collected a few bicycle frames, wheels, parts and whatever bicycle related items I could scavenge when people cleaned out their garages. I found a fairly intact department store mountain bike – I’m usually fairly picky about these because of their low-quality manufacturing and questionable design decisions. This one I saved with the intent of putting it on the heavily salted roads in Ottawa. It’s a bike that I can get to the store with, but can leave covered in slush outside without concern about how badly the water and salt are corroding the parts.

Here we are, part way into January and I’m still riding it nearly every day. I even took it out twice yesterday during the massive snow fall we had, just for kicks. I’ve discovered not only is it a great workout, it’s fun and easy! The roads are usually kept clear for the cars, so riding on those is not much different from riding in the rain. The snow, when it’s powdery presents little challenge to cut through in a low gear.

I guess people just aren’t used to the idea – I wasn’t until recently, so I guess I can’t blame them. These same people would likely go skating or skiing in the same weather however, so the name calling is a little undeserved. I think the neighbor that called me ‘brave’ was really only searching for a polite term because I’d shoveled her walkway that day.

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By Brian, May 29, 2008 8:00 pm

Gas prices are rising fairly steadily, as anyone with a vehicle knows only too well. The largest consumers of petroleum are largely dependent on it to maintain their lifestyles, and the other two-thirds of the world rapidly gaining Industrialization are wanting to join the party. This is of course the perfect time for the gas exporters to raise their prices. The West has become dependent on oil, removing their railway lines in favor of transport trailers, sprawling car-centric suburbs, and driving wasteful hulking SUVs.

A paradigm shift isn’t happening overnight, either – but it’s slowly entering Western conciousness. SUVs are being dumped for a fraction of their purchase price by status climbers who realized they can’t afford to fill up the tank daily on these monstrosities any more. Some people are still driving them around, so these prices haven’t hit the pocket books of those with abundant finances yet.

A few more bicycles are on the road now. I’ve not taken the public transportation recently, but I’ll bet the busses are starting to gain new riders as well. This happened last price jump, and it wasn’t this high. It was the test run I think. Push the market value up, get people used to the idea, lower it a bit to regain consumer confidence, then slowly raise it again. It’s like sitting in a pot of water and slowly raising the temperature – eventually the water’s boiling fatally but it was done gradually enough that nobody noticed.

The solution however, is right in front of our noses – and people are starting to consider it. Walk, or ride a bicycle! It works in Europe. Too many people will hop in their cars to drive < 5km to the store for a loaf of bread. That’s easily walkable in 15 minutes, or five on a bicycle – and you’d get some exercise at the same time. I’ve done it in the rain, I’ve done it in a blizzard – I don’t own a car and never have.

However, most of us car-free bicycle riders are still being looked at as the crazy ones. That’s OK. We know you’ll come around eventually if the pricing trends continue. Think of it this way – prices for produce and consumer items will rise due to increased transportation costs – so high gas prices affect drivers twice as much as cyclists. Just some food for thought.

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By Brian, March 8, 2008 9:42 am

For there was never yet philosopher
That could endure the toothache patiently,
However they have writ the style of gods
And made a pish at chance and sufferance.

- William Shakespeare
Much Ado About Nothing
Scene 5, Act 1

I have a cracked tooth up front that’s been that way for quite a while now. I have some benefits from work, so I sucked it up and went to the dentist. After a few regular checkups they finally decided that something really needed to be done about it.

This led to me having the first stages of a root canal last Friday, after which they stuck on a temporary filling. Naturally an infection ensued, so an anti-biotic and much ibuprofen have been prescribed. It turns out that in the digging and scrapping the dentist went a bit beyond the root – into the upper jaw.

Then, yesterday morning the dentist removed all of that, disinfected the area and stuffed it with a filling material. They then inserted a post and built up a cosmetic tooth on top of that. Not very useful, I’m assured, but it looks just like a tooth so I guess I cannot complain. Except about this massive, constant pain that I am assured will start to abate in a few more days.

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