Stranger than Fiction, CarLess - Blog, Day 51

Sifting through the blogs I wrote during the 80-day experiment being CarLess in LA, I found this one and wanted to share.  It's a fine memory.

Day 51 -- Locked

Day 50 was beautiful. I am so happy to have hit Day 50 and although it was a tiring day, it was the good kind of tired. Day 50 made me feel like I have accomplished something. Fifty days is a lot.

Now it's Day 51. I woke up spazzed out for no particular reason. Waking up spazzed out is not my favorite. I have so much to do today in terms of arranging interviews, researching for these interviews, making phone calls, managing my social life, and then answering some 50-plus unread emails, that all I could do was to get on my bike and ride to the beach. The beach always does me good and although I have a lot to do, it is manageable, because in the end, everything is manageable, right? Otherwise, we'd all shoot ourselves.

: "O! How intolerably human I sometimes am!" This was one of my godzillion thoughts while on the beach watching the slow waves and feeling the sand and trying to make all the thoughts go away. And then: I wish I was God.

So I was taking care of myself, giving myself a well-deserved break from all of this by going to the beach for a jog-walk, right? Preparing for the rest of my day...when on the way back, I realized that I was hungry. And when I get hungry, there is nothing else left to do but to eat because I have the attention-span and mood of a three-year-old when I haven't had enough food to sustain me. So I stopped at a favorite cafe to have breakfast, where the service was overly-friendly but gave me food so I forgave them.

The salmon scramble and Mexican spice mocha (decaf) did wonders for my mental health. I was ready to take on my day. I must add that it is a gorgeous day at that. Los Angeles specializes in those, especially after a good rain.

So now I'm happy right? I even had a chance to read the newspaper a bit. That is exceedly rare given my schedule and lifestyle, so what a luxury!

I go to unlock my brand new shiny silver bike. As I leave the cafe, I drop three $1 bills on the sidewalk. Bills like autumn leaves on the sidewalk. A young man sitting at an outdoor table said, "Ooops" before I could. Then he added, "That means money is coming to you." I took his word for it.

Then he watched me unlocking my bike. Which wasn't working. My key was not working. The lock would not unlock. Finally I looked up at him and said, "I can't get my bike unlocked." He told me to "Slow down and breathe." I tried that. It didn't work, so I asked him to try it. The lock, that is.

It is a scientific fact in the Book of Katie Rogers that men are better at some things than women. One of them is getting bike locks unlocked.

He tried it, and it still didn't work.

I began to laugh. Thank you, Life, for this brilliant opportunity to slow down and breathe. I told the non-knight that I appreciated his efforts and then walked to the bus stop. Ah-ha! A lock and key shop! The woman there said that she didn't specialize in bike keys, but there was another place that did about a half-block down. So I walked there. (Let me remind you of my attire by the way, simply to give you a visual of me strolling down Lincoln Blvd. laughing at myself, the situation, and then even talking to myself once to my own surprise. Pink sweatpants, purple shirt, poofy pink down ski vest, and cute little stocking hat, and black sunglasses.) The men at this shop said that I should go home and get the spare key and try that before they went to the extreme of sawing through the lock.

Back to Plan A. The bus. Beautiful day; I only had to wait about 4 minutes.

I really was/am surprisingly calm about all of this. I really should be working on all my work right now, but my blog mind had to express itself first.

I got on the bus. An elderly man got on at the next stop. He wore camel-colored cordoroys and a camel-colored jacket. He sat next to me, and I spoke to him. He seemed pleased and spoke back. Then he said, "It's so nice to talk to someone who isn't afraid of people." He had had a hard day because the bank was crowded. He said everywhere is crowded in Los Angeles. He got off at the stop before me.

Now I'm home. My bike is at the cafe. I think they didn't give me decaf mocha because caffeine makes me freaky and that's how I feel right now.

All I can say is that I have no control anymore. I don't even want control. I just want to go see that movie "Stranger Than Fiction" because I think the premise is hilarious and I wish that I had written it: The main character finds out that he is a character in a novel. Nothing more, nothing less. Aren't we all....

I just hope to make friends with the author who is writing my story. In some ways, I think I already have. But I still haven't figured out his or her or its sense of humor.

I wanted an adventure, and I'm getting one.

Pride, Prejudice, & the Bus Ride in the Bad Part of Los Angeles

This blog was written when I was about 60 days into the 80-day attempt to emit zero carbons into the atmosphere for the documentary I'm making called CarLess in L.A.  Contribute to the movie at Kickstarter before May 22!  

A familiar ride {source-LA Times Blog}

Happiness Is

Today, I went to a birthday party lunch for my friend, J.  It was a delightfully charming party in an exquisitely charming house in a horrendously not-so-charming part of town.

And I got there by bus.

I was so proud of myself. Woke up, did some yoga (saves me every time: my caffeine, my workout, my therapy, my church), and walked to my darling little neighborhood farmer's market for groceries. I had it all timed out perfectly. I logged into mta.net (mapquest for bus riders), and found a nifty little route that would take me an hour, but so what? I had the classic Pride and Prejudice to accompany me while commuting.

I showered, dressed, walked to the bus stop. A car pulled up with two young men in it. They asked me if I wanted to "puff" with them. I politely declined and took my seat at the bus stop. They offered me a ride. I declined again. They went away.

The bus came just on time. I sat towards the middle of the bus and was intent on my book (Elizabeth ran into Mr. Darcy and how his character had changed since their last meeting!) when I noticed the bus had stopped at a stop. And wasn't cranking up again. All the riders just sat there. There was no explanation by the driver. We were simply not going.

Now, time was ticking. I was to attend my lunch at 1. And I had timed it just so. Why weren't we going? I had another bus to catch, a transfer to make!

Finally, I asked a gentlemen in the row next to mine. He told me that the bus had hit a pole and the mirror had smashed and that it was illegal for the driver to drive without a mirror and that another bus was coming.

How I missed this I have no idea. All I can say is that I really like Jane Austen's story.

Sure enough, another bus came up from behind. We all deboarded, and as we walked to the bus behind us, I witnessed the broken mirror, shattered into pieces on the sidewalk and in the road. Interesting. I thought. Broken mirrors have always brought out my superstitious side. I was glad I wasn't the one who had broken it. Seven years is a long time.

I made it to my next stop but had missed my transfer. By a lot. I don't know how long I waited. Thank God I was smart enough to remember my book.

Finally the Metro 150 rolled up, and boy, was this bus a winner. Yuck. I sat quickly, quietly, my nose still in the book. I looked up occasionally to notice that I was not in a part of town I had ever seen. Nor had I ever wanted to see it. Nor will I want to see it again.

Pardon my discourtesy, but I was in a downright BAD part of town, which means interesting characters on the bus.

Alas, the woman next to me was wearing light pink with a red scarf, which is a great color combination according to me. I glanced over and saw that she too had a book.
The chapter title: What Is Happiness?
The name of the book: A Piece of the Mirror

Now, what was I supposed to make of this, Universe? I was just on a bus that made pieces of a mirror. And here was a woman with a book of that title with the words "What Is Happiness?" glaring at me.

Signs, signs, signs. Some of them are more clear than others. Some of them are too clear to be ignored. This one was really just a little Godwink, as a friend of mine likes to call them. A reminder that there is something bigger out there. Perhaps a chance for a little spark to happen in what may be just an ordinary day?

I did not take this as an occasion to stand up and preach about Happiness on a bus. I did not rack my brain with the wonders of why o why I was late to my party when I had been so dutiful about time. I did not take this little coincidence or synchronicity as anything but a curiosity. I didn't even think it was perhaps a Godwink until now, as I write.

There are signs. And then there are SIGNS.

What we do with them is up to us, I believe. I surely had SIGNS when considering the making of this film. I followed them, and I trusted, and although, I was, in all honesty, freaking out about giving up my car for 80 days and attempting this crazy experiment, I am doing it. I did it. I didn't have to. Of course not. But the bigger part of me, the soul part of me, whispered, then whispered louder, "Do it."

So, I'm doing it.

A piece of the mirror. I can reflect on it now (pun intended). A lot of these spiritual texts and guru people say that we are all mirrors of each other.

Here I was the only white girl on a bus in a seedy part of town, dressed up, reading a very white book, and going to a very white party, frankly. ..

When a man boards the bus, falling over himself, drunk or deaf or just sad or something, and he slightly bumps the man next to me.

He says as he stumbles his way to the very back of the bus, "Excuse me."

The man next to me says, "It's okay."

And we're all human. Once again, we're all human. I love it. Not all the time. But when I do love it, it's the purest feeling out there.

{source}

Confession #3-- CarLess in ALABAMA????

So like I said, I've been busy.

Confession Number One: I got feng shui'd (i.e. got organized).
Confession Number Two: I got certified as an arborist.

What's my confession today?   What's Number Three, you ask?

Well, as you've seen plastered all over Facebook, I have just launched a Kickstarter campaign for a little movie I shot called CarLess in L.A.

And WAHOOO!  It's already raised $3010!  And that's in a day and a half!  I'm so grateful for all the generous contributions.

So?  What's my confession?  
Okay.   I went with zero carbon emissions in Los Angeles for 80 days (...or more -- contribute to the Kickstarter campaign so the movie can get made and you can find out!)...

But I'm not car-less in Birmingham, Alabama where I currently live!  In fact.  I don't even own a bike here.

My trusty Trek (named Trusty) is still in Los Angeles, where I keep it for visits so that I can bypass renting a car.

Trusty's cousin (source)

But what?

Yes, I bow my head in shame as I write this.

So what kind of person dares to go with zero carbon emissions, for almost three months (plus?), in the hugest, most car-dependent city we know,  THEN dares to have someone follow her around with a camera while she does it, THEN dares to ask friends, family, and strangers for $10,000 to finish the movie, BUT DOESN'T EVEN OWN A BIKE in her own town????

I CONFESS!!!!!

I confess.

(even smaller now)  I confess.

But see.  I have my reasons.  I have a long, long list of reasons.  Well, actually, I only have three:
1.  Birmingham is not a bike-friendly city.  This means there are very few bike trails, no "share the road" signs, the streets have tiny shoulders, and drivers that are not happy to see a cyclist blocking their way.  Trust me, I've checked it out.   (Interestingly, it's the windy, mountainy roads that make Birmingham so beautiful yet dangerous to ride.)

where are these signs in Alabama??

2.  I have a precious daughter who is only two-years-old, and I don't want to take her on a bike in a non-bike-friendly city.  Nor do I want to possibly deprive her of her mother (me) by riding in a non-bike-friendly city.  In short, I'm scared.  I can ride like a maniac in L.A., but here, there's slight anxiety!
3.  I keep it local for the most part, so do I really need a bike?

Okay, so the first two are, honestly, lame excuses.  A new friend of mine, a fellow arborist and cyclist, Stan Palla of Trees for Alabama, lives and bikes in Birmingham.  I expressed to him Reasons 1 and 2.  You know how he responded?  "Get over it."

He's right.

Not that I'm going to go pedaling down 280!  Nor am I going to whizz down 31.  Honestly, I'm going to be very strategic when I ride and where I ride, because I have already heard of too many awful car/bike-related accidents in Birmingham.  I learned in LA, however, that these incidents should not deter the willful rider, but I do believe that cyclists must be smart and recognize that, while cars should share the road, they are much bigger, faster, and stronger than bicycles.

So what about excuse number 3?  Ding, ding, ding!!!

Ladies and gentleman, do not fear.  I would not have let you down.

You see, when you see the movie CarLess in L.A., you will understand what I am doing!  (And you know you want to see it -- go contribute now here!)

I learned so much in those 80 days.  SO MUCH.  And I so want to share with you and you and you what I learned because it's AWESOME.  It's eye-opening, heart-healing, and good.

Basically, a little goes a long way.  A little goes a long, long way.  And that little goes even longer if there are many doing a little.  Make sense?  Which is why I want people to see the movie.  So more people can do a little to go a long way.

So, I keep it local -- meaning, I walk.  I chose the location of my home so that I can go days, if I have to, without getting into my car.

My daughter and I stroll to the grocery, stroll to local eateries, stroll to the botanical garden, stroll to the zoo, stroll to the local walking trail.  Sometimes, I get a babysitter and stroll to the local watering hole.

So, despite my lack of biking, I am still, and will always be, as car-independent as possible.

I do drive though.  My friends are spread out across town.  My little girl's child care is too far to walk and too dangerous for biking.  And there are things I like to explore outside my little circle.  The farmer's market, for example.  And places like Lowe's and the art supply store.   But when I do run errands, I do my best to streamline them.   And Whole Foods.  And.... Oak Mountain (known for its amazing mountain bike trails).

I fill up my car (a Honda Accord) about once a month.  (Is that good?  I don't even know!)

And what about public transit, you ask?

Good question.  Let me get back to you on that one.   (...and I mean it.)

Oh, and I'm looking for a good used bike, probably more mountain bike than road bike, and something kid-attachment-friendly.  I can't wait to get out on two wheels with my little girl!  She's gonna love it.  Because, face it, there are some places I can still ride to.  No more excuses, right?