Honestly, I have a love-hate relationship with the public transportation. I love the fact that it's available and it's a lot cheaper than maintaining a vehicle. But it takes a lot of work -- or really, just a lot of time. A trip that would take about 15 minutes by car can take an hour by public transportation. And sometimes you have to wait a long time and occasionally you have to walk somewhere because of a problem with the u-bahn or strassenbahn or whatever. But overall, I'm glad to have it and glad to use it.
I'm going to let you in on a little secret. Before we moved to Vienna, Brian and I decided to hold out as long as possible before buying a car. Really, we have no intentions of buying a car, but we're not saying we won't ever need (want) a car. That's not the secret. The secret is that I've become kind of nuts lately about the environment and climate change and all of that. I know that I'm not doing enough to decrease my carbon footprint, but I'm becoming more aware and making small changes. For example, I only run the clothes dryer for about 10 minutes and then hang-dry our clothes. (The 10 minutes help the clothes to dry faster and keeps them softer so I don't have to iron everything.) When I'm shopping for groceries, I try to buy food that is locally grown or produced. These are small steps, but even the small steps help.
I know some of you think this is hokey and/or don't believe that climate change is a real issue. Some are probably paralyzed by the magnitude of the problem and don't know how to respond to it. It's good to start small so you don't become overwhelmed. For example, if there are rooms in your home that you do not use, close the heat/air vents and keep the door closed. Rather than just turning off appliances, unplug them -- at least the ones you don't use often. Carpool to work, church, or where ever. All of the suggestions will not only decrease your carbon output, but will also save you a few bucks. And no one can argue against that, right.
I told you I had become a little nuts about it.
Okay, now for something a little fun. Friday was the last day of the first German course. Rather than having a lesson, the class took a little walk to a nearby cafe. As we walked through part of town, we were greeted by these huge blue thingamabobs. I wish I had my camera out at the time. The 12 of us in the class saw these big blue things and about the same time, they saw us. And they all just descended on us. I think we all laughed out loud. It was the funniest site I have seen in a long time. Unfortunately, I just got a picture of them from behind.
So what are these blue blobs? Why, they're carbon dioxide molecules! They actually have CO2 written on the front, but as I said, I didn't have my camera out soon enough. At first I thought they were protesting something going on because it was pretty obvious that the city was preparing for some kind of event in this area. But then I realized they were advertising a new line of electric scooters that have zero CO2 emissions. Pretty cool. Check out those solar panels.
4 comments:
I heart the public transportation here in Olomouc, CZ, too! It's helpful for the environment (like you said, and with which I very much agree!) and it also just helps to slow down the pace of life and make your travels through the city more personal -- you spend your day looking at people's faces rather than their license plates and bumper stickers. Many blessings on your work in Vienna.
I miss good public transportation. It is better in Syracuse than it is in Oklahoma City but we still can't take a bus anywhere because by the time we got to the nearest bus stop we might as well drive to where we are going.
You're not nuts at all. It's admirable that you care about making a difference. There are limits, though. You get the first save-the-planet concert free, but after that, you're just going to have to settle for producing carbon like the rest of us :).
Mitch - It sure does slow down the pace of life! I used to think people were more relaxed in Vienna because things seemed to happen at a much slower pace, but now I realize that everything is slower because it takes so long to get anywhere!
Candace - It's a shame the public transportation in most cities in the U.S. is so poor. It's nearly impossible to go without a car in OKC.
Emily - Thanks for the, uh, pep talk? Don't worry -- I won't talk about saving the planet too often. :)
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