Thursday, May 12, 2011

On Being a One Car Family

We've had at least 2 cars for so long that adjusting to having only one car has been interesting. But we're getting used to it. At least our one car is big enough to fit all of us. It's squishy, but it works - especially if we aren't going farther than a mile or two away from home.

If we want to take just one extra person, though, it doesn't work. We've tried to talk the kids into riding in the trunk - it's nice and roomy, right? - but none of them have taken us up on it. Just kidding. I wouldn't let anyone ride in the trunk anyway.

The interesting thing is how much money it has saved us in just the last couple of months. Our insurance has gone down $90/month. And yesterday we got the Chevron bill - usually it's $350/month. For last month? $140. Wow. That means we saved $300 last month. And that's not including not having a $200-$250/month car payment.

That said, I wish public transportation were better. I would probably ditch the car and take the bus/train to work. Which has gotten me to thinking that it might not be a bad idea if I got a job at Granger Medical Clinic. It's right on the bus line and probably a 5 minute bus ride from my home. And, I would be forced to walk to and from the bus, which would be good. Even though it was a pain to ride the bus to and from MSC a few years back, I did get more exercise!

We would still need at least one car, though. David can't walk very far - not even to the bus stop a couple of blocks away. Maybe if he took his walker and started out a half hour before the bus was due. Plus, not many busses run on the weekend. I can't imagine using the bus for grocery shopping. And taking the bus when it's dark out? Scary. Of course, even in daylight it can be scary, when you're stalked by psychotic men. But that would never happen, right?

I guess at least the trend is going toward busses and trains. The Trax hub in our part of town will be done this August, I think? Meagan and Zac are getting pretty good at navigating the bus/trax system.

That said, David and I are still planning on buying a minivan. Just probaly not til sometime this summer. The options I'd most like on the minivan? A tow hitch and a back-up camera. Unfortunately, not many minivans come with the back-up camera - and if they do, they're the way expensive minivans.

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