Quote:
Originally Posted by betenoire
Not having a car is a pretty big lifestyle choice. When I first got rid of the car (forever ago!) I was living a 2 hour bus commute from work - not such a great idea. But since then I've gotten smarter and have intentionally chosen apartments that are within reasonable distance of work, a grocery store, on the bus route, etc.
Even in the town where I now live (which is a far cry from Toronto, I tell you) where the bus stops running at 11 Monday-Friday and 6 on Saturdays and Sundays I'm doing more than fine. The money I save each month by not owning a vehicle can certainly afford me the luxury of taking a taxi once or twice a month if I'm going to be out real late and in an area of town that I can't walk home from.
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I think if you live in the city or you can go without or share a car it's a very smart move. I personally know people that share a car but like Waldo and myself work at home so it's not a huge issue.
Could I go without my big ass 250 Cargo Van living out here on the farm? Maybe I could if I set myself up right. I'd have to rely on delivery for feed for animals. The vet makes house calls. I could grow quite a bit of produce. Yeah if I had to I could. But since my van is a write off for my farm I considered it a cost of overhead.
I've done a lot of things in my life and this whole rural downsizing luxury has been quite a challenge for me. My next step, if I can get up the courage is to start moving towards full sustainability or as close as one could get. I often think about the things I MUST have and what I could do without to slip fully into that transition. Internet and cell phone would be hardest for me. Toilet paper I could do without because I have. When I'm in the woods I try not to bring it. I fill a bottle of water wash and dry. In fact I might do that more here. Not because of the savings but to start using less paper and now that I think of it I'll be much cleaner!