I wish I had enough valid reasons for not writing more. I have my reasons, but if I'm honest I feel as if I'm mostly becoming a little lazy. I'm not doing half as much writing of any kind at the moment and I feel pretty crap because of it. I don't think it's lack of inspiration, but rather a seemingly never -ending list of other tasks that often take priority.
One of the reasons I wanted to start this was to simply have an outlet to write more. Particularly for those times when due to overwhelming sense of a lack of creativity, this might offer an opportunity to simply write about stuff that I had done, made me really mad or that the few people who might read this might enjoy.
Another was of course, to document my car-free existence. That (I'm pleased to say) is actually going very well. Fall is well and truly upon is and even though there is a distinct chill in the air I feel the last week of bike-riding has been one of the most enjoyable in a long time. Perhaps it has something to do with the fact I just took my bike into a local repair shop for a little tune up, and ever since it rides like a dream and I feel like a kid at Christmas.
As the procedure for "leaf collection" in our neighborhood is to simply rake them from your yard into the street, I've been riding through massive piles of crunchy leaves lately which I'm pretty certain makes one of the best noises ever. Picking the leaves out of my gears afterwards is not so much fun, but worth it.
One highlight of the last month which I had every intention of writing about (and then didn't) was a little bit of bike riding activism I organized on 10/10/10 - an international day of Climate related activism. Organizations like 350.org and 10:10 (in the UK) were encouraging people all across the world to organize local actions with the idea that together we can make a much bigger noise.
I began thinking about planning something for this date late in the summer, but after a few conversations and a reminder that a crap load of Americans simply don't believe in climate change (or at least that it's not something we should be concerned about) I ashamedly felt a little defeated. However, as the 10/10/10 date got closer and closer I began to read about other people's planned actions all over the world and the motivation returned.
So on a sunny Sunday in early October, myself and around 15 other local cyclists gathered for a bit of bike riding activism in Flint. We decorated our bikes with handmade flags, pipe-cleaners, ribbons and a few other craftylicious items. As we rode around together we stopped at a few locations to discover positive, environmentally friendly actions that are already taking place (or are at least in development) right here in our little city. A lot of people find it very easy to focus on all the negative things happening in Flint, but on this day we found plenty to be happy about.
Here's a photo of the folks who turned out for the ride, along with our pimped out bikes (which don't look so pimped out in the photo, but trust me they were awesome!)
Later that evening we then moved on to Buckham Gallery, a lovely little art gallery in downtown Flint for a screening of the film The Age of Stupid. It wasn't the first time I had seen the film, but every time I do I remember why I don't own a car and why I don't plan to get one anytime soon. While I like to think that I'm very much aware of the choices I make (and the impact of those choices on people and the planet), watching that film still has the ability to make me feel like I'm the worst climate criminal of them all. About 15 people turned out for the film, and their donations just about covered the fee I paid to get the screening rights. We had a little conversation afterwards and while it was clear most of the audience already felt the issues discussed in the film were important (so there was a clear sense of preaching to the choir), it was good to spend a bit of time with other people who share my passions.
Since moving back to the US, I find myself getting so easily depressed when I hear quotes from idiots like John Shimkus, a Congressman who believes God will save us from Climate Change. If you don't believe me you can read more here. I don't know what angers me most: the fact that this guy could potentially soon be leading the Energy & Commerce Committee, or that there are people of my faith who actually think this way. Stewards of the Earth, anyone?
I get the same sense of despair when I read that while 30% of tea party supporters think, wrongly, that President Obama was born outside the US and therefore is not a legitimate president, just 12% think global warming is a serious problem now.
I don't for a minute believe that alone, my feeble actions will make a massive dent in the fight for the planet. On days like 10/10/10 however, it's good to think and dream that together our actions might just make a loud enough noise.
