So tired of being called “selfish” for trying to save money and live a healthier life.
What a does a car give you? The ability to say, “I’ve drive the whole family to here and there”, but what does it ignore? The local fun, the local parks, the local spots to hangout and eat and have fun, the ability to take your family for a walk, go outside, enjoy the good days.
And I get called selfish, for wanting to be less wasteful, meanwhile driving causes spending thousands per year on just gas alone, to spew CO2 into the atmosphere, for the luxury of arriving at a parking lot 200km away from home just so we can boast about how much we do for others?
I’m just tired of it. And everyone I know is addicted or just so ingrained in motornormativity that I can’t even relate to anyone, outside one or two people. It sucks even more that I’ll be called a bad parent for not wanting my child to get roped into this mentality that the car is the saviour of humanity, that grants us some mystical ultimate freedom that can’t obtained by other means.
One thing I’m really proud of is that I moved my family someplace walkable with trains (the UK) and got rid of our cars. My kid is growing up riding in cars only rarely. He’s such a strong walker, goes to school on foot every day. He can walk for most of a day, and he’s in very good shape. I see other kids his age who ride in cars daily and I’m happy with our choice.
that’s the biggest benefit that goes ignored with folks I speak to, I find. What about the kids, the ones who will be future workers, future teachers, future parents? Good on you for giving the little one a head-start, my parents always encouraged the outdoors and to this day I love being outside and staying active. When I take my daughter out, it’s a reminder to me to stay in shape too, because she loves to run 😅.