Regular readers of this blog and friends/family who are in close touch know that we have had some pretty bad car trouble over the past week. It started last Friday night when Dylan was driving to poker night and the car overheated. We took it into the shop and found out that a massive coolant leak had destroyed a ton of parts and hoses, requiring a laundry list of parts and eight hours of labor to fix. Not a good thing! We got the car (and the steep bill) on Tuesday afternoon only to find that the A/C was not working. It worked fine before we dropped the car off at the shop. Turns out the compressor and valve both needed to be completely replaced. There was some back and forth about whether or not the first repairs in any way caused the second problem, and the shop ended up giving us the parts at cost and charging us for one hour of labor on the five hour job. We just picked the car back up, and despite having dropped a lot of dough and being car-less for eight days, we and the car are doing great and happy to be reunited.
So, this brings me to the experience of not having a car for over a week in a household where two adults and a one-year old typically share a vehicle. Surprisingly it was not a problem, and I actually enjoyed the (small) challenge it presented! We have a unique situation that allows us to live easily without a car, and here are some of the reasons why:
- We live right next to great shopping street with supermarket, hardware store, drugstore, and everything else you would need for everyday life.
- Our house is next to a bus stop that can take Dylan downtown to his office.
- I am a stay-at-home mom and so don't need to commute into work, and have plenty of time during the day for errands to take as long as they need to. I always say that I am rich with time at this part of my life right now and so we don't need to rush. This is something I am extremely grateful for every single day.
- Dylan and I both LOVE to bike and walk. Dylan rides to work a few days / week and I can throw Connor into his little bike seat and go anyplace.
- Our life is centered around this local area. Connor has activities and playgroups, but they are all walking or biking distance from our house. Along with the typical weekly walks and bike rides, we added in a few extras for things that we normally drive to, but it was totally fun! The best was riding my bike 25 min to take a 1 hr spin class, then riding another 25 min home. I'll just say that I was pretty excited for dinner that night :)
Having no car made me appreciate what a luxury it is to normally have one sitting there whenever we need it. It was neat to realize that we can do without it, but I am very excited to hit Trader Joes once Connor wakes up from his nap and do a big, family shopping run. Feeling appreciative of having wheels!!
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