Sandra’s Miscellany

President Bush has called for us to conserve fuel, which is a nice idea despite the fact his trip to the Energy Department to give the speech required an inordinate number of gas-guzzling vehicles, as reported in the Houston Chronicle blog.

But while that made me smile (I appreciate irony), I got to thinking seriously about something I’ve debated from time to time — using a bicycle for trips under 10 miles.

Now, part of my problem is that I used to own a hardcore Cannondale touring cycle, and once you’ve ridden a fully-loaded Cannondale tourer, there’s just no going back. So the Wal-Mart no-name brand bicycle I have now (given to me by a friend) just seems feeble. And as the dSO and I are talking about traveling in our van next summer, I’m thinking my best investment would be a folding commuter bicycle, preferably a Dahon, that will fit nicely in Fergus and still give me decent road performance for fetching supplies.

Anyway, I’m pondering it. The Dahon Cadenza, which I’m lusting after, is about $500, plus the racks and panniers that would make it truly useful for carting groceries.

The other problem I have is that Houston area traffic is notoriously unforgiving of cyclists — our roads are wide enough for Hummers but not for bicycles — and “bike lanes” are good for nothing but collecting road debris flung out of the lanes by cars. And my area down near Clear Lake doesn’t even have sidewalks for most of the main roads. How these little townships are avoiding ADA lawsuits is beyond me. So I’ll have to scout around for back road routes to the grocery store and post office.

But it’s about time I start acting on my convictions. The whole global warming thing bugs me, and while I can’t change anyone’s mind or make anyone act differently (and who says I should?), I can do what’s right for me. That means changing my lifestyle to reduce my footprint on the planet.

Think I spent too many days in Austin?