Getting into a routine of biking again this summer has been difficult. On Mondays, I tell myself I will bike both Saturday and Sunday of the coming weekend, but then it is really warm, and there is outside work to be done (weeding, watering, mowing the grass putting up shade blinds on western and southern windows, working in the community garden), that should be done before it gets hot, and suddenly it's 11 a.m. and too late because...it's too hot!
But I was reading the latest issue of Mother Earth News, and it is full of articles about living cheaper/simpler. There's nothing new in it, so far, but some of the things are reminders that I can be doing better. Like, most people's daily driving takes them less than 2 miles from home.
So, I rode my bike to a meeting at the library last night. It is about 20 blocks, maybe a mile and a half, and took me about ten minutes. Yes, I had to ride on the street, which I don't really like to do, and I had to cross a few major intersections, but still, I rode it, instead of getting in the car. There are other times I can do this, and will try to make that choice in the future. Is it a ten-mile ride that burns tons of calories and makes me sweat? No, but it's still a bike ride, it's good for me, and it saved me wear and tear on my car.
The short rides count too. A long as it is daylight, and I can ride safely on the city streets, there's no reason I shouldn't be biking when I can.
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