UPDATE 29 April 2008: After some reflection, Renee and I realized one car sat in the driveway for 2 days, and another is almost through day 4. Last night, I went to the post office, picked up some small items at Walgreens, and did some grocery shopping all on the bike.

I started this series on Earth Day last week. This is installment #2 of “Crunchy on the Inside With a Soft Suburban Outer Coating.”

Your Navigator on a Suburban Expedition

Living in the suburbs almost requires a car. Public transit spread thinner and eventually disappears as you venture further from the downtown area. This is painfully obvious in South Florida. The infrastructure was built without public transit in mind. However, I do my best to use public transit and ride my bicycle whenever I can. Two bus lines stop within a short walk from my front door. Others are accessible via transfer, a longer walk or bike ride.

Fortunately, we live in a neighborhood where a few local stores and restaurants are within walking distance. Even more businesses are within biking distance. I feel the guilt when I drive to places I could walk or bike to.

One of my top criteria for an automobile is fuel economy. I wanted a hybrid, but I just didn’t have the budget for one. If you do the math, the savings aren’t significant. You won’t recoup the difference in price at the pump over the life of the vehicle, even as prices go up.

You can’t win. The hybrid will get you halfway from New York to Boston before a Hummer gets you around the block. A conventional car may burn more fuel, but what happens to the toxic chemicals in the batteries when these cars make it to the junk yard?

Some people have a legitimate need for a large automobile. What grosses me out are the people who drive SUVs and full-sized pickup trucks as status symbols. Their sheer size requires more resources to build, maintain, and outfit with humongous tires. Ever notice that no one in a full size pickup truck drives like an old lady? How badly do you need to beat me to the red light? Do you really need to get there first? Bad driving habits burn even more fuel.

Improving Fuel Economy

Is this still linkbait or is the topic played out? Gas prices show no signs of returning to sane levels. Just do a Google search and you’ll find tons of great tips. My number one tip is to just drive less. Every day I take the bus is one more day I can put off filling up the tank.

Mike at FromMike.com is doing the “60 MPH challenge.” As you increase speed, your fuel economy goes down. At speeds in excess of 60 MPH, it drops off precipitously. I commend Mike for his efforts. It can’t be easy in a car like his. If I had a Dodge Charger, I’d be tempted to be heavy on the foot too

We’re Still Not All That Crunchy

How are we “not quite crunchy” in the car department? One of our vehicles is a 2000 Mitsubishi Montero Sport. Yes, it’s a big honkin’ SUV. I was surprised to find out how well it does considering the size of the vehicle. We’re averaging about 18-20mpg overall. Our other car (a Pontiac Vibe) does noticeably better at 25-28mpg overall. We do a great deal of suburban driving. On our recent roadtrip to Daytona Beach, we fared much better.

We all know that idling the engine burns fuel. South Florida is a brutal place to live if you don’t have air conditioning. If we’re running errands on the go, one parent and the baby stay in the car with the engine running. Why go through the ordeal of unbuckling the baby from the child seat only to strap her back in 5 minutes later?

Further Reading

• Riding My Bike To Save Money
• My Experience With Public Transit in South Florida
• Buying a New Car to Save on Gas Mileage – Frugal Dad
• How to Improve Your Fuel Economy: 23 Top Tips for Better Gas Mileage – Get Rich Slowly
  

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It’s been a while since I wrote about biracial issues. It’s going to be a quiet ride until Twilli starts interacting with school age children. Most of what I’ve written has been about my own awakening and mostly 2nd hand accounts.

Maybe I’m blissfully ignorant of these issues. I prefer to think that the people we have encountered just might be open-minded enough to accept our child as she is without casting her in a freakshow role.

Last weekend, I spied a rummage sale at a nearby church. It happened to be the Korean Assembly of God church. I’m still very whitewashed and my religious beliefs are not in alignment with AOG, so I don’t give it much thought.

I didn’t like what I read about how hapas are treated in the Korean community. Now I have first-hand experience to report, and it is favorable.

As we approached the rummage sale, my guard was up. Religious outreach efforts by Koreans have been made toward me in the past by various groups, but the language barrier stopped them in their tracks.

I’d say it was an average reception. Not everyone is going to dote on a baby, no matter how cute she is. A few women lit up. One woman even remarked, “Asian genes are so strong!” Another lady was being assertive, trying to sell us a toy that was clearly outside of her age range. It was around noon, and you know what noontime means for rummage sales. Frugal tip here. Sometimes, you can score deals at the end of a garage sale. This is stuff people don’t want anymore.

Overall, I sensed no disdain for this mixed-race child. Maybe people have come around.

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Special Thanks To…

A combined effort between Frugal Dad, Parent Hacks, and StumbleUpon users helped drive a tremendous traffic surge to my recent post on How to Prepare for a Baby’s Arrival on a Budget. As a result of this one surge, regular daily traffic and RSS subscriptions are on an upward trend.

Heather at Geek Mom Mashup was kind enough to provide a guest post last week. I enjoyed the entire process of asking, receiving, and doing the graphic illustration for it. I also got some fresh eyeballs on me. After moderating a few comments, I realized that I never actually made an official glossary entry (or a glossary for that matter) for “hapa.” A hapa is someone who is of partial Asian descent.

It’s also nice to see some unsolicited links from My Mama Drama and Found Not Lost. Thanks!

A Surge In Posting Frequency

Some of you may have noticed my posting frequency has increased lately. I even had time to help out Renee and write a post over there. 50 hours suddenly opened up in my schedule each week. The full time job turned out to be a temporary thing.

Embracing Journalism

David Hobby, photojournalist turned blogger, was the final boot-to-butt convergence that turned me into a blogger. I’ve become more of a photojournalist than I thought I would. It became obvious to me at the babywearing meeting. I took some photos, but I wish I took more photos and better photos.

I found a great ebook called Journalism 2.0: How to Survive and Thrive. It’s actually a great Web 2.0 primer. Journalism 2.0 and Web 2.0 are inextricably linked. Some might argue that they are one. There’s always something to learn. I’m up to about Web 1.76 now. I may never become a full 2.0 since I’m on instant messenger about 4 hours per year.

Download it. It’s totally worth reading if you’re a blogger, or just want to shore up on Web 2.0.

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Illustration by Elliott Kim

I live in a neighborhood that allows me to accomplish errands on bicycle and has good access to public transit. It is something I have done intermittently in the past, but have recently stepped up my efforts. Even if gas prices weren’t where they are now, I would still look for opportunities to walk, ride my bike, or take public transit.

I have a spotty record as a crunchy eco-warrior, but I do what I can. In the days leading up to and since Earth Day, I have taken advantage of several opportunities to run some errands on my bicycle.

Frugal Dad is now a bicycle commuter. I did it a few times a week. I find it silly to get in my car for anything less than 2 miles away, unless I’m hauling a large volume of stuff. Some of the easy things I’m able to do on my bike include:

• Picking up small items at the store
• Go to the post office
• Prescription drop off and pickup
• Go to the library
• Pick up movie rentals at Blockbuster

There are times when we do need to run out to the store for just one item. These are the times when a bike ride is ideal. It does take a little longer, but you’re supposed to be fitting exercise into your day, right? Why not double-dip and accomplish both tasks?

When I maintained a gym membership, I found one close to home. I biked the 4 miles each way. The 30 minutes it takes to ride my bike to and from the gym was my cardio workout. If I drove, that was 20 minutes that I was accomplishing nothing toward my fitness goals. I combined part of my workout and travel to and from the gym. This is a case where the slower form of transportation saves time.

It’s not easy to be a bicyclist in South Florida. The suburban landscape is on a scale more appropriate for cars. Anything smaller than a Ford Taurus is invisible to most drivers. Drivers here are bad about yielding to pedestrians and cyclists. If motorists aren’t watching out for you, then you need to take care of yourself on the road:

• Wear a helmet (I know, I need to take my own advice).
• DO NOT listen to an MP3 player while cycling. If you absorb only one piece of information from this article, make it this one point. Your ears are like another set of eyes. If you are riding in the street, you are technically operating a motor vehicle and bound by the same laws as automobile operators. Listening to headphones is expressly forbidden while operating a motor vehicle in many, if not all states.
• If you ride in the evening, you must have a headlight for the front and a light on the back. Check with the laws in your state or municipality. I know it’s the law in Florida.
• Wear light colored clothing. You’re only slightly less invisible. You get bonus points for wearing a reflective vest and a safety blinker.
• Do not let items hang from the handlebars. If you are doing your grocery shopping on bike, invest in a set of panniers and a cargo rack.
• Ensure your bicycle is in good working order. Inspect it before every trip.

There are downsides to cycling too, but the benefits are realized quickly, sometimes instantly. I feel great knowing that I’m taking care of myself and our planet.

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I wrote today’s installment of “Wears The Baby Wednesday” over at 21st Century Parenting. Renee chronicles her experiences as a hardcore babywearer in her weekly post. She’s been sick (and unfortunately, that usually means baby is too).

Learn More About Babywearing:

• The Baby Wearer
• Broward Babywearing
• Dad’s Adventures in Babywearing
• 21st Century Parenting

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