Gas prices are killing me……or are they?

There is definitely an upside to gas prices.  They have reached a point where one thinks before hopping in the car for any one trip.  Some people carpool, some decide not to take vacations as far away or as often.  Many trips are delayed and combined with another planned trip.  We may decide to stop on our way home from work at a store that is in the route instead of making a special trip.  Our household has started encouraging the use of bikes on a regular basis or walking to places close by.  These ideas were not part of our everyday vocabulary before rise in gas prices.  Upside number 1 is we have learned to be greener due to our awareness of how dependent we are on our gas guzzling cars.

I am a walker and have been for years.  I regularly take 3 to 5 mile walks with our dog Sammy.  Rarely, however, did I walk out of necessity.  It was for my health and to get Sammy out of our house which always makes for a better dog.  With gas prices, I started to rethink this.  Can I find common ground in getting in my exercise and running errands and sometimes take the dog as well to satisfy that requirement?  The answer is YES! 

Of course there are times that having a dog with you can be a problem.  Like going to the store for an item or the library without someone to wait outside with the dog for a minute or two.  After a little thought, I learned to be creative.  Is anyone in the family going that way for anything else?  I grab the dog, hop in the car and get dropped off.   I return my books, grab the ones waiting on the shelf for me, grab the dog from the car and walk home.  My family goes on their merry way and I have saved the earth and walked 3 extra miles in the process. (and on a new route that keeps things interesting)  If my car needs an oil change, I just drop off the car and walk home.  When done, I walk back and pick it up.  All of a sudden I am ashamed to think of all the times I felt like I had to have a car.   We are fortunate enough to live within 1-3 miles of a fair number of grocery and department stores as well as the post office.   This is truly a gift that should not be overlooked!

Gas prices have made me see the world and our excess in a whole new way.  I find myself dropping a kid off for a practice and instead of going home; I take that opportunity to walk until the practice is over.  So again, I save gas and get in shape at the same time.  Sure my schedule gets mixed up a bit but being flexible has its privileges.  The funny thing about gas prices is that I now see more bikes and walkers out and it is creating a tighter community.  Although I have always tried to shop locally, it is more of a priority now to support my community whenever possible.  Gas prices have gotten us to rethink how we travel.  They have nudged us to be better keepers of this earth and have prompted many of us to get into an active lifestyle out of desire or necessity and living a richer life.  Are the gas prices killing us?  It depends on how you are looking at it.  For me, I would say I’m in better shape because of them and find that slowing down the pace of my life and being more active has really been a positive.