your mom must be so proud

We all fall victim to ranting in the passion of a moment, and this is just that. Call it a flaw of the internet for providing instant information and access to an audience.

I caved in and drove to work today - the first weak moment of the day (writing this being #2). I am not one to make excuses, but here are my excuses: I rode an extra 10 miles yesterday after work to get to a starbuck's "jam session" with a friend, then continued on to church, then back home (at 8:30 pm). I had a long day yesterday, and it was cold this morning (for Phoenix at least). Moving forward...

As I am driving home this afternoon, I am cruising along in the middle of 3 lanes, approaching a stop light. A beat-up GMC Jimmy (missing one side-view mirror) speeds past me on the right, and the guy was obviously not paying attention to what was happening in front of him - 6 or so cars were stopped as the car at the intersection was waiting to make a right turn. The Jimmy on my right notices that the cars in front of him are not moving, slams on the breaks and cuts in front of me at the same time. All of this happens within inches of my precious hood. The guy proceeds to swerve around a bit as he settles into this lane, then resumes driving like a moron. Thankfully, no physical contact was made, aside from my hand on my horn.

As we approach the next light, I am still in the middle lane, and this guy has moved over to the far left lane. Cars come to a halt, and I notice that I will be pulling up right alongside the guy. I can see him edging forward as much as possible to prevent us from being right next to each other. No such luck for this fine gentleman. His windows are down, and a similarly aged female is in the passenger seat, seemingly oblivious to all that has taken place. This was my first real look at what this guy looked like. Late 20s-ish, smaller guy - I could take him if I needed to (although I like to think of myself as non-violent).

As I come to a stop, I simply stare to my left, and the guy is glancing out of the corner of his eyes, then sort of turns his head a bit more to me - all the while one hand is providing him some sort of false sense of security. Then it happens...

He flips me off.

He, flips ME, off.

I was caught so off guard by this gesture that I started laughing. The light turned green and the guy quickly accelerated out of view.

He flipped me off.

The guy has the nerve to cut me off because he doesn't pay attention to the 3000 pound hunk of crappy American steal he controls, and then give me the universal sign of "go F- yourself." I was stunned. I still am.

I am disappointed, because this brief interaction with a stranger has left me wondering where all the civility has gone? The fingers can be pointed in many directions, but I won't do that just yet. I hope that occurrences like these are rare - but I cannot say that for sure. I have yet to have a similar interaction while riding my bike, so maybe this is just one more reason to stay out of the car.

green tuesday: when less is more

Last week I started what will hopefully be a regular occurrence: the Green Tuesday post. It is good to know that there is a wealth of information out in the web-o-sphere and it would take a long time to sift through it all. In the meantime, I will continue to come across some really neat stuff.

A lot of the fuss being made over "green living" these days involves one paradoxical element: consumption. Green cars, green fashion, green home products - a lot of the "green" trend is simply advertising and marketing that is trying to sell you the trendiest product, or the trendiest way to carry your product (designer shopping bags, anyone?...come on!).

While many efforts have been made in the means of ecologically sustainable or less-ecologically destructive production methods, almost anything you buy at the store (and yes, that includes your LBS) had to be produced somewhere and somehow.

video homework
If you have the time on your hands, I highly recommend watching a short film (20 minutes) that has recently been making it's way around the internet - the film is called the Story of Stuff and it examines modern production methods, from raw materials to production to distribution to consumption to disposal. The production and presentation of this film are really neat - with elaborate illustrations and a friendly presentation style. It is a very eye-opening and intriguing examination of western material production and consumption. If you don't happen to have 20 free minutes, first of all, thanks for spending your precious time on this site, and secondly, here are some key stats from the film:

• In the past 3 decades, one-third of the planet's natural resources have been consumed
• Forty percent of waterways in the US have become undrinkable
• The US has 5% of the world's population but consumes 30% of the world's resources and creates 30% of the world's waste
• The average America now consumes twice as much as they did 50 years ago
• National happiness in America peaked around the 1950s
  

I do not intend to be an alarmist, or scare everyone into thinking the world will end soon. But I strongly feel that our habits of consumption are in great need of change.

when less is more
I will admit that I love bikes, and I just don't feel that I can get enough of them. Thankfully, bikes and their toys are not as sizable or production-intensive as other transport vehicles (read: Hummer H2), but they still require raw materials and energy to be produced.

One topic that came up in response to last week's post was the local bike co-op. Bike co-ops are member-owned, not-for-profit organizations that have one sole purpose: get as many people on safe bikes as possible. The means through which they do this vary, but most will include educational opportunities about bike maintenance, as well as free use of tools to work on your own bikes. Most will take donations of used parts, and sell these to cover operating costs. All in all, a bike co-op is a place where people come together to learn from and teach each other about bikes, maintaining them, and safely riding them (depending on how many hipster kids go there to find old road frames for a fixie conversion).

I have yet to find a web resource that highlights bike co-ops in various places, but chances are (if you live in a sizable city), there is one nearby. Ask around at your LBS - maybe they know.

The point is: there are tons of used bike parts floating around in our cities, and you can find lots of useful pieces in a local co-op, which is simply a method of "recycling." I encourage you to explore your local co-op and be more aware of our consumer habits as cyclists. Just because we may not drive a car, doesn't mean that our actions do not have an impact.

extra credit
If you find yourself intrigued, and want to learn more, there is a plethora of resources on the web to guide you in your quest to live a more environmentally friendly/sustainable life. While a list that provides the best sites to visit would stretch way too long, I will leave you with my 3 favorite websites:

• CoolPeopleCare.org - CoolPeopleCare exists to show you how to change the world in whatever time you have. One minute? Five minutes? An entire day? Whatever you have, they'll help you spend it wisely. In my mind, it is the epitome of community service.
  
• No Impact Man - Last year, Colin Beaven aka No Impact Man, committed he and his family (wife and 4-year-old daughter) to live a "no impact" life while living in Manhattan. This meant no electricity, no buying new products, and many other things. The tales from the year are incredible, and crazy. That year is over, and Colin and his family are now exploring how to remodel their lives. Today's post was brilliant and quite inspirational.
• The Good Human - The Good Human was born out of one man's idea for a website that can encourage people to be better humans...whether through working to clean up the environment, being active in political issues that mean a lot to you or just being more aware of your life and surroundings. From a post today:

When you carry out your trash at home on the next collection day, you’ll be sending more trash to landfills than the entire Subaru manufacturing plant in Lafayette, Indiana.

Again, bikecommuters.com in no way is trying to tell you how to live your life. We merely report on the things we like or find important.