Living Lean & Green: Class 4

Well, yesterday I thought I would brave it and take the Route 8 IndyGo bus to the library where I take my Living Lean & Green class. Ha! That didn't work out so well.

I had picked up a route map a few days prior - but those maps are pretty much useless when it comes to learning a new route. For one, they only list a fraction of the stops - maybe 8 out of 30. And the route map doesn't really show the route on a road map in relation to where streets are. So you can't really guess where it is going to be at when. I mean they give times, but they are never on time - not even close.

I was perusing around downtown Indianapolis trying to find a Eastbound bus along my chosen route and I couldn't find one....it was awful. And I was getting blisters the size of Taiwan on my heels from new "comfortable" shoes (snort) - ended up limping 8 blocks until I was finally able to wave down a bus. Wasn't at a stop - just an intersection but the driver was a saint and let me on.



The trip home wasn't much better. Thankfully my friend, who I go to the green class with, brought the most marvelous band aids ever - so my heels were finally getting relief - but I could see out the window from where our class was and I watched hopefully as a bus went by at 7:00 - then another at 7:38....thinking, "OK, so class gets out at 8 and another bus should go by right?!" NO. I sat out in an unfamiliar neighborhood in the dark for more than 30 minutes before breaking down and calling my friend to drive me back to my car. Sigh.



So riding the bus to my green class to be more green....fail.

Oh well, the last class is next Wednesday and we are going to have a little pitch-in and green elephant gift exchange - so I am just going to drive. I would rather use up some gas than go through all that again.

I STILL ride the bus to work everyday on normal days...days when I don't have to be anywhere at a specific time. But what I've learned and am still learning is that you just can't rely on the bus to get you where you want on time. It isn't a very reliable source of transportation for people on a rigid schedule.

Heck, one morning we all boarded the bus to head downtown and as the driver fired her up to pull away from the curb - the thing just died. And we waited probably 15 minutes because we really didn't know what was going on and the driver at no point apologized or explained what was happening or what was going to happen. Was another bus going to come in time to take us where we needed to be? Answer ended up being no. That bus was supposed to leave at 8:10 and get downtown by 8:30...well since it broke down, the next bus that would come through wouldn't be until 8:38...which means it wouldn't get downtown until at least 9. Everyone had to get off and get back into their cars and drive to work. The sad thing is that we had already paid our bus fares and the driver couldn't reimburse us.

In retrospect, I think riding the bus is great in many ways, but unrealistic in others.

Sorry for the bus rant there....my heels are still smarting this morning...and I had to sit next to a breather-mcstinky-breath this morning and it was no fun.

Anyways, back to my Green Class.

I got drilled again by squinty eyes about my carbon footprint. I had to give her the low down about what all I was doing to get it so low. Honestly, it is like the perfect alignment. We just bought our first new home and it is insulated well and came fully equipped with all Energy Star appliances. Our community pays for curbside recycling and we have compost out back. With the bus and my husband's new job being so close - we have cut our miles down to nothing.

One of the things we talked about last night was pretty intriguing though - battery powered lawn mowers. Huh...I guess they come with a key start ignition so maybe I could even run the darn thing!

After all my ranting I think I should participate in Thankful Thursdays - a great idea by garden blogger Thyme for Herbs.