Sunday, June 22, 2008

If we have hit peak oil, what won't I mind giving up.

I don't mind driving a small car (especially now that we don't need a minivan to cart around the kids, their friends, and their props for their various shows). I never have minded walking and using public transport. I'm willing to eat less meat so we use feed grains more disparately and efficiently. I don't mind living in a small house close to transit. I would still own a car, but just for those days when I need to get around town more than the commute in and the commute home. I would keep my heat off almost all the time in Southern California, and use AC lightly.

For me, the only hard thing to give up would be travel. Walking the streets of London, Paris, Florence, Rome, Stockholm, Amsterdam, Kiev, Krakow, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Seoul, Cairo, Dubai, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Singapore, Quito, Lima Dhaka and even TJ has taught me as much about urban and real estate dynamics as any spreadsheet or map--and I love spreadsheets and maps. If environmental conditions require us to do less of this kind of thing, I will cooperate. But I won't be happy about it.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Just had a stroke of brilliance. Los Angeles suffers dearly from traffic congestion. We have a greatly underused mass transit system and no grass roots demand for more of it. Huge stigma attached to riding the rails.

Marketing and PR: Celebrities spotted riding the subways and buses. They'll need security, but it just might work. Other paid shills as well - 20-40 year olds, dressed well.