Letting go...

The decision to go carless has gotten me thinking about de-cluttering our lives, paring things down, saving resources and energy, and ultimately, saving money. Well, really what got me thinking about it is a thread on a bicycle forum in which people were discussing how simply they live. Some people were pretty extreme (one guy admitted he'd been wearing the same pair of pants for over a year!) but others were just very conscious of trying to live and consume wisely.

Last month we cut cable. It was a monthly expense we didn't need, and frankly, having cable television meant we'd watch way more TV than was healthy. Since then, we've been streaming TV on Netflix and other websites, but generally watching less. (The trade-off is that I think we're both wasting more time on the internet, but I'm going to work on that as well.) Being removed from the constant barrage of ads is really nice! Both L and I have noticed that we're no longer "in" on the discussion about commercials and new products.

I'd like to get rid of all the clutter in our basement and closets, all the clothes that don't fit, the random odds and ends in every piece of furniture that has a drawer or a lid. L and I have a ton of stuff we don't need or use crammed into every conceivable crevice in our five-bedroom house. It's a bit ridiculous.

First step: sell car. That's a very big first step. We plan on getting it washed and cleaning the inside this coming weekend, then listing it for sale on Craigslist. Frankly, I'm a little anxious about not having a car, but this is a good thing. We'll save a lot of money, we'll be forced to exercise more, and we'll be forced to plan more carefully before shopping trips and outings. (Oh, and we'll both probably lose a few pounds, too.)

And now, gratuitous cat and random springtime photos:



Groovy is not cute. Oh, no. (Taken while house-bound with horrid flu of great awfulness.)



Vivid flowers a few weeks ago; the first flower I saw this Spring.





Some cool, curly grasslike thing growing on Kingsessing near Clark Park.

Off to go hang out with Sneaky Pie, the world's cutest Felv+ kitten.