Tuesday, February 14, 2012

One Car Family

Yes, my dear hubby and I have made the switch. We are now a one care family (well couple).  He sold his beautiful Lexus and now we are relegated to my 2001 gold Nissan Sentra (snazzy).  We call her Rum Toddy.

Why, you might ask, did we elect to do such an egregious thing as lose a Lexus and keep a Sentra?  Well, we are pragmatists. And, we are savers.  The Sentra simply made the most financial sense.  (As tragic as it was seeing the Lexus -- which we affectionately called Pearlescence-- go). Sigh.

It was not my idea, it was my husbands actually. Over thanksgiving break he read a book of mine called "How to Live Well Without Owning a Car".  It is a great book. Financially very convincing. So convincing in fact that we decided to make a go of it.  Well, we decided to have only one car for the two of us. 

The key to not owning a car is that you have to be able to reliably get to work without a car.  Everything else can be figured out.  And, by NOT having a car, you have more money to do exactly that and in fact live a better/ higher standard of living and happiness as a result.  A compelling argument to say the least.

Well, the hubby has only to walk about 200 yards to his office everyday so there you go.  We meet the essential criteria for NOT owning a car.  But, the effect has been interesting.  For one, we have already become better planners, and that is a very good thing for me.  We talk about how we can both get places we need or want to go.  Often there is compromise and on his part because I will have the car at work all day on some days, but the benefits exist and have been wonderful.  My favorite benefit is that we get to talk to each other more. We get be in each others presence as we carpool in one direction or the other.  It is actually really swell.  Car time can be processing time, play time, and quiet time listening time.  We don't ever hold "deep" conversations or try to address conflicts in the car, it is just time to let ideas come and go. We get to share with each other in a relaxed way, safe from other household disruptions and distractions.

Our car talks are  a form of enjoyable decompressing.  We get to plan our next meal together or make plans for the rest of the day or evening.  We get to be close to each other and breath a little.  We notice things like hawks flying overhead, funny cars, crazy antics of other drivers.  It becomes processing time and bonding time.

The financial benefits of course will be felt more long term, but for now I am really enjoying it.  Of course I am the one who has the car the most.  Sure I should probably do more of the driving, but he often offers because he isn't driving his car all day long!  So far, I am very happy and will keep you posted as we venture forth one car at a time.

Happy Valentine's Day!

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