car-lite living

America is in love with cars!  And the rest of the world is trying to catch up.  I don't see this as a good thing.  Cars are expensive!  I think it's one of the main reasons people can't get ahead financially.  I live a car-lite lifestyle.  If I don't have to drive I don't drive.  I walk and take the bus if I can.  A lot of people just think of gas as the main expense of owning a car.  Oh but it's much more than that.  How about maintenance, repairs, tickets, accidents, insurance, auto club, parking, just to name some big ones.  I understand that it's hard to survive without a car.  It seems the only place this is doable in the US is in the northeast which is very expensive to live overall.  I really would like to go car-free.  But there are times when the bus in my city is just not that efficient, so I keep the car for those times.  Personally I don't like driving.  I find it to be stressful.  You never know what those crazies are going to do on the road once you get out there.  There are a lot of lawsuits and settlements when it comes to driving too.  I wish we had better local, regional, and national public transportation than we do.  I do the best I can though.  If I can keep the miles off my older car I will.  Much of it is just a mindset though.  That's the part that's maybe the hardest to change.  I tell people I take the bus when I have a car, and they look at my like I have two heads.  There's also a stigma of not having a car which is totally stupid.  I wish the stigma was reversed.  I'm doing my best to minimize transportation expenses and ease the busyness of our roads.