Firsts

This weekend I did two things for the first time in over two months (i.e., since before we left Colorado).



I rode in a car.

Not the actual car.

I drank a Coke.

The Coke was pretty anti-climactic... I don't really drink sodas very often at home, and it wasn't because I was strongly desiring one here.  I just happened to get a menu deal at a restaurant with a limited (non-wine) selection on Sunday afternoon.

The car was a little more exciting.  It felt very fast and thrilling, and stop lights seemed to spring up out of nowhere.  All four of us riding in the car (the driver was a fellow student) agreed that it felt so luxurious to go straight to our destination, without waiting for a train/bus or walking to the station.  Cars are a pretty convenient invention.  America's love affair with cars certainly has basis in reality... we just need to work at using them less and at driving MUCH more efficient vehicles.  And I do mean work at it, not just wishful thinking while driving 20 miles each way to work in a Ford F-7500 "commuter truck" (or a Nissan Xterra...).

Source: U.S. EIA Annual Energy Review 2009: Energy Perspectives Overview

So, American culture: 1 for 2 on being awesome and helpful.