We're car-free, again!

Plus, Amsterdam, Bikenomics, friendship, and more.

Hi friends,

Recently, The Husband and I sold our small blue Ford Fiesta! We owned the Fiesta for roughly 10 years. It was a great little car, and we are happy to be car-free again. If we need a vehicle, we will rent a car or use an on-demand service like Zipcar.

I still can’t believe the Fiesta sold so fast! A few weeks ago, The Husband posted the Fiesta on Facebook Marketplace. Within a few hours, we received a reasonable offer for the car. The next day, we met the potential buyers at the mall. They test drove the Fiesta, we chatted, and they bought the car in cash. The process was easier than I expected.

We’re happy to have extra cash in savings! We’re also looking forward to saving $300 a month. We didn’t have a car payment, but the Fiesta was relatively expensive. Maintenance, insurance, gas, parking fees, and depreciation add up fast! Plus, we rarely drove the car.

An unexpected benefit of selling the car: Connecting with drivers, pedestrians, and fellow cyclists. For example, we look like moving Christmas trees at night because we have lots of lights on our bikes. People love our bicycle lights, and seem to delight in giving us compliments. It makes me smile, and it’s been fun chatting with strangers about our bikes and gear.

With that, here’s what sparked my creativity and curiosity recently:

1.) Not Just Bikes is a cool YouTube channel. Their recent video, Amsterdam Just Got Awesomer, made me want to move to The Netherlands immediately.

2.) I’m reading Bikenomics: How Bicycling Can Save the Economy by Elly Blue again. It’s an older book, and it is still relevant and inspiring!

3.) How to go car-free — or car-light — in Middle America by Angie Schmitt is a helpful article; especially if you live in the U.S.

4.) So You Want to Publish a Book? by Anne Trubek is a refreshing guide about how nonfiction books are sold and made.

5.) A Moment of Remembering is a beautiful essay about love and loss.

6.) The Secret to Making & Keeping Friends with Dr. Marisa G. Franco is a helpful interview. They cover: practical ways to make friends, how to address conflict and anger in friendships, vulnerability, and more. I’m looking forward to reading Dr. Franco’s book, Platonic: How The Science of Attachment Can Help You Make—and Keep—Friends.

7.) Here are my latest articles for Be More with Less — The Benefits of Journaling and How to Get Rid of Negative Thoughts. I hope you enjoy the essays! They were fun to write.

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With gratitude,

Tammy Strobel