I don't drive, mostly by choice, and partly by circumstance. My license expired last year, and my driving record has never been exemplary, so I opted not to renew it after my insurance carrier dropped me around the same time. A trifecta, if you will. And so I sold my car, a second Miata to replace the first lost in a war in New Mexico, and began riding my bike again.

This is not the first time I've been without a motor vehicle of my own, but it had beed several years since the last time. I wasn't in particularly great shape, having lost over 40 pounds in a year as a result of many factors, including medications ("drugs" in some readings), stress, working for a string of startups failing craptacularly at the hands of epic asshats, and the same war in which I lost the previous Miata. However, I've always been fairly strong as an endurance and utility cyclist, and within days I was commuting 20 miles from the house I was staying in Ontario to the Corona train station to get to Anaheim Hills.

Several events then transpired, and I found myself living in North Hollywood with no bike. Fortunately, the Los Angeles MTA has a subway station there, and between the subway, Amtrak, and the OCTA, I can get to Anaheim Hills in just over two hours. I recently acquired a bike, too, and this will actually decrease the commute time.

So really, I'm living the carless life right now. I don't actually intend to replace the license or the car any time soon, since I'm actually spending far less money, even after buying transit passes for three agencies each month. There's no insurance expense, no fuel expense, no taxes, and no stress from traffic. On top of that, I also get exercise consistently, walking several miles each day, and soon riding several more once I relocate close enough to cycle without taking transit.

It's a beautiful life in some ways.