Living Car Free - Working Car-Free

We get so many "I can't be car-free" posts here, felt the need to offset that with my current project: setting up a new office/studio downtown. That's about 10km from home each way.

Thu Oct 19 - bike to office, pick up keys from landlord, measure rooms and take notes. Bike home. Have sick feeling in stomach from all the money I am now committed to spending. Try not to puke as I bike home.

Fri Oct 20 - bike to office, panniers and messenger bag full of stuff. Fix holes in walls, various small problems. Bike home when done. Order furniture. Deco theme: cheap.

Sat Oct 21 - day off.

Sun Oct. 22 - put trailer on bike, bike out to Canadian Tire. Buy several cans of paint, a step-ladder, and misc painting supplies. Yes, I really want the drab gray paint in flat. Get extra cleaning supplies too, I make a mess when I paint. Was snowing when I left home, but at plus 5C that melts as it hits the ground. Rains the rest of the day. I spend about 6 hours painting the office, then clean up and bike home.

Today I'm working from home, the office carpets are being steam-cleaned. Double-check that furniture is still scheduled to be delivered tomorrow.

Plans for this week:

Tuesday - bike out to the office in the early am. Curse repeatedly about getting up so early. Trailer to be loaded with phones, computer gear, etc. Touch up paint in the am, and wire up the network jacks. Make repeated trips for coffee. Consider buying office coffee-maker. After lunch assemble furniture (hopefully it will arrive in the am). Bike out to locksmith to arrange for a new lock on one door. Bike out to photo shoot at 7:30pm. Bike home around 9.

Wed. - stay home, process images from Tuesday, then pack up client files and office supplies. Load up trailer.

Thur. - bike above out to office, unload trailer. Bike out to store to get printing supplies for Saturday. Meet client at 2:00pm. Bike out to Community Hero Awards at 7pm. Bike home around 10:00pm. If the weather forecast is accurate, this will be our first rain-free day all week. Must consider pontoons for bike. Can my saddle be used as a flotation device?

Fri. - Load studio equipment on trailer, bike out to office. Do printer tests for Saturday's job. Do whatever I didn't have time to do before. Probably change adjustments on my new ergonomic chair every five minutes. Go over To Do list to see what I missed with all the excitement this week. Bike out to cover mayoral candidate debate for 6pm. Bike out to meeting at 7:30. Probably leave trailer at the office. Bike home late evening.

Sat. - bike out to office early evening, with camera bag (large backpack). Pick up lights and printer, load on trailer. Bike out to fundraiser party for 9:30pm, work until 1:00am or so. Bike stuff back to office, then bike home.

Sunday - DAY OFF:D


There you go - a work week with no car, and everything moved to a new office with no car. I'm not posting this to brag - far from it, this is relatively easy.

Now that's commitment!!:D

Right on man, good to hear. Hope it works out for ya.

HEY! Didn't anyone tell you that you CAN'T DO THAT? It's IMPOSSIBLE! :p

Now that's commitment!!:D

Right on man, good to hear. Hope it works out for ya.

{shrug** It's just the way I have lived my whole life (will be 35 in December). Always saw cars as expensive, polluting, not "needed" and a luxury.

The only thing I am doing differently here is that I am moving some stuff every day, instead of loading an SUV and doing it all at once. The net result is the same - its the painting etc. that takes time, either way the whole process would be about a week.

Wow. I'm impressed. As a fellow photographer, I know how much gear you sometimes need for a shoot and to travel to jobs on a bicycle, is amazing. Congratulations.

Wow. I'm impressed. As a fellow photographer, I know how much gear you sometimes need for a shoot and to travel to jobs on a bicycle, is amazing. Congratulations.

I carefully picked equipment that was compact and light. Two monolights, stands, umbrellas, softbox and cords fit in one case and weigh about 30lbs, for example. In some situations that meant paying more for equipment, but in other the lighter equipment was actually cheaper. I work with a DSLR, so its not like lugging a 4x5 around! Finally, as with everything else, you do the bean-counting. Sure, I can't take a job out of town... but that loss is more than offset by the $175 price tag of the company pick-up (Wike flatbed trailer).

I've been thinking about getting that trailer for multiple uses. How do you like it? Did you get the alloy wheel upgrade?

Have you seen this guy's site: http://www.russroca.com/about.html He lives in LA and goes to all his assignments by bicycle.

I've been thinking about getting that trailer for multiple uses. How do you like it? Did you get the alloy wheel upgrade?

I stuck with the cheaper wheels. I have two huge plastic bins I use for small-item cargo, large stuff I just bungee to the flatbed. I've had it over a year now, no complaints with it.


Have you seen this guy's site: http://www.russroca.com/about.html He lives in LA and goes to all his assignments by bicycle.

Nope, but I figured I wasn't the only one. Hmm, I need to re-do my site, I'll go do some industrial espionage now :D

My helmet is off to you, patc. Instead of worrying about "hurdles" to be overcome, you look for opportunities to grasp. It really is mostly mental, isn't it?

My helmet is off to you, patc. Instead of worrying about "hurdles" to be overcome, you look for opportunities to grasp. It really is mostly mental, isn't it?

Ya, I'm mental all right!

Being car-free requires two things: planning, and acknowledging the differences between "needs" and luxuries.

Now, as I have oft stated, I define "car" as a personal-use motor vehicle. I don't consider myself any less car-free for having furniture delivered from the store, and I would feel fine hiring movers to cart stuff to the office. However it was clear that I did not need to do that. By taking a trailer-load with me every day I go to the new office, I will have everything there at roughly the same time as the office renovations are complete. Also, I enjoy a challenge :D

This will also be a great story to tell new clients, when I back up my "environmentally responsible photography" tag-line.

Just an update, if anyone is interested. Came down with a mild case of food poisoning on Tuesday night, so plans got delayed a bit. I still had to work Thursday and Saturday nights, so a few things got to the office via my assistant's car on. I may be crazy, but I'm not dumb: I am not towing 50lbs of gear downtown when I have to work 4 hours and am running a fever.

Still making most of the move by bike, if a fair bit behind schedule.