By any other means

The universe is conspiring for me to not drive my Jeep any more. Witness:

Someone at work has been driving a Sparrow electric car the past month. It is absolutely EYE POPPING to see. You get out of your gas-guzzling car that you just filled up at $3.95/gallon and you feel like the biggest heel walking past this efficient machine (esp at a federal environmental agency). It even has dimples to make it slice through the air! They actually don't make the Sparrow anymore. They went bankrupt in 2003, but were bought by Myers Moters and are now made under the NmG (no more gas) name. Zero emissions. 76 mph. 30 mile range/charge. It has 6 cubic feet of space in the trunk for all the crap you'd ever buy during your daily errands.

I got a ride to the track last night in Tamara's Prius. While not totally off the gasoline grid, it's about as efficient an automobile as we have on the assembly line right now. Plus it fit 2 track bikes and gear in the back with the seats folded down. Spacious!

Jane just bought a super crazy cute Ducati Buddy scooter to zip around the city to her new job and errands and leave her Element at home. The Buddy has a 4-stroke engine and gets 100 mpg. She had to call and tell me that they have last year's model on closeout in PINK. I've always wanted a scooter to use when I just don't have the energy to ride to work or to do errands around town. But would I really ride it in the cold, dark, rainy winter? Probably not. And in the better weather I'm far more motivated to get on the bike. Maybe if my money tree starts budding it would be a nice addition to the stable. And maybe by then they'll have a solar powered scooter!