Enough

Let me just apologize for all the whiny well-intended earth lovin', granola crunchin', hybrid drivin' holier-than-thous that are never satisfied with whatever you're doing or not doing. There's a lot of them out there, and they seem outraged if your coffee's not organic, or if it is organic, it's not fair trade coffee beans, or if it is fair trade coffee, you didn't bring your own cup, or you're drove to the coffee shop and they walked 22 miles to drink their fairly traded organic soy yerba matte latte, and they brought their own god-damn bag to take their organic scone with them. While I admire the fact that they knitted that bag, or reused junk mail to hand-make the paper to make their own bag, I must admit the self-righteous indignation or any and everything you're about to (un)do gets a bit tiring. Irksome. Personally, it makes me want to litter sometimes. Right in front of them. What are they going to do about it? Yeah, that's right, earth-freak, I got my Hummer to back it up.

Here's hoping I never nag at you, dear reader, even if you are my mother and you're reading this to support your m' ijacita linda. Even if you're not my mother (which I doubt, but let's just say) I would never want to nag you for drinking Yuban, for shopping at Walmart, for driving over my foot in your gas guzzling Hummer. Never. You just do your part, whatever that is. It, small act as it may be, is a wonderful step towards a better future, a better you.

Blaze your whole house with halogens, scoff at those oddly charming CFLs on sale at Ace Hardware, see if I care. Leave your grocery bags at home, and take your canned peas and carton of cigarettes home in a double plastic bag. Smother your tomatoes with Round-up, eat Dophin-unsafe Tuna, go ahead ! It's your god-given right to be wasteful! If He didn't want us to drill in the Artic, He wouldn't have given us the ability to make drills, am I right?

Ok, I do mind. I just don't want to nag you. Just promise me gentle reader, no, promise yourself, that you'll consider doing one thing, one thoughtful thing. For yourself, your community, your planet. Let me know about it. And I'll mail you a nice thank-you card. Made on recycled paper and compostable ink, of course. Definitely.

Electric Avenue

Even granola girls have the right to look cool. As a committed non-driver of cars, I've recently upgraded my pedestrian status to scooter girl. Well, technically it's a bike, & it's electric. Tons of research led me to the e-bike of my dreams: an eGo Cycle2 Lx. The company hails from Cambridge, MA, the bikes are built in Taiwan, & they're built to last, & look good to boot. I could get all techy on y'alls, but the eGo website does it better than I ever could, so let me just say, the company is run by good folks, and the bike come with a 10-year chassis warranty. Oh yeah, and I look cool riding on it.

To the eye, it looks like a scooter, and compared to some of the other models out there, looks well made, and sturdy. I actually attach a Burley cargo trailer to the back and do all my shopping with it. I've carried over 100 lbs of goodies on the thing, and it holds up to 6 grocery bags. Not bad for pennies per charge. As for speed, it's legally a bicycle because it goes under 24 mph. Which means this little missy can ride out without a motorcycle licence. And the less time I'm failing driving tests at the DMV, the better.

eGo bikes have made in the news, most recently in a LIVE EARTH appearance. Perhaps you've caught a glimpse of them on Bravo TV, CNN, the Today show, or seen them reviewed in Popular Mechanics or in the pages of Time. I'm surprised they haven't made more headlines, as I seem to be turning heads whenever I'm on the thing. The ride's a definite ice-breaker, and the sporty good looks doesn't hurt. Get a picture of Leonardo DiCaprio on one of these babies & you've got yourself one delicous little Eco-razzi centerfold.

Even without the pretty, these bikes hold considerable attraction. The commuter model (which I ride) comes with head & rear lights, turning signals, a dual braking system, rear view mirrors, a speed/odometer and a horn. Yeah, pretty bitchin'. I should mention I can scoot approximately 20 miles before I need to plug it back in for a re-charge. Any household outlet will do.

For more information, email the nice folks at eGo, and tell 'em Bella sent ya. info@egovehicles.com