Lame Commute

My regular bike ride from home to school usually takes me about an hour and a half; the other way is about ten minutes longer (there's more uphill, especially at the end). Fairly often (especially as the weather gets wetter), I put my bike on the bus in the morning; occasionally (especially when it's still light) do I use the bus option on the way home.

Today was one of those days, though.

My legs were feeling tuckered out; plus, I wanted to stop at Trader Joe's on Capitol Hill to get snacks for a meeting at school tomorrow and it's a more convenient route there to come from downtown where the bus lets me off; also, I figured I could use the bus ride to read this chilling account of Shell Oil's environmentally destructive human rights violations on the Niger Delta called Where Vultures Feast; so I had enough reasons to go lazy and save a little time--I thought.

As it turned out, it took me nearly two and a half hours from office to back yard; even if I had ridden slowly and stopped at TJ's, I could have done it in little more than two.

Traffic was staggering, especially on the freeway. Had I been driving, I would have been banging my head on the steering wheel and swearing. On the bus, at least I could doze--that is when I wasn't beating myself up for not riding.

I'm wondering if my experience doesn't continue to build the case for cycle commuting. Already I get around way faster on two wheels on shorter trips in the city, but if getting home from Bothell turns out to be quicker via bicycle than by car, then why drive ever?

Sure I got a little wet when I rode today, but at least I didn't have to listen to some guy's boring cell phone conversation.