At the beginning

Why, why? Why write a blog with my name, about me? Am I so interresting or bloody arrogant?

Neither (I believe, I hope). I write about my doubts, I seek approval from myself and from others. It could start a debate, it means giving and hoping to enrich oneself.

an old man full of doubts

I expose myself (not literally, of course), I know that anything can happen:

  • nobody cares about the blog, bye bye arrogance
  • I am criticized all over, even ridiculed. At my age, I will manage
  • I get all sorts of reactions, positive and negative, people reflect on their way of life. A dream…

The premisses: We got rid of our car

A benefit out of necessity. We could no longer justify for ourselves that we owned an expensive SUV, it was not what we stood for.

bye bye

We are 61 and 58 years old, we live in the countryside, without any supermarket around the corner. There is public transportation, but this is Belgium: you can’t get anywhere without delay, to get to next small town, we have, if lucky, a 1,5 hours journey but most likely 2 hours to get there with several busses and trains. With the car, without the unavoidable traffic jams, it takes 20 minutes. With the bike, it takes 45 minutes.

So, the bike it is. We are proud to be the owner of 2 new e-bikes, we have bags for the groceries, we still have to buy some decent rain clothing.

Will we manage, without a car? Some say: no, impossible, utopy, what were you thinking?

What we think: we will see. We certainly will have to adapt, it will not always be easy. We will curse, hesitate. Sometimes, we won’t get to our destination, will have to decline an invitation, or arrive wet, sweaty or dirty.

What do we expect from you: that you react, for or against, that you share idea’s, experiences,…

Before publishing, I will read your reactions. The rules are: respect for one another, open debate, no discrimination, no aggressivity,…