Cars offer such a large amount of freedom. I haven't had a car for nearly four years, and that fact has always made me feel very stuck.

I left my car behind when I left for San Francisco for work in 2019. The public transportation system was decent, so it wasn't necessary. However, I always felt a bit stranded. A spontaneous trip to somewhere a few hours away was out of the question. Via public transport, a trip that would normally take an hour would take two.

At least if you have money, you're able to find ways around. I hate to imagine what it's like for those who can't afford to fly on a plane or take a taxi or something though. You'd either have to jump onto a train and hope they don't kick you off or hope some kind soul helps you hitchhike.

Even with public transportation, simple chores become difficult chores. Want to buy a ton of groceries in bulk? Too bad, you're not bringing all of that onto the bus. Your only real option is to ask a friend for a favor or pay a little more for an Uber. When I was unemployed and trying to save money, I would walk 20-30 minutes to and from a grocery store, huffing and puffing at every step as I lugged around heavy bags.

I've since moved to the east coast, and lived in Philly for almost a year-and-a-half before moving in with Max. Still the same problems in Philly, except I was able to borrow my sister's car every once in a while.

Now I'm in the suburbs of Jersey and there is no way to travel conveniently without a car. For the most part, I don't mind because I don't have a need to go outside much. But sometimes, I think about the places I do want to go, and it's just not possible to do it cheaply without a car or a favor. I had to give up learning how to skydive for that reason (well, that along with the costs of schooling itself).

Vehicles are so expensive nowadays. Especially nowadays because of all of the shortages and recession and whatnot. My parents were going to buy a new car and let me have my old one (which they bought), but because everything is so expensive, they're holding off. We figured it would be easier to buy a car here instead of shipping my old one over anyway. They offered $10k to help with the downpayment, which is really nice of them and they totally didn't have to, but I don't expect to buy a new car anytime soon. Hopefully in the future, I'll make enough money so that I don't even need to take them up on their offer.

But for now, I suppose I'll just stay stranded for the next few years.