Lately, I've been feeling like a barnacle. You know, those small oceanic creatures that attach themselves to whales and boats, huddled in a protective shell... just grabbing small bits of food as they float by.
They don't start out that way, you know. No, in their larval stage they're called nauplius, and they swim about mixing it up with the plankton. Eventually, they get bigger, attach themselves to something and metamorphose into something like a rock with feeders. Do you ever think they get tired of just sitting there, scooping food into their stomachs? I doubt it. Because as part of that metamorphosis, they loose a few accessories that only mobile creatures need: swimming limbs, eyes, and well.. a brain.
One thing which will bust me out of my barnacle-funk more quickly than anything is to ride my bike to work (as I did this morning!) When was the last time you moved your body to work completely under your own power? There's something innately right and satisfying about this experience. Sure, riding your bike in traffic can be a little dangerous... but that's what your senses, your muscles, and your brain are there for. Moving is living, more movement, more life.
As further proof, I offer one of the most "alive" people I know: My childhood friend, Joe Bolton, who lives in Detroit commutes more often and further than I do (albeit on less hills). He's a mechanical engineer who works in the automotive industry (reason enough not to commute by bicycle). He's committed to the practice of commuting by bike, because of the way it makes him feel. Polluting less, being more fit, enjoying the outdoors, bypassing traffic congestion and parking hassles, saving money, and "tinkering". The benefits go on and on... he even registered the domain bicyclecommute.com.
Don't let your co-workers' chiding about your riding attire dissuade you from riding your bike to work once in a while, the barnacles are just jealous of your stretchy pants.
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