Jackson Free Press

This afternoon, I was in my office working on this week's issue when my phone rang. When I answered, I was met by the panicky voice of JFP reporter Adam Lynch.

Adam managed to get all the way to the HBCU protest at the state capitol with a non-functioning camera. And sometimes rescuing a reporter is more fun than sitting at a desk. "I'm on my way!" I told him, thinking surely I would win the JFP's next Falcon Award for my selfless act.

I grabbed the camera battery, my car keys and ran out to the parking lot. As I ran to my parking space, I was thoroughly confused. My car wasn't anywhere in sight.

And then I remembered: "Oh yeah, I rode my bike to work today." I wasn't counting on this one. I ran back into the office and told Donna.

"Can you drive a stick?" she asked.

Negative.

"We are going to have to solve that problem and soon. You can't be a newspaper woman and not know how to drive a stick!" she joked.

I scanned the office for an unsuspecting driver and saw an intern. Perfect! Problem solved.

Nedah and I made it in time for the protest, Adam got his pictures, and I watched students from Mississippi Valley State University do the electric slide on the capitol steps. Everyone won!

This just a sample of the new problem-solving skills I will adopt during CarLESS week!

What is carLEss week? A group of big-idea thinkers in Jackson are challenging people to turn in their keys for one week (Nov. 29 through Dec. 6) and get around the city by walking, using public transportation, biking or car sharing.

We all plan to document our experiences. I think it will be a fun little challenge, and who knows what I'll use that $10 in saved gas money for.

Previous Comments

ID

153990

Comment

You could donate it to architecture for humanity...

Author

Ryan

Date

2009-12-04T08:56:26-06:00