Our Mostly Carless Life

Last night we had our first grocery run enabled by an I-go hauling device (okay, yes a car.) We were lazy and had put off smaller trips to the store for long enough that there was next to nothing in our fridge. So after a nasty rainy weekend spent thinking about the fact that there wasn't any food around the apartment (though Chuck somehow managed to throw some meals together, he's got some skills I don't possess) and receiving the I-go membership information on Monday, it was time to try it out.

Here's a picture of Chuck perfectly coordinated with the car we had for about 1.5 hours. We can see the parking spot from the apartment perfectly, so Chuck took the opportunity to throw on his only blue shirt, which matched the car perfectly. Just kidding, actually the shirt was something Chuck ordered off Woot recently, so the timing just worked out so the first time Chuck wore this shirt was the same day we tried out the I-go, which happened to be bright blue. The exact same shade. It makes me giggle. Next time we plan on using I-go and see that it's the bright blue car out there, I'm going to suggest he wear this shirt!

So overall it was a fine experience. I-go seems to have a better deal than zip car, and there are 3 hours included in the membership each month. That should be enough to cover two large grocery runs if we want it to. Interestingly, I-go is a non-profit company based here in Chicago; perhaps that makes a difference in what they charge. We had to stand around just a few moments to wait for our time window to begin. You scan your card on a device in the front windshield, and it seems to know who can use the car and what time it is. The only complaint I had was that our car was smelly! And a little beat up inside, but that didn't bug me as much. They are pretty clear in the rules that you aren't supposed to smoke in the cars, but someone before us did. A lot. For a quick grocery run that didn't really matter either, but if we ever use I-go for a trip it's probably something to figure out how to avoid.

Lastly, here's our grocery haul, pictured to the left! It's nice to have food again. Next time we won't be waiting for the membership package to show up and we should just be able to go!
It's certainly easier to transport a large package of toilet paper this way. And there are the Totes 2 go in action!