Well since I picked one of my son’s favorite bands last week, he is back this week with another selection.  He recently downloaded this song from iTunes and it is now on heavy rotation on his iPod.

This song seems like a good fit considering there is so much fear and uncertainty going around right now.   The passage of the new stimulus package earlier this week brings with it much hope for an economic recovery.  We’ll look back in a few years to judge the wisdom of this decision.

I’m waking up at the start of the end of the world,
But its feeling just like every other morning before,
Now I wonder what my life is going to mean if it’s gone.
The cars are moving like a half a mile an hour and I,
Started staring at the passengers waving goodbye,
Can you tell me what was ever really special about me all this time?

But I believe the world is burning to the ground,
Oh well I guess we’re gonna find out,
Let’s see how far we’ve come
Let’s see how far we’ve come

Well I, believe, it all, is coming to an end
Oh well, I guess, we’re gonna pretend,
Let’s see how far we’ve come
Let’s see how far we’ve come

Do you ever get that helpless feeling and think to yourself, what can I do to help?  Live Earth gives many suggestions on how we can all help reduce our carbon footprint.  Here are a few:

• Switching to fluorescent light bulbs
• Planting tress in our yard
• Turn off our computers when not in use
• Recycle
• Go solar

These are all wonderful suggestions and everyone should try their best to follow these guidelines.  Unfortunately, it just does not seem like enough and it can be hard to get excited about small savings.  Pay4Rides is everyone’s chance to make a big difference, every day.

What if we could reduce daily gas consumption by 25%?  Without spending any money?  Too good to be true?  Maybe not …

All it would take is a trust in our fellow US citizens.  We trust taxi drivers, why not a stranger?

* These savings are based on just 1 in 4 sharing a ride instead of driving themselves.

photo credit: azrainman

photo credit: awezmaz

“When people lack deep heart, purpose and meaning on the inside they try to compensate for it with other things.  Get another relationship, a higher paying job, bigger house, a fancier SUV, a bigger boat.  Bigger and more is better – or so the saying goes.” ~ Mike Seymour

Explore the motivation to improve our quality of life and to help others, not to mention future generations.  We can all feel good about volunteering and helping out by doing our share.

A friend recently sent me a link for an Inspirational Speech by Dr. Randy Pausch.  If you have not already seen this, please take a few minutes and then share with the people who are important in your life.

In the summer of 2003, a major portion of the Northeastern and Midwestern United States along with Ontario, Canada experienced the largest blackout in North American history.  It affected over 50 million people and financial loses were estimated at $6 billion USD.  Mass transit (trains, buses, ferries) came to a standstill and millions of people were stranded without a way to get home.  Many began walking and crossing the bridges out of New York City on foot.  It was a strange occurrence and created massive confusion, but something very interesting happened.  Anyone who had transportation (car, van, truck) became a makeshift bus.  You could see flatbed trucks with dozens of people jumping aboard to get a ride out of the city.

While this was an extreme situation, is raises the question why can’t we better harness the power of over 250 million vehicles in the United States?  The majority of drivers make their daily commute alone in a car.  If people would share rides, it could dramatically reduce traffic, slow global warming and lessen our dependence of foreign oil. 

Everyone could keep their own car, but just use it less.  Think of it as turning your personal vehicle into a passenger vehicle.

If you are looking for inspiration, listen to this song by Patty Smith.  Yes, I believe we do have the power!

I awakened to the cry
that the people / have the power
to redeem / the work of fools
upon the meek / the graces shower
it’s decreed / the people rule

The people have the power
The people have the power
The people have the power
The people have the power

Remember when you made that first eBay purchase?  The uncertainty of the seller and if they would really send the correct product.  Then you make a few more purchases and realized that the sellers are all rated and actually stand behind the products they are offering.  Gradually you grow more comfortable with the individual sellers and learn to trust their online reputations.

There is a very interesting idea attributed to eBay founder Pierre Omidyar in the story of eBay:

He quite simply believes that the human race is basically good. At the beginning, many prophesied that it could not work – complete strangers dealing with complete strangers. But it is now obvious that it does.

I believe the same can be true with Pay4Rides.

photo credit: Ryan Fanshaw Photography