Revolutionizing Car Insurance

Though I haven't usually thought of Dallas as an innovative city, my assumptions have shifted in the past few years. Now that I'm studying transit-oriented development, I've learned that Dallas has proven itself among the ranks of world-class cities providing transportation options that benefit the city (and planet) as a whole.

Now there's an auto insurance company out of Dallas that is revolutionizing the way people think about car insurance just as ZipCar did with the way we think about car use. MileMeter allows customers to purchase car insurance by the mile! That's right, here comes another great incentive for people to drive less. This company is not only providing cost savings to consumers, but it's encouraging them to think about how much the drive and give them a financial reason to decide against it.


I can get on the MileMeter website right now and purchase 1,000 to 6,000 miles of insurance. That means if I decide to take public transit or muscle power to get around, my insurance will last a lot longer than if I get around purely by car. GENIUS. I'm thinking about giving State Farm the boot.

But actually, it's not genius. It's common sense. How do we pay for electricity? For water? Food? With this new model, the old model of paying for car insurance whether it's sitting in the garage or not seems ridiculous.

Thanks to the founder, Chris Gay, Texans are some of the first people in the world to be able to purchase auto insurance by the mile. That makes me a happy girl.

Thanks for putting this on my radar, Ondre!

Bartering and Freecycling

Bartering is making a comeback, especially in economic times like these. Remember the "one red paperclip" a few years ago? Kyle MacDonald made 14 barters, starting with one red paper clip and ending with a house! Well, he's now looking to barter the house.

Even beyond bartering, there is freecycling - getting and giving away things for free.

Free things posted on Austin Craigslist today:
- huge Baloo stuffed animal (from Jungle Book)
- elm trees
- waterbed
- antique piano and bench (!)
- jacuzzi
- office cubicles
AND.... a toilet!

Many similar items are posted on Austin Freecycle Network, a yahoo group dedicated to freecycling.

I love that these sites are the ultimate example of recycling. Recycling doesn't have to be only for former packaging of new items...all of the things above would take up a lot of space in a landfill!! Why resort to that when someone out there is bound to want what you don't?

My goal is to both give and receive through these channels more often. I've only really posted moving boxes and stuff like that before, but I'm going to think more creatively in the future.

Join Austin Freecycle Network here.
Browse Austin Craigslist free stuff here.

Chicago's The Wiener Circle

I came across this clip last week, and it's been haunting me since then. I don't have time now to digest all of the thoughts that have been running through my head, but I know it has really affected me and at some point I'd like to sort all of these thoughts out. I also want to note that the person who posted this to YouTube added the beginning statement "This is what Chi-town is all about" and certainly the This American Life producers don't endorse that view.

Judge for yourself.

This American Life, Season 1: The Wiener Circle