I had some fun reading the observations of participants in the Car-Free Challenge last month. My own mostly-car-free life began about 2 1/2 years ago when I turned over the keys to my Geo Metro to my stepson so he could commute to high school. Don’t even get me started on why a 17 or 18-year-old needs to drive to school, but suffice it to say there was a custody agreement involved.

That era is about to end as he heads off to college next month, and the Geo will get sold-off or donated at that time.

But last week, when he was off on a last-blowout-of-summer camping trip, I had an unusual luxury, an extra car parked outside on the street.

It was interesting to watch my own behavior change when there was no-apparent-incremental-cost-transportation sitting outside the door. I took several trips that were purely convenience-based, ones that I definitely would not have taken if it were a matter of renting a Flexcar for a couple of hours.

So seductive. On the other hand, I had zero temptation to drive on the freeway during rush hour, and I’m not going to miss the insurance bills at all when the car is gone.