Sitting on this bus, tapping my toe, bouncing my leg… nerves… bad!
Waiting on the California E-Bike Incentive: Tapping Toes and Thoughts on the Bus
(After copying and pasting my random blurb aboard the bus into a conversation box with ChatGPT and asking it to come up with a title for me, that’s what it generated. Listen, I haven’t published a blog post all week and I’m still on this 12-week content strategy madness I’ve inflicted upon myself. I don’t even know what week I’m in, as I lie on my back in my bed trying to get this up to hurry off to La La Land, where I hope to get a solid 6 hours of shut-eye before waking at 3:40am to be out of the house by 4am and to set in Van Nuys by 5:45am. My travel time would be well-decreased had I an e-bike by now! Will you looka there?! That’s what I was yapping about in this here post… Allons-y!)
I go to the E-Bike Incentives [dot]-org site to see if applications from hopeful voucher recipients are being accepted yet. They’re not.
“The California E-Bike Incentive Project provides up to $2,000 of point-of-sale incentives to support the purchase of a new electric bicycle (e-bike).” — ebikeincentives.org
I heard about this opportunity for free money from the State of California towards sustainable, active transportation some time last year from following CalBike, a non-profit organization that lobbies for policies that support safer streets for all users (as opposed to the car-centric culture that currently exists in the U.S.).
All I had to see was two-thousand dollars towards a bike and I knew it was for me.
Who’s passing up free money?! Not I, said the sustainable cat!
I clicked the link to read more about the program, not that I particularly care where the money is coming from, and found out that it’s a sustainable transportation incentive program funded by California Air Resources Board.
I told y’all in a previous post, when we bike (and support biking infrastructure), It’s Cleaner Air For All!
The mission of California Air Resources Board (CARB) “is to promote and protect public health, welfare, and ecological resources through effective reduction of air pollutants while recognizing and considering effects on the economy.” That’s what I liiiiiiiiiiike!
AH! I could really scream, I really could. Mm! So good!! That mission statement hits the nail on the head for the base of what aroundLAwithTK is about — reducing the pollution to lives of those that look like me by boldly embracing and tirelessly spreading an active lifestyle.
Obviously, I’m not some big, official government organization with political ties in high places nor access to deep pockets. I’m just a girly girl who likes playing outside.
I’m just a girl.
But that’s all it takes, one girl, to change the world. One me. One you. Being the change.
Je suis assez petite.
Je suis trop petite.
I heard that on one of the many French programs I’ve been making myself play during my leisure time as of late. In a helpless child’s voice, it came to my mind, all too fitting in this context.
I’m too small to do it on my own. Oh! But baby, us together?! We can do it. We can be the change we want to see in our worlds.
[The sound of feet hitting the ground swiftly comes from behind me.]
Aye, mami! Aye, aye, mamiiiii!
I didn’t even have to turn around because this man standing slightly below my eye-level appeared in front of my face before I could even register that I was the lucky woman being cat-called.
“Can I get your number?”
“I have a boyfriend,” I respond instinctively.
“Yeah, can I get your number?” He repeats his question.
I’m wearing a face-covering, a neck gaiter that I tend to wear to avoid harsh UV rays during the day (or unpleasant smells at any time). Maybe he didn’t hear me.
“I have a boyfriend.” I repeat in a louder voice while gesturing towards my ring finger.
“Oh. Well, I want to f***. Can I f***?”
This man was serious. I’m saying “man”, but he may have been about 19 years of age.
Child. East L.A. East L.A.
Anyway, where was I?
An hour and a half or so after leaving my house, I’m almost arriving to my destination. And that’s why I pulled out my phone, opened up the Squarespace app and started drafting this blog post. For one, my nerves were bad. Well, will you looka there, were. My nerves really don’t feel as bad anymore; my leg isn’t shaking. And, I didn’t notice how long I’ve been commuting.
For two, baby, I’m ready for the California E-Bike Incentive Program by CARB to drop these vouchers!! (Well, open applications to be able to apply to receive a voucher.)
The grant (or whatever way the funds are coming) was approved for the program to launch in 2024. I’ve been checking since the end of 2023. We’re ‘bout at the end of 2024 now, baby. Come on!
If I would’ve had my e-bike by now, I’d already be sitting inside of Steven’s Seafood & Steakhouse in Commerce, instead of still in route on public transit already 10 minutes late to my engagement with at least another 10 minutes of travel to go.
Okay, we’re at my stop. Let me put my phone away to walk.
Got diggity dog, the mobile app for Squarespace blog editing doesn’t allow addition of the SEO details. I’ll paste them here and hope I remember to come back when I’m on the computer and place them where they go.
Blog Post Excerpt (one-liner):
A bus ride, nerves, and thoughts on the long-awaited California E-Bike Incentive Program.
SEO Title (100 characters):
Waiting on the California E-Bike Incentive Program While Navigating Bus Rides, Nerves, and Life in L.A.
SEO Description (400 characters):
Join me on a bus ride through East L.A. as I reflect on the long wait for the California E-Bike Incentive Program. From nerves to the thrill of sustainable transportation, and even a moment of catcalling, this personal story ties into the bigger picture of embracing an active lifestyle in L.A. and why e-bikes are a game changer for the city’s streets.
