I have been walking much more and driving much less.

I don't understand how people can complain that Seattle is not a walkable city:

Capitol Hill, First Hill, the Downtown, SoDo, the International District, Lower Queen Anne, and Belltown are all less than half an hour's walk away from my home. Add another half hour and I can get to SoDo, Colombia City, Fremont, or Ballard. Half an hour is less than the average commute, not even counting the time spent parking. Plus it eliminates the stress of close quarters city driving and dealing with one-way streets.

Hopefully I will not turn into one of those people who either preach or desire to compel people out of their cars. I intensely dislike that mindset. I am just enjoying the different perspective.

The different pace and the different experience of the urban environment, it gives me a whole new way of looking at my city home. I notice things I had not noticed before. More of the greenery and odd shaped pieces of unbuildable land that are everywhere. The texture of the sidewalks and roads. The decorations on the houses and buildings and storefronts. Little hole-in-the-wall cafes and shops.

The really big win is that I am literally smarter and more intellecually creative when I am out walking. I suspect it's a combination of exercise being good for thinking, the stimulation of seeing the urban landscape in higher detail, and not having to spend large amounts of brainpower flow avoiding a traffic accident.

Turning that increased mental capacity into actually produced work is being an interesting problem. I'm considering a solid state recorder.