In defense of Pops

I asked Dad about his environmentally framed way of life and why he still chooses to drive an SUV (the fatal flaw as it's now known).

So here's the deal: He has a unique mix of professional experience and has enjoyed a great post-rat-race career as a consultant. He goes to all sorts of places the average person just drives right by. He is hired to make sure land that it being developed doesn't have any endangered animal or plant habitat that could suffer from said development. He either informs developers how to move forward without damaging the site or tells them they can't move forward according the state laws and codes. Needless to say this can really piss folks off but laws are laws and he's just there to assess the situation. People have actually tried to buy him off but he won't budge.

He's actually quite the environmental hero except for that damned SUV. So why does he drive it? Well, turns out the places he has to survey are well beyond the beaten path and require a high clearance vehicle (or maybe a horse and those are hard to maneuver on side streets and freeways). He drives deep into the sites then hikes much of the way (who knew?!). Apparently one road he has to drive has an abandoned Jeep laying in his path. He'd love a Prius, or even better an all electric car, but they are incapable of taking him where he needs to go.

So there you have it, the irony of being an environmentalist (or Naturalist as Dad prefers), you need transportation up to a point to get near the really sensitive locales. What's a guy to do? I think in the long run Daddio is doing much more than the rest of us to improve things. I mean honestly, how many people do you know who spend their days hiking around California reporting on and protecting her habitats? Probably not many. I happen to know a few 'cause they're in Dad's circle of friends. They tend to be very nice people who, I'm happy to report, car pool whenever possible. Yea Dad!