Hello and welcome to TOC.  I’m Diane Jenks and you are about to listen to episode #611 and, coincidentally, it is also the 12th anniversary of the show.  Thank you for tuning in today.

Looking back over the past 12 years, so much has changed, from the scarcity of podcasts in 2010 to a whopping estimated 2.4 million different shows today – a statistic I took from Apple’s Pod News – to the many changes in our everyday lives from the climate to the pandemic and al the social unrest we are experiencing.

One thing that has been consistent though is that people still ride and love their bicycles and THAT makes the Outspoken Cyclist herself pretty dang happy.

I would like to thank everyone who has listened, subscribed, been a guest, and otherwise contributed to the show over the past 2+ decades. 

Every time I thought, hey – I think I’ve covered it all and maybe it’s time to move on – I am inspired by something I read, something I see, or something I hear and, off I go in search of the story.

Which brings us to today’s episode. 

As many of you have figured out by now – which wouldn’t take a rocket surgeon if you listen regularly – I like the thread that weaves urban planning, sustainability, and a car-free lifestyle together.  It doesn’t happen to be the way we live right now, but it’s certainly an idea that intrigues us and a goal that we have.

So, when I learned of a family that chucked their car, researched the places where they can live, work, and raise their family without miles and miles of asphalt and traffic, and then turn that into the work that they do, it only took a minute to send them an invite to the show.

Melissa and Chris Bruntlett are from Canada – she started out in the fashion world and he in architecture – they moved from the east coast to Vancouver and realized they didn’t need a car.  By this time, they had two young children.  And then, things started to get very interesting.

Today, the Bruntlett’s live in the Netherlands – and they are calling it their forever home.

For more information about their work, you can log on to modacitylife .com and follow them on all the social media platforms.