Walking Distance

“Everywhere is walking distance if you have the time.”
– Steven Wright

I read this quote a few years ago, and in my memory attributed it to Thoreau. If Thoreau said it, of course, it was automatically profound. Now Thoreau did write a book called Walking, and did have profound things to say on the topic, but the above quote wasn’t one of them.

Turns out, Mr. Steven Wright is more of a comedian than philosopher, with other quotes to his name, such as, “Cross-country skiing is fine as long as you live in a small country.”

But the quote has still stuck with me. I enjoy the mental exercise of seeing the world through a different sense of scale.

Normally when we talk about distance, we assume driving time. But cars are a relatively recent invention, and until a hundred years ago, many distances (such as Pritchard’s wanderings) would have been measured in terms of walking distance, and often in number of days, not hours.

Our town of Steinbach, I recently learned, isn’t particularly walker-friendly, with a Walk Score of only 31 (and a Bike Score of 45). WalkScore.com elaborates very little on the rating, only saying, “Steinbach does not have many bike lanes.” Which is quite true. But maybe that can change in time. I’m happy for the places we are able to walk and bike to, when we have the time, of course.