Commutes

Previously, I was driving 33 miles each way to get to my last rag. Now that I'm out of the business, my new job is much closer, but because of interstate construction it takes nearly as long as did my other job.

 

30 miles, almost all traffic congested freeways. Can take anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour and ten. And there's a few rare days when the combination of rain and accidents makes it "well, fuck, you'll get there when you get there."

The key to shortening the time is to use the right lanes. Every bonehead yahoo around here feels compelled to get to the innermost, non HOV lanes, leaving the far right lanes the least congested. Go figure.

Have pretty much always had an hour, one way commute for most of my working life, so I'm kind of immune to it by now. And until the kids get through high school, moving closer is not an option.

 

Yeah, had a job once where I lived way out from where I worked and traveled the 67 miles home every night at 1 a.m. on an empty MassPike. Quite nice, because the job was a major deadline-stress-fest. Kept me from the bar and allowed me to unwind so nicely that I'd get home and fall right asleep.

 

Small sign with Expendable's name on it: $25.
Expendable's pay stub: More than $25, but still way below the poverty level.
Getting to tow some illiterate college kid's car (usually much nicer than Expendable's): Priceless.

Some things are impossible to buy with Expendable's paycheck, but it's damn entertaining to watch Main Street Towing haul Blaine's Daddy's car down the road on a hook.

 

I used to live five minutes from the office at my old gig. New one had me at 27 miles and about 35-40 minutes, sometimes over an hour if there were traffic jams. Just moved to a better location and it is a nice easy 25-minute drive, no matter the traffic. It makes a difference.

 

37 miles, 42 miles or 47 miles depending on which way I go.
Time? It has taken me anywhere between 40 minutes to three hours.

 

Thank god for the train.

 

Some of these commutes are shorter than mine. And I thought I had it great.

My commute takes me anywhere from seven to 12 minutes, depending on a street light.

 

I live 7.5 miles away. It's about a 15 minute drive. 20 with bad traffic.

It's not that bad at all.

 

My commuting rule of thumb is that the commute is too long if I can't withstand the drive on a hypothetical day when I was sick and needed to leave early to go home. So for me 30-something minutes or less is doable.

My current commute is right about there. Some mornings it's closer to 45 minutes. I drive 9 miles on pretty congested city streets.

 

We used to live in outer-ring, good-school suburbia and have decided that we will sacrifice many other things (even home ownership) to have a reasonable commute.