I leave the house, walk 15-20 minutes to the train, it takes 20 minutes to get to my stop. Then I walk ten minutes or so to the tram stop, and if I’m lucky I catch one soon after, but usually I have to wait for the next one ten minutes later. Then it arrives at my work right on time.
1 hour 15 minutes. One way.
I like it. Like they say, it’s time to read, and good exercise.
I grew up 45 minutes from the closest supermarket, so an hour isn’t a big deal. It took the school bus that brought me to high school an hour each way, every day. After that, I lived with my parents for a year while working full time trying to figure out what I was doing with my life, and that 2 hour’s worth of thinking time was invaluable. I was forced to focus on my day and myself, and I am glad I had the opportunity. I would much rather have grown up in the boonies than the “city.”
I, myself commuted 2.5 hours each way for a temp job once, but I got them to pay me milage. My dad has commuted an hour each way for 20+ years.
A little persistance goes a long way. Announcing:
“I go on guilt trips a couple of time a year. Mom books them for me.” A custom made Wally .sig!
I commute 45 minutes one way. I drive it. It’s major highway, 4-lane, 65 miles an hour, all the way. It’s a kick ass job. Plus I love where I live, in the country, in the house where my parents, brothers, and myself lived. When my parents passed away, my brothers already had their own homes and it was just easier for me to sell what I had and buy them out. I would drive whatever distance it took, but I would not move to be closer to a job.
** Sigh. So many men, so few who can afford me ** Original by Wally
I’ve learned that if someone says something unkind about me, I must live so that no one will believe it.
Homepage: www.superlativeandsassy.com
Occupation: Temptress
Location: Ultra, California
Interests: surpluses, excesses, abundances, extras, lagniappes
profile by UncleBeer
I currently have a seven minute drive to work. Aside from telecommuters, I believe I win!
I didn’t mind the long commutes when I lived in Brooklyn and took public transportation (ranged anywhere from 30-45 minutes when I worked in Manhattan, and 1- 1 1/4 hours when I worked in Long Island), because it gave me ample time to read. I love reading, an since I moved from NYC, I hardly get the time to do that anymore. 
Yer pal,
Satan
http://www.raleighmusic.com/board/Images/devil.gif
Still not smoking, but away from my meter!
I have a 40 minute one way commute right now. I dont mind it so much. When I was going to college I used to commute to it and it was an hour each way, but it was easy driving. Luckly I like to drive. I wouldn’t hesitate to commute an hour or more (maybe much more) for the right job. The only thing I dont like is having to get up earlier.
I was sad because I had no shoes, until I saw a snake with no legs.
I guess it depends on what you’re use to.
When I lived in the FL Keys we had people that would drive 75 miles ONE WAY to get to work. The people in the Keys thought nothing of driving. I would say “I want Taco Bell.” My friends would be “So go get some.” I’d say “That in Key West 50 miles away ONE WAY.” They’d look at me and say “So you have a car.”
People from NYC have that attitude too. They don’t seem to mind long commutes.
The trend in Chgo is reversing as more yuppies are moving not only back into the city but close to the loop and Steeterville. In fact the John Hancock advertises only a twenty second commute from your job to your apartment. (The first 46 floors are business the next 50 odd floors are condos)
Depends on the nature of the commute. If I could sit back and read, then that’s not so bad. Clogged city traffic sucks, just sucks. Under some circumstances (reasonable traffic, no blizzards, no extreme exhaustion), highway driving can be somewhat relaxing.
I truly think I have the dream right now. I live 4 blocks from work. It’s a medium sized city, so it’s along streets w/ huge trees, etc. It’s an easy walk, and I can come home for lunch, eat, walk the dog, take a nap, etc.
I only drive when my schedule is packed with meetings that require distance and timing. Even then my commute to work is only about 2 minutes, including parking.
It’s one of the advantages of being an urban pioneer, but it isn’t for everyone. I love life in my gracious old house, but the house and neighborhood took a lot of work and faith. The job isn’t fun, but it is a tough, gritty, worthwhile test.
Hey, so I’m a glutton for punishment. But I’ll take sweat, swearing and rare triumphs over the sterotypical boredoms implied by “communting” anyday.
Sure wandered THAT topic all over the landscape, didn’t I?
Veb
Until about 5 months ago, my commute involved a grueling trip down the stairs, a stop at the coffee machine, and then yet another trip down the next set of stairs to my office. On a really cold day it could be hell if you forgot to put on your slippers.
I did that commute for about 10 years. It was physically exhausting, and quite risky if you over-filled your coffee cup. More than once I had to clean drops off the carpet, and that would add a good 2-3 minutes to my commute.
You tell that to kids today, and they won’t believe you.
For work, a 15 minute commute, for love, 25 minutes.
I currently commute 55 minutes,one way…it’s 90% highway (rt 80).I work off hours (3:30-11:30).If I were to go in 9-5 the same trip would take over an 90 minutes.
I think 2 hours in the car is worth it.I work in the NYC area…pay is better than in my area of NJ.I couldn’t live in the area I work in…too crowded,schools suck…too much crime.I commute mostly for my families benifit.I want my kids to grow up in the country with a nice home,new schools…big yard. I get the best of both worlds by spending 2 hours a day in a car.
Rich “G7SUBS”
I did the commute to NYC deal for about 10 months-- according to the bus schedules, it was an hour and ten minutes to and hour and a half each way depending on whether you take an express or a local. Not counting subway time and time spent getting to the bus station… and of course traffic always made it much longer.
I read a lot, and slept some, but I never got home before 7pm (often much later if I had to work late) and I was getting almost no sleep. I always wondered about the long term commuters, the people who did the trip for the bulk of their working lives. Maybe my tolerance was lower because I never intended to keep it up; I was saving up and looking for an apartment. But now I think I’d prefer to keep my commute under an hour each way. It’s great to have that time to unwind before you see your loved ones, but in my case way too much of my time was devoted to getting to and from work.
Gamera is really neat, he is full of turtle meat, we’ve been eating Gam-er-aaaa…
Before my current situation, I’ve never had a commute shorter than a half-hour, even for my high school job. I grew up in a ridiculously small town in Iowa. After high school, my commutes ranged from 45 minutes to an hour, mostly on almost deserted country roads. It was sort of nice in the summer, hell in the winter. For about a month before I moved I rode a shuttle bus that came down from the town in which I work to a town 10 miles from my home, so I’d drive into town, park the car, and jump on the bus. That was nice, if I had to move back, I’d definitely ride the bus. In December of last year, I moved to an apartment 3 blocks from work, so now I have a 5-minute walk, which took some getting used to. Sometimes I miss the time I had in the mornings and afternoons to think while I drove, but overall, I would prefer the short walk. I get to sleep later, and I feel like I have more time to relax in the evenings. Plus, I just love living downtown, though the ambulances screaming by several times a night took some getting used to. (I live in the general vicinity of two hospitals)