Long commutes and job opportunities?

[luvthemstrawberries]

Hey guys, I remember this thread a while back where everybody chimed in with their different commute times:
https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/for-those-who-drive-to-work-what-is-your-commute-time.103958/

Some people with long ones didn''t mind it too much, and some people hated it and said it totally wore down on them.

I''m being offered a job at the office I''m interning in now. It''s downtown in the city. Right now it takes me 25 minutes to get here - 10 minutes on local/main roads, 5 minutes on the interstate, and 10 minutes in winding, claustrophobic, narrow downtown streets. Then I have to find a parallel parking spot on the street (b/c people here have been on the waiting list for ~2 years to get a spot in the company''s lot). I have to be here AT 7am to get a spot, because after that the streets fill up FAST. If I get there late, I have to search for a spot, and usually end up wedged in between two jerks that squeezed infront/behind me. But I usually do ok. Then I walk a few blocks to the building, and get off at 3:30. Traffic going home is annoying but always going regular speed (except with accidents) - I go against the rush hour (i.e. stop and go) traffic direction on the interstate.

The issue is this: I was hoping to move to a much better area across town at the end of May. The opportunity is still open, and it''s a much more rural, quiet area, plus the townhouse itself is SO much nicer than mine now, for cheaper than my rent now. It''s where FI and I can live for a few years and save up for a house, plus I can finally get a dog! But this would make my commute ~45-50 minutes - 10 minutes on a local route, then various expressways/interstates till I eventually join back up with where I get on the interstate now, then through the same downtown streets. Unless I miraculously get a parking space somewhere, I''d be getting up by 5am to be able to leave in time to get downtown by 7. I get up at 5:30 now and I hate it - I like my sleep, and even when I go to bed early enough to get 8 hours, I''m tired. I have the option of working 4 10 hour days a week to cut down on the driving, but I think I''d go crazy with no time in the evenings.

So I''d just like to know what you guys think of this situation, and if you guys with the long commutes have ways to make them not so bad, or if they completely wear you down and you wish you never made that choice, or whatever other info you may have!

 

[tlh]

Honestly depends on WHAT Im driving to... if it is a JOB I LOVE, then it is worth it... books on tape, rockin itunes mixed tapes... and plenty of time to catch up w/ old friends. If you are driving to something YOU DONT LIKE, the commute is an extention of that painful work day.

Just my 0.02

 

[Bia]

Date: 1/30/2009 1:01:13 PM
Author: tlh
Honestly depends on WHAT Im driving to... if it is a JOB I LOVE, then it is worth it... books on tape, rockin itunes mixed tapes... and plenty of time to catch up w/ old friends. If you are driving to something YOU DONT LIKE, the commute is an extention of that painful work day.

Just my 0.02

Exactly. It depends on whether its worth it to you. One of my classmates lives waaaaaay out on Long Island (exit 60-something, so its really far) and it takes her 2 hours to commute into NYC every single day. Two hours there, two hours back. I thought she was craZzy. But that girl loves her job, so to her it's worth it. 45-50 min doesn't sound too, too bad. Yeah, you'll have to wake up earlier and you'll probably get the dreaded traffic but if the job is worth it for you and your career long-term, than you should.

I tend to not mind commuting (though my commute now is 5 min) because I love having "me time" in my car (to think and to sing out loud, stuff like that).

Good luck with your decision and congrats on the job offer!

 

[Clairitek]

Date: 1/30/2009 1:01:13 PM
Author: tlh
Honestly depends on WHAT Im driving to... if it is a JOB I LOVE, then it is worth it... books on tape, rockin itunes mixed tapes... and plenty of time to catch up w/ old friends. If you are driving to something YOU DONT LIKE, the commute is an extention of that painful work day.

I agree with this. I commute an hour to grad school. I honestly cannot wait until I am through with the commuting for school. If I was commuting to a job that I love instead of school (which after 3 1/2 years on one project its just not that inspiring anymore) then I don''t think that I would complain about it as much. FI drives 45-60 mins to his job but A) he gets paid 3x as much as I do for grad school and B) he actually loves his job so it isn''t too painful.

I find myself talking on the phone a lot more. I use my commuting time to catch up with my parents and friends so that way by the time I get home to FI I don''t talk on the phone all night. I also commute two times a week with someone who works at my university and that helps a lot. I hardly notice the time in the car when I''m riding with her.

I''m not sure what field you''re in but based on the amount of people having trouble finding a job and those that are getting laid off I would heavily consider taking this opportunity even if its a troublesome commute. Who knows when something else might come along. I''d hate to see you kicking yourself for not taking it solely because of a commute.

 

[Shoopy]

As tlh says, it depends on the job.

Miami was voted the worst traffic behavior in the country. And it was for a reason. People here are rude. They cut you off and then get mad at you for being in their way. There is no such thing as a signal light here and if you are the one brave and kind soul that decides to put on a signal light, everyone will make it impossible for you to get into your lane because how dare you follow traffic rules. If the speed limit is 70, you have to go 90. And if your car is any color that resembles racing car (red, yellow, silver) be prepared to have some jerk follow you because he/she wants to race (that''s right, I said she as well).

By the time I get to work a whole 45 minutes to sometimes 1.5 hours later, I''m tense. I''m angry. I''m bitter. I''m resentful.

And then I sit and within seconds everything melts away. Why? Because I *love* my job. I love the people I work with. I love the people I work for. I love what I do. I love the little perks we get. I love that they finally gave me a window seat and when I''m in the mood to clear my mind, I can just look out the window and see palm trees and people jetskiing. I love that they set up a little table outside near the lake where I can eat my sandwich in the beautiful Miami breeze.

So for me commuting sucks but its worth it. If when you get to work, its all worth it then I say go for it. Get yourself some great CDs (or an IPOD...sorry I''m out of touch with the times LOL), sing, dance, and have a good time. But if it isn''t worth it then don''t bother. You''ll just be miserable forevah

 

[diamondseeker2006]

For me to be at work at 7 am, the commute would have to be 5 minutes or less. No way would I move further than you are now. Can you try to find another job before you move???

 

[luvthemstrawberries]

Thanks for the replies so far. FI does think I should take the job, if for nothing else, based on the economy right now. You hear every day on the news about companies laying off people. Where I am right now is actually under a hiring freeze, but interns can still fill vacant positions under that freeze.

I don''t LOVE the job at all. I''d be good at it because it uses skills I have/excel in and went to college for. The program I''m on sends you through different branches, and you pick one you like that has a vacancy. This one I''m at now is the one I''ve liked the best so far - there are none others I''d like to go to in any sense. I''m trying to decide soon because in one week from Monday I''m supposed to start at a new branch (one I really don''t want to go to at all). I can still come back here after starting there though... I just don''t want to go there at all if I can help it.

If I had my way, I''d be working with preschool kids or animals. But 1) they''re not what I went to school for, and 2) there are no job opportunities around here for them, at least ones that pay even half of what I make now. And I don''t make an awesome salary - I''m not complaining, it pays the bills, but not too much more.

The only reason I''m wavering on the commute is because this is a place that does studies that take a few years to complete. It really throws the staff off when someone leaves in the middle of a study. Technically, I''d be under no contract or obligation whatsoever and could quit whenever, if I ever found a job I wanted more. But the supervisor here kind of asked me not to take the job if I''m just going to leave in a year, because of the bind it puts them in. So when I move in a few months, if I hate the commute, I don''t know if I''d feel obligated to stay.

 

[elrohwen]

Ugh, PS ate my post.

I drive 45-50min every day so that I can live in my nice cheap townhouse and save for a real house, so I feel your pain! I think being able to work 4 days a week would absolutely make up for the early mornings. I work 9 hours a day, and I would looove to work an extra hour each day and get to take off on Fridays. And since you''re starting at 7, you''ll get out by 5 anyway, right? So you''d still have plenty of evening left.

I say go for it.

 

[luvthemstrawberries]

Date: 1/30/2009 2:31:34 PM
Author: elrohwen
Ugh, PS ate my post.

I drive 45-50min every day so that I can live in my nice cheap townhouse and save for a real house, so I feel your pain! I think being able to work 4 days a week would absolutely make up for the early mornings. I work 9 hours a day, and I would looove to work an extra hour each day and get to take off on Fridays. And since you''re starting at 7, you''ll get out by 5 anyway, right? So you''d still have plenty of evening left.

I say go for it.

Hehe it just ate one of mine a few mins ago - arghh!!

Yeah I''d get out at 5:30 every day if I worked 10 hours and started at 7 with a 30 minute lunch. Traffic just sucks at that time - the downtown streets are packed by then with cars - so claustrophobic. But it''s better once I get on the interstate. That just puts me home at about 6:30 every evening. Then gym for a little while, cook dinner, shower... I''d need to be in bed at 9pm just to get 8 hours of sleep (minimum I need), which only gives me 2.5 hours once I get home to do what I need to do. Definitely doable, just no time for relaxing.

 

[elrohwen]

Date: 1/30/2009 3:00:30 PM
Author: luvthemstrawberries

Date: 1/30/2009 2:31:34 PM
Author: elrohwen
Ugh, PS ate my post.

I drive 45-50min every day so that I can live in my nice cheap townhouse and save for a real house, so I feel your pain! I think being able to work 4 days a week would absolutely make up for the early mornings. I work 9 hours a day, and I would looove to work an extra hour each day and get to take off on Fridays. And since you''re starting at 7, you''ll get out by 5 anyway, right? So you''d still have plenty of evening left.

I say go for it.

Hehe it just ate one of mine a few mins ago - arghh!!

Yeah I''d get out at 5:30 every day if I worked 10 hours and started at 7 with a 30 minute lunch. Traffic just sucks at that time - the downtown streets are packed by then with cars - so claustrophobic. But it''s better once I get on the interstate. That just puts me home at about 6:30 every evening. Then gym for a little while, cook dinner, shower... I''d need to be in bed at 9pm just to get 8 hours of sleep (minimum I need), which only gives me 2.5 hours once I get home to do what I need to do. Definitely doable, just no time for relaxing.

That''s pretty much my current schedule in the evening. I usually get home by 6 (no gym membership at the moment ... when I was going, I''d get home at 7). FI usually gets home at 7 and we make dinner. Usually eat dinner around 7:30 or 8, then heading up to bed by 9:30. So yeah, I definitely know the feeling.

I actually get half days on Fridays (well, unless I''m traveling ... ) but FI doesn''t, so it totally sucks that we have a short time together even on Friday. That''s why I think that having a 4 day week would totally make up for the commute. I get the half day, but I still have to do the drive, so it''s completely worthless to dive 90 min round trip to goof around in the office for 4 hours

I''d rather just work from home that day (like my boss does ... ::cough cough

 

[purrfectpear]

I live in LA and if any commute is more than 20 minutes, then I''ll sell and buy something closer. That''s just me.