The Key to Surviving A Commute

I haven’t always lived in the big city.  In fact, I don’t live in a big city now, I live on the very edge of a little city. It is, as cities go, a very cool, trendy, hipster-y, micro-brew loving kind of city, but it is not overwhelmingly large. In fact, it is very easy to navigate, even for the non-local. But it is, very definitely a city.  If the skyline doesn’t prove it, the traffic does.

“You’ll get tired of the traffic,” I was warned.

“Eighth most congested city in the nation,” I was informed.

“Ugh,” one friend sighed. “Traffic into the city is always bad and 217 is always horrible, even on weekends…especially on weekends.” 

I’ve always wondered how single moms manage in places like the one I’m in now.  How do you manage getting kids to daycare on your way to work when you have a commute and no family nearby to help you with transportation or supervision of your children when you have to work? I am not sure I could have done it.  I rode in a much smaller rodeo when my children were little and even though my commute was all of about six minutes, I still struggled to manage it all.

And now, I’m in a much bigger rodeo with so many more horses in the ring, or on the road. I’m fortunate that I don’t have much of a commute. Tonight things were worse than usual and my commute stretched from its usual 15 minutes to 25. I hardly noticed.

I actually enjoy a commute because it allows me time on the way to work to mentally prep for my day.  I’m not a morning person so this is a critical part of my morning routine. The homeward commute allows me time to review my day and mentally leave work at the office.

I have three other things that make my commute delightful instead of dreadful.

1. I purchased a comfortable car. No, I don’t have a luxury model of anything. I just have a car that is comfortable to me. It also has a decent stereo system in it.

2.  I have a good playlist. The playlist is key. Create one and keep it on shuffle.  Change up the songs every so often. If necessary, use Spotify.

3. If your commute is very long, invest in books on tape.

It also doesn’t hurt that no matter where I drive in this area, it is stunningly beautiful to behold, even on the gray and drizzly days.  I thought the commute would be a bigger problem than it has been for me.  I don’t have the issues many people contend with.  I live in a perfect location and it turned out that my work is not far away.  I’m very grateful for this.

Comfortable car, great playlist turned up loud, and books on tape in reserve. What’s wrong with a little commute?