My first job out of university I had a two hour commute each way. I read tons of books, and listened to a lot of podcasts (on my Orange SPV C500, no less). I suppose there were times I enjoyed the space, but overall I think you just grow addicted to the sacrifice and hard work and heroism of it all. Addicted to the stress because it lets you prove what a hard worker you are, and brush aside other people's worries about work.
The only journey to work I've ever really enjoyed was a 45 minute walk each way to a co-working space in Sheffield, through parks and beside rivers, listening to audiobooks.
And now I work at home and see my wife and two kids loads, and no amount of money will ever change that.
I hate the term "super-commuter" - I did 2 3/4 hours each way for nearly 3 years and it downright ruined me. When you frame it as losing a day a week of your life it highlights the sheer disgusting nature of it.
The author says that reading was his solace, great for him, but if you combine a job where you have to stare at a screen all day, artificial train air conditioning and hobbies that even remotely involve a computer, your eyes will be all but fked. I lost myself in hours of music and window staring, whilst enjoyable sometimes, is a mental prison during peak times that I wouldn't wish on anyone.
There's nothing noble in commuting - if enforced time in a "third space" is required, then build it into a routine yourself, don't relish an enforced hell.
Each time I see a mention of commuting, I'm reminded of a possible (perhaps likely or inevitable) interaction between commute tolerance and self driving cars. Self driving cars may increase commute tolerance substantially, by 50% or 100%; And make ultra-long commutes more feasible for those who don't live a long narrow train court orders.
A couple of decades from now, it's quite possible that a 2+ hour commute will be routine and normal, rather than worth of a special word "super-commuter", for people working in the largest employment centers. (Which sounds extremely unpleasant to me, by the way.)
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[ 4.0 ms ] story [ 19.7 ms ] threadMy first job out of university I had a two hour commute each way. I read tons of books, and listened to a lot of podcasts (on my Orange SPV C500, no less). I suppose there were times I enjoyed the space, but overall I think you just grow addicted to the sacrifice and hard work and heroism of it all. Addicted to the stress because it lets you prove what a hard worker you are, and brush aside other people's worries about work.
The only journey to work I've ever really enjoyed was a 45 minute walk each way to a co-working space in Sheffield, through parks and beside rivers, listening to audiobooks.
And now I work at home and see my wife and two kids loads, and no amount of money will ever change that.
The author says that reading was his solace, great for him, but if you combine a job where you have to stare at a screen all day, artificial train air conditioning and hobbies that even remotely involve a computer, your eyes will be all but fked. I lost myself in hours of music and window staring, whilst enjoyable sometimes, is a mental prison during peak times that I wouldn't wish on anyone.
There's nothing noble in commuting - if enforced time in a "third space" is required, then build it into a routine yourself, don't relish an enforced hell.
A couple of decades from now, it's quite possible that a 2+ hour commute will be routine and normal, rather than worth of a special word "super-commuter", for people working in the largest employment centers. (Which sounds extremely unpleasant to me, by the way.)