Traffic Jams

[Mother Sanity (JackieRodzinski)]

Those of you who do regular commutes to major metro areas know what I mean. All it takes is one major accident and your commute can be multiplied by hours. Count on it when bad weather days hit. Thinking of taking the train...not in NY, where train schedules can be as disrupted as automobile routes.  (Ok, Mayor Bloomburg and The Donald can fly), but what about those of us (you) who cant? Do you listen to the traffic reports in the am? Do you work from home? Take sick/vacation days? What if these gridlocks are routine. How do you cope with them. Is it alright to be constantly off schedule at the office. Doesnt the stress of sitting in 2 hours of traffic each day leave you with chest pains? Or is road rage the name of the game?

[Dallas]

Commuting is for suckers. Pick up the phone, light the set, crank up the Citrix server apps, smile at the webcam and go to work.

[Doesn't Matter]

Jackie.....I could not live in any area where this type of congestion is possible. A few years ago when the missus took ill, we spent a couple of weeks along with about 15 return visits to one of our larger cities (Toronto) for health care. I could not adjust to the insanity of it all and can't understand for the life of me how people do it daily. For example.....many of the hospital staff leave their homes between 3 a.m. and 4 a.m. for work in the mornings.... which starts at 7a.m...... just to avoid the rush hour. Arrive early and nap in their cars or on a lounge in the hospital somewhere. No thanks.....not for me. Going home is worse because you can't leave early. Some simply take the subways without ever having to step outside into the elements. Got stuck in Atlanta rush hour once too ......never again. It is rare to be delayed (ever) in my cozy little Canuck city :)

[Mother Sanity (JackieRodzinski)]

I live outside of NYC, and have to go there for routine medical therapy. It's a nightmare. I dont know how the staff can keep their schedules straight when everyone is late! My proceedure took an hour, the other 7 were spent sitting in traffic. The only thing I can say, is if you are a passenger, bring an activity. I've often watched drivers reading the paper and when I commuted from CT to NY myself, I would all but take a ahower in the car. Once I was stuck in a 6 hour grid lock (the days I carried a bar around with me thank god. Othertimes, the weather on The Hudson would be much different than it was either inland or on the other side. Try explaining how you couldnt get home due to a blinding snow storm, when the sky didn't even turn grey.
Here and there is one thing, but day after day, year after year....oh man!

[stillgoing]

I deal with it by working 6AM to 3PM. Normal freeway speed 70-80. I also listen to the traffic reports before I leave and have a number of alternate, off freeway, routes available. I could not deal with a multi-hour daily commute in each direction. I know some people do but I just question this, is it worth it in the long run?

[Mother Sanity (JackieRodzinski)]

what city to you suffer in, stillgoing?

[d's girl]

I'm the other side of the coin from Doesn't Matter. I've spent 20 years in Atlanta, w/a 5 year stint in SE Michigan wedged in there. Long Island, NY before that, & Birmingham, AL before that, where I lived, worked & went to college downtown. Traffic is a way of life to me.

I don't understand why people constantly bitch about it, except that they just want to bitch about something. If you choose to live in an area w/a lot of traffic, then a lot of traffic is a way of life. I hold to the notion that we all do what we want to do. Like Doesn't Matter & me, as examples: Doesn't Matter would hate living somewhere that had a lot of traffic, so he doesn't. I like living in or near a city or metropolis, so I deal w/traffic & don't allow it to blow my serenity. I think we make choices. And some people choose to get stressed out or p!ssed off about traffic, when it's just part of life. Maybe a shift in perception would help: this is where I choose to live. Traffic is a way of life. Why stress over it? How can you feel empowered & enjoy yourself instead of being aggravated?

[Doesn't Matter]

That pic reminds me of the Atlanta freeways ? Probably didn't help that the temp was in the high 90's and I was on my way home from Florida......extremely tired at that. Some handle it better than others. I'm fortunate I suppose that I've never had to acclimatize to it. At this stage in my life, I don't believe I could :)

[Mother Sanity (JackieRodzinski)]

You enjoy yourself in traffic. I used to, when I traveled with my portable bar.I used to listen to audio lessons on my then-tapedeck. But it was suffering and a profound waste of time.

[Jaylee53]

I live 2 songs on the radio from work.....no biggie....I'm lucky....could be 3 songs...:-)

[Doesn't Matter]

Well put :)

[d's girl]

That's very cool, Jaylee, and yes, DM - "well put." '-)

I try to avoid the brunt of it by scheduling my work, errands, etc. during off-peak times.

A personal choice for me is to live more modestly so that I can live "close-in." A lot of people, of course, choose to live in as much home as they can afford, which usually means moving "out" & dealing w/more traffic. Again, imo, it all boils down to choices. I am enjoying my modest digs, and love living close to things I frequent. And I'm finding myself wanting to pare down more & more. There's a cool book by an architect called "The Not So Big House" & she has now written a book about living that philosophy in many aspects of one's life, called "The Not So Big Life." I am really embracing this idea of living simpler & w/less "stuff." For me, it's opening up the ability to spend my energy - my heart - where it matters to me. Time w/the love of my life; the ability to spend lots of time at home; time to devote to my desire to help w/animal rescue; just the freedom & ability to embrace what I love.

[stillgoing]

Thanks for the Not so Big Life...I've done without an accumulation of stuff for years, I'll check it out.