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Commuting to Work -- Suggestions to Pass the Time?

BamelinBamelin Registered User regular
edited July 2009 in Debate and/or Discourse
I recently changed jobs and my daily commute went from 30 minutes (one way) to an hour and 15 minutes (one way). I'm moving in two months and will be living 5 minutes from work once I move, however, my current commute is giving me an appreciation of the insanity some people go through on a daily basis.

I don't know how anyone could deal with anything more than an 40 minute commute (one way) each day. As it stands right now I'm spending 2 and a half hours in my car alone on top of a 9 hour work day.

Anyone else out there face a grinding commute, and what do you do to deal with it? I've started downloading alot more podcasts, and always ensure my cig supply is full before I head out on the highway.

Any other suggestions?

Bamelin on

Posts

  • RecklessReckless Registered User regular
    edited July 2009
    Podcasts.

    The BBC World News Service is a great one, usually clocking it at a half-hour. NPR has a couple of great talk shows as well, and KEXP does a good Song of the Day podcast.

    Edit: Hah, didn't see that there in your OP. My bad. Have you tried getting used to a long drive to think about things? Sometimes a post-work car ride can be great for clearing your head before you get home.

    Reckless on
  • gigEsmallsgigEsmalls __BANNED USERS regular
    edited July 2009
    Books on CD are great.

    gigEsmalls on
  • kdrudykdrudy Registered User regular
    edited July 2009
    If you are a fan of the book Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, track down the 5 radio plays. They can eat up a lot of time to listen to and are pretty good to listen to multiple times.

    kdrudy on
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  • taerictaeric Registered User, ClubPA regular
    edited July 2009
    When I had a really crappy long commute, I would typically stop over somewhere mid ride to do something other than ride for a bit. (This wasn't really an option once I had someone I was going home to.)

    taeric on
  • Raiden333Raiden333 Registered User regular
    edited July 2009
    gigEsmalls wrote: »
    Books on CD are great.


    I take the bus, so I usually read normally, but whenever my eyes are tired I love putting on an audiobook. Also, if you're in a field where you get discounts on this kind of stuff, The Teaching Company puts out some really great lectures, I listen a lot to their philosophy sets. Pretty expensive to buy normally though.

    Raiden333 on
  • ElJeffeElJeffe Roaming the streets, waving his mod gun around.Moderator, ClubPA Mod Emeritus
    edited July 2009
    I have a 30 minute ride each way. I like music. So I just blare the radio and sing along loudly. I have a large enough collection of CDs that I can keep myself from getting bored with the tunes, and singing along makes it more fun, anyway. Sorta helps if you can carry a tune, but if you can't, who cares? In traffic, no one can hear you scream.

    ElJeffe on
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  • ForarForar #432 Toronto, Ontario, CanadaRegistered User regular
    edited July 2009
    For travelling/commuting, I use an 8 gig Ipod nano, loaded with music, podcasts (particularly the 2 PA D&D ones) and videos (Zero Punctuation, a little South Park, and The Dark Knight for when I'm on a really long trek).

    A DS can be an invaluable travelling tool.

    And I love to read while on the go. For flights/flight changes that should be several hours or more combined, I'll often bring a couple of novels. Rarely anything too heavy; World War Z, various Battletech, Robotech and Star Wars (especially the Thrawn Trilogy) novels are frequent travelling companions.

    Forar on
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  • BamelinBamelin Registered User regular
    edited July 2009
    I got Sirius Satallite Radio as well which I'm really enjoying despite the cost.

    Really though I couldn't imagine having to do this commute for any longer than the two months when my house closes. I hear about some people that commute 2 hours each way, have been doing so for years and I can only shake my head in disblief.

    Bamelin on
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