On the Road Again

I was talking to a friend yesterday about my 45 minute commute to work. I told him how I used to hate it! I considered it wasted time--time that I would rather spend with my cheekaboo. That was in the early days of working motherhood. When I went back to work I wanted to spend every minute I possibly could with Lauren and every agonizing minute on the road made me more resentful.

After a few months of working my attitude towards my commute changed. As we got into our routines, I learned to enjoy and, yes, even cherish my commute. I still want to spend every minute I can with Lauren and I still miss her like crazy when I'm at work. But, instead of looking at my commute as time taken away from spending with Lauren, I've turned it into Me Time. In the morning I listen to my music (usually Hawaiian music to help me relax) while planning my workday and thinking about what to have for dinner, errands I need to run, and bills I have to pay. On the way home I make phone calls and talk to friends or family that I otherwise never have the time to talk to (using a hands free device, of course). All of this has to be done while paying attention to the road so I take the Path of Least Resistance (the route with the least amount of traffic, even if costs a few extra gallons of gas a week).

The Path of Least Resistance. The view from the driver's seat. It's a nice drive with minimal traffic with very low incidences of road rage.

So I've learned to love my commute. Because I have this little time to myself it allows me to focus all my energy and attention to Lauren when I get home. I really think it helps me sleep peacefully. I can organize my overloaded Mommy Brain so I don't have to lie in bed at night with a million things running through my head. The price of gas, however, is another story....