Do you like your long commute?

jpapazid · Dec 12, 2012

the commute to the school im applying is like 10 mins

Ntheboat2 · Dec 12, 2012

I leave my house at 530 and get home at 8....that's if I don't stop anywhere. It's rough because when I work back to back shifts I literally have to go straight to bed to be able to drag my butt out of bed for the next shift!

It's hard with kids. I'm so tired and irritable when I know I have about 30 minutes before I have to crash and they want to tell me every single thing they've thought about for the past 15 hours. We're all used to it though bc I've always either worked 2 jobs or worked and gone to school.

I would be totally miserable without work and therefore so would they! So, we just make it work. Absence makes the heart grow fonder! :yes:

yginay · Dec 12, 2012

I just got a position at my local hospital 10 blocks from my house...sure beats the 60 mile round trip through downtown L.A. traffic that I was also looking at :)

allnurses Guide · Dec 12, 2012

The last long commute job I had I actually added some time to it (10-15 min) by avoiding the hell of freeway traffic and taking a winding canyon road with flowers to smell and pretty trees to look at. Put on some music and it wasn't too bad! I prefer the 15 minute near-empty freeway jaunt to my recent job but it's always a risk:benefit with the positives of the job for me.

dfs1961 · Dec 12, 2012

My commute is 8 minutes door to door. No traffic. Easy peasy. My old job was 2 miles down the road - my hubby would drop me off. I could leave the house at 6:55am for a 7am shift and be badged in by 6:58am. I would NEVER commute again. Quality of life and time with my four children is paramount to the money I could make working in the big city. Plus, I LOVE my job :)

PMFB-RN, RN · Dec 12, 2012

Wow, Holy cow. I was gonna say. Been thinking about this for a job; but I have some responsibilities that have taken priority right now.
So, b/c I am now looking at a situation similar to yours, I would really like to know the following:
How is this working out for you? Do you find it tough to be away from your family for those shifts, or do you just come home, crash, and go back in again?

*** Well let's say it's less than ideal. However I REALLY REALLY love my job and I really love the great little small town where my family lives. We live on 43 acres in the country with a creek, woods, fields, lots of animals and great neighbors. Our house has 4 bedrooms, 2ba and is pretty new and we only paid $120K for it. We live 4 miles from a great and very safe small town with superb schools. My kids are in peewee soccer, basketball, scouts and 4-H. My wife graduated from college last year (after being a say at home mom for 10 years), which and many readers know, is no easy feat for an adult student with a family. She has her dream job as a child protective social worker for the county. I have my dream job as a full time rapid response nurse with a fantastic (non Magnet, + union) hospital. I make almost double what I made in the rural area ($62K/year to $110K/year and still fairly low on the pay scale), have great benifits, a great (male) boss and 5 weeks a year vacation. So for those reasons I am very reluctant to relocate.

Yes it's tough to be away from my family during those days. I find myself leading a double life. My work / big city / apartment life and my family / rural / house life. However realisticaly if I was working close to home I would be sleeping (work NOCs by choice) so what I am really missing is dinner with the family just before I leave work like I used to do. I get 6 days off in a row every two weeks and every other month I have 10 days off in a row plus several vacations a year (and the money to enjoy them). SO when I am home I am 100% home, not thinking about work or being called in. When I am in the city I actually sleep better during the day than I did at home with the kids waking me up.

I would prefer to not have the commute but given the above it's worth it to me.

Guest343211 · Dec 12, 2012

*** Well let's say it's less than ideal. However I REALLY REALLY love my job and I really love the great little small town where my family lives. We live on 43 acres in the country with a creek, woods, fields, lots of animals and great neighbors. Our house has 4 bedrooms, 2ba and is pretty new and we only paid $120K for it. We live 4 miles from a great and very safe small town with superb schools. My kids are in peewee soccer, basketball, scouts and 4-H. My wife graduated from college last year (after being a say at home mom for 10 years), which and many readers know, is no easy feat for an adult student with a family. She has her dream job as a child protective social worker for the county. I have my dream job as a full time rapid response nurse with a fantastic (non Magnet, + union) hospital. I make almost double what I made in the rural area ($62K/year to $110K/year and still fairly low on the pay scale), have great benifits, a great (male) boss and 5 weeks a year vacation. So for those reasons I am very reluctant to relocate.
Yes it's tough to be away from my family during those days. I find myself leading a double life. My work / big city / apartment life and my family / rural / house life. However realisticaly if I was working close to home I would be sleeping (work NOCs by choice) so what I am really missing is dinner with the family just before I leave work like I used to do. I get 6 days off in a row every two weeks and every other month I have 10 days off in a row plus several vacations a year (and the money to enjoy them). SO when I am home I am 100% home, not thinking about work or being called in. When I am in the city I actually sleep better during the day than I did at home with the kids waking me up.
I would prefer to not have the commute but given the above it's worth it to me.

Wow. . . not too shabby. . .at all. Six days off in a row every two is nice plus the 10days, etc. Really, that's not a bad gig.

43 acres. . . darn. You have to get help with keeping that up.

The only thing that would tip it for me is if I had to deal with not-so-great roommates. LOL

Place I am looking to split is with my brother, who already made the move. I'm either sleeping, working, studying my orifice off, or running errands. Can't even cook the way I used to, so, doing something like this, and cooking when I'm home would work out. Looking at full-time nights too. My brother is down, b/c he now has to do his job away from home 5 days per week. So, I'll probably cook a meal or so for him. But we'd be on different shifts. His company just closed, and to get a comparable salary, he had to get a place out of state.

I just hate sleeping anywhere else but my own bed.

Have no idea what my scheduling will be like, and that make the difference I think.

We all gotta do what we gotta do.

Thanks for the reply.

PMFB-RN, RN · Dec 12, 2012

Wow. . . not too shabby. . .at all. Six days off in a row every two is nice plus the 10days, etc. Really, that's not a bad gig.
43 acres. . . darn. You have to get help with keeping that up.
The only thing that would tip it for me is if I had to deal with not-so-great roommates. LOL

*** Ya you gotta have a manager who will work with you on the schedual. As far as roomates go. The waw our scheduals work I only share the apartment one day per pay period with one roomate who also works NOCS. The third roomate works days and I never see him. We are all army vets and treat the apartment like barracks living. Both of them are great guys and it works great.

payitforward · Dec 12, 2012

Since I've been a nurse I have always had a commute! First it was an hour and about 45minutes, then I got it down to about 45minutes.

that is one! When I'm going home it always takes me longer, and there in lies my frustration! I figure during my commute home in the evening I can get everything off my chest that was bothering me during the day before I get home.

allnurses Guide · Dec 12, 2012

My favorite nursing job to date, was an hour drive from where I live. I wish I had that job back.

Had to quit because the drive was just getting too expensive but considering my current situation,

the drive and gas would be worth it to have that job back.

Overland1, RN · Dec 13, 2012

My commute is 22 miles each way; during the summer time, when the weather is warm, I often ride the motorcycle to work. The trip home is a good time to unwind, and I sometimes take the long way (around the lake) home. Good stuff. :)

gerilyn · Dec 13, 2012

You need to tell the Doctor his note has to read " Unable to return to work till after my follow up appointment on January 2, 2013."