5:42am – My alarm goes off. Snooze is an afterthought when the pain and punishment of traffic looms by sleeping in.

5:47am – I decide if I want to shit before showering knowing that I’ll be shitting again after I drink coffee. I’ll usually double morning deuce, but not always.

5:52am – Out of the shower, I choose between 3 pairs of pants and 5 long sleeve shirts. The generic male dresses.

6:00am – I walk 6 minutes to my car. Gone are the days where I’d get a spot near where I live. The best spots are taken past 5pm. Fortunately, I’ve been able to park on 4th which isn’t too bad. Never will I park west of 6th.

6:06 – 6:40am – The commute begins. The goal is to travel 80mph, hit no one, avoid jams, and not get upset at fellow commuters. This is a near impossibility. Fellow commuters don’t respect the rules of the road. They think it’s theirs. They’ll rapidly switch lanes, ride your rear, go slow in the far left, and text their friends. These are not safe times I implore.

4pm – I’ve left out a large chunk of time which is work. I’m not an Office Space cube monkey who hates their job. I don’t even mind it…much. My earnings make it that I must respect the process of making a living. If i hated these hours, I’d find another job.

4pm – 5pm – You’ll notice the time gap is wide. This commute encounters traffic. It’s a certainty you’ll hit it it’s just when it comes. Woodhaven. Cottman. Betsy Ross. It doesn’t matter. It’ll be there. You go into zombie mode. It’s a state of living, but you don’t feel the time passing. Podcasts. Music. Silence. It’s all the same as you suffer with your fellow assholes causing this mess.

5pm – 6pm – Without exercise, life would be worse. There’s this short window of maintaining your body. Every year is tougher to stay in shape as injuries loom with every workout. Anything is better than nothing.

After that, some nights are different than others, but mostly the same. Was it different when I wasn’t commuting? 1) I wasn’t waking up before 6. 2) I wasn’t getting back at 5. These 2 points are life changing. I don’t suspect it will always be that way, but getting established in the new place takes some time to integrate a lifestyle. I’m still making an effort to post, but keep your expectations in check.