For the past three weeks I have been commuting back and forth from Garden Grove to Los Angeles, roughly being on the road for at least 2 hours a day.
As tough as this might sound for somebody with my track record, I have to say I have kind of enjoyed the experience. Even though it requires leaving at 5:45 AM, and I end up arriving to work 45 minutes early, I feel a sense of accomplishment that I have the mental capabilities and perseverance to be able to do so. I have also stayed at school late to continue catching up on work, and plan ahead for the rest of the year. As a direct result, I feel very accomplished with what I have achieved in terms of organizing my classroom, and front loading most of the work so that when I eventually get busier with my Master’s program I can micromanage my time much more effectively. Leaving campus around 7 or 8 PM everyday gives me the ability to avoid being stuck in traffic, which I would argue is one of the biggest negatives of having to commute so far. I have also been getting much less sleep, but I’d argue that I am able to catch up on weekends pretty easily.
I am listening to these three current podcasts as my way to effectively “not be bored” while driving. They are all amazing in their own ways. As a history buff, the Presidential Podcast gives me insight into the life of every President and their contributions to our country. As a person very into the complexities of every day life and seeing the importance of re-looking at events in the past, Revisionist History does a good job of simultaneously telling a story and making me eager to find out the social perplexes behind why things happen. Finally, as a big fan of politics in general (minus this election), the NPR Politics Podcast does a good job of capturing the snapshots of every week for the more casual and uninformed adult. I would heavily recommend all three of these podcasts to anyone that has the free time to listen.
And yet, in order for me to more effectively grow as an individual, I will have to branch out in Los Angeles. My move in date is next Saturday, so I will only have to commute for one more week. This won’t stop me from continuing to stay on campus late in order to be well-prepared for the school year, won’t stop me from continuing to listen to Podcasts I love, and won’t stop me from revisiting my family when I feel the sudden urge to do so. The net positives from living in an apartment though will be the ability to have more downtime to pursue more meetups, exercise, and explore Los Angeles to my heart’s liking.
