My name is Michele and I am a commuter.
I've survived my first week of commuting. And I do mean survived.
I didn't think it would be that bad, but that was before I realized that I'd have to get up at 5:30 am just to get to a 9 am class.
That's right - 5:30 am.
Let me fill you in a little:
I am a first year, full-time Masters student in the Faculty of Information Studies (FIS). I live in Guelph, ON but go to school at U of T. My partner and I have a great apartment, life, community in Guelph so we decided not to move while I go to FIS. Therefore, I commute.
I live in Guelph. That's an hour and a half away from Toronto, two hours total from my front door to the FIS building - one way. I commute three days a week - Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays - on the Greyhound. (I don't have a car. There is no Go bus. The train does not run frequently.) That brings me to a grand total of 4 hours traveling time* per day and 12 hours total traveling time* per week. (* Traffic delays not included.)
It isn't like I'm a commuting newbie. I've commuted twice before - both times for work. Once when I was the manager of a bookstore in Hamilton (a commute of 45 minutes one way). And once when I took a job as an editor for a children's press in St. Catherines (also an hour and a half one way - but with no public transit options). I had a car for both of these commutes though. Which was both better and worse. Better because I could wake up a little later. Worse because I had to drive.
I thought my commute from Guelph to U of T would be okay because I can take public transit. I can sleep, read, and do homework on the bus. I don't have to deal with traffic. So it is better. But it still isn't easy.
Take this past Tuesday for example. Monday night I set my alarm for 5:30 am, got my clothes laid out for the next day, and packed my breakfast and lunch. Tuesday morning I'm awoken not by my alarm clock, but by my partner. It is 7:15 am. Argh. I mustn't have set my alarm properly. Nothing more maddening than already knowing that you are late for a class that won't even start for several hours.
I booked it out of the house, waited for the next bus, and was still an hour and half late for class. Fortunately our classes are three hours long so I still caught most of the essential material.
Tuesday's trouble with my alarm clock reminded me of some of my #1 commuting survival tip: use a second alarm clock and set it a little later than the first.
If anyone has any commuting horror stories, comments, or tips I'd love to hear them. I have 2 years of this commute to go, and lots of commuting tips yet to learn.
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16 comments:
I feel your pain. My commute is only an hour, and I live within the GTA, but I know it can be horrible. I find that my ipod and a good novel keep me occupied and make the time go faster. I am just wondering why you didn't sign up for the 1pm classes so you wouldn't have to wake up so early?
Klara from 1311
I feel your pain. My commute is only an hour, and I live within the GTA, but I know it can be horrible. I find that my ipod and a good novel keep me occupied and make the time go faster. I am just wondering why you didn't sign up for the 1pm classes so you wouldn't have to wake up so early?
Klara from 1311
Oh the joys of commuting! Even if I have tons of time to spare to catch the GO train or bus from Milton to Union Station or vice-versa I always end up running for it! Just on Friday I couldn't find my ticket so I had to run. I seem to be the neighbourhood spectacle! It sure would be nice if the trains/buses ran more frequently than every 30 minutes to an hour depending on the time of day; however, your commuter woes have definitely outweighed mine... so far! Yikes!
This is my first time commuting to Toronto also. Although I don't commute as far as you (I live in Brampton – about 45 min. train ride) I definitely understand the difficulties of getting up early and running to catch the train. The first day of school, I got up nice and early, arrived at the train station in an acceptable amount of time before my train was about to arrive, but found out it takes about 15 minutes to find a parking spot!! I had to wait until someone left before I could park. I was 1 minute away from missing the train (and my first class). I'm just hoping this commuting thing gets a little better and easier as the year goes on :)
Hi Klara,
When I prepared my class schedule I selected mostly 1pm classes - unfortunately that seems to be a very popular time slot. By 10:10 am all of the 1pm classes that I had wanted to take where all full. So I opted for morning classes. At least my classes aren't night classes this semester (the bus runs very infrequently at night. For example, there is no bus to Guelph between 6:30pm and 8pm!). Being on campus early, and for so long, is good. I need to be in a library setting to get anything done - at home I'm too distracted. My only beef is with how long the commute actually takes. But that isn't something that can be changed - unless I move here or get a jetpack.
An hour commute is nothing to sneeze at. Do you TTC it? Yes, I've found a novel really saves the day. Although, given how long my commute takes, I'm going to have to start forcing myself to do homework on the bus. Which won't be easy as my first inclination as a passenger is to sleep.
A friend of mine gave me an MP3 player but it needs a recharger. Hopefully I pick that up soon because it would help me stay awake - and would also help drowned out the loud cell phone users!
Thanks for your suggestions and for commiserating with me!
Cheers,
Michele
I find a commute is probably one of the best places to do homework b/c you can't really procrastinate or get away from it! I always get my class readings done faster when I need to commute somewhere. A laptop might be a good investment - you could work on assignments too (or watch movies etc).
There is nothing like the joys of long distance commuting. I lived in Japan for a few years, and there a two to two-and-a-half hour commute each way is not considered all that extreme. Thank goodness for capsule hotels. Without them I would have been sleeping on the doorstep of my school! Never mind the fact that the last train home was jam-packed and we were so tightly squeezed in that often, one's feet never touched the floor!
I live a 1/2 hour north of Barrie and my commute takes me an average of 3 hours each way! On the first day of classes, I left home at 6:15 a.m. and arrived late for class at 9:25 a.m. I am able to take the bus though for part of my trip so I can catch up on reading (if I can keep my eyes open!).
One tip for commuting - don't commute on the Friday before a long weekend! I took a summer course and on the Friday before the July 1st holiday I was on buses for a total of 8 hours and only down in Toronto for 2 hours. Crazy!
Mary Jane
Best advice - learn how to sleep anywhere, anytime. I sleep on the way done, being able to sleep for 15 mins is really refreshing...
I really love commuting because I have some time - around 45 minutes - to catch up with the readings. The worst part is when you are sitting next to a chatty group of teenagers!I wish I was still in Toronto, but the commute from Oakville is OK. I got used to it.
Marina
wow! and i thought i had it bad coming into the city from oshawa (i only have to get up at 6:30)! i managed to organize my schedule so i only have class mondays and tuesdays so it's not too bad... but the cost is what gets to me the most, not really the boredom (although sometimes it's annoying to commute at rush hour... lol)! good luck with your commute, i know i'm going to need it with mine! :D
I've got the greatest new 'alarm clock'. I bought a coffee pot that will automatically start to brew at a preset time and then beep incessantly when its done. It's great because it forces you to get up to turn off the alarm and when you do you are rewarded with cafeine-ey goodness!
Wow, there seems to be a lot of people commuting. I thought my commute was bad. I come from Beasmville, which is about 30-40 minutes from Burlington, where I catch the GO train and then sit on the train for an hour. I have found that reading on the way in is near impossible, however, on the way home it is good.
all I have to say is FIS COMMUTERS UNITE!!!!!!!!
Totally feel you,
In my undergrad years, I had the same commute as you.
It hurt. In fact, it hurts just thinking about it.
I had to commute 5 hours + a day to get to school.
UGH!
Ryan
hello fellow commuters/sufferers - My commute from Mississauga to U of T by public transit is 1.5 hours each way. Alas, it is all the more painful, as I live only a 5 minute drive from the UTM campus. Seeing all these posted comments here has me thinking again that I should start circulating some kind of "document of interest" (I don't want to say "petition" as that is so negatively charged) to show that suffering far-flung students would love to see more courses offered by distance ed. and/or at "satellite" campuses (i.e. UTM and Scarborough). Perhaps, I could try to figure out how to set up a survey on surveymonkey.com and try to find out how many of us would like to encourage the admin to consider the se. After all, aren't there only 2 library schools in Ontario? Therefore most of us must be commuting.
I am a first year student, beginning classes Fall 2008. I intend to commute to Toronto from Oshawa. Like Michele, I do have a friend who has space to allow me to stay overnight if the need arises. Several people here at Oshawa Public Libraries, where I am currently employed, have given me dire warnings about the pitfalls of commuting and attending university full time. I will be taking their comments under advisement because the bottom line is that you have to do what you have to do - you either make it work or you don't. I don't feel that living in Toronto is an option as I have been in a housing arrangement with my sister for over 15 years. I'll let you know how it goes. Happy to see other people are in the same boat (on the same train)! Cheers, Eva
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