Half a year of remote work 💻

This weekend marks six months or half a year of remote work with the pandemic smoldering all around us. Definitely been a big change in all parts of life, some good some bad. I do miss the routine of taking the bus to work and going downtown each day but in some ways it’s been kind of nice.

The other day I actually ended up going downtown to a meeting. Things seemed so alien being down in the city, with folks wearing masks and crowds much thinned out from an ordinary weekday. It would have been a lot easier to take a bus but I still feel weird riding the bus with the pandemic still around. Even with a mask it’s a risk and honestly I’m nowhere near wanting to die from a stupid respiratory infection.

Remote work has allowed me to travel, to see and go places and take longer weekends than I would had I been working downtown. But life is hardly a cake, days when I travel I find I really have to make work the top priority, been extra responsive and hard working as I work with clients. Even at home it’s a challenge as I don’t have home internet so I find myself running to Wi-Fi hot spots for the endless Zoom Meetings and those silly software updates the laptop demands.

I don’t miss the commutes or the backed up traffic on Interstate 787. I don’t miss having to get up early or rushing to get out the door to the bus. I do somewhat miss the time around the water cooler and certainly the view from my old office, although that’s kind of a moot point now with the windowless office at my new job. Hunting season might be fun if I can hunt before working remotely at nine.

Honestly, I think they are right when they say the old rules were dumb. The virus is shaking things up, showing that a lot more things can be done remotely. Remote work is useful in a variety of situations and offers new job possibilities and ways to earn a living when I eventually own my off-grid property. The changes have been difficult at many levels but necessary and I think ultimately it will lead to a better society.