20 things that you understand when Office is far from where you stay !!!!

Life on fast lane  - population seems tobe exploding at Chennai when you wait at bus stops and railway stations.  The city of Chennai is known for its lanes and bylanes – and there are not many motorable roads in its real sense.   Chennaiites fear of the roads is increasing as in some stretches they are ‘killing fields’ with frequent accidents.  People drive mad, often without control.  Most driver lack or are not aware of the road sense, road discipline, respecting signals and road rules, respecting the other road users, allowing elderly, small and disabled to cross the roads – all these are missing. At every signal, you  can spot vehicles jumping the signals or driving faster when the signal has already closed.

Decades ago, people at Triplicane discussed about ‘not finding a job’- but a job ‘between Santhi – Saffire’ – Mount Road dotted with Cinema theatres and it was a quirk reference of occupation in any office that lies closer to home – and people went happily for Companies located on Mount Road and in Parrys Corner – in the narrow lanes opposite to High Court !

Scoopwhoop.com – is an  Internet Media Company for the online Indian.  Their website claims that they create and curate India specific stories with the sole intent of helping it reach as many of us as possible.  Here is one very interesting one read on Scoop Whoop written by Isha Jalan, titled –“20 Things You’ll Understand Only If Your Office Is Far From Where You Stay” ~the original page has some interesting gif images too !!   

Most people look forward to going home after work everyday. After a hard day's work, they are free to have a life. But for some of us, who live far away  from the office, going back is an event in itself. Life seems to have become a routine of just working, travelling and sleeping. Here are 20 things that people working far away from home will understand:

1. You HATE commuting. It feels like such a task and consumes so much of your time. It's not so bad if you have company. But it's maddening if you're alone.

2. You know everybody in office who travels in your direction. You try to coordinate and commute with them.

3. Even if you leave for work on time, you're often late. It's usually not your fault but you live so far away that even if you leave on time, something or the other happens on the way that gets you delayed.

4. If you travel by public transport, you spend a lot of time playing games on your phone or listening to music.

5. And on the days that your battery runs out, death by boredom awaits!

6. For those of us who read, you finish books in days because there is a lot of time in hand while travelling.

7. You meet all kinds of people while travelling. You observe a lot of people each day as you commute and often wonder what their life would be like.

8. For those of us who drive to work, it's a herculean task. It’s like even after getting out of office, we still have some work to do.

9. A lot of money is spent on petrol. Sometimes it makes you wonder if you should quit your job and sit at home and save money.

10. Let's not even get started on the days when you're stuck in a traffic jam. May the almighty save you!

11. Living so far away from home means you can’t make evening plans because you’ll never make it in time. Impromptu plans are out of the question. If at all you make plans, you do something near your office.

12. You're always the last one to reach at any party.

13. But the good part is that you can drop by anywhere on the way back. Because every place you want to go to is right on the way.

14. Your holidays are usually spent at home, because travelling is a big no.

15. It is annoying if you have to travel to work just for a short while. "Chota sa meeting hain. Chaar baje aajao."

16. If you leave something behind, going back halfway to get it is never an option.

17. If you fall sick at work, you’d rather sit at office and fight it out than go back all the way.

18. By the time you make it home, you are too tired for anything and just want to crash in your bed. After all that struggle, even having dinner becomes a task.

19. Sometimes you feel that half your life is getting wasted in commuting.

20. However, not all days are bad. On the rare days when you get work from home, one feels like jumping and dancing.  

Even though the travelling might get hectic, you are still glad that you get to sleep on your bed and see your parents' faces every morning.  Any déjà vu ?

With regards – S. Sampathkumar

28^th Sept. 2015.