Managing my three hour round trip commute

The words Managing my three hour round trip commute overa black and white picture of traffic

I hate my current commute, but as part of a float pool, I'm stuck going to whatever work site my bosses assign me to. Last month, my bosses FORGOT to assign me and ended up sticking me at an assignment that's an hour and a half away from my home. I don't have a car, so I'm on the bus for three hours round trip Monday to Friday.

It's horrible and I feel like it's slowly killing me. 

I am actively looking for other jobs, but in the meantime, I'm stuck with this commute for another 9 business days -- after the 9th remaining day, my job is being eliminated.

Overall, I will have been stuck with this commute for three weeks. 

I know others have worse commutes -- I've had worse -- but right now, I'm struggling in several areas of life so it feels even worse than it actually is.

After coming home several days in a row so exhausted that I can barely function by the time I get home, I decided to find a way to make my bus rides more tolerable and to get some things done. 

Here's how I'm making it more manageable:

1. Set three goals per bus trip
Each bus trip (one to work and one home every day), I have set three goals. These goals vary a little from day to day, but include things like: 
  • Work on my blogs
  • Complete my Duolingo Daily Quests
  • Read
  • Respond to emails
  • Declutter my email inbox 
  • Read entrepreneurial articles and take notes 
  • Study for the class I'm currently taking

2. Eat breakfast at the bus stop
I've been trying to prepare both my lunch and breakfast the night before so I can easily grab-and-go in the mornings. My bus commute includes a ten minute wait at a transfer point between two buses, so I just plan breakfasts that I can eat standing up at the bus stop during those ten minutes. This let's me sleep in a few extra minutes every day!

3. Have water and coffee in my bag
I fill my water bottle the night before and have a coffee thermos empty and ready next to my coffee maker. I also prep the coffee maker the night before. 

These aren't huge or revolutionary ideas, but they help make this commute a bit more tolerable and I'm able to get things done that I might not do otherwise. 

I would probably skip breakfast if I didn't prepare it ahead to eat at the bus stop which would result in being hungry and grumpy during the first half of my work day. Same with water and coffee, or I'd spend a lot of money on coffee at coffee shops at a time that I need to save as much as possible. 

And, I'm so tired by the time I get home that I likely wouldn't do any of the tasks I'm getting done on the bus and then I'd be mad at myself. 

What is your commute like and how do you make it more tolerable?

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