The Problem with Full Time Work
For the past month I've been working full time, something I haven't done since 2005.
Although I really like my job and all the people I work with -- I'm hoping something permanent will open up before the job ends in June -- here's a list of things that suffer with the 40-hour workweek:
1. Culinary experimentation. Notice that I haven't been doing my weekly West Side Market updates? Yeah. When you get home at 6, you've got less time or inclination to experiment. So I've been relying on easy standbys: chicken with black beans and rice, pasta with tomatoes, olives, spinach and chickpeas, cabbage and noodles. Some days I do a considerable amount of heavy lifting at work and I'm exhausted when I get home, so we go out. This is starting to worry me -- I've always made nearly everything from scratch, which costs nothing. Going out? It adds up really fast.
2. Trips to the West Side Market, period. Even though it's right there, I can't manage to run over there at 7 AM because it's hard enough for me to get up against my natural rhythms (this is the first time in my entire life I've ever had to use an alarm clock), and I hate trying to actually shop at the market on Saturdays when everyone from the suburbs decides that Cleveland isn't too scary for a few pounds of blood sausage. (And my frequent insomnia always seems to strike on Tuesdays and Thursdays, hmmm....) I really, really miss my MWF afternoon trips.
3. Volunteer work. Right before I got my job, I signed up through VolunteerMatch.org to help out with grant writing for a boys-and-girls group in Florida. I wanted to be able to devote the copious amounts of free time I had as a result of not working to building up my grant writing portfolio. I'd also wanted to seek out some hands-on volunteer work here in NEO.
4. Trips to the Cleveland Public Library downtown.
5. Full participation in the democratic process. This is the scariest thing of all - that I've suddenly got less time for writing angry letters and figuring out what the hell is going on in city council, the statehouse, Congress, the world in general -- it takes time and effort to read about and research this stuff because the TV news isn't going to tell us everything and I wouldn't trust it if it did.
6. Writing. Not so much as I'd expect, because the repetitive nature of my job tends to put me in "the zone," and I find myself coming home with 20 post-it notes and scraps of paper full of ideas, snippets of dialogue, etc. But as for full-on, roll-your-sleeves-up-and-belt-out-5,000-words? That type of writing is exhausting and I have no time for it during the day and no energy for it at night.
7. Time to ourselves. Jim and I are now on the same work schedule, which is something we've never experienced in our 5 years of living together.
8. Going to stuff that happens during the day, like City Club talks or programs at the Levin College of Urban Affairs. Or just having lunch with friends in the neighborhood.
(Now you might be asking, how could you ever work less than full time and survive? For an able-bodied adult with no family obligations, it can be done, and easily. Hey, I worked part time in New York and paid for my own health insurance! Here's my advice, for what it's worth: make all your food from scratch, don't buy clothes, don't go into debt for education, don't spend cash every day (i.e., bring your own coffee from home and skip those trips to the vending machine -- bring a plastic container filled with nuts and dried fruit to work with you if you get midday cravings) and treat your credit card like a utility bill that needs to get paid in full every month. And cut up your ATM card! Cut it up now! It should be as inconvenient as possible to get at your money.)
Meanwhile, I'm hoping I can find a way to squish these things back into my life at an acceptable level....
Although I really like my job and all the people I work with -- I'm hoping something permanent will open up before the job ends in June -- here's a list of things that suffer with the 40-hour workweek:
1. Culinary experimentation. Notice that I haven't been doing my weekly West Side Market updates? Yeah. When you get home at 6, you've got less time or inclination to experiment. So I've been relying on easy standbys: chicken with black beans and rice, pasta with tomatoes, olives, spinach and chickpeas, cabbage and noodles. Some days I do a considerable amount of heavy lifting at work and I'm exhausted when I get home, so we go out. This is starting to worry me -- I've always made nearly everything from scratch, which costs nothing. Going out? It adds up really fast.
2. Trips to the West Side Market, period. Even though it's right there, I can't manage to run over there at 7 AM because it's hard enough for me to get up against my natural rhythms (this is the first time in my entire life I've ever had to use an alarm clock), and I hate trying to actually shop at the market on Saturdays when everyone from the suburbs decides that Cleveland isn't too scary for a few pounds of blood sausage. (And my frequent insomnia always seems to strike on Tuesdays and Thursdays, hmmm....) I really, really miss my MWF afternoon trips.
3. Volunteer work. Right before I got my job, I signed up through VolunteerMatch.org to help out with grant writing for a boys-and-girls group in Florida. I wanted to be able to devote the copious amounts of free time I had as a result of not working to building up my grant writing portfolio. I'd also wanted to seek out some hands-on volunteer work here in NEO.
4. Trips to the Cleveland Public Library downtown.
5. Full participation in the democratic process. This is the scariest thing of all - that I've suddenly got less time for writing angry letters and figuring out what the hell is going on in city council, the statehouse, Congress, the world in general -- it takes time and effort to read about and research this stuff because the TV news isn't going to tell us everything and I wouldn't trust it if it did.
6. Writing. Not so much as I'd expect, because the repetitive nature of my job tends to put me in "the zone," and I find myself coming home with 20 post-it notes and scraps of paper full of ideas, snippets of dialogue, etc. But as for full-on, roll-your-sleeves-up-and-belt-out-5,000-words? That type of writing is exhausting and I have no time for it during the day and no energy for it at night.
7. Time to ourselves. Jim and I are now on the same work schedule, which is something we've never experienced in our 5 years of living together.
8. Going to stuff that happens during the day, like City Club talks or programs at the Levin College of Urban Affairs. Or just having lunch with friends in the neighborhood.
(Now you might be asking, how could you ever work less than full time and survive? For an able-bodied adult with no family obligations, it can be done, and easily. Hey, I worked part time in New York and paid for my own health insurance! Here's my advice, for what it's worth: make all your food from scratch, don't buy clothes, don't go into debt for education, don't spend cash every day (i.e., bring your own coffee from home and skip those trips to the vending machine -- bring a plastic container filled with nuts and dried fruit to work with you if you get midday cravings) and treat your credit card like a utility bill that needs to get paid in full every month. And cut up your ATM card! Cut it up now! It should be as inconvenient as possible to get at your money.)
Meanwhile, I'm hoping I can find a way to squish these things back into my life at an acceptable level....
posted by Christine at 5:08 AM
11 Comments:
True that.
West Side Market doesn't get all suburbanie until after 9:30. If you get there before that, it's not as crowded, and it's real folks from nearby buying real food, not folks on a field trip.
But you know, it's sometimes a lot of fun to go when it's busy. I try to always go right before Thanksgiving and Christmas, because it's a lot of fun when it's jammed at the holidays. I love the energy and the bustle, and when it gets too much, I get a brat sandwich (w/kraut on a soft roll) and head up to the balcony to watch the hubub.
I like the hubbub and bustle too - I like to know that the Market is still doing a good business. I just don't like to have to do my shopping during that time - it's a mess.
I hear you Christine. I recently went from working at home about 32 hours a week to commuting an hour to a new job and working 40 hours. The things I miss are:
1. Time to workout in the daytime when the gym is not crowded.
2. The energy to workout.
3. Time with my toddler who does not go to daycare.
4. Daytime, ehem, "lovin" from the wifey.
5. The 2 hours I miss in exchange for the commute.
6. Time to write and comment on blogs.
Still, in this economy, I'm thankful for a job.
Yes, Mr. Carpenter - I definitely hear you. It's tough in this economy. I'm very grateful for my job.
32 hours is, to me, the ideal workweek. There's just something about that extra day....
And you're right, the full time workweek really only gives you an hour or two of free time every day, if you factor in commuting time and even getting ready for work in the morning. I feel very lucky that I'm not someone who hates their job, or this would be intolerable.
well, we need to be thankful for the suburbanites who come to the WSM it helps keep it open! I hear you Christine and while I miss reading your posts, I understand. I work (usually) seven days a week and then feel guilty if I have a day off every two weeks. But I do have flexible hrs that help with internet time. And I don't really watch tv. And the WSM has been there for almost 100 yrs now so it will still be there when you switch to a different job! :0)
Just to make myself clear, I *am* glad that people come from wherever (I've heard some people say they come up from Columbus every Saturday) to support the WSM. But truly, it's much less pleasant to shop there when it's really busy.
Carole, don't feel guilty when you have a day off! You deserve it. :)
I remember seeing former (thank GOD) Governor Taft at the W. Side Market...I wanted to boo him so bad.
The WSM is my favorite place in Cleveland. My elementary school used to be next door. My mom would get me for appointments and such and she would take me to the market for fruit as we left. Good times!
I feel your pain Christine. Catching the bus in and out of Cleveland back and forth to Barberton is a bear and a half. I leave the house around 5:30AM and I get home about 8PM.
Look on the bright side, Christine. When it comes to lack of time, you could also be a parent. Fulltime working moms basically have zero time to themselves. So I invite you to look at the glass half full.
Ever thought about being a housewife so you could do all that stuff?
Or, if you believe in gender equality, letting Jim be a househusband for a while so he could have a turn at that kind of life?
Yes - I just can't understand how people can work full time and also raise children. Either they're a lot tougher than me, or they're ready to fall apart.
Unfortunately Jim is not very good at cooking or cleaning - neither of which gets done to my satisfaction with us both working full time. Ideally, we would both work part time. Jim wants to do some volunteer work, but the kind of stuff he wants to do is pretty much M-F stuff typically reserved for retirees. But as long as one's health insurance is arbitrarily tied to one's employer....
We've also discussed my getting a FT job that pays at least as much as his, and then saving my entire salary for three years (three years isn't so long, is it?) and then we'd have a lot of options!
You know, too, it's not even so much the 40 hours that's hard. It's the 5 days. If I could work 10 hours for 4 days, I'd be up for that, too.
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