Looking back to my earlier editorial from this month, I would say things have gotten progressively better. The time it takes for me to summon up the courage to leave my bed to get dressed has significantly decreased, just has my ability to get out the door right on time without being late. But some things I still have to get used to, that being Atlanta traffic.
To begin, if there is one thing I am certain of, is that whoever is credited for the modern epigram “Murphy’s Law” must have derived his influence and experiences partially from sitting in
Atlanta traffic.
You can leave at any hour of the day, with any weather system going through the area and the saying still stands: Anything that can go wrong will go wrong.
I have left as early as 5 a.m. and as late as 8 a.m., with weather as foggy as fog can be or as clear as day, with what seems like torrential down pours or with gusting winds; when it is the height of day or the time of night where darkness encapsulates everything. Through all of these trials, somehow, Atlanta traffic will always find a way to slow you down. From stuck behind a bus, a tractor trail that has broken down, gridlock for 20 miles, and everything in-between, Atlanta traffic is as awful as ever.
Take my recent trip to the airport, where I went to the airport at five in the morning and while going through the Grady curve at 5:30, I still managed to be slowed down because of what came to be construction on I-20.
So no matter what, the traffic is never a plus. But there are other things as well that come with the constant stop-and-go of the traffic. Namely that of back pain, numb legs and my ultimate favorite, getting tired of listening to music. In essence, I’ve gone from a twenty-year old to a fifty-year old in the first month of 2015 alone.
Partially from my hour-long commutes to and from work giving me ample time and partially from a desire to actually know more than just the pop culture of our world, I’ve turned away from just listening to music.
I feel like I do that all the time at home and while I am at school, especially while studying, I need to be catching up the world events somehow. Since I can’t necessarily do that at work, nor am I fondly in the mood to do it in my few hours between dinner and bed, I’ve sought the radio.
As I’ve become less in tune with all of the immediate things happening on Tech’s campus, I’ve become more in tune to world events, the first time in quite a long time, and it feels good.
Aside from that side note, the biggest thing I’ve learned still stands: the effort being put into working every day.
Only four weeks later, and by Friday, I’m in need of the weekend. I have no plans to go anywhere but my couch.
Friendships need to be maintained on Snapchat and Twitter for a while as an extra commute over the weekend seems like some extreme form of punishment. I have no problem with my parents making food, sitting on the couch and just not thinking for two days.
I miss Tech. I’m glad that this will be the only semester I really am disengaged from the Tech community, my friends and all that is happening around the city. I miss being able to easily hang out with friends without having to schedule things around parking times and class schedules.
But I am glad I’ve had this experience now because I’m learning—very quickly—that I need a house that is close to work because commuting and me are not the greatest of friends.