Being a Commuter

Some real life updates: Yep, I'm still teaching (part-time) at Prasmul (BSD campus) but this semester no more online classes. And yeah, the distance between my home to the uni is 40 km😂. 

Actually, I did several in-person sessions last semester, i.e. mid-term test and a couple of sessions. I was able to meet my students for the first time since I started working there right after pandemic began. It was okay because the class I taught at that semester was only once a week, and it was started in the afternoon. No morning rush hour, but I got caught in the afternoon rush hour. 

It was a bit awkward in my first visit. I was guided by the staffs (thank you pak Danar and security person) to the classroom. We did one more IRL introduction with the students and my brain gotta work harder to remember their names again since there wasn't any name tags just like in Zoom. 

Anyhow, last semester I tried my best to avoid rush hour by hanging out in the shopping malls around the uni until Isha prayer. By then, the traffic would return to normal and my journey back home was bearable. At least JORR toll was not too packed. This semester, all classes returned to normal, no more online classes. I teach on Wednesday and Thursday. It's not full-day, but only 3 classes per week. 

Transportation

There's very few public transportation options from my home to the uni. Train a.k.a commuter line is not a feasible option because it would take more than 2 hours. From my nearest station, UI, I would have to go to the heart of Jakarta and transferred two times. One at Manggarai, change to Tanah Abang line. Two, at Tanah Abang to Cisauk. Price wise would be the best, but it doesn't worth my time and effort. 

Bus is the best option. I could take Agra Mas bus from the nearest JORR toll gate and the bus route would take me to BSD directly. However the bus schedule is unknown and it'll be pretty expensive if I add the journey from my home to the bus stop, and one more from the bus stop to the uni. I could use Grab/Gojek, but they had raised their rates and during rainy season the price will be ridiculously high. Another option is to use Angkot, but I hate it's system. No particular schedule makes me losing my precious time under the mercy of supir Angkot who loves ngetem. It's rain-friendly tho. 

The last option is driving. Thank God there's a car I can use at home. Actually, price-wise, the total cost would be similar to the bus option. I have to pay for the gas and toll. It's still the same route as the bus option but I have the freedom to set my schedule and totally safe under the rain. The total cost is still within my budget (well, actually I receive some transport budget from the uni), so I have been trying this transportation method for the past one month. 

Energy

My driving, I should always be in focus for the whole journey. As a person who loves using public transportation before, I always enjoyed the time to sleep in the bus, read some books, or just do some mindless activities that need small amount of energy. However, driving for two days straight with a total of 160 km journey, had started taking its toll on my body. There were times when I felt some pain in my arm muscles, especially if the traffic was bad and I drove for more than 2 hrs in a bad posture. 

First week, it was still okay. In fact I forced myself because I just had my booster vaccine one day before I drove and my left arm felt so heavy. I departed at 6.15 am for 1 hr-ish journey to the uni, and got back home before the rush hour, again about 1 hr-ish. Disclaimer: I requested new schedules to have my classes ended before 4 pm to avoid rush hour. 

There was one time I got caught in afternoon rush hour. My journey back home took me about 2 hrs. In one day I dedicated 3 hrs to commute, forced myself to stay alert and focus. Just imagine these 3 hours that I can spend at home do other activities. When I arrived, I had no more energy left. 

Conclusion

It seems there's no alternatives for me other than driving. The only things that I can manage is how I can spend my 2-3 hrs journey to do or get something meaningful, but not losing too much energy. I'm thinking of listening to more insightful podcasts or youtube videos (audio). I'm not sure about audio book because I might dozing off, no way. I will prepare some cut fruits for more nutritional intakes to keep my mouth munching during driving (and avoid getting sleepy). What else? Just take it easy, I guess. Enjoy the process, be more mindful, and hope these efforts will be counted as good deeds. You can do it, come on!