More on Telecommuting

After spending a lovely Sunday afternoon waiting for two freaking hours in line to cross the George Washington Bridge, I’ve come to realize that we’re too crowded. In fact, what should have been a two-hour commute from the Philly burbs to Manhattan took five hours. It was gorgeous outside too, which compounded our agony of being stuck on concrete (which resembled being stuck in concrete). Our roads are inadequate for the number of cars on them. If this is weekend traffic, I’d hate to be around for rush hour(s). Our plans to stroll through the Botanical Gardens were gone. We were able to drop off our friend, share a Mister Softee with her and get going.

Times like this remind me just how lucky I am that my work comes to me. I can work completely from home. So can he, but his company is still of the opinion that employees need to be present in order to be managed.

Let’s hope the next generation – the iPod generation – embraces the virtual office much more than our generations did. If gas prices keep jumping (and you know they will), our telecommuting existence will become the ultimate prize. And who knows? That may just make it easier for us to attain the pricing we deserve. If the stigma of “working at home equals less pay and all play” is wiped out by pure necessity, I predict writers will soon be given a better platform on which to argue a fair wage – if not given more respect for being disciplined enough to handle an at-home job.