A few weeks ago I was walking through LaGuardia Airport on my way to my gate when I stopped to get a shoeshine. I sat down and started to speak to this true New Yorker–he wore a Yankee hat, had a big accent and was very talkative (no disrespect to any New Yorkers reading this).
We were having this nice discussion when I asked him, "What time do you get here?" As most of you know I tend to take early flights and today was no different since I was at the Airport before 5am.
He said "I got here a few minutes ago since I live across the street." I was a little surprised and said, "Really…" and before I can say another word, he responded, "I like everything in my life to be easy."
I started to think about the different aspects of living in Dallas and really thinking about "Is it easy?"
Here are five things in my life that are really easy:
- Traveling to/from work – only 12 miles away
- Flying out of DFW Airport – my office and home are 10 minutes from the airport
- Working out – I have a gym in my office and 1/4 from where I live
- Going to sporting events – great access to/from all the Dallas Stadiums. Rarely have I run into a major traffic jam
- Weather – Wow! How great is the weather without snow?
For me it was very interesting to think about.
- What is easy in your life?
- What isn’t easy that you would like to be?
I look forward to your comments.
Stephenie Gordon says:
I too don’t believe in commuting. I live 6 miles from my office (it might actually be less)! At most it takes me 15 minutes to get to work. I think that really helps keep the stress level down.
Jami Pulley says:
Usually, my kids are the easiest thing in my life. They eat, sleep and play good. They have wonderful personalities and are so much fun to hang with. However, they are extremely pig headed (they get that from their father). For the most part they are great kids. I work from home a couple of days a week when I am not traveling, and that is very easy for me. I tend to be 30 to 40% more productive and I automatically get 2 to 4 more hours of work time during the day (I usually have to make up my 1.5 to 2 hour commute time at night if I don’t work from home). Things that pose a challenge in my life include my commute to/from work and the airport, kids with ear infections, getting to church on time, getting most places on time, following through with personal tasks (i.e. finding a dance class for my oldest daughter) and a full day of internal meetings. My life moves fast and is often very chaotic, however I have been very blessed with a great family, friends, co-workers, company, etc. Plus, I work well in the middle of chaos. I wouldn’t rate my life as “easy”, however I would rate it as “great”.
Seanjjordan says:
I had a job awhile back that was 5 minutes from my apartment. But when I bought a house, my drive was more like 20 minutes. My commute to MMR classes is 45 minutes, and my commute to my internship (in St. Louis) is 50 minutes – 90 minutes depending on traffic, or 75 minutes if I take the train. Honestly, I’ve started taking the train more regularly because I can read and use my Blackberry during that time instead of having to pay attention to the road. I’m not sure if it’s because my life is harder than it should be, or just because I haven’t settled into my career yet.
And Merrill, since we just got 6 inches of snow in the St. Louis area, I’m thinking Dallas might be a better place to be at the moment. The only upside of the snow was watching my scottish terrier bounding through the drifts this morning. When a black dog comes in covered in white snow, it’s truly a sight to behold!
Jennifer Stocks says:
My life has been pretty easy. I had one interview the spring I graduated from college and I got the job. It was in Market Research and was a perfect fit for me. I have been in Market Research ever since.
I have a wonderful husband who pursued me even though in the beginning I wasn’t giving him the time of day. I am a lucky girl.
My kids are wonderful. Of course even the best kids have issues, but if I even start to complain about something they’ve done, their daycare provider tells me I don’t know how lucky I am. She’s been keeping kids for over 10 years, so she knows what she’s talking about.
I work from home so I don’t have to look good for work and I don’t have to commute. It probably saves me 10 hours a week of wasted time.
I buy meals from one of these meal prep places and put them in my freezer. I just have to thaw and cook for 15-30 minutes and I have a tasty “homemade” meal. It doesn’t get any easier than that.
The hardest thing in my life is keeping my house clean…since I have three young kids and no real desire to clean.
Ed Sugar says:
Since my wife, Marion, is a gourmet cook, having an automatic dishwasher makes my life easier. Between just the two of us and our 4 cats (yes, she even cooks for them), we average 6 full loads a week (pots and pans have to be hand washed). I figure I gain an extra hour each night thanks to our dishwasher.
Adam Jolley says:
For awhile in the summer when gas prices were ridiculous, everything in my life revolved around the ease of commuting. Currently I live less than 2 miles from work, the gym, a Whole Foods, and both Great American Ballpark and Paul Brown Stadium. I actually live on the same street as GABP and jog their frequently.
I think the easiest part of my life though is living less than 5 miles from two amazing university campuses in U. of Cincinnati and Xavier. That ease of living is both in sporting events and hip restaurants that surround the campuses.
Amy Shields says:
In general (and always) , the people I care about make my life easier because without them I would have no meaning, so none of the other ‘conveniences’ would matter! Having said that, I actually LOVE having a 35 minute commute on the train into the city every day…it allows me time to reflect on many things in the AM, and allows me to ‘come down’ on the way home. Now, the thing that has my life the easiest recently? Being able to say that as of yesterday, everything has arrived from CA…my kids, my car, my cat, and finally, the moving company with all my stuff.
Happy Tuesday!