The Commute

I have now completed 2-1/2 weeks of work in Tacoma. Just six more weeks to go, and then home for the summer!

The commute is going quite well - better than I expected. I am working 4, 10-hour days, so I work from 7am-5:30pm. That means that I hit the road at 6am (which means a 4:30am wake-up call!) to get to Tacoma by 7am. There isn't much traffic on the road at that hour. And when I leave Tacoma at 5:30pm, most of the traffic has already passed. I get back to Ernie's parents' house around 6:30pm. I usually pack a sandwich for dinner to eat in the car because I can't wait until 6:30 to eat!

When I leave at 5:30pm to head back to Ferndale for weekends, I usually hit traffic just through Tacoma. Literally, as soon as I hit Fife, I'm home free. Per my doctor's instructions, I make two stops on my way to Ferndale to stretch my legs and make sure my blood is still flowing to and from the baby. I usually stop at Northgate Mall and park by Nordstrom where I use the bathroom (they're the cleanest!) and then head to the food court to buy dinner at Subway. Then I walk back through Nordstrom to my car, and eat dinner while driving. Then I usually stop somewhere (the location changes according to my mood and my needs) around the Snohomish/Skagit County line. On my trips back from Ferndale, the stops vary greatly.

I am super-grateful for books on CD! I have listened to two books so far. I am also grateful for the "Road Trip Jamz" mixed cd my friend Michel made for me. And also for the car organizer (a going-away gift from the folks in Bellingham) that sits on the passenger seat next to me that keeps all the stuff I could possibly need while driving within arm's reach.