People think I’m out of my mind to have a daily commute that balloons to as much as 4 hours. I agree that it’s crazy to do it, but I’m not out of my mind. The truth is, some of it is my fault, while most of it was imposed on me. Here was how it started:

The Original Commute: M. Sahm takes a 37 minute Metro-North train from Westchester to NYC. At the end of his work day, he takes another 37 minute trip, and is home by 7pm. With 20 minutes of walking included, total daily commute time is 1 hour and 34 minutes.

Alteration #1: Sahm and S.Rod cannot find a house within their budget in Westchester, or an affordable condo with enough space to grow and expand their home-based business. So they decide to buy a townhouse in Connecticut, 15 minutes north of where they lived in NY.

Commute #2: Sahm now takes a 50 minute MN train from CT to NYC. Return trip is a 45 minute express that puts him home at 7:15pm. Tack on 20 minutes of walk time, total daily commute time is now 1 hour and 55 minutes. Twenty one extra minutes is not too bad a sacrifice to be a homeowner, right?

Alteration #2: Five months after Sahm moves to CT, his employers also decide to move their office, but not to CT. They move from Midtown Manhattan (which was an 8 minute walk from the Metro-North station) to one block north of Wall Street. For you non-New Yorkers out there, Wall Street is about 5 miles south of Midtown.

Current Commute #3: Sahm still takes the same 50 minute train in the morning. But now, to get to Wall Street, he hops on the NYC Subway which averages (with walking and waiting included) about 30 minutes to get to Wall Street… on a good day. On a bad day, it averages 45 minutes. Return trip is 30 minutes (Subway) followed by 45 minutes (Metro-North) and that puts him home at 8pm.

Now that assumes the Subway does not get halted for any reason. Which any straphanger will tell you, rarely happens on a peak hour train. More often than not, Sahm will miss his Metro North train and the one that follows ten minutes later. After that, he will not see another express train for thirty minutes.

So, in a best case scenario for #3, with 25 minutes of walk time, total daily commute time is now 3 hours. In a worst case for #3, with the walk time, two delayed Subways and a missed Metro North train (which believe it or not, happens about half of the time), total daily commute time is now 4 hours.

I have been doing this commute for 9 months. Now you know. Of course, we all know what the obvious and simplest solution is. But nothing has materialized. Thus, this is where I stand. I will still hold out hope for resolution. In the meantime, cheers.