You would think someone who enjoys talking as much as I do would be happy to be spending two days a week in the office, but it’s a bit of a drag.
Don’t get me wrong, I love meeting everyone and having a laugh, but I get so much less work done.
I currently start my working day at 8am so I can collate and send out a report containing the daily news highlights by 9.30am.
That is not a joy or a pleasure on the days I’m commuting, especially when there’s a blog to be posted, dogs to be walked and a body to be showered before heading to the city.
I confess I’ve been driving to work once a week as a special treat, as there’s a parking station with a $26 early bird special. I figure that if I take my breakfast and lunch with me, it’s not that much of a budget-smasher.
The day that I spend on the bus, sigh, is not my favourite. So much time wasted, so much mask wearing, so much hiking to and from bus stops, so much squishing together with the rest of humanity.
When I got into the office at 8am yesterday a new bloke had started and fancied a chat because there was something wrong with his computer.
He seemed lovely and I pretended to be chill about chatting while secretly thinking AAAAAARGH, my news report is going to be sooooooo late this morning.
Apparently I am not alone in my antipathy for the CBD. A recent survey of office occupancy rates, conducted by the Property Council of Australia, found that in July this year, Melbourne CBD only managed to fill 38 per cent of offices on average.
Sydney didn’t stand too far ahead of Melbourne, recording an average occupancy rate of 52 per cent in July with a peak of 67 per cent.
COVID-19 has a lot to answer for. It made us sick and it turned us into home bodies. It’s also brought into stark relief how much time we used to spend getting to and from the office.
Mind you, everyone is different. The in-house lawyer noted in a meeting yesterday that he chooses to go into the office every day because there’s a better view out his window.
At the other end of yesterday, it was bliss to wander across the road from work, jump in my car, head to the supermarket for dinner ingredients, go home and make tabbouleh, pick the kids up from skipping training and drop them to their respective homes, grill lamb koftas, serve dinner and compile a list of non-existent apartments in my price range to inspect on Saturday.
I tell a lie. None of that was bliss.
Oh, and another lie is that there weren’t any apartments. There was one opposite a Maccas and one behind a KFC.
Champion options for noise and my waistline.
Maybe my dream home will pop onto Domain this morning. I’d better go check …
Have a great weekend, catch you next week.
Song of the day: Sheena Easton “9 to 5”
housegoeshome 
I can remember exactly where and when and what I was doing the first time I heard that..a total blast from the past