Interesting Late Breaking News:
Read this article published Sunday, Sept 30, 2007 in the Tracy Press. It describes how commuting can be detrimental to family life in general. All the more reason to: Telecommute!-------------
For years, I have been evangelizing the value of telecommuting, only to be met with deaf ears. Hoping to drive home the value of telecommuting, I wrote an article several years ago that predicted the future (hmmm, the "future" in that article has arrived, that's scary) by describing how 580 in Livermore was being used for pedestrian traffic since cars were no longer driving on it....
How wrong was I !! Not only has this NOT come true, but, now 205 and 580 are BOTH bumper to bumper...and the problem is getting worse!
All I hear and read about (in the Tracy Press and other media) is; building new roads, widening 205, carpooling, using mass transit...never do I see, or hear, anyone speak up for the single most effective way to get cars off the road....telecommuting (or telework).
Now, I know all of my readers (yes, both of you!) cannot telecommute....certainly, I would not want Dr. Yu telecommuting, or Pat who cleans the pool. BUT, many hundreds, if not thousands, of super commuters in the local area CAN.
If they took 1 or 2 days a week to keep the car in the driveway (since everyone has the garage full of junk) they would realize ALL of the following benefits.
1. It saves you GAS and MONEY
2. It saves you TIME (no more 2.5 hour commutes to Berkeley...ONE WAY..geeez how ridiculous is that, I speak from experience)
3. It reduces our dependence on OIL, which is going away.
4. It reduces TRAFFIC (for Dr. Yu so he can get to work faster)
5. It reduces carbon EMISSIONS and help put some brakes on Global Warming. A car not started will not emit....
6. It reduces your STRESS (and slows you down in Tracy) so you can enjoy life more
7. You are more PRODUCTIVE (yeah, you can actually work without endagering others while you are on the cell phone, or text messaging, while driving...how dumb is that anyway?)
There are MANY more...
The downside to telecommuting has in the PAST been "out of sight out of mind". How backward. See my other blog entries....videoconferencing takes care of that. You can virtually be in your office at work all day long and all night if you want to be.
The only downside remaining is gaining weight. The refrigerator is too close and the food is free...so watch that.
For those who can: TELECOMMUTE!!!
It only makes sense.
