The monotony of being unemployed in a pandemic is getting to me

I write these blog posts about two weeks in advance.

I have no idea how I'm going to feel as you read it on May 26, but as I write it, I can say unequivocally that the pandemic/unemployment lifestyle is driving me insane.

I am a creature of habit and generally thrive on routine...just not this one.

My days are endless loops of driving Jack wherever he needs to go, taking care of the cats, washing dishes, making the bed, doing laundry, cleaning up as needed, and of course, looking for a job.

None of those activities is especially unpleasant, but taken together, it's all becoming a little tedious.

You know how so many American housewives back in the 50s and 60s got hooked on pills because they couldn't stand living the same day at home over and over and over? I absolutely empathize.

I admittedly also get to do more enjoyable things like play my sax, write these posts, watch TV with Terry, read, etc. But it just feels like the menu of options is limited, and I've ordered everything on it several times already.

This is privileged, First World whining of the highest degree, I know. I am in a very fortunate position compared to many. It's just that I'm not at all good at being bored.

Some people are, you know. I'm not one of them.

(Incidentally, it is not lost on me that my wife has lived this life for many years, particularly during those long-ago days when I would go to the office and she would take care of the house while tending to a large brood of small children every day. But she is superhuman and thus doesn't count in this discussion.)

I need to start working again. I'm very confident the right opportunity will come along, and possibly very soon. But until then, well...

I would be fine if I never unloaded a single dish from the dishwasher ever, ever again.

The pros and cons of a 45-minute daily commute to work

My office is approximately 35 miles from my house. In some parts of the country, that wouldn't be especially remarkable. Here in Northeast Ohio, it at least puts my commute on the long-ish end of the spectrum.

Not that I'm complaining, exactly. I actually enjoy that alone time in the car. But after a while, it gets to be a lot of alone time. Too much alone time, maybe.

My daily drive takes me through Downtown Cleveland, then southward to the little community of Olmsted Township. There is relatively little traffic, especially once I make my way through downtown and start travelling in the opposite direction of all the south- and west-siders trying to get to their office buildings.

For me, it's just a matter of distance. And it's the longest distance I've ever had to drive in my 24 years in the full-time workforce.

I pass the time in a variety of ways. Audiobooks are good, as are classical music CDs and WCLV, our local classical music station.

I also flip around to other radio stations, particularly the ones focusing on sports talk and 80s music. I can take both of those genres in large doses. Other stuff on the radio? It gets tedious even after a few minutes.

I know people who drive a lot farther every week than I do, but I have to say, that daily 70-mile round trip pushes my patience to the brink. I'll get to the half-hour mark or so and think, "OK, I don't want to be driving anymore. I'm just going to stop here, open up my laptop and do some work on the side of the freeway."

Which I never do, of course, but don't think I'm not tempted.

This is a First World Problem of the highest order. I get that. The fact is, I have a job to commute to. I make enough money to support my family of seven people. I can actually put an English & History degree to good use and for the benefit of society, which is a lot of more than many liberal arts majors can say.

Those are all blessings. But between the boredom, the frequent trips to the gas station and the constant worry about the wear and tear I'm putting on my (admittedly very durable) Honda, I'm starting to wonder whether those "Make $5 million a year working from home!" ads may hold some attraction after all.

The commute from my bedroom to the living room to start the work day would be heavenly. That I could handle, though I guess the audiobooks I listen to would need to be confined to short stories.

This is not the post where I inspire you to achieve your life goals

Actually it's not really a depressing post today as far as you're concerned. But it sort of is for me.

Here's my problem:

After graduating from John Carroll University in 1992 with a bachelor's degree in English and history, I stopped going to school. My dad told me I should stick it out and get a Master's degree, but I was tired of working full time AND attending college full time, which I had spent the previous couple of years doing.

So I decided a B.A. was good enough and I stopped there. At the time I was a sports writer at The News-Herald in Willoughby, Ohio, and my career path was pretty well laid out for me: Work my way up the journalistic ladder and eventually become a beat writer covering a Cleveland professional sports team.

It was that simple. That was my goal, and one certainly didn't need a Master's degree to get there.

So like I said, I stopped the whole school thing. And I kept on sports writing for four more years, at which point I realized three things:

• Sports happen at night, and it's difficult to raise a family and participate in kids' activities when you have to be at work every evening.
• You're never exactly going to be independently wealthy as a sports writer.
• Eventually the industry was going to change, and there was no guarantee of long-term job security in sports writing (20 years later, it turns out I was actually right about this one)

So I moved away from sports writing and got into technical writing, then trade journalism, and eventually marketing and public relations.

And now, two decades down the line, I desperately wish I had a Master's degree.

Specifically, I'd like a Master's of Business Administration (MBA) to help make up for the fact that I never studied business in any formal way.

And because obtaining a graduate degree would be extremely personally satisfying to me.

Happily, my employer has an excellent tuition reimbursement plan. Probably the best one I've come across. I almost wouldn't have to pay a dime for an MBA.

But what my employer can't give me, what I can't even give myself, is time.

And time, you see, is the problem here.

I'm barely two months into my job, but already I can see that it's always going to be fairly time-consuming. I enjoy and appreciate the position, don't get me wrong. But things aren't ever really going to calm down when it comes to the day-to-day chaos.

Even if you only take one MBA course per semester, you still need considerable time to attend class, study, get through your reading and homework, work on group projects, etc.

In addition to having a crazy job, I also have a wife and five kids. They deserve a significant amount of my time and attention, and I want to give it to them.

The math just doesn't work out.

If I'm getting anything close to the proper amount of sleep, exercising, doing my job well, and staying closely connected with my family, that pretty well accounts for a 24-hour day right there.

Unless we figure out a way to move to 28-hour days, I'm in trouble here.

Yet many people at work are encouraging me to go for it and get after that MBA. Which is nice, but none of them has offered me that gift of time. Nor do many really seem to understand the stage of life I'm in.

So it appears I'm stuck.

The obvious solution - the only solution, I suppose - is to set this particular goal aside and come back to it someday when the kids are older.

And I may just go that route. But I could really use the knowledge and experience you gain in an MBA program in the next few years. It will still be personally satisfying if I get the degree in my 50s, but I feel like it won't help me as much professionally if I wait that long.

So....yeah.

At this point I invite you to do one of three things:

(a) Tell me to suck it up and quit whining about my first-world problems, something with which I can't disagree.

(b) Tell me how you personally overcame similar obstacles and got a degree or achieved some other life goal, thus inspiring me to get out there and reach for the stars or whatever.

(c) Ignore this post completely and move on with your day, which honestly is probably the approach I would take if I were you.

Because, really, who has the time for that?

(NOTE: Since I wrote this, I came across an excellent post from my friend, former colleague and blogger extraordinaire Tara Pringle Jefferson with practical tips on balancing work, school and family. So it CAN be done. Hopefully one doesn't need to be as awesome as Tara to pull it off, though...)

Welcome to America, where we're not especially grateful for anything

Do you know what the three biggest problems in my life are at this moment? I'll tell you:

1. As I type this on Saturday the 20th of April, I still don't have a job and I want to get one. And soon.
2. My right ear is blocked with fluid and it's annoying me.
3. I seriously can't think of a third problem.

So two, then. I have two problems. And neither one is especially harrowing.

I honestly believe I'll be employed very soon (and am grateful I have the skills and opportunities for employment that come with my particular socioeconomic condition). So #1 isn't likely to be a problem for much longer.

And as for my ear, I'm guessing it's just a bacterial thing and will go away. If I need to, even as an unemployed person, I can still afford to pop down to my doctor's office or the urgent care to get the right medicine to treat it.

So #2 isn't really that much of a problem.

Which leaves me with exactly zero things that can be classified as "problems" in the way most of the world thinks of "problems."

There is a minuscule chance I will be in danger of losing my life today.

My refrigerator is stocked to overflowing with good, healthy food.

I have access to virtually unlimited quantities of clean drinking water.

I live in a house with people I love and who love me back.

I own two cars.

I live on a nice street with great neighbors.

I am, by all accounts, among the incredibly blessed.

I bring all of this up because I was just looking at my calendar for the next week, and this is how I reacted:

"Oh man, there's a soccer game for me to coach almost every day. And I have all of these lunches and meetings to go to. And when am I going to find time to study for my public relations accreditation class? This week hasn't even started and it's already horrible."

Feel free to laugh at me. Because I'm laughing at myself.

And crying a little, too. I don't think I had any idea how ungrateful I was for the life I lead until just a few minutes ago when I actually stopped to think about it.

I am light years better off than, for example, the people helped by the City Mission, the wonderful Cleveland-based organization that works with people in crisis and for which I serve as a proud member of the board of directors.

(By the way, the City Mission folks could really, really use your support. I'm telling you, you will not get more impact for your philanthropic dollar anywhere else. Here's a handy link to donate online, if you're so inclined.)

There's a popular Internet theme called "First World Problems," and I find it a useful reminder to be grateful for what I have. Which is a lot.

I guess I just wanted to make sure you felt the same way.

If you have access to an Internet connection and can read this blog, you're already better off than two-thirds of the world.

If you know when your next meal is coming and that it will be filling, you're doing extremely well.

If you have people who love you, you're blessed beyond measure.

Please remember that the next time you start complaining about your leaky faucet or your packed schedule. And please remember to smack me in the head the next time I complain about the same stuff.

Deal? Deal.