When I tell people I work 12-hour rotating shifts, the reaction tends to be a mixture of "Oh you poor thing" and "Can't you find a normal job?" I work shifts because I like this way of working! I get three or four days off every week, on the days I'm working I commute way outside peak traffic times, I enjoy the relaxed atmosphere of a night shift, and I get paid an extra 28% for my trouble. On the rare occasions I go to a packed supermarket at the weekend or travel during rush hour I look at the miserable faces around me and think "Oh you poor things.. This is normality for you!"
You really couldn't pay me enough to work office hours.
The thing about public transit and rush hour rings true for me, so I can understand perfectly your point about shift work as well. I don't count now how many times I had to explain that, yes, I take the public transit by choice and you couldn't pay me enough to make me curse and fuss driving my car in traffic twice as long as my regular, stress free commute, where I can either catch up a bit of sleep, read or relax in countless other ways.
I'd rather take the bus (no train, tram or subway available in my city) for twice as long as my car, even if you paid me. But that's not what happens : it's actually faster because of reserved lanes, costs way less because I don't need to pay for parking, gas, normal car wear and reparations, higher insurance premium for increased car use, higher risk of accidents (plain old statistics : the more you use your car, the more chances of having an accident, all other factors taken into account) etc. It's comfortable (since it's an express route, the bus is rarely crowded and I almost always have a seated place, even if I'm at the end of the route, before the bus takes the highway) and a lot less stressful. And since it's an express route, I end up knowing my drivers and the passengers are all regulars, not so many weirdos.
The only means of transport better than that, in my opinion, is walking or cycling, which I do in the summer months : even cheaper, gives me (at least a good part of) my regular exercise and keeps me healthy. It's slightly longer than the bus, but still faster than by car jammed in traffic (I don't live that far away from my workplace).
I used to cycle commute all year round until fairly recently, but traffic here seems to be getting worse and worse and I had one too many really dangerous near misses with impatient fuckwit car drivers. Eventually I decided I wasn't ready to die just yet.
Shiftwork.
When I tell people I work 12-hour rotating shifts, the reaction tends to be a mixture of "Oh you poor thing" and "Can't you find a normal job?" I work shifts because I like this way of working! I get three or four days off every week, on the days I'm working I commute way outside peak traffic times, I enjoy the relaxed atmosphere of a night shift, and I get paid an extra 28% for my trouble. On the rare occasions I go to a packed supermarket at the weekend or travel during rush hour I look at the miserable faces around me and think "Oh you poor things.. This is normality for you!"
You really couldn't pay me enough to work office hours.
The thing about public transit and rush hour rings true for me, so I can understand perfectly your point about shift work as well. I don't count now how many times I had to explain that, yes, I take the public transit by choice and you couldn't pay me enough to make me curse and fuss driving my car in traffic twice as long as my regular, stress free commute, where I can either catch up a bit of sleep, read or relax in countless other ways.
I'd rather take the bus (no train, tram or subway available in my city) for twice as long as my car, even if you paid me. But that's not what happens : it's actually faster because of reserved lanes, costs way less because I don't need to pay for parking, gas, normal car wear and reparations, higher insurance premium for increased car use, higher risk of accidents (plain old statistics : the more you use your car, the more chances of having an accident, all other factors taken into account) etc. It's comfortable (since it's an express route, the bus is rarely crowded and I almost always have a seated place, even if I'm at the end of the route, before the bus takes the highway) and a lot less stressful. And since it's an express route, I end up knowing my drivers and the passengers are all regulars, not so many weirdos.
The only means of transport better than that, in my opinion, is walking or cycling, which I do in the summer months : even cheaper, gives me (at least a good part of) my regular exercise and keeps me healthy. It's slightly longer than the bus, but still faster than by car jammed in traffic (I don't live that far away from my workplace).
I used to cycle commute all year round until fairly recently, but traffic here seems to be getting worse and worse and I had one too many really dangerous near misses with impatient fuckwit car drivers. Eventually I decided I wasn't ready to die just yet.
I miss it. #8-(
>:(