h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I'm moving office. My company has decided that the complex we're in, which was built between 1940 and 1985, is costing a lot to heat and maintain. They'll save money by demolishing it and starting again. So 2,000 of us are being moved to a new office in an out-of-the-way place for the next 4 years.

At the moment it takes me 50 minutes to get to work. I think it will take an extra 30 to the new location. That'll be more than two and a half hours a day commuting. Still, that will include about 2 hours of walking which will be good for me.

I could drive and get there in far less time, but I wouldn't get any exercise at all then. I could also cycle which would be too much exercise in too short a time. I haven't cycled for about 30 years.

Next year when the cross-city tram is finished, I'll be able to reduce the walking time a bit.

I've been 30 years working in this building, except for one year in a building a hundred yards down the road. I've kind of got used to it.

I see from an e-mail this morning that only a thousand of us are moving to the new office. The others will be accommodated in various smaller offices around the city.

Your commute is still a lot quicker than mine (2h door-to-door), but that's a lot of walking! I get my exercise by power-walking between transport links.

Would you rather have stayed in the city?

Even though I've been only 15 minutes from the main shopping areas of Dublin for the last 30 years, I don't tend to do much shopping. So it won't make a huge difference to me.

Time to shut down my computer now. It should be waiting for me on Monday.

I can imagine you've got used to your building after all this time - an end of an era...

In contrast, I have been in work for 7 years, and have never spent more than 2 years in one building... For the first 4 years, I didn't even spend more than 1 year in one building...

I remember once when my employer decided to expand the office. They built a new one on a vacant plot next door, then built a weird walkway between the 2 buildings, over a busy road, connecting the 4th floor on each side, for no apparent reason.

When they subsequently sold the original building I decided to forgo the tea-chest and Pickfords routine. I loaded my computer (a big whirry unit in those days) on to my comfy Herman Miller chair, took the lift to the 4th floor and wheeled it into the new place. Despite the removals company only having to take the stuff across the road, they managed to lose or misplace most of it, and on Monday morning I was the only one working, and the only one with a comfy chair.

The employer also had to remove the walkway between the buildings. Because of its location, it cost them over £1m to do so.

I spent the first 8 years out of the 9 I've been here in the Uni's second-oldest building and now I'm in the oldest. Not sure how long the cracks in the walls have been here for, though. It was great fun yesterday listening to the windows rattle and the wind howl all day. Howl! Howl!

<BB<

I forgot there's also a part of our building dating from 1800. It will be preserved.

Hey, Bluebottle, this would make a great group Guide Entry!

Great idea! I look forward to seeing how you're getting on with that on Monday.

<BB<

Buzzard. Only you can organise group Entries.

Maybe you can walk part of the way and take public transit the rest of the way?

Yes that's the plan. But the tram only goes part of the way. The bus goes the whole way but I think is very slow.

You'll work it out.

Cycling doesn't have to be sweaty. I generally feel less effort has gone into a cycle than a walk.

I'm going to try:

- walking + tram
- cycling + tram
- bus
- car

I did the first of these this morning, and it took me 90 minutes, so that would be 3 hours commuting each day, which is quite a lot. But it does include all my daily exercise in it.

The car would be the fastest if I leave home very early in the morning. I could probably do the journey is 30 minutes each way, but there would be no exercise at all so I'd have to do that some other time in the day.

Take care on the bike. If you've not ridden for 30 years, it's a bit of a step up to rush-hour cycling.

Could another option be bus in the morning, and tram + walking after work?

I used to drive to work and walk home, but I gave it up when I ran out of money and the office car park filled up.