[decafninja]

Usually that time is "spent" either on:

1. Catching up on lost sleep because I had to wake up early to waste that time on commuting to the office.

2. Being wasted from a tiring day at work and not in any mood to do anything "productive" on transit, which itself further adds to fatigue and exhaustion.

As a bonus, you also get to roll the dice on whether you even get to sit. Whether it's 30 minutes or 90 minutes, holding onto a bar or strap stuffed into a metal container like sardines takes another huge mental and physical toll. Arrive at the office already tired and wasted, and arrive back home even more tired and wasted.

[mym1990]

Yes, there are many people in situations where there is a constant domino effect of negative stressors that prevent being in a 'productive commuting mood'(having a baby for example, disorders, disabilities). But if you're in a perpetual state of exhaustion from mainly your job and 30 minutes on a train is putting you in the ground, I would go on a limb and say you're not just wasting the 22 days, you're wasting a whole lot more than that.

[decafninja]

In my particular case, it's a 45-60 minute bus ride + a 20-30 minute subway ride. Odds are that I'm much more likely to be standing than sitting, so it is definitely not an enjoyable or relaxing experience.

The only way I can avoid it is to leave home much earlier (see my earlier comment about losing sleep because of the commute as it is) and/or leave work much later.

Or move closer to work at the cost of much higher housing expenses for a place that is smaller and older.

Or - something which I'm trying to do - leave for an entirely different metropolitan area. I've had ex-coworkers and friends who've left the Manhattan commuting hellhole for the SFBA and tell me their commutes are a heavenly 15-30 minute relaxing drive now.