THIS WEEK, I thought I would try something different and talk about not commuting.
A commuting column about not commuting, you ask? That may sound a little too Zen for some of you, but bear with me.
Not commuting is a radical idea to those of us who travel up and down the road day in and day out, month after month, year after year. But thanks to telecommuting, or flexiplace, as it is sometimes called, we can experience just a little of this now.
Telecommuting is, I have become convinced, a wonderful idea, and it's catching on. Our agency started out with a one-day-a-week trial program a few years ago and has just expanded the program from two to three days.
I've been telecommuting for a while, but this past week I learned how it can be more than just a convenience.
When her grandmother died a week ago, my wife immediately headed back home for the funeral. There were issues with the kids' schools and a new dog to take care of, so I got volunteered to stay home and telecommute.
Keep in mind that telecommuting requires several things be in place, especially when there's a herd of small humans underfoot.
The first requirement is a means of communicating with the office, which normally means phones and computers.
The telephone, for those not used to working at home, is a device that rings whenever you are working in the basement and have forgotten the phone two flights up. It rings when your boss senses you are overworked and wishes to pile more on, or when people in other states want to offer you incredible deals on useless junk.
Computers, like phones, are a necessary evil. Ours recently revolted and seized up, just as a major deadline loomed.
After I went through the 14 layers of security to log on, the computer suddenly contracted some kind of tropical disease. The screen froze and turned blue. This was, my whiz kid informed me helpfully, the infamous blue screen.
"Yes, I can see that," I said, "What does it mean?"
"It means your hard drive is corrupted," he answered.
Now, in my simple view of the world, when something is corrupted the thing to do is to uncorrupt it. My attitude about computers and cars is that I want to know only enough about them to make them work when needed.
After failing to exorcise the demons, I did eventually manage to buy a new computer, take it out of the box, and follow the instructions for the first time in my life. And behold! It actually worked, which I think should put me in the running for the Nobel Prize.
In addition to hardware, telecommuters need good organizational skills, meaning having the books, reports, and other sundry instruments of torture you need at hand.
My boss has the uncanny talent of asking about the one obscure document that I forgot at the office the night before. This is only slightly less frustrating than when my wife sends me to the store with a shopping list, which inevitably includes one mystery item that I can never find. I think they both do it for the sport.
Then there is the coveted ability to ignore distractions, especially when the herd stampedes or a crisis erupts over who gets the last Ho-Ho. The ability to concentrate on material that is inherently sleep-inducing while chaos rages all around is a skill I haven't had to practice since living in a college dormitory.
Despite all the distractions, I'm convinced that I am much more productive at home than at work.
My agency was especially gracious to allow me to work at home for most of that week and a half during the time my wife was away. It allowed me to maintain some semblance of order at home and still keep the wheels of government rolling.
There were challenges: the new puppy with a bladder the size of a pea who needs to go out every 7 minutes; catching one's lunch on fire; and the unavoidable chaos that goes along with having three boys at home.
But when all was said and done, telecommuting was a great blessing, allowing me to keep things going at work.
Telecommuting is an idea whose time has come.
Hold on--that's my boss calling.
CHRISTOPHER TRIPP of Spotsylvania County commutes to Rockville, Md. Write him c/o Commuter Crossroads, The Free Lance-Star, 616 Amelia St., Fredericksburg, Va. 22401. Or e-mail newsroom@free lancestar.com.