Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by grayn8 on February 23, 2013 at 6:03pm

2 hours in a car for let's say a 5 day work week means 10 hours of elevated commuter car stress. My hamstrings and brain would go mad. With biking, you're getting your exercise, move the blood and elevating your mood. Being in a car that long means posture issues, cramping, decreased rationale for eating a whole pizza plus (besides the crazy spike in stationary cortisol production) gasoline cost for 10 hours a week and auto insurance. That kinda stress could lead to resentment and fatigue that's detrimental to a happy and healthy.

Permalink Reply by ilter on February 23, 2013 at 6:11pm

Sorry, I don`t know how I can possibly help you.

Edit: well, this might be useful. Pick one from each line & form sentences:

do you/can you

love/find

another/ your

girlfriend/job

?

Permalink Reply by MagMileMarauder on February 23, 2013 at 6:11pm

The total daily commute would be between 3 to 4 hours or 185 miles (downtown to downtown round trip) , assuming you work M-F. That's a lot of commuting! The answer would be obvious to me, so unless you have a job lined up over there, I'd say "Hellz Naw":)

So let's calculate: 5 x 185 = 925 miles/week (925 miles / 30 mpg = 31 gallons of fuel x $5/gal = $150/ week or $600/month in gas alone x 12 = $7200/year)

assuming a work year is 48 weeks = 48 x 925 = 44400 miles/year

Your mechanic(s) will love you!

Permalink Reply by Jared on February 23, 2013 at 6:32pm

There is Amtrak service between the two downtowns but its $24 each way and close to two hours just on the train.

Permalink Reply by MagMileMarauder on February 23, 2013 at 6:37pm

I thought about recommending the Metra, but it would probably require some form of motorized transport since Milwaukee is about 35 miles from Kenosha's Metra station. And yeah, the Amtrak isn't cheap unless your job is paying for it.

James Kelly said:

A friend of mine used to live in Wisconsin and would take the Metra every day to work. It worked out well for him. If your schedule and route fits in with Metra's bike policy, you could still get some miles in while still avoiding driving. Cycle to the train, take care of some work or reading or whatever for a bit, hop off and ride some more.

Permalink Reply by Mike Keating on February 24, 2013 at 4:36am

Can you find another job in Milwaukee? It's a very underrated city and work/life balance is very good there. Much smaller and accessible than Chicago and still has a great lakefront and parks. 

But the commute to/from Milwaukee by car would be brutal and if traffic is bad 2 hours would be a best case scenario. One idea is have you looked in Kenosha? House prices are low there as are taxes. You could commute via Metra. There is also an Amtrak stop in Sturtevant and Milwaukee airport which you should keep in mind. Amtrak would be cheaper than gas/parking and you can work/read/sleep on the train.

Permalink Reply by grayn8 on February 24, 2013 at 4:45am

Dang. Northbrook. I guess the compromise towns would be Waukegan/gurnee up to Kenosha. Then, though, you are just a haul away from fully fleshed out public transit & a bunch of flood zones. Milwaukwee got a lot going for it. Could you drop the job in Northbrook or get a transfer? Commuting time just drains the life out of things. Consider also that there will be at least 5 days a year where the drive/ride will be awful due to weather. A normal 1 hr one way can quickly become a 3 hr with the combo of road construction and bad weather.

Permalink Reply by globalguy on February 24, 2013 at 5:01am

Diego, what do you do? I have a ton of contacts in Milwaukee. Let me know off-thread.

Permalink Reply by Lanterne Rouge on February 24, 2013 at 11:24am

Unless your SO has an awesome job offer there that will move their career in great places, I wouldn't even think about it. It sounds like your career field is specialized in a way, so to me, it would be a no brainer to stay. Of course, I wasn't always so cold and calculated, and women have made me do crazy things before, so I completely understand your dilemma.

Permalink Reply by JMinHP on February 24, 2013 at 11:49am

If you don't mind my asking, what company in Northbrook? I'm a big mechanical watch nerd, though my collection has currently been narrowed down to 4 automatics + a G-shock.  I used to wear my diver pretty much daily but I got worried that the rough pavement and knocks it was taking on my bike commute weren't so good for the watch (hence the G-shock).

I also wonder if those of us with a bike fascination/appreciation are similarly attracted to mechanical watches.

Diego Rael said:

I'm a watchmaker...

Permalink Reply by spencewine on February 24, 2013 at 1:39pm

I think you could solve this dilemma simply by doing the math:

Multiply your estimated gas+ car expenses+ mental/physical health expenses (for sitting in a car for 3+hours a day) for a year and then multiply that by the life of a mortgage.  Now take that cost and add it to what you estimate your mortgage to be in Milwaukee. How does that compare to a mortgage in Chicago? I'm guessing that you will find the cost of living in Chicago+bike commuting is probably cheaper than living in downtown Milwaukee+car commuting to Northbrook, but you'll have to do the calculation yourself. Regardless, if it were me saddled with this dilemma, I probably wouldn't consider moving to Milwaukee unless my SO had a job in waiting that is better than what she already has in Chicago, otherwise you risk moving from one crappy job to another in Milwaukee and in the process you'll get a pretty crappy commute.

Permalink Reply by Wolf-Pup on February 24, 2013 at 1:52pm

I wouldn't unless I could find a job in Milwaukee and if, of course, I cared a lot for the guy. If not I'd just say, "no." And then I'd go celebrate my freedom with a nice long bike ride and a drink with some friends. I can't imagine leaving my family behind either. Meh.

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