[PilotMan]

So commuting is a big part of this job sometimes. Many times you'll have the luxury of being able to live where you work. Like the 9.5 years in my first job and the reason that I ended up in Northern Kentucky. Many times you just don't have that option. With our kids the ages they are and our finances where they are we are content to sit tight and let me fly back and forth to go to work. It can really cut short your time at home and the extra expense is always there.

As a commuter my options are basically to get hotel rooms or have what's called a "crash pad." Crash pads are notorious and can range from really nice to really a dump. You can have your own room and bed, or you can share a room with 6-10 other guys. Sometimes you have the same bed that you can call your own. Other times you pick your bed on a first come first served option called "hot bunking."

In my base of Newark, a hotel room will run you right around $100. My last crash pad was $225, the one I'm in now runs me $185. You can see it doesn't take that much for a crash pad to make the most sense money wise if you need it.

My current pad just so happens to be in a hotel anyway. A few rooms are set up here with 6-8 beds (3-4 bunks) but the most guys that have been here that I've seen so far is 4. It's a hot bunk set up, but housekeeping does a nice job of keeping it clean and the sheets fresh.

Today I had to leave home at 300p so I could catch a flight to Newark to be able to start a trip tomorrow morning. Count that as 16 hours away from home before I even start work. Let the journey begin.