Working a 9-5 job, at least for me, is the equivalent to bending over to touch your toes while naked in a prison shower. I’m not talking about any regular prison either. This is one of those prisons on a boat that just sits adrift at sea for years. A prison where you’re trapped between cubicle walls with no real escape, silently wishing you had made better decisions earlier in your life. It is the ultimate submissive maneuver. It’s not fun yet this is the standard for most living, evolved creatures.

Jenny and I both work 9-5ish jobs with the hours varying slightly more for me. Because we’re 12-13 hours apart this means when I’m getting home she’s usually already headed to work. When I’m waking up for work she’s also just settling in for the night.

For anybody, no matter what the time difference, this is a tough arrangement. Even people living on opposite coasts of the country probably find it difficult to make time for each other. Jenny and I do it by sneaking whatever time we can during work hours to chat. She’s much sneakier than I am, especially when it comes to sending me pictures.

I don’t think too many kids grow up writing essays in elementary school about how one day they’d like to work a 9-5 job. Yeah, the hours aren’t bad. But typically if you’re working these hours it means you’re not a quarterback, professional skydiver, or Kardashian. I can’t imagine too many dream jobs occur between 9 in the morning and 5 in the afternoon. For free spirits like Jenny and I who would prefer to write all day long than do anything else, there’s a feeling of being trapped.

The only bonus to living our lives through different hours is we look forward to beekends a lot more. The downside to this is Jenny’s beekend starts when I’m just starting my Friday at work and ends on my Sunday morning. Even though we get a day and a half to share on holidays we only get the same for a weekend together.

Maybe one day Jenny and I will get lucky and we can work whenever we want or the same hours. Better yet, it will be at home too so we don’t have to deal with people.