Why Do We Do It?

Commute, work at a job that we don't like and wish our lives away by longing for the weekends is what I'm talking about!
 
Well we are stuck in a viscous circle that's why.

Personally I've worked for the vast majority of my life in jobs where I've done it 'for love'.  That is I've had jobs with friends and worked for a smaller than normal wage because I was happy in the work I was doing.  Then 6 years ago I got moved to the head office in London.  Never had I ever dreamed that I would work in London nor had I ever had a desire to do so.  Now 6 years on I have fallen into the trap of living according to my means.  What that means is that the extra money earned by commuting has contributed to the housekeeping so much that we have gradually taken on more than we would normally do.  I won't lie, the extra cash has enabled us to put in central heating that we never had; we have put in double glazing and a new conservatory (all by ourselves) and been able to replace items that had reached the end of its lifespan.

But with the extra income came the extra 'credit limit' that the credit cards were quite happy to increase (without being asked for it) and gradually the items on 'credit' became more.

Now I'll make no excuses we have done it to ourselves - even though a lot of items were nothing more than anyone else already had - there were still those things that could only be had now that the total income had increased.

Now I am left at the age of almost 57 wondering how on earth I am going to get out of this trap.  For that is how it feels and I know there are a lot of people who feel the same.  I work, at a job that I am not particularly happy in, because I just don't know how I can survive without the wage that it brings in.

I feel tired and stressed and I hate the journey to and from the City.

How does one get away from the rat race?  I don't know - I'm still trying to find out.  I spend my evenings and weekends on my laptop doing course work in site design but I do feel that it is probably too late in life now to change my career.  After all it is not a career that I am after now, it is a chance to enjoy the rest of my life.  To relax, to look within, to find out what this thing called life is really all about.

Just how I do all that I do not know but I continue to search.  There has to be an exit sign somewhere!