It's 8 a.m. on a Monday morning. You’ve hit the road ready to take on the week. And there you, in a car that’s not moving. Here’s what to do in this living space, besides calling your mum to listen to her lecture and turning on FM to know about the best mattress in town. Valiantly ignore vehicles around you with these ideas.
Listen in
Podcasts and audiobooks are fast becoming the most preferred commute companions. Podcasts, episodic audio series, offer original content, are readily available and free to download! Audiobooks on the other hand are a good way to catch up on some ‘reading’. While there are plenty of apps to choose from, make sure you download books with a good narrator, who can bring the words to life for you (always preview). Reshmi Chakraborty, 41, a journalist based in Pune, tunes out traffic with podcasts like Serial, Modern Love and Rough Translation. Audible sells digital audiobooks in exchange for subscription credits and lets you return titles if you're not happy with an audiobook. You can also share a book with a friend, rate it and subscribe to the service or buy individual books. Prefer the news? Apps such as The Guardian ‘read’ the news to you.
Steer your brain
Learn another language or do a course while you drive. Haripriya Ranga, 29, a design manager for a consultancy firm in Bengaluru, uses the time to catch up on a couple of chapters for a course she has signed up on Coursera . For someone who has to drive nearly three hours a day, she actually looks forward to it.
Refuel yourself
If you’re spending hours on the road, why not grab your sustenance in the car? Keep a bag of snacks ready for 6 p.m. hunger pangs or, if you want to sleep just a little longer, don’t waste time on your breakfast. Pack it and take it along! Ankur Mehra, for instance, a 33-year-old entrepreneur from Delhi, drives 45 km daily from his home in Dwarka to his factory at Manesar and back. While he always carries his coffee flask in the car, he will pack in a handy breakfast, like a sandwich toast (so the veggies don’t tumble out). You don’t want chutney on your Chanderi! Other dry-food ideas: home-made protein bars, cut fruit, dry fruits, a smoothie. Avoid anything that needs two hands, like yoghurt or porridge.
Un-jam your mind
Being by yourself in the car, might give you the much needed time to gather your thoughts together. If you have a busy day ahead, then you can plan your day. Task management apps like Wunderlist and Google Keep let you conveniently create to-dos with your voice. You’ll be raring to go, as soon as the traffic starts moving! On your way back, think of recording your voice in a diary form.
Rear view the world
Look around. There are all kinds of people sharing the road with you. Imagine what their story might be. Where are they from and where are they going. Not the imaginative kind? Look at the rear-window advice on that car which says, ‘Even dogs don’t bark without reason. Don’t honk!’ or he one that says ‘When I grow up I want to be an Audi.’ Make the most of the traffic jams in your life. You’re not going anywhere soon.
