Return to Office. What this means today is, set your alarm, brave the commute (more than likely into a major city or within its subway systems[1]), go to the o

Return to Office. What this means today is, set your alarm, brave the commute (more than likely into a major city or within its subway systems[1]), go to the office. Enjoy the bright new white new LED lights (the latest trend), a temperature you cannot control (too cold, too hot, better bring the right clothing for it). Noise levels, interruptions. All to jump on a Zoom call at 9am with folks in other remote offices. But middle-managers should come in, for collaboration, we're told, and to mentor junior staff, right? Bad news for you - 50%+ of your work week is in meetings and, you guessed it, on Zoom with headphones, where you'll blabber out loud next to your engineering colleagues, everyone with headphones on. But, we're told, if you don't want a 45 minute commute, you should move closer to the office. Bad news, there: if you want to actually own your home, you're facing a record affordability crisis (in the United States and as far as I can tell, in major European cities like London, Paris, Lisbon, etc. as well). And rents are through the roof, if you want to live near the office. And if your office is a city environment like New York, Paris, etc., and you want to live near it, then you should enjoy living in an apartment with people above, below and on the sides, playing music or doing whatever noise they want at any point. If you're not neurotypical, and find the sounds of other people stressful (apartments and office), then tough bananas, your dreams of working remote from a quiet, comfortable, affordable environment in nature are shot, because the brass decided we "collaborate better" in the office environment. Personally speaking, I actually enjoyed coming into the office during Covid because the office was empty, it was lonely at home, and there was no one on the commute. And then I enjoyed coming in a few times a week when they brought that back, because I do think there's value in it. Now, the company has decided we must all come in, suddenly, in a few weeks. And of course I'm infuriated and ready to move on this company I've been at for years. Is it any wonder that people gamble in options and crypto to try to 'get rich quick' when the working environment can deteriorate so rapidly, when the housing costs can deteriorate so rapidly? I think there's something to the idea that these types of get-rich-quick dreams are the lottery ticket equivalents of the blue collar workers. 1- No we're not all privileged enough distance-wise or weather-wise or safety-wise or fitness-wise to bike everywhere, guys.