Now, I love Discovery.  They have some great shows on how things are made, how big things are made, how big things are used, and blowing stuff up.  There are shows about sharks, and shows about penguins, and shows about ants.  Between this, and the History channel, there are a lot of really, really interesting programs, and so we parked ourselves in front of the TV and prepared to be immersed in knowledge-building media.

In amongst these informative ones, though, there is an emerging trend of shows that talk — at great length — about one particular means of employment or another.  Fishing.  Truck driving.  Logging.  Actually, there are two shows about logging.

It goes on.

Now, these are interesting professions, and I could certainly be convinced to sit down for a half hour or so to learn more about what goes on in these industries.  But a series?  That goes on for years?  And years?  I struggle with that.

Diggory, however, raised a good point.  In this content-starved environment, we can most likely launch our own show.  We could call it “Extreme Consulting” or “Deadliest Working-at-Home” or “The Incredible Mid-Morning Coffee Making”.  The show would follow all our adventures as we engage in the aforementioned tasks.

Honestly, would it be any worse than watching a guy drive a truck for an hour straight?

photo credit: didbygraham

I, on the other hand, am on the opposite side of the country from my wife, who has been asking me repeatedly when I’ll be returning.  What makes it worse is that we had a glimmer of hope on Friday that my trip would be cut short and I’d be able to return early, only to have those hopes dashed shortly thereafter.

Times like this make me seriously ponder the meaning of work-life balance, and whether making a decent income is worth being separated for significant stretches of our quasi-newlywed lives.

I’m still a full-time teleworker, but I’m now on the road 2-3 days a week.  I am, to my great chagrin, on my way to becoming the very thing of which I set out to be a parody.