Driving for Dollars

I HATE DRIVING! For me it is the worst part of freelancing. We used to average about 25,000 miles a year on one car and maybe 15,000 on the other, which isn’t as bad as in some cities, but the hours spent in the car make up for those few miles. Our major highway heading west out of Philadelphia (the one you have to take to get to the PA turnpike) is a 20 mile stretch of road that can take up to an hour and a half to cover. As of late we have been putting less miles on our cars, some of this is due to working a bit more right in Philadelphia and some due to the fact that we are careful how much out of town driving we are willing to do. My husband and I have sort of made the decision that if one person is doing a regional orchestra, the other will not go play different out of town job. Not only because of travel costs but also due to babysitting costs.

Since my husband is a cellist and we have two kids we did what we said we would never do: we bough a mini van a few years ago. At $65 a tank……need I say more. Our other car is a Prius which helps with the price of gas but limits carpool options since the cello takes up half the car.

I find that I am now turning down jobs that are far away if I don’t think I will have someone to carpool with. I am terrified of driving while fatigued and just the idea of it is enough to say no to certain jobs. In the past 20 years I know of at least 3 fatal accidents involving freelance musicians from this area. Obviously many non-fatal car accidents as well. I totaled a car about 15 years ago on the PA Turnpike when I hit a deer on the way home from a gig.

On a lighter note, many of my musician friends are what I refer to as “carpool buddies.” These are friends who I don’t necessarily socialize with outside of work, but whose company I look forward to and enjoy. Friends to drive and dine with on the breaks. It’s funny how much you learn about people during all those carpool hours. If there is one nice part about driving for dollars, I would have to say it’s the company!