This past week I did something new. I began working in an office away from home. In more than 20 years of my career, I’ve always had a home office to support at least part of what I do for a living.

I still have my studio in Ferndale. Now my desk is at Synectics Media in Royal Oak.  It has been an interesting adjustment.  It reminds me of when I left home for the first time.

I recall sitting down with my parents to break the news that I found a roommate and apartment and I was going to move out.  I was expecting the usual questions: Do you think you can afford it? Is it too soon? Maybe they’d tell me they weren’t ready  for me to leave.

No, my news was met with smiles, offers of help, and discussions about what color they were going to paint my old room.  I swear I could smell fresh paint in the air before the last box was moved from my room.

My home office is now an empty room.  The talk again is about what color we are going to paint the vacated room.

Not being home means I can’t take a break to tickle my little girl at 11:07am on a Wednesday morning.  The refrigerator is not down the hall on the left and I can’t take a few moments to check on my garden.

I’ve always enjoyed the life and advantages of working from home. The downside?  I always seemed to be working in some form. After the first week, I see the advantages of having the office outside the house.  I’m more focused.

Although I still work here and there from home — the office is not the default place I return to during down time. I spend more time with family and work on creating a better home life.  I realize there is limited time before the next day when I’ll need to be at the office or studio.

The same goes for work. I know my time is limited to get the job done.  I don’t work 9-5.  My time is flexible, but I like to be home by 6 p.m. If I have a lot on my plate, getting to work around 9 a.m. is important.

After the first week of me not being home I asked my wife what she thought about the move. She told me it was kind of nice. I had an instant flashback of the smiles on my parents’ faces. She didn’t say she missed me, but she did admit it was nice to run the household without worry that noise would interfere with a work interview or a podcast.

We might settle on the color blue for the walls.

Rosh