ON THE ROAD AGAIN: DISTANCE BETWEEN WORK AND HOME FORCES SOME TO COMMUTE LONG-DISTANCE

Dale Haskell loves living with his wife, Marsha, in St. Louis. He also loves his job in Cape Girardeau. So, to enjoy the best of both worlds, he makes the two-hour commute almost every day.

The Haskells grew up in Cape Girardeau, and when they got married they planned to stay here. After years of working and living in Cape Girardeau, Marsha was relocated to St.Louis, so the family moved to St. Louis. But Dale wasn't about to give up his job as an English professor at Southeast Missouri State University just because he moved 120 miles away.

It has been 11 years since his wife's career move to St. Louis, and Dale wouldn't have done anything differently. Even though he drives 35,000 miles a year just to get to and from work, and although he spends a small fortune in gas, it is all worth it to him.

"Sometimes you have to make sacrifices to get what you really want," Haskell said. "This is what I really want. The distance is my sacrifice."

Haskell is one of a growing number of people whose work life and home life are geographically separated. He is a long-distance commuter, and there are many more like him.

Eugene Mitchell is an emergency room doctor at St. Francis Medical Center, but he also lives in St. Louis. After touring several emergency rooms around the state five years ago, Mitchell decided he liked it here best; he has been working here ever since.

"I have been considering moving to Cape for some time now," said Mitchell. "I like the hospitals here and the medical staffs are excellent. But I grew up in St. Louis and it's hard to leave."

Mitchell works the 8 a.m.-to-8 p.m. shift four nights a week. After a long, 12 hours in the emergency room, he welcomes the drive home.

"The drive home is a good way to unwind," Mitchell said.

Other people commute a bit closer to home. For instance, Pat Johnson, a life-skills teacher at Cape Central High School, commutes every day from Advance. She has to wake up at 5:15 every morning to make it to Cape Girardeau in time for her first class.

Johnson commutes because she grew up in Advance and has lived there all her life. When she got the job at Central seven years ago, her husband already had established a farm near Advance.

"I think it's worth the drive to be able to live at my home and work in Cape," Johnson said. "I do worry about the wear and tear on the vehicle, though."

Johnson also worries about the things she might miss during her drive.

"I am seriously considering a car phone because I always seem to remember things along the way," Johnson said. "Then I have to stop and pull over to make the call because it can't wait until I get to work."

As the cost of a college education rises, some students find it cheaper to live at home and commute to Southeast Missouri State University.

Jana Whitesides spent most of last year driving back and forth between Charleston and Cape Girardeau. It was less expensive for her to live with her parents than to pay for a room on campus. But the constant driving really took a lot of valuable study time. Finally she decided it might be worth it to move to campus.

"I got tired of driving back and forth every day and especially late at night, so I felt like I needed to make the change," Whitesides said. "It makes things a lot easier for me now."

The reasons for commuting may be involved, but one thing is the same for everyone who commutes: high gas bills.

"It's getting really expensive to keep spending $20 a trip on gas," Mitchell said.

Haskell tries to minimize the cost by spending one or two nights a week in Cape Girardeau with his mother-in-law.

Johnson tries to carpool with Pam Richmond, another Cape Central teacher who lives in Advance.

Most commuters, especially those who commute really long distances, hope they don't have to do it forever. But they are willing to do it if it means balancing their home life with their work life. Even if work and home are never geographically close again, that doesn't keep them from wishful thinking.

"A good train line would be wonderful," said Haskell.

"Cheaper gas prices would make my life a whole lot easier," said Mitchell.