After working from home for months on end, all of a sudden I have to set my alarm earlier, leave my washing for the weekend, and trade my comfy clothes for smart-casual.
Like thousands of other office workers, I have made the great return to the CBD.
Sometimes Ilong for all those days of rolling out of bed at 8.30am and going for a walk along Wellington's Miramar Peninsula before starting work.
But it's easy to remember the grass as being greener.
Working from home full-time is tiring, there's no social stimulation.
I worked from home during the Omicron peak and returned to the building NZME worked out of for all of two weeks before it was deemed an earthquake risk.
Temporary office space was eventually secured for us, but on the first day we were there my flatmate called me to say she had tested positive for Covid-19 and I was back working from home in isolation.
So, I have only been properly back in the city for the past couple of weeks and it's fair to say my normal routine has been a rude awakening.
The mornings are getting darker now that it's winter and one day last week I spent too long in bed before finally getting up.
I had left it too late to squeeze in some exercise, but had too much time to get ready for work, so I cleaned the shower as penance.
Despite the fact I have always caught the 9.18am bus to get to work, I started investigating whether the express bus that left later than my usual one would get me there at the same time.
It doesn't.
While I was working from home, I had an extra two hours in my day from cutting out the commute.
It was handy being able to chuck a load of washing on as I made a cup of tea or other little odd jobs like that, which will now have to wait for the weekend.
It was nice not worrying about what to wear to work, not bothering with make-up, and putting on comfy socks instead of shoes.
I enjoyed the quietness of home when reading large documents or writing this column.
After spending so long by myself, returning to the city has been an adjustment.
Just one single cough from someone on the bus made my hair stand on end and sitting so close to strangers initially felt uncomfortable.
Miramar Peninsula. Photo / Georgina Campbell
But I am enjoying having somewhere to go in the mornings. It gives me a greater sense of purpose.
I like reading the news on my phone while the bus fills with other commuters going off to their respective jobs.
Each time I step off the bus and on to Lambton Quay I breathe in the city through my mask.
There are supermarkets, cafes, offices, my favourite soap shop, and the waterfront - all within a few hundred metres of one another.
Even the buildings feel taller than usual after being surrounded by one and two-storey homes for so long.
I did almost have a heart attack though when an oat milk flat white cost me $6- the price of a coffee has definitely gone up since I was last working in town.
I love seeing my colleagues and the casual conversation that naturally sparks up every now and then as we work.
When I'm working from home, conversation is always deliberate and about something specific that a Zoom meeting or phone call has to be scheduled for.
I missed the spontaneity of being a 20-something working in the city, like when a friend or colleague suggests going for a drink after work and you can wander downtown in 10 minutes to meet them.
My social life definitely took a hit while I working from home and it gave me a window into another life.
A life that revolved around the family home, in the suburbs, when the only people you might see over the course of three days are the people you live with.
I don't like working from home full-time, but as it turns out I don't like working in the office full-time either.
After the initial rush of returning to the CBD, I've decided flexible working arrangements are where the grass is greenest.
The ripple effects of experiences like mine, across thousands of other workers, will permanently change Wellington's CBD.
But we can't simply call for a return to what was, because the tide is too strong on this one.
The hybrid worker has been unleashed.
• Senior Wellington journalist Georgina Campbell's fortnightly column looks closely at issues in the capital.
