After spending 8 hours a day at work, plus an hour lunch, plus time commuting—we're talking up to 11 hours here for work even if only 8 is spent in the office—I'm exhausted and don't have the energy for much else. I'm not just physically exhausted, either. I'm socially drained: spending 8 hours surrounded by coworkers and being forced to interact with them uses up my entire social budget for the day. Socialization is extremely draining to me, and work forces me to use up that energy on coworkers instead of my friends.

OK, that's a little harsh to my coworkers: I get along with them well enough, and after I or they leave the company I'll probably add some of them on Facebook, but that doesn't change the fact that I have no energy for people I know outside of work.

On the occasion I do have the energy to go out to a bar or something, then I have to choose between socialization and spending time on my hobbies. I can spend a few hours after work at the bar... or I could spend them at home reading more of a novel or hacking at one of my personal projects. Back when I was in college, I had plenty of time to do both. I could hang out with friends and then go and do stuff on my own at home. Now that I'm out of college, I have to choose, and having to choose sucks.