My schedule takes me to work around the same time at mid-day. Depending on the day, I leave work at 6 or 7pm. My schedule is a complete luxury. I'm glad that I miss rush-hour in each direction.
That said, there are times I have to ride in rush hour on my days off. Those days I have the same experience bhop does. I'm never slower than car traffic. I'm either the same speed or faster.
I echo the routing suggestions above. It took me a couple of years before my first thoughts in routing weren't the major arterials. Traffic design subtly guides our behavior to use collectors and arterials preferentially. It takes observation and practice to go against it.
Finally, There are tons of skills and techniques you can use to work cooperatively with other traffic. In book form, I like
Art of Cycling by Robert Hurst. It focuses on urban riding skills, mixing and blending with traffic, rather than fighting it. Sort of the Zen of urban cycling,
Online, the folks at
CommuteOrlando have several resources.
Smart Moves: You Lead the Dance is a good jumping off point. There's a companion video too,
Bicycling in traffic is a dance you lead.
Where I ride, there's seldom a need to actively avoid cycling in traffic or rush-hour, especially when after developing good traffic skills. It may be different in Tally, but I'm sure that much of any problem can be fixed by changing your perception and developing traffic skills.