ever just know

Lauri

that you need a vacation? I've been feeling it for a while, but the past few weeks have been especially rough- it's been really hard to focus. I dunno what the purpose of this post is, just airing grievances I guess. There's no way I can take a vacation.

Corso

Yes. Same here. Transcendental meditation cross my mind or a good alternative.

Fifthelement

Yes, I know that feeling well. Added to that, I had someplace very specific in mind as to what would be a suitable vacation (whale watching and walks in the rainforest and on the beach)

Thankfully, I just booked a five day getaway today. The best part was that it's 5-4-3 (stay five nights and only pay for three :shock: :P :P :P :P )

Franny

yep....I usually am totally exhausted or start getting really frustrated and annoyed with everything.

Have had 2 getaways in jan/feb so feeling pretty good right now.

Funny I feel so more refreshed from a weeks worth of camping than I do if I stay at a resort etc Go figure!

Jukee

Definately could use one as well but my hubby's been out of work for 10 months now so it's not going to happen. The weekend before the PJ concert in Buffalo (which is on a Monday) we're going to take a mini one the weekend before, can't wait!

polaris_x

it is also nearing the end of winter ... if you live somewhere where it's cold and you haven't gotten much sun ... it's your body telling you to get some ...

decides2dream

polaris_x wrote:

it is also nearing the end of winter ... if you live somewhere where it's cold and you haven't gotten much sun ... it's your body telling you to get some ...

very true!

i don't even necessarily need to go anywhere, just having time off.....works wonders!
thankfully, i have a very generous vacation package.

AmentsChick

DUDE...I am SO there. I'm burnt out. I'm supposed to be walking out the door right now...and instead i'm laying in bed.

Lauri

decides2dream wrote:

polaris_x wrote:

it is also nearing the end of winter ... if you live somewhere where it's cold and you haven't gotten much sun ... it's your body telling you to get some ...

very true!

i don't even necessarily need to go anywhere, just having time off.....works wonders!
thankfully, i have a very generous vacation package.

Yeah we've had a few nice days in March, but always intermittent with some kind of typhoon. Plus by the time I get to the weekend I'm too disorganized to have a bike ride or anything planned.

I get a lot of days off, but I don't have any accrued because last summer I cashed it all out because I needed the money. I could go negative, but I don't have a dime to my name to go anywhere (I have many negative dimes to my name actually). I don't even have a credit card right now. The "staycation" thing sounds terrible to me- I'd just spending it freaking out that I should be doing chores or something...

Oh well I don't know why I'm torturing myself. I don't have enough money for food let alone a vacation, and I've got so many weddings later in the year I need to save both the money and the little off time I have. What I can never understand though, is how everyone I work with seems to go on these extravagant vacations...we don't get paid nearly enough to afford luxuries.

peacegirl

decides2dream wrote:

thankfully, i have a very generous vacation package.

LUCKY YOU...I wish I had more vacation time...I use most of it to go to shows and I'm always calculating the time, etc....but the years I've taken an actual vacation and used a week of my time the rest of the year sucked because I didn't much time left to take off as much as I would have liked and needed

polaris_x

Lauri wrote:

Yeah we've had a few nice days in March, but always intermittent with some kind of typhoon. Plus by the time I get to the weekend I'm too disorganized to have a bike ride or anything planned.

I get a lot of days off, but I don't have any accrued because last summer I cashed it all out because I needed the money. I could go negative, but I don't have a dime to my name to go anywhere (I have many negative dimes to my name actually). I don't even have a credit card right now. The "staycation" thing sounds terrible to me- I'd just spending it freaking out that I should be doing chores or something...

Oh well I don't know why I'm torturing myself. I don't have enough money for food let alone a vacation, and I've got so many weddings later in the year I need to save both the money and the little off time I have.

learn to camp ... best and cheapest vacations you can ever take ...

decides2dream

so if it's impossible....don't torture yourself over it. try to enjoy the time you do have off.....your evenings and weekends. sure, it's not ideal, but if there is nothing else to do about it, well then, it's either choose to make the best of your life situation or choose to be miserable about it. it is amazing, but our reactions to our situations are well within our control, all our choice. may not be the best presently, but i find it's a lot more helpful long-term, to choose to make the best of any given situation. especially since most of us really, are fairly fortunate in our problems. hope you enjoy the spring weather that is coming our way!


oh, and as much as i adore travel...i also love staycations. however, i also don't freak out about what i 'should' be doing. it's my vacation time, so what i should be doing...is whatever i want to be doing. sometimes that IS cleaning/organizing/home projects...other times it's not much of anything....mostly it's a little of both, but it's always restorative.


and hey, there's memorial day weekend right around the corner! even just a 3 day weekend can be blissful, especially if the weather is gorgeous!



peacegirl - you are aboslutely right. i am lucky. i know it.
honestly, i used to have even MORE vacation time as a teacher, now i work in the corporate world. amazingly, i don't miss all that time off. it was very difficult for my husband to get time off when i was, so nowadays i actually enjoy my time more b/c it's not dictated by a school schedule (when everyone wants off to be with their kids) and we can choose time off, together. i get enough to make me happy.

Lauri

polaris_x wrote:

Lauri wrote:

Yeah we've had a few nice days in March, but always intermittent with some kind of typhoon. Plus by the time I get to the weekend I'm too disorganized to have a bike ride or anything planned.

I get a lot of days off, but I don't have any accrued because last summer I cashed it all out because I needed the money. I could go negative, but I don't have a dime to my name to go anywhere (I have many negative dimes to my name actually). I don't even have a credit card right now. The "staycation" thing sounds terrible to me- I'd just spending it freaking out that I should be doing chores or something...

Oh well I don't know why I'm torturing myself. I don't have enough money for food let alone a vacation, and I've got so many weddings later in the year I need to save both the money and the little off time I have.

learn to camp ... best and cheapest vacations you can ever take ...

nah, I used to go camping a bit. I love the hiking part, hate sleeping outdoors. Plus, all I have is a sleeping bag and buying a tent and stuff would be decidedly NOT cheap. On top of that, backpacking alone frightens me. I've day hiked alone, and even then I find myself getting a little nervous, like if something happened, no one would ever know...

polaris_x

Lauri wrote:

nah, I used to go camping a bit. I love the hiking part, hate sleeping outdoors. Plus, all I have is a sleeping bag and buying a tent and stuff would be decidedly NOT cheap. On top of that, backpacking alone frightens me. I've day hiked alone, and even then I find myself getting a little nervous, like if something happened, no one would ever know...

there are outdoors clubs/groups in most places ... people who do this stuff always have lots of extra gear ... where is our resident outdoorsman?

Lauri

decides2dream wrote:

and hey, there's memorial day weekend right around the corner! even just a 3 day weekend can be blissful, especially if the weather is gorgeous!

actually, I don't have memorial day off. Our vacation days, sick days, and holidays are all one in the same. We get a number of days we can take off, including like thanksgiving day and every thing, and we can do whatever we want with them. Thus, I don't have vacation time accrued=I don't have holidays accrued. Anyway, I've never been one to enjoy 3-day weekends. They always depress me because everyone goes away somewhere and I end up spending 3 days in the house watching the History Channel.

Literally, in the past 14 months, I think I've taken off July 4th, thanksgiving, a random friday for a wedding, 2 days for christmas, and then 2 or 3 days at New Years for a wedding, about 5 hours of which was "vacation" for me.

decides2dream

Lauri wrote:

decides2dream wrote:

and hey, there's memorial day weekend right around the corner! even just a 3 day weekend can be blissful, especially if the weather is gorgeous!

actually, I don't have memorial day off. Our vacation days, sick days, and holidays are all one in the same. We get a number of days we can take off, including like thanksgiving day and every thing, and we can do whatever we want with them. Thus, I don't have vacation time accrued=I don't have holidays accrued. Anyway, I've never been one to enjoy 3-day weekends. They always depress me because everyone goes away somewhere and I end up spending 3 days in the house.

ok.
differing perspectives....


happy friday!

redrock

Lauri wrote:

Our vacation days, sick days, and holidays are all one in the same. We get a number of days we can take off, including like thanksgiving day and every thing, and we can do whatever we want with them. .

So, in the US, do you get a certain number of sick days (which you will be paid for) but that you can take even if you're not sick?

I feel I desperately need a holiday but one on my own. We have a couple of trips planned, a week at Easter and a couple of weeks in August but, at the moment, I find holidays away a lot more stressful than staying at home! I think I need a solitary road trip!

chiquimonkey

Lauri wrote:

decides2dream wrote:

and hey, there's memorial day weekend right around the corner! even just a 3 day weekend can be blissful, especially if the weather is gorgeous!

actually, I don't have memorial day off. Our vacation days, sick days, and holidays are all one in the same. We get a number of days we can take off, including like thanksgiving day and every thing, and we can do whatever we want with them. Thus, I don't have vacation time accrued=I don't have holidays accrued. Anyway, I've never been one to enjoy 3-day weekends. They always depress me because everyone goes away somewhere and I end up spending 3 days in the house watching the History Channel.

i love the history channel. i could easily watch that all day!

and i have today off as a holiday from work (cesar chavez day, part of the spring break at campus), i am EXCITED to not have to do a damn thing if i don't want to i love being home happy friday everybody!

decides2dream

redrock wrote:

Lauri wrote:

Our vacation days, sick days, and holidays are all one in the same. We get a number of days we can take off, including like thanksgiving day and every thing, and we can do whatever we want with them. .

So, in the US, do you get a certain number of sick days (which you will be paid for) but that you can take even if you're not sick?

"technically" you are only supposed to use sick leave for illness or medical reasons, including family members.
in regards to HOW many days you get, depends entirely on your employer. some get a set # of days and must use em or lose em, others have a much more open system of no pre-determined # of days, just take what you need when you need em.


chica - you bet!
LOVE relax, do-nothing time - enjoy!



and red - vacations on your own can be soooo awesome! :thumbup:

redrock

Thanks D2D. When I used to live and work in the US I didn't have a pre-determined number of days (but that was soooooooooooooooooooooooo long ago!). It's just that I've heard/read on several occasions americans saying stuff like "I've got sick days coming so I thought I would use them up.", etc.

polaris_x

Lauri wrote:

Literally, in the past 14 months, I think I've taken off July 4th, thanksgiving, a random friday for a wedding, 2 days for christmas, and then 2 or 3 days at New Years for a wedding, about 5 hours of which was "vacation" for me.

good grief ... what are you working for then? ... change it up ... do something ... at the very least ... pick the next nice day and spend 10 minutes doing nothing but having the sun hit you square in the face ... keep your eyes closed tho ...