As I write this I sit stranded in Houston. My daughter has taken the rest of the family out to see the town for a bit, but, alas, I've been left behind due to lack of room in her car. After all, I've been here before and they haven't. It gives me some time to catch up with things.
If the Blogging from A to Z April event put me behind, being on vacation has done so considerably. My AOL email box now hovers in the 2600 range and G-mail threatens to pass 300. And minimal computer access has made visiting your blogs very difficult. I've been checking up on my comments and little else. My time alone now will allow me to prepare this brief post and then it will be back family festivities. When this post appears on Wednesday I should theoretically be home and back to "normal" whatever that will mean.
It's kind of weird. We work to save up the money to take a nice vacation and then after it's all over we have all kinds of work to catch up on that has piled up during vacation. Does it ever seem to you like going back to normal everyday life is like taking a vacation from vacations?
Yeah, that's just me thinking again. Maybe I need to take a vacation from that as well.
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I think you're right! Holidays are exhausting for all sorts of reasons . . .
ReplyDeleteUgh, 3000 messages. I think I'd be tempted to have some sort of 'massive tech failure' (wink wink) and just delete everything and start over. You'll def need a week to recover.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely! Not only are there masses of emails to catch up on, but regular mail, overlooked bills (yuk) washing and restocking the pantry and frig. I'm looking forward to my forthcoming holiday with mixed feelings.Sue
ReplyDeleteHave you been affected by the wild weather down there?
ReplyDeleteA vacation from the vacation? And you really need to clear out that inbox...
ReplyDeleteOh, I feel your pain about your mailboxes. :( Enjoy your last moments of vacation - the mail will wait. When you get home just chip away at it slowly.
ReplyDeleteIf going on vacation leaves you stressed out about what you've left behind it is no vacation. The doctor recommends a week off from blogging with no cheating and no trying to catch up when you return. lol like THAT'S going to happen
ReplyDeleteWe haven't taken a vacation in a couple years. Its been a challenging time. But we'll do something nice this summer, probably a series of three and four day trips around the southland. Safe travels to you, my friend.
ReplyDeleteI am now retired, but when I was working, that was always a problem. I worked like a dog before I left on vacation ... making sure I wasn't leaving a back log, and then on returning I worked like a dog to get caught back up.
ReplyDeleteI discovered late in the game, the only way I could relax on vacation was to take 2 weeks at a time. It took me about 3 days to relax into the vacation and then I started thinking about how it was ending and I needed to go back to work - so 2 weeks was the fix.
well, they could've at least put you in the trunk :)))
ReplyDeleteReminds me of "just checking on the condition of my condition..."
ReplyDeleteany time I vacation it takes me a week to get back to "normal" think next time I might sit on my arse and let vacation come to me
ReplyDeleteHi Arlee .. any time off the bandwagon and it's extra time somewhere else .. such is life. Just hope you had a wonderful holiday though and enjoyed seeing family and friends - sounded like you were going to ... cheers Hilary
ReplyDeleteJab-- It always feels so good when I get back to my own house and my own bed.
ReplyDeleteLi-- I've thought about just deleting but I really don't want to miss out on some emails that deserve attention. I know there are some good ones that I've saved and want to act upon.
Sue-- Arghh! Why'd you have to remind me about the bills. And you had a request for me to email you--I've not forgotten and will be getting to you.
Andrew -- We didn't see any rain where we were even though it had been predicted.
Alex -- Tell me about it! And I still want to get thru our A to Z list and the Reflections list.
Paula -- I had the same thing happen last year and I guess I'll work it out the same way I did then.
MybabyJohn -- That sounds good, but I feel so much responsibility for my blogging activity. I'm going to try to follow through on that.
Stephen -- You need to take a little vacation, brother. But I know how it is. If it weren't for wanting to visit with family and all I would be vacationing just for the heck of it either.
RK-- Sounds like you know what I'm talking about.
Dez -- Please not! I'm claustrophobic.
Gregg-- Hard to know where one thing ends and the other begins isn't it.
Baygirl -- I try to live as though my whole life is a vacation. It's the travel that can get to me sometimes--especially if I'm flying.
Lee
Hilary -- Some of the time was fun and some was merely obligatory, but it was all good. And it's not over yet.
ReplyDeleteLee
Stranded in Houston--maybe you can write a short story about it!
ReplyDeleteI hear you, Lee! I got behind and then had a work conference last week. Between prep for that and then being gone, I feel like I haven't been caught up since March! You will get there, though! I figure with the blogging, we can't catch up, but you can sort of start fresh and stay caught from there.
ReplyDelete3,000 e-mails. I couldn't cope with that. Would drive me craaaazy.
ReplyDeleteLisa from Nadir -- I'd have to make up a story. My real Houston story would be pretty boring.
ReplyDeleteHart -- You're right. It's so easy to quickly get behind. There isn't enough time in the day to catch up with all of the blogs. I'll just jump back on the merry-go-round and get used to the ride again.
Juliet -- 3000 emails is a lot, but I guess maybe it's better than none at all.
Lee
I know EXACTLY how you feel Lee.
ReplyDeleteAfter ten weeks in Florida, I came back to the cold, damp weather of Chicago feeling overwhelmed and getting things back to "normal."
I've been home two weeks and I still feel out of sorts.
Enjoy the rest of you time with your family. It's a wonderful thing to have family....
Since you were/are on vacation I assume you have a job. If you do have a job how will you find time to do it if you answer 3000 emails?
ReplyDeleteHow much time do you spend on the computer anyway?
I am not being rude here...I just cannot imagine how you do life with so much computer stuff going on.
Lee I think you are spot on about vacations. Can you imagine that in two weeks I am going on a dream vacation with my wife to Fiji and I have already thought about the aftermath when I get back...that is just plain sick!
ReplyDeleteI hadn't been in my AOL account is months and when I last visited there were over 4000 messages. How stupid are we?
Hope all goes well once you're home. :)
ReplyDeleteI know the feeling that you've rushed everything in your day to day life to take time off so you can fill up your "vacation" days and return from your "vacation" feeling just as tired as you left. Not to mention getting yourself organized for your "normal life" as you mentioned. So in recent years I've become a huge fan of stay-cations, and I get to enjoy the apartment and the furniture in it that I've spent so much money on.
ReplyDeleteLike good deeds, no good vacation goes unpunished. I always try to plan a few recovery days ... of course, now it's been a couple of years since we could afford a traveling vacation, the upside is that day trips here and there are much less wearing.
ReplyDeleteYep I'm with you on that! Vacation can be one of the most stressful times, when in reality we are trying to escape the stress! I think our next vacation will be a 10-minute drive down the road to the Kuantan beach!
ReplyDeleteDuncan In Kuantan
Michael - A massive geographic transition can certainly be a shock.
ReplyDeletePatricia -- Valid question to which I am not totally sure I have a truly good solution. I am currently unemployed, but searching. My vacation was mainly a change or respite from my normal daily life. Most of the emails will probably not get any direct answer, but I want to screen them all to be fair to those who may be looking for my answer. I spend too much time on the computer, but I do allow for other things in order to achieve balance.
Chuck -- A wonderful vacation can lead to such a let down afterward. That reminds me, I probably should check my Yahoo email account to see what's there.
Kathi --I've come home twice in the past week and now getting ready to leave tomorrow. What next?
Cap-- I love staycations and that would be a preference if my family didn't live all over the country. Consequently, when they or we travel it's mostly to see each other.
Cathy -- We always try to allow a day or two at home before going back to work in order to get things reorganized and just rest a bit.
Duncan -- Those short jaunts are not bad at all--short getaways without the hassle of travel.
Lee
Hey Lee..it seems that way to me too sometimes! That getting back to 'normal' is a vaction from vactions! Still, it is good to get away..things get stale if you're always looking at the same walls, for years and years..hey, do you know anything about the problems that some of us are having with Blogger? Like, not being able to sign out? And not being able to leave comments? I can only comment if someone has the comment pop-out box like you have...otherwise I'm out of luck as far as commenting goes..if you have any advice I'd be so grateful! Thanks Lee, and good luck catching up with your mail!! Sorry I've added to it...looking forward to getting back to 'normal' lol! Have a great day!
ReplyDeleteSounds like you were still able to enjoy your vacation with your family even though you were so overwhelmed. I agree with the staycation suggestion until you get back into the swing of things. Considering that you went atleast a month with little to no rest, I think most people will understand if it takes you a while to get back to them. Julie
ReplyDeleteNo, I'm with you. Seems that the work that surrounds a vacation should warrant another vacation. However, I will still lobby for a vacation whenever we can manage it. :)
ReplyDelete