Planning vacation is one thing. Taking it is quite another. We gear up to wind down and really need at least twice as long to really enjoy the time off.

For many, the summer has already been compressed into less time, with schools back in session for days (and in some cases weeks!) The extended time we have been working from home – nearly exclusively, with longer work days, higher expectations and far more stress – since March 2020 is getting old.

This is from someone who has worked from home, for a very, very long time. It was never like this. For one, no one else was “working” at home with me. They were at school, or watching my kids so that I could work. It was a way to get more done, in less time. No water cooler chats. No commute. No late nights driving home from the city.

I have enjoyed it and wouldn’t trade a single day of it; but we could do better.

We will need to do better. The days keep going, the changes never change and the requirements being placed on every human in every country is excessive.

We start to think things are improving.

But, then they get worse. And then it rains, a tornado touches down. Power outages, transportation delays, flooding. None of this is productive – it won’t alleviate the compounded stress and need to take a break.

We gear up to wind down, only to have to do it all over again. This Labor Day weekend, I hope that you can truly take a break. Even if you do have to work. Talk to friends, hang out with family, sleep in, take a break. The fall and end of the year will be here soon enough. Step back, breathe, relax. We will be better on the other side, and we will make it to the next big vacation. I am sure of it. Make it happen, and book it soon.

~ Dawn aka Hat Girl