Found out today, while scheduling PTO for the holidays, that I am currently at my limit for saving up my Paid Time Off. I’m unable to accrue any more free time-money. 280 hours, max. That’s 7 fucking business-weeks. What even am I doing with my life?
In “Star Trek: Insurrection”, Captain Picard mentioned he had 6 months shore leave saved up and that he’d like to visit the planet again. I’m not near that level of bank, but if not for the cap I’d start calling myself Jean Luc, because my dedication(?) to the job is just that selfless(?) and I’d have all that company liability owed to me. At my current rate I’m accruing almost 8 hours of PTO every 2-week pay period. At 26 pay periods per year, that’s just over 25 days; 5 weeks.
I am doing this wrong.
The last time I took a long vacation was exactly this week in 2023 to go visit friends in Seattle. Since then, I’ve taken only 1, maaaybe 2 days off at a stretch to go visit family back in Arkansas. But that’s penny-ante bullshit. That’s not a vacation. That’s work. I need a real vacation. I need real time off, to remember why I’m fucking doing any of this. To enjoy my stupid life. No fucking wonder I’m burned the fuck out.
I don’t have to travel; I can have a staycation (ugh), but that doesn’t feel right. I need to be out there, not in my dumb little life with my dumb little patterns. The burden of planning and booking anything keeps me from bothering. But that’s not right. Definitely not right.
Now that I have a coworker who can read a wiki, the lights will stay on while I’m out. So to hell with it, I’m taking Fridays off for the rest of the year, probably. At least until the holidays.
Or whatever.