“Enjoy Your Vacation”

People keep saying that. “Enjoy your vacation.” I’ve stopped correcting them.

Sue has already commented on all the work going on while we travel. I wanna talk about this whole “if you’re traveling it must be a vacation” mindset.

It’s wrong.

Travel does not equal vacation. And traveling while you work is different from what most people envision regarding traveling for work. We don’t jump on a plane, go somewhere, do some stuff, order a big bag of jetlag, and come home to somebody’s office.

Our work schedule has been just about the same as it is at home, except the days we’re on the road. This 28-day trip, that’s about 9 days, or 1/3 of the time. Yes, that’s some time off, but you may be surprised to learn it’s not a lot more time off than I take anyway. We plan our schedule and goal dates (’cause they ain’t “deadlines” unless something dies) to allow for a very flexible schedule. I take a day off many weeks, for no reason other than I want to. Our exceedingly simple life allows us some financial flexibility, too.

Travel can happen for any reason at all. Or no reason at all. I see someone post that they’re traveling somewhere, and one of the first comments is always “Jealous!”

I wish more people would build a life that allowed the kind of flexibility we have. It’s easier than ever to create a business online, using skills you may already have. When you can work from anywhere there’s internet access, and set your own hours, you get to choose where to work, when to work, and when not to work.

We keep busy, what with volunteer activities, music and other hobbies, family time, taking care of life’s other necessities. A day off usually means a day with no client work. Sometimes, though, it means doing nothing unless I really feel like it. (When you have limited emotional resources, you make different choices from the usual American lifestyle.)

We take vacations, at least once a year. This year, in fact, is our 10th wedding anniversary (December 26th, if you want to mail us a bottle of sparkling apple cider, since Sue can’t drink wine anymore.) We’ll be taking a nice long trip, with no work at all except the joyous conversation about where our life has taken us, and where we want it to lead in 2014.

That will be a vacation.