Vacation Time

I have vacation time scheduled for the last week of December. The week between Christmas and New Year's, to be exact.

Mostly I did that because the only way I could get the day after Christmas off was to take the whole week.

Then I tempted fate. I actually realized how busy life has been and how much busier it will get during the rush of December Madness and pre holiday anxiety triggered behaviors. And I said to myself, "Wow. I can't wait for that week between Christmas and New Years when we can stay home and do absolutely nothing."

And the PTO gods laughed hysterically.

In October, I took one hour the second week of the month. The compliance area held a regional town hall meeting a couple of towns over from the town where I work (which is a few towns over from where I live). The town hall meeting was scheduled for the middle of the day. Unfortunately it was Thursday; which at the time meant dance class and karate. Deliberately scheduled for the same day since they occur near each other, and not so near to wear we live. Which meant that Thursday's schedule was going to go something like this.

Leave Hometown. Drive to WorkTown. Drive from Worktown to Meetingtown. Drive back to WorkTown. Drive from Worktown to Dancetown. Drive from Dancetown to Karatetown, which happens tobe the same town as Meetingtown. Then drive back to Hometown approximatly 12 1/2 hours after leaving Hometown.

So I took an hour of PTO after the meeting and went directly from Meetingtown to Dancetown. It just made sense. And Meetingtown happens to be Famous Outlet Store Town.

Two weeks later, Jupiter was having an extremely moody phase. I arrived to pick her up and she was throwing a giant wango tango; so I decided that she was not going back to after school care for the rest of the week. Wednesday is a half day of school in Hometown, so that was another 2 1/2 hours of PTO. I had scheduled the following Friday off anyway, so that was another 8 hours.

Then came late Sunday night. Jupiter woke up with a sore throat/headache. I let her sleep late in the morning, and when she woke up she said she could go to school. 1.5 hours of PTO.

3 1/2 hours later the school called. Fever.

1.5 hours of PTO became 4 hours.

Had to stay home sick the next day too. 8 more hours.

Now it's a new month. I was going to work all day every day. Until Thanksgiving.

At 11:30 the nurse called. Jupiter's orthdontic appliance had come loose and she couldn't close her mouth all the way. Called the orthodontist. Made an appointment. Left work early again. 1.5 hours.

My vacation is slipping away.

Fortunately I had a whole lot of PTO left over from last year. And I am now well into that time.

Hoping I can save the rest of it.