As of 6:00 pm today I am on vacation.  I’m not going anywhere special and I don’t intend to do anything outrageously spectacular.  It is simply that, for the next 9 days I don’t have to do anything I don’t want to do, in particular go to work.  I can sleep late, read the 4 books that have been awaiting my attention for a couple of months, do a sewing or a craft project…anything really.  I don’t remember the last time I took an entire week off from work, but I’m looking forward to this one!

The job I have now is one that does require me to make arrangements for bases to be covered while I’m not there.  I have several people who report to me who may need some kind of support over the next week.  Typically, I don’t worry at all about the folks I supervise, they are talented and quite capable. Even though they are fairly self-sufficient, I feel like they deserve to know that someone is there for them even if I’m away.

I realized as the clocked ticked closer to 6:00 pm, I hadn’t asked any of my colleagues to support my success by acting in my absence.  I picked up the phone 5:40 and dialed Stacy, not sure if she’d still be here at this hour on a Friday.   A wave of relief swept over me as I heard her answer the phone.  She quickly agreed to be my go-to person for the week.  She’ll sign requests and time sheets, and be able to answer any urgent concerns for my staff.

At 5:55 pm I recorded my voicemail greeting to let callers know I would not be  back until November 4th.  I updated the message and then activated the Out of Office Assistant on my email and packed a few folders into my briefcase.  Before I turned off my computer I sent an email to Lucia, Stan, Susan and Jacqui, to let them know that thanks to Stacy, I could take the week off and know they’d have someone go to for help if they needed to while I was on VACATION.  Thanks, Stacy!!

Please enjoy one of my favorite tunes from the ’80s, it’s been in my head all day today!

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