World Of Vacations
Weeks ago, I went on a vacation and received exactly what people desperately look so forward to from vacation. Days on
end where they can completely remove all responcibility, and reject their mature existence for a little while. To be
able to forget all your worries and struggles until you have to return to them. It is a very prevolent culture for the
average consumer in this developed world to put such a high priority into their vacation. It is as if they spend their
whole year looking forward to it, aching to run away from their daily toils. I tried not to think of the vacation like
this going into it, going into work the day before getting a full week off. Trying to not think of the work ending as a
relief, because I realize the danger in that, but I gave in. As the clock ticked through the long work day, I was
constantly thinking in my mind, 'just a few more hours and I won't have to deal with this for a while'. That mindset is
unhealthy, as it is accepting defeat and admitting that what you do all day, almost every day, is a responsibility that
you are trying to escape, rather than have been naturally degraded enough to accept your role as a slave (modern
worker). It turns the intention of a vaction as a way to spend time with family or get regulated rest into a toxic
escape from the regular parts of life.
When I left for vacation, I could not help but have these crushing thoughts at the back of my mind, only opposite to the thoughts i'd have before the vacation. I would be shopping around Edmonton with my brother and family and think '3 more days and then it is all over'. Three more days and the fun is over, and the old crushing life is back. I was able to divert myself from these thoughts more easily as I was in a more comfortable environment. As the trip came to an end, the fuse of doom filled thought was getting shorter and shorter. The night I got home, I remember laying in bed, trying to clear my mind as much as possible, trying to make the time go as slow as possible so it would seem longer before I would have to start working again. I'd think about how the time that has passed is now gone and that I would have to start worrying about life once again. It is a dumbing way of self-pity that comes from going into either vacationing wrong, or going into one with the wrong mindset. I say that the next following two weeks of work was very hard for me to do.
Everyday I would wake up and loathe the fact that what I looked so forward to for so long was now gone, the family that I do not get to see often, I do not get to see them again. The problem is that I would build up a tower of expectation of a positive future and idolize it to such a point that I would completely reject how temporary a vacation is. The tower would all collapse in an instant I would return to the real world, making the average work day a dreadful experience. This gross attraction to vacations is the cause of all bad to come from it, financially, emotionally, etc..
The type of vacation you are participating in contributes greatly to how much emotional impracticalities it causes. I went on a vacation once for a week to resort, with nothing on the intinerary the entire time, but sitting around and eating food; returning to work from that was even harder than my recent trip. This is because it reduces your brain to its laziest urges, breaking down your work ethic into that of a teenager. From this the point can be made that when one has things to do to keep them busy, it will help not make the aftermath so bad. For example, going with family or friends to a cottage where you can do all sorts of tasks to help around, cook food, clean, cut fire wood, and more. You could also go on a busy vacation, like one with a packed schedule of sightseeing different things everyday to keep the brain working and busy, without the intention of simply making money, but to learn and enjoy. A vacation I would personally find nice would be a sort of staycation, where you travel somewhere relatively nearby, or stay at home to and work on projects and other hobbies, or to clean and organize your entire house. Within these categories, a camping trip would work great, a lot to do, can fill the free time with activities and you do not have to travel very far or spend much money.
I would personally prefer cheaper vacations over the stereotypical vacations that cost an arm and a leg, travelling to the nicest weathers in the world to a resort for a week. Let us be open with what we consider to be a vacation. Imagine driving to obscure local attractions and making a little long weekend vacation of it. Imagine staying at home for a few days with your kids, fixing things and playing games. Imagine travelling to a lesser known, cheaper part of the world where you can still see a new culture. We must also think of the frequency of our vacationing, and how doing it less, such as one every few years rather than one every year can make it so much more special. The savings over time would be beautiful to add on top. We also have to change our mindset of these vacations, rather than seeing it as a way of escaping our responsibilities, see it as a way of getting closer to family, learning new things or to work towards something that is not just money. A momentary change of environment and routine can help relieve your brain, it does not have to be complete laziness in the Bahamas for a week. Think outside the box. Accept that this is a hard life and that we are stuck in the rat race, learn to embrace the common simple moments beyond that, like eating with family, or playing games with friends.
We don't need a vacation, we just think we want a vacation based on how we are manipulated as consoomer, like how we expect to receive and give presents mindlessly at Christmas. The large majority of humanity through history never went on vacation, but you are entitled to one. Do not struggle just to go on vacation, less is more.
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A Staycation
When I left for vacation, I could not help but have these crushing thoughts at the back of my mind, only opposite to the thoughts i'd have before the vacation. I would be shopping around Edmonton with my brother and family and think '3 more days and then it is all over'. Three more days and the fun is over, and the old crushing life is back. I was able to divert myself from these thoughts more easily as I was in a more comfortable environment. As the trip came to an end, the fuse of doom filled thought was getting shorter and shorter. The night I got home, I remember laying in bed, trying to clear my mind as much as possible, trying to make the time go as slow as possible so it would seem longer before I would have to start working again. I'd think about how the time that has passed is now gone and that I would have to start worrying about life once again. It is a dumbing way of self-pity that comes from going into either vacationing wrong, or going into one with the wrong mindset. I say that the next following two weeks of work was very hard for me to do.
Everyday I would wake up and loathe the fact that what I looked so forward to for so long was now gone, the family that I do not get to see often, I do not get to see them again. The problem is that I would build up a tower of expectation of a positive future and idolize it to such a point that I would completely reject how temporary a vacation is. The tower would all collapse in an instant I would return to the real world, making the average work day a dreadful experience. This gross attraction to vacations is the cause of all bad to come from it, financially, emotionally, etc..
The type of vacation you are participating in contributes greatly to how much emotional impracticalities it causes. I went on a vacation once for a week to resort, with nothing on the intinerary the entire time, but sitting around and eating food; returning to work from that was even harder than my recent trip. This is because it reduces your brain to its laziest urges, breaking down your work ethic into that of a teenager. From this the point can be made that when one has things to do to keep them busy, it will help not make the aftermath so bad. For example, going with family or friends to a cottage where you can do all sorts of tasks to help around, cook food, clean, cut fire wood, and more. You could also go on a busy vacation, like one with a packed schedule of sightseeing different things everyday to keep the brain working and busy, without the intention of simply making money, but to learn and enjoy. A vacation I would personally find nice would be a sort of staycation, where you travel somewhere relatively nearby, or stay at home to and work on projects and other hobbies, or to clean and organize your entire house. Within these categories, a camping trip would work great, a lot to do, can fill the free time with activities and you do not have to travel very far or spend much money.
I would personally prefer cheaper vacations over the stereotypical vacations that cost an arm and a leg, travelling to the nicest weathers in the world to a resort for a week. Let us be open with what we consider to be a vacation. Imagine driving to obscure local attractions and making a little long weekend vacation of it. Imagine staying at home for a few days with your kids, fixing things and playing games. Imagine travelling to a lesser known, cheaper part of the world where you can still see a new culture. We must also think of the frequency of our vacationing, and how doing it less, such as one every few years rather than one every year can make it so much more special. The savings over time would be beautiful to add on top. We also have to change our mindset of these vacations, rather than seeing it as a way of escaping our responsibilities, see it as a way of getting closer to family, learning new things or to work towards something that is not just money. A momentary change of environment and routine can help relieve your brain, it does not have to be complete laziness in the Bahamas for a week. Think outside the box. Accept that this is a hard life and that we are stuck in the rat race, learn to embrace the common simple moments beyond that, like eating with family, or playing games with friends.
We don't need a vacation, we just think we want a vacation based on how we are manipulated as consoomer, like how we expect to receive and give presents mindlessly at Christmas. The large majority of humanity through history never went on vacation, but you are entitled to one. Do not struggle just to go on vacation, less is more.