* * Anonymous Doc

Monday, October 25, 2010

I didn't mean to take such a break from the blog.

But I just spent a week taking an actual-- much-needed, I think-- vacation, and I stayed as far away from the Internet as I could.

Didn't check my work e-mail.

Which has turned out to be a bit of a disaster now that I'm back.

"Fall Performance Reviews" said one e-mail, requesting me to write back with some available dates and times.

"Fall Reviews -- Please Respond"

"Fall Reviews -- You Must Reply"

"Fall Reviews -- IMPORTANT"

"Please call the program director ASAP"

Five e-mails over the course of the week, each more urgent than the last, making me feel like my "fall performance review" will be taking a turn for the worse and they'll say there's an expectation that I should be checking e-mail regularly even while on vacation. Which maybe there should be, but I was hoping that one of the things that makes this career better than some others is that when you're off, you can really be off. People know when they're on call, people know when they have to work. When I get a vacation, I don't want to think about work.

And the dates they gave me for the review are all vacation days too! I certainly don't want to have a performance review over my vacation! It's supposed to be a vacation. An actual vacation.

I was afraid that I'd encounter a medical emergency while I was away and have to act. Or lie and say I wasn't a doctor. Fortunately nothing. A sort-of choking at a breakfast buffet, but the guy figured it out on his own before I needed to intervene.

More once I catch up on sleep. I still have another 4 days off before going back this weekend, and I plan to sleep a lot. And I have a week of e-mail to catch up on.

2 comments:

  1. Glad to hear you're getting a much-needed break. Everyone needs a vacation, and staying off the computer, away from email, was a very good choice. If they didn't tell you it's a working vacation, there's no reason for you to have been checking. Don't apologize for taking care of yourself. Tell them that you've made plans for your vacation (even if your plans consist of nothing more than "staying as far away from thinking about work as possible so I can focus when I return") and won't be available, but you'd be happy to set up a time after you're back to work. They are the ones who screwed up; not you.

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