Poll of the Day > There's no point in taking time off... if there's nothing to do on days off.

(+) Yeah! (+)

I don't know how many hours I've lost of vacation time from work in the past few years, but it's probably in the weeks.

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You need to, like, relax man... you'll burnout. Drink some momosa

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Just being able to sleep in makes taking days off worth it to me

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Judgmenl posted...

I don't know how many hours I've lost of vacation time from work in the past few years, but it's probably in the weeks.

Yeah, I'm largely the same way. The hassle of dealing with stuff when I get back just isn't worth it unless I've actually got something to do. I've barely taken any time this year.

Sometimes, its good to just rest. You dont even need to sleep if you dont want to. But resting is good
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Recently, I started building model cars. I built them when I was young because we had a local hobby store that held weekly contests that would give out prizes for the best-looking scale models then it went out of business and I discovered girls and I stopped but I'm getting back into it.

The car I'm working on now is a 1970 Chevy Chevelle SS.

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Do whatever the hell you want, including nothing at all. That's your time.

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Dude dont just stay in your room or in your house your whole life if its gonna make you miserable. Train yourself to be able to try some new things until you find something that makes life seem worth living.

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I like my employer, but there is no way in hell I'm donating my PTO to them. I got a month of parental leave after my daughter was born and I just used that up while still accruing vacation, sick, and personal time. I will use all of that other than my sick time because there's stipulations on sick time, but I can accrue up to 1,600 hours of that so if something goes real wrong I'm not screwed.

you need to go outside

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I take days off just to lay in bed

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DirtBasedSoap posted...

you need to go outside

This. I enjoy countryside walks though so I'm biased.

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Mead posted...

Dude dont just stay in your room or in your house your whole life if its gonna make you miserable. Train yourself to be able to try some new things until you find something that makes life seem worth living.

DirtBasedSoap posted...

you need to go outside

You guys aren't really wrong, though it's obvious he has some severe depression and/or anxiety issues, so like, I get it (though I'm not nearly as bad), it's much easier said than done. But since most of my anxiety is social it's still pretty easy to do a solitary activity like going on a bike ride or something

I used my paid day off this year to sit at home and play video games.

And I was fucking pleased about it.

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LinkPizza posted...

Sometimes, its good to just rest. You dont even need to sleep if you dont want to. But resting is good

This. All the OT was starting to get to me to where i was sleeping later and later and having to rush to get ready for work. Breaking my hand was kind of a god send. Im sleeping less but feeling more refreshed.

Also skyward sword hd released at a perfect time. My hand was healed enough I could start using it again but not enough for work. With my work schedule I woulda never had time for it. Idk how much more left I got to go but it shouldnt be too much more. Doubt I'll finish before returning to work but should be close enough a few couple of 2 hour sessions (what I usually get on workdays) should get me to the end.

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CoorsLight posted...

You guys aren't really wrong, though it's obvious he has some severe depression and/or anxiety issues, so like, I get it (though I'm not nearly as bad), it's much easier said than done. But since most of my anxiety is social it's still pretty easy to do a solitary activity like going on a bike ride or something

There are some parts of my life that are beyond my control that lead to my depression. These parts of my life are not changing any time soon and I am generally jealous of people who get to "live their lives". I use the internet to vent about this. Hasn't changed in the past 12 years.

The other day my mother asked me when the last time I was "happy", and I told her I didn't know. Were there times that I enjoyed myself, or laughed? Sure, but was I legitimately happy? No. I don't know what could truly make me happy anymore. It definitely isn't media, or work, or posting on here, but that's really all I can do with my life.

For the record, as long as I get up before 9am or so, I can sleep for as long as I want. I usually wake up at 5 and fall asleep in my chair due to lack of things to do before work (or wanting to start work at 5am). I work for as long as I want. My job is open ended as long as we meet deadlines. I am truly blessed in that regard.

Then again, I don't think I've ever slept past 8:30 or so in my life. I don't stay up much beyond midnight either so that might put things into perspective. I have a very "regular" schedule I've maintained over the past 15-ish years.

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Work was my only social activity between the time I graduated from college and the pandemic. Before that my only social activities were going to school and working. I never had a social life, or really any opportunity for one.

In reality, I've always had these opportunities, but something has always prevented me from learning to drive. Maybe it's just circular, and because I have no motivation to go outside, I never go outside, thus I have no motivation to go outside.

One of the mantras I have is "why take a day off when the work will still be waiting when you return?". Nobody is there to cover my ass. My job has always been to take care of other people's problems. In reality, it just means I have to make up that day by working more.

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Judgmenl posted...

In reality, I've always had these opportunities, but something has always prevented me from learning to drive. Maybe it's just circular, and because I have no motivation to go outside, I never go outside, thus I have no motivation to go outside

I used to be scared of driving. My mother having a stroke and needing someone to drive her is what finally lit a fire under my ass.

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tbh, I generally don't use my PTO because it's never convenient, but I always have stuff to do.

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Well I don't really know what to tell you man, other than you just gotta do something at some point, unless this is how you are gonna live the rest of your life. It sounds like what you really want might be friendships/relationships which are the things I struggle with too... but I at least go outside and stuff. So the best advice I have is don't necessarily try to fix your issues directly right away, but at least do something that makes you fulfilled and might help your confidence, like doing a little bit of exercise, or even just knocking out some menial task that you've been procrastinating on.

I love working and love my company but you best believe I'm taking my vacation

Also I would suggest some sort of creative hobby, like learning an instrument, painting, sculpting, writing, etc.

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Judgmenl posted...

One of the mantras I have is "why take a day off when the work will still be waiting when you return?". Nobody is there to cover my ass. My job has always been to take care of other people's problems. In reality, it just means I have to make up that day by working more.

The work will go on without out you. You are 100% correct that there will be some digging out from a small pile when you get back, but there is never going to be a time that there won't be work for you to do. Worst case scenario is people around you realize how much they rely on you and then they have to figure out what to do while you have some time off. Everyone deserves a break and it's honestly not that bad coming back to work after a break and digging out from under the pile of stuff that accumulated while you were gone.

hockey7318 posted...

Worst case scenario is people around you realize how much they rely on you and then they have to figure out what to do while you have some time off.

This. If you literally never take days off people are probably realizing they can take advantage of you, whether it's conscious or not. Plus, I hate to say it, but I have a hunch you're inflating your sense of worth because work seems to be the only thing you find solace in. I mean you're also always talking about how incompetent everyone else is... maybe YOU are the problem.

Or you need to get to a less toxic workplace if you genuinely are surrounded by incompetents and don't feel like you are able to take days off.

...or, OR you need to stop working so hard and setting the same expectations out of everyone else. I've never genuinely cared about the mission of any of my jobs, it's just a place I go to collect a paycheck and hope to gain some skills that will let me get a bigger paycheck somewhere else someday. Are you doing some amazing, groundbreaking thing? If not, then dial back the enthusiasm. Of course, I guess when you have nothing else going on in your life, and you don't even spend money... yeah I'm not sure how you're supposed to look at work. But one thing is for sure, these toxic mindsets are a big negative feedback loop and you need to find a way to break the loop somewhere.

CoorsLight posted... If you literally never take days off people are probably realizing they can take advantage of you,

Most people are never going to notice whether or not somebody takes days off.

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2pm to 5pm naps on a day off are crucial. Or whatever, make Jell-O shots. Or eat a fun homemade snack. Or go somewhere. Or catch up on errands ands chores. Or look at a screen. Or buy something you need or dont need. Or make a call. It doesnt matter. Its just you and a day gone by.

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Is the TC taking any of this advice and putting it into action or will the cycle continue?

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