Well, in two weeks I start a new job! It is a job that I have been wanting for probably 20 years. I will be doing what I do best, writing and editing, for a well-known law firm here in the Detroit area. The lawyer that I interviewed with was really impressed with the writing test that I did, so much so that the HR rep called me about two hours later to offer me the job.
Great! However, this means that for the next six months or so, I will not have any vacation time. It’s not like I’ve been able to take any time off for the past two or three years anyway because of COVID. Yeah, I was laid off for nearly a year, but I couldn’t go anywhere. Festivals were cancelled, and no hotels were open if I wanted to travel. The only time that I had off was two weeks in October when I actually had COVID, and I spent 20 hours each day sleeping.
So this summer, I will be missing some festivals that I planned on attending. The Milan Bluegrass Festival this year is a five-day event, and I am hoping that I can at least hit the Saturday shows. I also hope that I can hit the Hillsdale Old Time Fiddlers Convention in mid August for that Saturday. However, that is about it, most likely will be until after Christmas.
Bittersweet indeed. However, I have gotten used to not having vacation time or any time to myself, for that matter. Caring for my 89-year-old mother is a full-time job in itself. I get very little help from my sibling, who is retired and is always on vacation himself. I have stated previously that I am attempting to sell my house and move back to mom’s so that I can take better care of her. I have had very little time to even clean that place up. I still have lots of music equipment to get rid of.
I know that I will never retire, I will most likely work until I am in the grave. However, I would like at least a few days to myself once in a while. My last “vacation” was September 2019, and that was volunteer work at the AmericanaFest. Since then, any day off I have had has been used to do car repairs, doctor’s visits or take mom to her doctor. I just means that I have to look way ahead for restful opportunities and plan accordingly.
As an aside, I appreciate the recent rise in hits both at the Luegra blog site as well as my YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0ID9z7AR8-0WWGDM-TrsIA). Your checking in and comments are greatly appreciated.
Chew on it and comment.
Luegra 