Time for a Vacation

   It was Wednesday afternoon and I was pretty sure my hair was standing on end. I was midway through my once a week 12 hour shift and it was not going well. People had been coming in all day and my tech and I were struggling to catch up. Prescriptions were pouring in as if someone had turned on a fountain. Added to that were a lot of customers coming in for flu shots.
   I finally got to eat my first meal since breakfast at about 6:30 PM. I didn't want to stop, we were way too far behind for me to take a break, but I was really hungry and knew that if I didn't take the time to eat I would be sorry later. I left behind a pile of work and a note for my boss to let him know that I would be in early to clean up the mess.
   After Toastmasters, I skipped the after meeting social time and went home as fast as I could. I found some work clothes, made a quick dinner and left for work. It took me about two hours, but I finally got caught up.
    The next week was more of the same. I was beginning to think that I should be coming in earlier. I was also giving consideration to coming in on my days off to help out. The problem was that my days off were being filled with tasks that needed to be done before we go on our annual trip to Door County.
   I was really starting to question the wisdom of leaving. I questioned it even more when I got the schedule that showed who was going to be filling in for me. For the first time in a long time, I didn't recognise the name. The name was not familiar to my boss either. I was worried. Who was this guy? was he a new grad? Did he have any experience in retail? Did he know what he was doing?
   I wasn't sure that I wanted some strange guy working in my pharmacy and taking care of my customers. We have really good customers. I didn't want someone who would not take good care of them working in my pharmacy. I wanted to call up scheduling and tell them that I would work and that we would not need the relief.
   This was something that C would never let happen. He looks forward to this vacation all year long. In fact as we are driving home from our usual week, he is planning next year's trip. As much as I wanted to fight him and tell him that this year I could not be spared from the pharmacy, I knew I couldn't do it. The one sure sign that a person needs to take time off is when they think they have to be there all the time.
   This is especially important if you are in the medical field. You have to take some time off and do other things. Have conversations about things other than medical subjects. Eat something and savour it. Wear something other than white.
   Clearly,I had reached the point where I needed some time off.
    It was not going to be an easy process. I had to work every day up until the day we left. One of those days was 12 and a half hours long. The other was close to ten. I wasn't going to be able to pack or do anything else until the night before. It was a little stressful.
   Fortunately for me, C had put most of what I needed where I could find it. I raced home from work and packed and fast as I could. I packed in record time. It wasn't as bad as I thought.
   We went to bed late that night. I woke up early and worried a little more about work. Then my alarm went off. Since we'd be in the car all day I got on my workout gear and went downstairs. 20 minutes on the elliptical and I had no energy to spend worrying. There were cats to feed and a lot of other things to do.
   I got everything done. C packed the car. I stopped worrying and started looking forward to the time off. I had brought books,knitting and needlepoint. I was going to have time to do all three. I hadn't had time to knit in several weeks. Maybe I could finish the washcloth I was working on. Maybe I'd be able to start a new one. I began wondering if we could find any yarn shops in Door County. I could use a set of number 8 double pointed needles.
   Vacation was going to be good........