Vacation is... What?

I've been neglecting this blog once more, with my last posting having been almost 2 weeks ago. Blame it on the Kindle. Or not.

I've just been so engrossed in reading on the Kindle, I've barely glanced at my trusty old paperbacks. Hmm, so far the novelty has not worn off. This has meant though that there has been less time for me to surf the web and write new entries.

I'm counting down the days till our week-long break comes. I sorely miss the summer vacations I used to have while still a student! Those were the days -- waking up leisurely, with nary a care but what to read, or watch on TV, or games to play, or where to go.

My daughter frequently tells me that she wants to "go on vacation", a statement which is a bit unfathomable to me since school is out and she is, already, "on vacation". Maybe it's the generation gap to blame, but when I was a kid, simply not being required to go to school was already cause for celebration. Staying at home and doing whatever it was that kids did those days -- that was something I looked forward to all school-year.

Apparently the standards have now changed. Kids now define "vacation" as going out of town, flying off to Disneyland or going to the beach, or going on road trips to popular, touristy places. Of course these are nothing to turn one's nose up at, but it just makes me wonder: What happened to just enjoying the lazy days at home and having some down-time? Are kids now so used to a fast-paced, technology-driven world that not having these elements in their lives makes them feel bored?

Whatever happened to just being? This is what we want to emphasize to our daughter -- that simply having the time to do what one wants to is already a luxury in itself. One that she should enjoy while she can.