Summer Bummer

My husband is being forced to burn vacation time this summer. Admittedly, he gets like five weeks of paid vacation a year, and rarely takes more than three weeks, but still. I, on the other hand, do not have any paid vacation time this year, having just started my job last November. Does this mean that I will not take any vacation? Nope, it just means I take it unpaid. Next week I’m heading off to my hometown, to attend a few weddings, host a wedding shower, and connect with my girls from high school. Thursday will be the kids and parents party at a friends home. Between the nine of us, there are four girl children and three boy children. My oldest is the oldest of the group, since I managed to pro-create at age 24. In August, I’m taking a few more days off to go back to the hometown to be in my sister’s wedding. Which means, that this year, I don’t get to go anywhere other than East Coast Massachusetts for vacation. Lovely place, but I grew up there, and would sometimes like to go somewhere else for a change.

Which brings me to the irritation. The husband is not coming with me in June to Massachusetts. But, he is taking the week off. So he’ll be home alone for the week, well, alone with the cat. Now, he’s trying to find something to do during that time, maybe a trip to California, Colorado, or New Mexico. One of the surrounding states that are easily accessible. Then, because he’s sometimes not my favorite person, he’s taking two weeks off in July. But, is considering taking a trip to Ireland, alone, during one of those weeks (the other week, he’s going to Massachusetts for a Red Sox game, and to pick our oldest up so she doesn’t miss too much school). So, I’m kind of pissed. Because this is the first summer in a long time that I am not pregnant, and we don’t have an infant. So the month of July is a child free month. If he does follow through with this ill-thought-out plan, he’ll be taking the only time we have together this year without kids, and going out of the country. And, more importantly, he can’t understand why I’m mad about it. I don’t have any vacation time, it’s not like I can go with him. Last summer, he took off for ten days and did an East Coast Baseball trip. I countered with a girls-only trip to Chicago. This year, our only vacation together will be my sister’s wedding, and that’s pretty much a working vacation for me. There’s no free time in there. I’m just hoping he doesn’t get his act together and get his passport, because that would solve all problems.