When it comes to vacations, priorities have to be in order. I don't say that to hurt anyone in the post BUT, as my father-in-law used to say to me, the company is not going to give you a kiss goodnight. I have made my family important and with that decision, work has to be less important. Some would think that by me saying this that I am not a dedicated empoloyee. Ask any of my past or current employer(s). That is far from the case BUT, when it comes time for me to take / need time off, no problem. I shut things down, and head for the door. As a father of 4 I can't let too many days go by or my children change size on me and I miss a whole personality phase.

I have been known to walk away from a very good job offer because they would not give me what I considered to be an adequate amount of vacation. However, having been in the industry for more years than I care to mention, and having the responsibilties of someone who is getting older, I need to have that time in order to take care of family needs. Many of those needs can't be taken care of at night or on the weekends.

As to being completely free when on vacation, well, I'm not sure that is possible in this industry. However, that is why I believe architecting a solid environment is so critical, so that we can go home at night, turn out the lights, forget about work and enjoy. The same with vacation. They are computers after all, they are supposed to work for us, not us work for them. 😉