Two - Just Another Day

There was nothing unusual about this particular Sunday but now I'm on sabbatical and have to write about it. Have to! It's da roolz!

Took the dogs for walkies!


Found a ritual sacrifice ring at the high school!


Admired my father's collection!


Took my son to the airport!

One - It Starts

Sabbatical or a sabbatical (from Latin sabbaticus, from Greek sabbatikos, from Hebrew shabbat, i.e., Sabbath, literally a "ceasing") is a rest from work, or a hiatus, often lasting from two months to a year ... -- (Wikipedia entry as of 27 Feb 2010)

From the (badly written) employee handbook:

A sabbatical is the opportunity for [an employee] to enjoy an extended period of time away from work to rejuvenate. The goal is to return to [work] revitalized with fresh ideas and new perspectives ...

A sabbatical is distinctly different from a vacation. It is not a benefit earned for past service, but an incentive for continued service. A sabbatical is eight weeks (56 calendar days) in length, must be taken at one time, and cannot be split ...

[Employees] in the continental U.S. and Canadian employees who have worked a full seven years of eligible employment within the U.S. or Canada and who plan to return to work [afterwards] are eligible to take a sabbatical.

That "distinctly different" annoys me. How about "distinct"? Sheesh.

Anyway, it started today! Yay! Eight weeks off! No emails, deadlines, experiments, meetings, actions required, tech docs to edit, or unwritten corporate behavioral rules to stress over for eight times seven plus two equals fifty eight days! Yay again!

So what did I do this Day Number One? Took the truck in for a nine hundred dollar brake job and spent the afternoon at the office.