Rebooting

Yesterday was the last day of the first real summer vacation of my life. I’ve taken some short vacations before but never a real, paid break from work. This is the first time I’ve been working on a 9-5 job (I’ve always favored freelancing) so long that it rewards a paid summer holiday.

Before the vacation I decided I was going to really enjoy it as a break from the daily grind. I swore off all work related things for a month. I shut off social media for the most part. I declined some freelance projects and forwarded them to my designer friends. I kept Adobe Creative Suite unopened the entire time. Did barely check email. It was awesome!

Instead I spent the time backpacking through Westfjords of Iceland with my wife, attending a family reunion, enjoying good music and concerts, playing video game(s), eating good (and bad) food, savoring nature, working out, growing my vegetable garden, watching movies and reading books.

It was a much needed and welcome change of pace and scenery. A break from the Layers Panel and the pixel nudging. An escape from the attention society and the ever increasing amount of inboxes. A kind of a cognitive reboot.

Because of this sabbatical euphoria, I now come back, eager to work on new and old things. I have a number of exciting projects in my plate, both personal and work related. Can’t wait to get it all out there. To ship and ship it good!

August 2nd 2011