Stress and Worry Free Summer Vacations

Can you feel it? Do you notice anything different? I think Country singer Kenny Chesney sums it up best…..

“Summertime is finally here
That old ball park man is back in gear
Out on 49, man I can see the lights
School’s out the nights roll in
Man, just like a long lost friend
You ain’t seen in a while
You can’t help but smile.”

Ah yes, Summertime. I can remember (vaguely because it has been awhile) being in grade school during this time of the year and listening to friends as we discussed our plans for summer vacations. Some friends would go to the beach (yes, in Delaware we went to the beach and not the shore in New Jersey), some would go to camp, some would visit relatives, and some of the lucky few would fly to Disney or other really cool vacation spots. I could remember how we all made plans to play baseball and go to the swimming pool everyday, but it was that word vacation that gave us the biggest smile. It seemed like a magical time of youth. Summertime!!!

Oh, I’m sorry. I was just thinking about my youth and forgetting what it was really like. Who forgot what, who had to pull over fifty times to go to the bathroom, who was stuck in the endless traffic, who was hungry, who was thirsty, who didn’t want to go because all of their friends weren’t going, who had better things to do, who was bored, who was homesick……Sound familiar? The problem, as I see it, seems to be in our inability to remember what it felt like to be a kid during summertime. Vacations are meant to be fun, relaxing and stress free, but I hear, more often than not, tales of vacation woes and unbelievable amounts of stress created by the simple task of getting away for awhile.

Stress will be right around the corner if you don’t keep a mindful eye out for it during vacation. I personally believe the number one reason for the stress during vacation is the lack of time given to prepare and go away. People think and dream of vacation for 50 weeks of the year, but it seems during the 2 weeks they are actually away, they have forgotten everything including simple strategies for traveling. Case in point, a few months back, I was called to an emergency and needed to fly. It wasn’t a great distance, but it required some planning on my part. My flight was scheduled for 10:30 departing from Philadelphia. As a somewhat savvy traveler, I took in consideration the lines at security, traffic, and even parking. I decided I needed to be at the airport around 8:30, giving me plenty of time to park, go through security, and possibly sit and relax for a bit before the flight. I knew I had to leave home a little earlier because of morning rush hour traffic, so I decided to leave at 7:00 just in case I ran in to any major delays. Ok. Ok. Ok. I know it seems a little obsessive compulsive so far, but trust me, after being burnt by missing a flight, you will take homage to my advice. The commute wasn’t horrible but I did run into traffic and I arrived at the airport around 8:15. I found my parking spot, gathered my bags, and headed to the ticketing area. I checked my bag and headed towards security.

Time out! I want to go off on a tangent for a second. People, people, people! When will you ever learn? The restrictions for carry on luggage is fairly strict following September 11, 2001. The guidelines are posted on the websites where you buy tickets. They are actually posted on the tickets themselves. The guidelines are posted on the walls in the parking garage of the airport, in the shuttle buses, on the front doors, at the ticketing counter, and right there at security. Why in the name of all the things good in the world, is there always that one person who wants to bring a Ginsu knife collection on the plane with them? Why? I think people believe they won’t get caught. Prior to the trip I was explaining, I had to go on another trip where a woman decided to bring her knitting needles in her carry on – all 87 of the 13 inch throwing dagger looking objects. The odd part about that one was she became belligerent when they said she couldn’t bring them on the plane with her. There was another time when I watched a woman attempt to bring 5 gallons of hair gel on board because she was going to some hair fashion expo. Please follow the guidelines and things will go smoothly.

Back to the story, I arrived at security around 9:00, had my ticket in one hand and ID in the other. The line was long, but moving. I was calm and ready for my strip search.

Time out! Please keep in mind as you travel on a plane, you will be asked to remove any objects including your shoes, watches, belts, necklaces, throwing stars, machine guns, or whatever else you may have on you that makes the little machine go ding ding. Don’t be offended. Don’t get angry. Please don’t yell at security. And, please don’t apologize to everyone behind you because you thought you could wear a full suit of armor on the plane.

Time in. As I moved along with the line, a young couple with their two adorable children come barreling down the ramp of the gate heading for security. You could feel the stress and tension. The little girl was crying. The little boy looked scared. The mom was frantic and dad looked pissed. It was roughly 9:15 now and I overheard the mom tell the woman at security, “We have a 9:30 flight to Disney. We need to get through security. Please let us in!” The woman at security simply, calmly stated, “Ma’am, you missed your flight. I suggest you head back to the ticketing counter and get a new flight.” The mom burst into tears, the dad yelled, the daughter cried, the son stomped his feet, and I went through security looking for a place to sit, relax, and drink a cappuccino before my flight. The moral to this story is: Take your time! Plan ahead for delays, traffic, security, or whatever else may create stress if you do not allow for enough time.

The other reasons for vacation stress seem to be derivations of the time problem. Over scheduling, over booking, unrealistic expectations of time limits, and the lack of compromise can all lead to extreme issues with stress. Please remember the main purpose of the trip is to have time to relax, have fun, get away from work, and spend time with your family or loved ones. It is very realistic to believe you won’t see or do everything on your vacation. It is very realistic to believe you may have a change of plans because something fun presents itself that may go against the schedule. It is very realistic to believe things will happen and life, including the vacation, will go on. Drop the resentment. Get rid of the attitude. Leave your anger at the door and just communicate with everyone involved. The stress will magically disappear when you compromise and just have a good time.

Well, my friends, please have a wonderful stress free summer vacation and remember to relax! Summertime only comes around once a year, so make the most of it.

I will leave you with the rest of the lyrics of Summertime by Kenny Chesney:

“And it’s two bare feet on the dashboard
Young love in an old Ford
Cheap sherris, and a tattoo, and Yoohoo bottle on the floorboard
Perfect song on the radio
Sing along because it’s one we know
It’s a smile
It’s a kiss
It’s a simple wine
It’s summertime
Sweet summertime.

Temperature says ’93
Down at the deposit can gurantee
But that swimming hole
It’s nice and cold
Bikin bottoms underneath
But the boys heart still skip a beat
When them girls shimmy off
Those old cut-offs.
[ Kenny Chesney Lyrics are found on www.songlyrics.com ]

And it’s two bare feet on the dashboard
Young love in an old Ford
Cheap sherris, and a tattoo, and Yoohoo bottle on the floorboard
Perfect song on the radio
Sing along because it’s one we know
It’s a smile
It’s a kiss
It’s a simple wine
It’s summertime
Sweet summertime.

The more things change
The more they stay the same
Don’t matter how old you are
When you know what I’m talking ’bout
Yeah baby, when you got.

Two bare feet on the dashboard
Young love in an old Ford
Cheap sherris, and a tattoo, and Yoohoo bottle rolling on the floorboard
Perfect song on the radio
Sing along because it’s one we know
It’s a smile
It’s a kiss
It’s a simple wine
It’s summertime
Sweet summertime…”