Thanks to the miracle of Google Alerts, tracking Sabbatical news is a cinch.  Or is it?  Those incoming info-blips can hit the inbox like a hailstorm—and many supposedly relevant links have nothing to do with actual faraway fantasies.  So sometimes a Sabbatical Editor is in order.

That’s where BreakAway comes in.  Our Editorial Board has assigned one writer and five interns to monitor the situation and create a series.  Today, in Installment 1, we learn about three Sabbaticals in the News.

• #1:  Miss Britt’s family hits the road

StrollerDerby, a savvy and sassy parenting blog, recently reported that Blogger Miss Britt and her family are running away to look for America.  In a 24-foot RV.  For one year!  They’ll be home schooling, shunning schedules, enjoying lots of recess, and taking their time while they still can.

As Miss Britt so sagely states,

I could die.  Any day.  Not because I’m sick but because that’s just the way life works.”

• #2:  Kiwi rugby stud flies to France

If you’re looking for the perfect career-break place, look no further than New Zealand.  Our first family sabbatical took us around the world with a two-month stopover exploring the Kiwi coasts.  A gentle-bloke who had once played for NZ’s beloved rugby team, the All Blacks, took me fishing one day.

So naturally, I picked a NZ pic for this post.  And naturally, this NZTV story caught my eye.

Dan Carter plays for the All Blacks, just signed a mega-million dollar contract, wisely took less money to stay in NZ, and couldn’t be happier.  Oops!  Oh yes, he could.  He needs a Sabbatical—before settling down with all those Kiwi dollars and rugby balls!

So he’s off to France.  Good on ya, mate!

• #3:  (Bear) market maven takes the money…and runs!

CNN.com reports that a really, really rich guy stepped away from his trading desk—where he had made great returns even during the prolonged bear market—and did some cool stuff.  Now he’s back at work.

But there’s even worse news:  He believes America faces another severe financial crisis by 2018—due to government debt.  So if you’re worried about your financial future, DO NOT read this story.  If you long for a BreakAway of your own, well, hurry up and make it happen before the fiscal future gets ugly.

This particular sabbatical alert story barely mentions the word, and instead tells us all about what one Robert Rodriguez thinks of the current investing climate—which ain’t much. Still, our hats go off to this obviously lucky man, who…

traveled the globe, read about the fall of Rome, and indulged in his car-racing hobby.”

So what’s next?  Will Lindsay Lohan take a break between rehabs?  Can some preacher man abandon his pulpit to satisfy a seven-year itch?  Will the Iowa legislature really pass laws limiting the Univerity of Iowa’s Sabbatical budget?

Stay tuned.  Because there are ALWAYS more Sabbaticals…in the News.