Super Bowls, elections, Afghanistan.  It’s all Greek to me—compared to the excitement of finding out who’s making news because they’re stepping out on Sabbatical.  The inspirations range wildly.  But no matter why, we wish all BreakAway artists good luck and Godspeed.

• Jenni Ani wants “to focus on myself.”

Being a mega-star must be, like, nonstop hard work, at least when you’re not lounging in Cannes or the Hamptons.  So, Ms. Aniston deserves some “Me” time—and may even be preggers.  If so, that “Me” time will soon seem a lot more rare and precious! Read about her big news here.

• Give them marketeers a paid week off!

Ray Clark runs an agency in Cleveland, and took some time off to fulfill a dream of writing movie scripts.  The scripts didn’t go far, but Ray experienced the joy of leaving the office.  So he institutionalized the idea for this employees.  Staffers are joyful too; in fact, the agency ranks way high for its great corporate culture.

• Blogger takes a day off

A basketball blogger in Hartford took “one-day sabbatical” and would like to thank his constituents “for their good behavior.”  One day?  Really?  Okay.  It’s a start.

• Sioux City prof takes break from Plato

In my hometown, the Journal writes about folks’ reading lists.  Heather Reed, a philosophy professor, has traded in her full plate of Plato for “Conversations in Sicily” while enjoying la dolce vita in Italy.  Buona for her!

• Inc. editor’s husband gives, but never takes, breaks

Meg Cadoux Hirschberg reports admiringly about her husband—who happens to run Stoneyfield Farms—offering employees sabbaticals.  Stoney is lauded as a great company, yet Meg’s spouse won’t step away, in part due to “addiction to the work and pace of work.”

So while Meg longs for at least a long vakay, she reports on several raving Sabbatical vets.  Most of them took (much) more than one day off, and all share the story of coming back not to career suicide, but of clients and colleagues responding with,

an almost universal respect and a wistful envy—a sense of ‘Gosh, I wish I could do that.’”

Here’s the thing, people:  You can!!!

Friend of a friend. That’s how I met Wendy Swart Grossman, today’s guest blogger.

Face to face. That’s how we will soon meet, instead of screen to screen.

St. Olaf College. That’s where we both were a few decades ago, though we have no memories of that—of each other, I mean.  (Not to worry, we’ll make some up.)

Jealous as heck. That’s how I feel about WSG’s gonzo-America trip with her family in an RV.

Bucket. That’s the list where that dream, for me, remains.  So WSG sits on a pedestal.

But she doesn’t sit still long.  Presently, she’s traversing the states—again—to promote her self-published memoir about their amazing experiences, Behind the Wheel: A mother’s journal of a year on the road.

Please join WSG, me, and (one hopes) a bunch of book-lovers and BreakAway artists when she comes to town in early November to do two readings + some Q&A at neighborhood bookstores.  For a sneak preview, here’s Wendy’s bold answers to our 11Q test.  Clearly, this is one fearless woman.  Thanks, Wendy; see you (offline) soon!

11Q : Wendy Swart Grossman

• Biggest getaway challenge

Trying to keep the fear factor at bay and the voices in my head quiet. What were we doing heading out in an RV, yanking our 7 and 12 year old away from all their friends, doctors, our own support networks and home schooling? As a parent you always wonder what screw up is going to get your kid on the therapist couch…maybe this trip was it. We were also heading out on our big adventure in the midst of the worse recession since the great depression. Our biggest challenge was having the trust that we would be alright and that we would find jobs once the adventure was over.”

• Grandest arrival

After months of traveling through 23 states and 15 national parks where the ratio of elk to people was about  300:1 it was time to show the kids the seedy underbelly of America.  We tooled into Las Vegas with our 12 year old shouting in our ear, “LAS VEGAS! My spiritual homeland.” We got a great deal on a room at the Excalibur Hotel. You know, the knight-themed hotel next to the more luxurious Luxor and Mandalay Bay. Twenty-three bucks a night. It is half the cost of an RV park and we will more than double our hangout space, plus a full-size bathroom. We were there for three nights in between Joshua Tree National Park and the Grand Canyon.

We introduced our kids to gambling culture, smoke-filled casino floors, Breakfast of Champions Las Vegas-style (when the man walked past us at 7:30 a.m. with a beer in each hand), one-armed bandits, video arcades, cheap buffets, The Mob, and sexism in a variety of ways from female escort services to scantily dressed women. If you haven’t been to Vegas lately, the strip (for those who decide to walk) is chock-a-block with groups of what appear to be newly arrived immigrants from south of the border, dressed in neon-yellow shirts and matching hats all emblazoned with the same motto: Girls to your door in 20 minutes. They also hand out the matching business cards with the number to call. How convenient.

In the 13 years since Evan and I had last been to Vegas, the free Pirate Show in front of the Treasure Island Hotel has gone from showcasing Disney-approved, fresh-faced pirates to pole-dancing, g-string-wearing pirates. Thirteen years ago there was a battle between the British man of war and the pirate ship. Now it’s the ship of Sirens (the aforementioned scantily clad women) vs. the Pirates. To add misogynistic insult to injury, when the pirates decide to fire their cannons at the Sirens (how else could the show’s directors showcase all the pyrotechnic power designed for the original show?), the Pirates decide to bring the Sirens to submission by “attacking their closets, where it will hurt the most.”

I apologized to Josh for taking him to this X-rated show. In a good-natured way he replied, “This will be a good story to tell my friends: Then there was the time my parents took me to see naked ladies in Vegas . . .”

• Favorite place

The real answer: all of them, and for different reasons.

The passenger seat.  Staring out at the vast expanse of road and open spaces in Montana. Watching my husband Evan’s profile as he drove, with the kids in the back happily reading.

Crater Lake, Oregon in November in a snowshoe hike when we stopped to listen to the sound of nothing.

My aunt’s patio in Jacksonville, IL on an early autumn evening.

The bed in the back of the RV with seven year old Simon. Hanging up party lights and making special cuddle caves out of blankets with his stuffed animals.”

• Logistical nightmare

The wonderful thing about traveling in an RV without an agenda is you are on your own time schedule. The nervousness about making a connection or if your luggage is over weight just wasn’t an issue.

• Most meaningful moment

We were traveling between Ketchum, Idaho and Crater Lake, Oregon and had stopped over night in the long forgotten town of Vale, OR. While most people know about western Oregon and it’s beautiful coast line, Eastern Oregon and it’s poverty isn’t on the map or in the tourist books.  We pulled up in the dark, made dinner and went to bed and when we looked out in the morning on a gray November day, to say it was depressing would be an understatement.  Many times in an RV we shared campgrounds with people who were there permanently.  The RV’s were up on blocks and the folks were there for awhile.  While we were just passing through, many of the folks we were sharing bath houses and Laundromats with weren’t.  That is when my older son lost it, “You have ruined my life.  We are 4000 miles away from all my friends and we live in an RV.”  The wonderful part  was that we had no where else we needed to be so Josh and I took a long walk around Vale, Oregon and talked about poverty, choices, refrigerators in front lawns and how lucky we were to have options.”

• Worst disaster

I would hardly call this a disaster but it does fall in the scary column. Imagine if you will:  Our 29’ white Winnebago with the sporty strip camped out in the Wal-Mart parking where they court the RV’ers and let us park overnight for free.  We are in Grand Forks, North Dakota. We were making our way down to Minneapolis after a wild adventure to Churchill Manitoba to see the polar bears in the wild.

The Red Lobster sign shines a nice ruby red glow in the front window of the RV. And the trees that are planted in the parking lot in an attempt to make it not look like the vast parking lot that it really is, are skinny and losing their leaves but appreciated. Parking Lot, Sweet Parking Lot (if I knew how to embroider, that’s what I’d be putting on one of our pillows). After a nice swim at Splashers Water Park, a dinner of left-over’s and an exciting game of Clue we are all snuggled into our beds.

Then at 3 AM a loud beating of hands against the side of the RV wakes us all up.   Funny how we are thousands of years from cavemen but our responses are programmed just the same. My husband, the protector, wakes up yelling, “Get out of here!”  I, on the other hand, wake up silently thinking to myself, “If we hide, they will go away.”

We hear the drunken voices and laughter of teenagers as they continue their weaving path across the parking lot. We are fine.”

• Serendipitous experience

We need to talk about pajamas. I don’t mean night shirts, nightgowns, or boxers and tee shirts; I mean 2 piece pajamas – usually flannel – with either a draw string waist or an elastic one. A button up top is a given. But not the kind with built in feet – those are too hard to wear when you are driving an RV, especially the kind with the little plastic bumps on the soles.

My mother has accused me of wearing my pajamas a little too often. I have been known to get in to my pajamas far before bed time and to stay in them well past noon. I have cooked meals in them, gardened in them, walked to the end of the driveway to pick up a poorly tossed newspaper, and on our first Christmas in London I went to my next door neighbor Jane’s house in my pajamas and had coffee in a move that cemented our relationship.

And yes, I have thrown a coat and boots on and worn them to the grocery store – but only before 9 am. Not that there are any set rules and regulations regarding improprieties and pajama wear like there are with white shoes after Labor Day, but I do have some self respect.

And then of course there are the Pajama Adventures I have had with my jet lagged kids in various parts of the US where we sneak out of the house or hotel and look for trouble (and donuts) between 5 and 6 am in pajamas.

Everything is a little more fun if you do it in pajamas.

I wore my summer stripped pj’s to visit Lincoln’s house in Springfield, Illinois at 6 AM one early summer morning. I wore my yellow sunflower set to Hapgood Pond in Peru, Vermont in August. And the tropical flowers pair I wore in a memorable swim in the Pacific Ocean in San Diego with the boys when they were no more than 5 years old.  The swim was unintentional but when they both went in…how could I stop myself?.

My mom has commented that I am the only person she knows who has worn out pajamas. But considering how much I wear them, that is to be expected.

And then, there we were staying with our friends in Zumbro Falls, Minnesota, population 177.  Five of those people are my friends Doug and Pam and their 3 kids. I hadn’t seen Pam for 20 years and she still looks 23. We parked the Big Pig (our pet name for the RV)  in a snowstorm Friday night next to their new house – their new house because the old house was damaged by a tornado.

Saturday morning I walked across the muddy driveway in my pajamas and boots around 9 AM to hang out, drink coffee and have breakfast. I walked in and Doug said, “Did Pam loan you her pajamas?” I was wearing my Gnome flannel pajamas. Pam was wearing hers.

There are some friends you don’t see for 20 years and those years just dissolve away over a cup of coffee in your matching Gnome PJ’s.

• Strangest encounter

Did you know that at the RV park just outside of Devil’s Tower National Monument in Wyoming they show Steve Speilberg’s 1977 classis Close Encounter’s of the Third Kind every day?  So appropriate!  This park was the first declared National Historic Monument by Teddy Roosevelt in 1906.”

• Requisite health dilemma

What do you do when you are living in an RV and your kid get’s sick…every month? We loved to catalogue the statistics of our trip, from miles driven to number of wild animals seen, to Junior Ranger Programs completed.  The one statistics I didn’t was the number of Urgent Care Center’s we visited. My 7 year old son Simon was sick every month with fevers and sore throats. He had his throat swabbed from Rochester, MN to Boulder, Colorado. Little known fact: Grand Tetons National Park has an Urgent Care facility on site!”

• Profound take-away

Perhaps this is more of a profound realization of the absurdly obvious but–the less you are doing, the more time you have. And the more time you have the more open you are to new ideas and creative conversations. As a parent you never know when you kids are going to be open to having those big conversations. But with a year of open timelines and time on our hands we were available, focused and interested.  One day our kids asked us, “just what is the stock market and who is Dow Jones?”  Three days later we completed the conversation.”

• Re-entry vibe

If we had moved directly from our lovely house in London into a small apartment in Boston while we looked for jobs and re established our life in the US we would have been sad.  It wasn’t our choice to leave London, but as expats on a work visa, we were there on the company’s invitation and not on our own accord.  But once we took the control back and decided to have the adventure in the RV, it was or choice again. And once we decided to end the RV trip, moving into an apartment with doors and 2 bathrooms felt like we were moving into a palace.

While we have been on terra firma for a year now, living in an old Victorian house that doesn’t move we know we are different from our neighbors. When people ask where we moved here from we know if we say, “an RV”, we are opening ourselves up to big eyes and a long conversation.

I think it is human nature to try to put people in boxes so we can better understand them. But we know we don’t fit neatly into any one box. We flop over the sides of them all. But that’s alright and, in my opinion, preferable.”

Bonus Bio & Book Blurb!!

My name is Wendy Swart Grossman and yes, I survived living in a 29’ Winnebago with my husband and two kids.  We traveled 28,000 miles through 37 States and Provinces while we home schooled our 2^nd and 6^th grade kids.  Yes, they still talk to us.  We have been on terra firma for a year I have finally gotten rid of the RV smell from my clothes and the book is just coming out.  It debuted at #4 in the Family Travel section of Amazon and was 8^th on the Boston Globe’s Best Seller List.  It is called Behind the Wheel: A mother’s journal of a year on the road.

Behind the Wheel: A mother’s journal of a year on the road is a humorous collection of true stories and journal entries chronicling the adventure of a family of four as they trade their life as expats in North London for the Semi-Affluent Homeless subculture and trek across North America on a tight budget in a Winnebago. Laugh, seek inspiration and then take heed as these intrepid travelers—a menopausal mom, a techno-geek dad, a preteen, and a prophetic 7-year-old—confront unforeseen challenges and constantly adapt their goals in an effort to stay on the road and avoid becoming road kill.

Think Eat Pray Love meets Robin Williams in the movie RV.

Feel free to check out my NPR podcast at http://bit.ly/WSwbur

And please come!

Minnesota book readings:

Thursday, November 3^rd, 7:30 PM Common Good Books, St Paul www.commongoodbooks.com

Friday, November 4^th, 7 PM, The Bookcase, Wayzata

www.bookcaseofwayzata.com

For the second year in a row, travel-lovers convened in 17 cities to confab about career breaks at MeetPlanGo.  In MSP, I was annointed chief host and bartop-washer, and was again humbled by our attentive guests and talented panel.  Such events become a blur—even before the after-party.  Yet many observations remain vivid…

• The mature and restless

Who’s going to show up?  You never know til they walk in.  I was surprised by two skews:  Young and hungry; and older and restless.  The youth have toured and yearn for more—while relishing the decades that await them like mysterious paths.

The older crowd surprised me.  Theory:  The economy has severed strings in some golden parachutes and retirement remains uncertain.  Yet they trust their final years aren’t all work, save, fret—but also include ample travel and leisure.

One dominant demo in the career-break crowd runs female, 25-40, single, and educated.  They were there too.  But they were surrounded by diversity–confirming that you’re never too old to rock and roll, and never too young to aim high.

• So many stories, so little time

I so wish there would have been time to chat with every guest.  But the hours disappeared like, well, sands in an hourglass.  After the group had dispersed, I found myself virtually alone at the bar, snarfing a midnight supper and reflecting over (and into) a glass of Zinfandel that, as Sly sings, “Everybody is a Star.”  To wit…consider:

• One young fashion student graduates soon.  Her dream is to get to New Zealand, see the land known as “Godzone,” and become a period-costumer for movie-makers.
• One couple has realized retirement isn’t yet around the corner.  So they’ve started up an online business that allows them to work on the move; they just happened to be in town.
• A young photographer surprised me by being able to share affection for the islands of St. Vincent and Bequia.  Stateside, I’ve met no other person who’s spent time on both of those West-Indian gems.

• A panel with poise and punch

Big ups and thanks go out to my panel, an impressive crew who willingly gave of their time, knowledge, and passion.

• Leif Pettersen remains a walking, talking travel encyclopedia—with 47 countries under his belt, to say nothing of his Lonely Planet books and successful blogs.
• Julie DuRose charms with yarns and pics of love lost in faraway lands, friends found everywhere, and the singular bliss attained when globe-hopping.
• Kara McGuire embraces her role as money mentor, and shares insights about everything from credit card bests to retirement angst.  Her big BreakAway lies ahead, but she DOES use all her vacation time—and…who knows?
• Finally, Layne Kennedy dazzles with chronicles and photos from the world over.  As if to remind us that good photography is more eye than gear, he proudly announced his new book, Snap, shot entirely with an iPhone and apps.

Snap?  Appropos!  The career-break tribe has been buzzing about Meet, Plan, Go for a year.  And then, Snap!  It’s over.  Like a BreakAway itself; these things can take years of patience and months of planning.  And then, Snap!

But the way of life carries on.  The memories live on.  And the stories have endless characters, but no ending.

Thanks again.  Keep the faith.  And happy sails.

Sabbaticals and career breaks continue to make big news (if you look in the right places).  Moreover, the definitions keep expanding—for better or worse—to include everything from two-days of tax-free shopping to checking into treatment for the umpteenth time.  Serious students of Sabbatical Theory should consider:

• The “Snap Year.” Brits have forever provided the world’s best role modeling for taking a “gap year.”  Youth strap on the backpack—and BreakAway—to see the world, celebrate graduation, and delay career commencement.  The number of volunteer heroes has plummeted, though, as has the time period set aside to wander.  Snap year?  My bum!  This most dreadful news.

• The Annual Tax Sabbatical. This break lasts only two days—an absurdly short sabbatical by any measure.  Still, whenever you give people a haitus from taxes, they get giddier than Tea Party fanatics at a Michelle Bachman rally.  So whatever you call it, a welcome sabbatical it is!

• The Addiction Career Break. Melanie Griffith is pushing spin-dry.  Again.  We wish the best for Melanie, of course.  But really now, how come all that a celeb has to do to get a “career break” is relapse into addiction?  The rest of us would be shipped off to “rehab.”  No, no, no!

• The Un-digital Sabbatical. Once again, someone smart has been studying this site and taken our advice not only to BreakAway, but to do so sans digitalia.  In this case, our follower shall also pursue much unplugged meditation.  While impressive, it does beg the question:  Why do so many people who do this feel the need to tell all about it on the internets?

• The Pirate Break. After a summer of untellable pillaging, high-end parenting, and stormy weather, this BreakAway advocate has snuck away to Okoboji—a neverneverland where pirates rule the day and few other rules apply.  We all need a few places that provide such good booty and revelry.  Happy sails!

In late May, an email arrived with the poignant header, “The Break is Over.”  But next came the good news: “The trip exceeded all expectations (and I had high expectations going in).” Could you ask for more?  Sure:  “Now I just have to figure out how we can do it again!”

Welcome home, Dan Woychick and family.  As we reported in October, Dan ditched his thriving Minneapolis design business, embraced the challenge of home schooling, and flew off into a career break featuring an ambitious Euro itinerary—including the Cinque Terre in Italy, as seen in this photo.

One can only hope Dan found much time to relax because—sheesh!—he sure created an impressive family blog and took time to share insights on his business blog.

But that’s the beauty of a career break:  You make time to do excactly what you want—and work on a mission of choice.  For family Woychick, it appears they hit for the cycle:  Relaxation; education; exploration; and illustration (drawing was of Dan’s personal goals).

Dan and fam made it back in time for summer—brilliant!  Here, Dan takes on the 11 questions every career breaker must answer upon returning to reality.

• Biggest getaway challenge

Initially, the biggest challenge may have been wrapping our arms around the trip planning – every day a new detail to add to the list, then each one splintering into little sub-problems to solve. Eventually we pieced together a workable travel itinerary thanks to a small group of trusted advisors and websites. One of the biggest challenges was deciding how to have enough reading material for three voracious readers. Solution? Two Kindles, plus leaving paperbacks as presents whenever and wherever they were finished by all.

• Grandest arrival

Arriving in Paris on a fine Spring evening and dining al fresco in the Marais district with our giddy boys. We floated home around midnight, slept in until 10:00, and the beignets, pain au chocolat, and incredibly fresh strawberries the next morning were a wonderful welcome to France.

• Favorite place

There were a lot of great moments and great days – most of them involve watching our boys having fun – but I don’t know that I could single one out. I’d like to return to England, Paris, Rome, Cinque Terre, and the Greek Islands, and visit lots of other places we didn’t get to on this trip.

• Logistical nightmare

We had some inconveniences, but I wouldn’t categorize any of them as nightmares.

An unspecified strike in Rome the day we were scheduled to arrive left us a few train stops short of Roma Termini station – with no idea where we were, why we were there, or how to get to our apartment.

Similarly, an announced strike in Greece had us reshuffling our plans. We switched from a two-hour ferry to Sifnos to a six-hour ferry and cut our stay in Athens by one day.

Beware the travel days!

• Most meaningful moment

On one of our last days on Sifnos, near the end of our trip, as the boys played in the surf and we enjoyed beverages from the beachside bar, I turned to Rebecca and said: “We did pretty good.” I was proud of what we had set out to do as a family. The trip exceeded expectations at every turn.

• Worst disaster

See the story of our lost day in a Paris train station as our overnight sleeper car to Florence never showed up.

• Serendipitous experience

On a day trip to London, after seeing the city from the London Eye, we wandered the banks of the Thames enjoying the street performers. Eli, our youngest son, was chosen by a Charlie Chaplin impersonator to become part of the act. The kid may have a future in show business! Here’s his story.

• Strangest encounter

The strangest – for Lucas, our ten-year-old – was when he decided to be adventurous and ordered a seafood platter that included some creatures that would have been better left in the sea. Most annoying? Pushy street vendors attempting to sell their wares while we tried to enjoy a meal in Rome.

• Requisite health dilemma

This was one of our worries, but about the worst we experienced were some blisters from walking so much in Florence.

• Profound take-away

This was the right thing to do at the right time for the right reasons. Many have described it as “the trip of a lifetime.” I hope not. I plan to keep on living – and taking trips. Whether going to Cub Foods or the Caribbean, just about any trip can be a worthwhile experience with the right attitude, a little good fortune, and the right companions.

• Re-entry vibe

The first few days back I saw Minneapolis with fresh eyes – I like my home and my home town! There’s maybe a little letdown in that there isn’t currently something big to aim toward, a sense of being neither here nor there, but I’m sure we’ll dream up something.

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.

These days “career breaks” are getting the link love and lingo buzz.  But Sabbaticals haven’t gone away; they just quietly continue to let fortunate workers leave the building. For a while. One such lucky duck, Rita Foley, has had four—and wrote this triumphant article that does a superb job of summing up the benefits, including these big 5…

• Creativity increases.

“I have granted sabbaticals to my employees, and I have seen the rise in creativity and benefits for customers and the corporation.”

• Energy re-emerges.

“More than 100 companies that offer formal sabbatical programs have close to 100 percent of the sabbatical-takers returning to the company with a higher level of engagement, loyalty, motivation and appreciation for their employer.”

• Employees need a tuneup.

“We tune up our PCs, cars and home heaters.  Why not encourage our people to give their minds and spirits a tuneup?”

• It’s a good retention investment.

“The cost of hiring and training a new employee can be 1.5 times a departing worker’s salary.”

• Collaboration happens.

“It is a chance to evaluate the potential of employees who stand in for others in a real, not hypothetical, situation.  Sabbaticals promote teamwork and better decision-making.”

In conclusion, Ms. Foley reminds us that 20% of the Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work for offer fully paid Sabbaticals.  One of them is Intel, and they’re doing pretty okay.

While some of us might love to work for one of those firms—theoretically—the advantages of taking breaks hold up whether you work for Intel, Molly’s Quilting Boutique, or yourself.

Life is short.  Work is long.  The challenge—and solution—to running a successful career marathon is to stretch, breathe deep, and take a break now and then.

Career break travel isn’t always postcards and peak moments.  Last week, for example, one couple’s  sabbatical got rocked by a deadly earthquake. Ouch!  Imagine enjoying the legendary beauty of Christchurch, New Zealand, only to see your dream become a catastrophe.

I spent more than two months of glorious Sabbatical time in New Zealand, so this story really popped out at me.  Then, when it turned out that the couple was from Estherville, Iowa, the experience felt even closer to home.  I still vacation near there—and love a certain roadhouse, golf course, and winery on the outskirts of town.

• Riding the quake out

Fortunately, our BreakAway couple is fine and aim to finish their time in NZ.  That takes some courage, but they’ll also take home some inspiring stories and images from amid the rubble.

They aren’t going to let a little earthquake ruin their sabbatical.”

That’s the risk you take when you leave your home and comfort zone.  Dreams have no guarantees.  And while my breaks have been pretty lucky—nothing more earth-shattering than a head concussion and the occasional jellyfish sting—travel can be treacherous.  Then again, so can staying home.

One mantra of this site is, “You can go home again.”  Many people would.  So high-fives to Travis and Carolyn Ridout for riding the quake out.

Scholars and slackers worldwide continue to debate what, exactly, constitutes a BreakAway.  So some of us fervently continue the research.  Does one measly week in Mazatlan qualify?  Possibly.  After all, a guy has broken away from the fam and fray.  Yet one week smells suspiciously like vakay.

But we’re supposed to love the questions, right?  Well then, let’s revisit some basic BreakAway theory and see how this trip stacks up.

Mazatlan Faces the BreakAway Basics Litmus Test

Did I go far away?

Maz Mex certainly is all news to me, since I’ve never biked their long Malecon or meandered their magical old town.  Yet Mexico is familiar like an old sombero.  And while worlds away, the flight from MSP sneaks here in four hours.  Hmmm…

Is there time for both solo and social?

A sweet suite with a deck view of early Paradise makes some ME time a no-brainer.  Yet I’m here to get crazy over turning 50 with two lifelong friends—one a Malibu entertainment attorney who hangs with the stars, and the other the ultimate free spirit who hangs from them.  Hmmm…

Did I travel light yet log the journey?

When escaping the January grind, can one leave it all behind?  Perhaps:  The iPhone rarely rings; the emails stay in their box; and the catamaran adventure to an island requires only shades and watershoes.  Yet here I am, working (?) on my MacBook Pro and downloading digital pics.  Hmmm…

Can I keep it edgy but keep it smooth?

Travel promises adventure—and one may ride into more when racing dilipidated bikes down steep streets, kayak–surfing waves through island rocks, and wandering foreign ‘hoods alone late.  Yet I’m soaking up hot tubs, beach feasts, and cerveza and sunshine.  Hmmm…

Will I stay on budget but forget about finance?

These experiences are, well, priceless.  You can’t buy belly laughs and heartfelt talks with old friends—or seeing the sun set into the Pacific seven times.  Yet budget-creep sneaks in like a scorpion, like when this Gringo overpaid a cabby 12-fold (my bad; his good karma).  Hmmm…

BreakAway Si?  Or No?  What’s Your Final Answer?

So in the end, deciding whether a quick, watery week meets the criteria challenges even the alleged experts.  On one hand, a bartender last night so enjoyed my enthusiasm for finally finding beer on tap that he kept refilling my glass (on the house).  What a metaphor!

On the other hand, I know that it can take a week to unwind.  And before you’ve really unpacked, you’re atop a tarmac and whisked back into your reality where larger piles await and nothing has changed—only you.

So si or no?  No se’.  (I don’t know.)  But of this much I am sure:  Deeper research is in order.

:  )

If you’re not busy this Wednesday, there’s a great gathering happening.  I’ll act as host with the most.  But the real reason to show up is to meet a real, true travel guru…my friend, Sherry Ott. 

We’ll be at Calhoun Square in Uptown, inside Chiang Mai Thai’s way cool private room, from 7 – 9p. Taps will be a mere $3 and wine $5. Food service will be available. And we’ll keep it informal; our guest will tell tales and lead the chat for the first half or so. And then we’ll just mingle and mix it up and sip as we see fit…

Sherry Ott is a world-class travel blogger, an uber-worldly traveler, and an expert on topics like going it alone or finding a travel mate, long-term stays, finding overseas employment, and making dreams come true on a budget.

Oh yes, she’s also a founder of Briefcase to Backpack. Host of Ottsworld. And of course, a creator of the recent 14-city career-break-fest, Meet Plan Go, which got written up in a Sunday New York Times story (“Making the Dream Trip a Reality.”)

She’s rarely in town, so don’t miss out!

RSVP if you can with via the official Twin Cities BreakAway Meetup site—or just drop in. 

If you have questions or need more info, let me know. Hope to see you there!