smart ass opportunity: When was your last working vacation?

[liberalitch]

come on take the bait!

[Taxloss]

1. As a freelancer, every day is a working vacation for me!

I could spend the whole day in bed (or clearing brush) if I wanted! Of course I wouldn't get paid, and wouldn't be able to pay bills, but hey! I'm on vacation!

(Except in the UK we call it "on holiday")

[liberalitch]

2. operative phrase....

"Of course I wouldn't get paid, and wouldn't be able to pay bills,..."
You know that is not true for Bush......
He doesn't DO anything any ways..... this is just an opportunity to openly do nothing.....

[Taxloss]

4. To be honest, I'd rather he was doing nothing than something.

Since what he does is always such a disaster.

[liberal N proud]

6. It sure would be safer for the Nation

[Skittles]

3. a couple of weeks ago in downtown Philly

I lived in a hote, worked 12 hour nights 12 days out of 14, and skipped a lot of sleep to see a lot of Philly. :D

[liberalitch]

5. Where you trying to do your job at the same time.....

or just fighting terra?

[meegbear]

7. May 2002

I was sent to Montreal for the week to help verify that the verison 18.3.5 of my company's OCX controls would run on an application using 18.3.1. The other guy who came up with once lived there for 3 years on a work visa.

We took long lunches, breaks, went out late every night and had the reports done on Friday morning - yes, they'll work. And thanks for the week!

[Swamp Rat]

8. Never had one.

What are they like? Are they fun? Do you get to spend lots of money on a working vacation? I did have a great vacation under a bridge in Barcelona once. Though I had no money, I got to experience the reality of many passages from Hemingway's novels. The worst was probably sleeping on ther ground in Köln... sehr schlect! :(

[Divernan]

9. State legislators vacation-Alaska,Puerto Rico,Quebec,Hawaii,Virgin Islands

As former staffer of a state legislator, and member of the NCSL (National Council of State Legislators), I can tell you that there are easily 12 boondoggle trips per year thorugh organizations like NCSL, ALEC, etc., to places like the above locations - all paid for by state taxes allocated to state legislature's general funds (split up by the parties) in each year's state budgets. The big summer annual meetings are a week at some major city or resort destination - often outside the continental US. Then there's the winter meeting - likely in San Diego, San Antonio, Arizona or New Mexico - maybe a posh golf area in South Carolina.

This does not include the international boondoggle trips to "study" how other countries handle issues like transportation, health care, tourism, small business support. These (mostly) guys got free trips to China, Poland, England, Germany, etc., and believe me, they are treated like royalty by their host countries - and aside from a few hours spent in "factory tours", any "working" is done at posh receptions, dinners, night club outings and blue ribbon, behind the scene tours.

At one summer meeting in Chicago, with about 6,000 state legislators and officials from every state,
whole institutions were closed to the general public and made party areas for the conventioneers - all of Navy Pier, all of Lincoln Park Zoo, all of the Field Museum. And at each of these locations, there was great entertainment - live jazz , blues and rock groups sprinkled throughout the area; a private Taste of Chicago from area restaurants with tents set up throughout the Zoo, or at the Museum, multiple free bars with top shelf liquor, or buffet tables with lobster, prime rib, etc. The City of Chicago picked up the tab for the entertainment/food; the various state tax payers paid for luxury hotel accomodations, travel costs, and incidental expenses of the legislators attending. So one way or another, the average American taxpayer funds all of this, but will never be given such royal treatment in their lifetimes.