Bummed Out on Your Beach Getaway?

It was hot – and I mean hot – the last time I visited Virginia. It was summer 2005 and we were spending the week with family friends. Just before dinner one evening, I decided to check my office voice-mail messages. And then … my cell phone died. I decided then and there to leave work behind during excursions.

Vacations have never been the same since – and that’s a good thing!

Devoting my attention 100% to just having fun enriches my experiences and helps me re-charge, which ultimately enhances my work when I return. 

A recent blog in The Washington Post about “vacation blues,” however, poses the question of how beneficial vacations truly are. Here’s an excerpt:

Turns out a Netherlands study found that many people have trouble relaxing during the early periods of their vacation. And for some, the vacation doesn’t make them any happier than people who don’t go away, reports Marta Zaraska, a Canadian freelance journalist and novelist who lives in France.

Our mood tends to be lowest through the first 10 percent of a holiday, one researcher found.

Another researcher says vacationers might be having trouble enjoying themselves because of “leisure sickness,” which is the inability to relax and adapt to the pace of life outside work.

Zaraska writes that other research shows that “even if we do enjoy our holiday, the moment we return to our home sweet home, the good mood starts to evaporate. Two weeks later, almost all the benefits of a vacation are gone.”

I actually disagree with much of the blog. When I traveled to Florida for a few days (not even a full week) earlier this summer, I was downright giddy at the airport, on the flight and throughout my entire trip. What’s not to love about splashing in the ocean, marveling at palm trees and delicious cuisine?

The part of the blog I do agree with is that it’s sort of a letdown when you get home because that vacation you’ve been anticipating – sometimes for several months – is now over. My cure when those vacation blues strike? Start planning the next one.

What do you think?

Jet Setting Hoosiers

Pack your bags, we’re going to Vegas! Or maybe a Caribbean cruise is more your style.

Those are the top domestic and international destinations Hoosier travelers are booking for the rest of 2009, according to a Travel Leaders survey. The travel agency network surveyed some of its agents and owners throughout the state.

Other notable findings in the 2009 fall travel trends survey:

  • 65.6% of Indiana travelers are making U.S. travel reservations four weeks or less from the planned departure date
  • 93.7% of respondents said clients are cutting back on some aspect of travel (such as shortening length of trip)
  • Other top destinations domestically are: Orlando (ranked No. 2), Tampa/St. Petersburg (3) and Chicago and Dallas (tied at No. 4)
  • Hoosiers traveling internationally are heading to: Cancun, Mexico (No. 2); Mediterranean cruises (3); Montego Bay, Jamaica (4); and Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Riviera Maya, Mexico; and Shanghai, China (all tied for No. 5)
  • Still, 90.6% of Indiana Travel Leader respondents say overall travel bookings are lower than at this time in 2008 

Compare these findings to the national travel trends.

Broadband Buildout: Public or Private?

Australia has an intriguing plan to build a state-of-the-art broadband fiber network covering most of the nation. A public-private investment of $33 billion over eight years would reach 90% of homes and businesses, with wireless and satellite technology used to access the remaining 10%.

A senior adviser to President Obama is reportedly a big fan of the idea. Susan Crawford, a member of the National Economic Council, noted in a recent policy forum that Singapore is making a similar investment and that plans are being considered in Britain and the Netherlands.

The Federal Communications Commission is to present a national broadband strategy to Congress by early next year. A public network in the U.S. would equal the $33 billion in Australia — and an estimated $400 billion more.

Benefits: increased access and lower monthly rates. Pitfalls: another huge tax increase to pay for the project and a potential decline in private sector investment — decreasing competition in the long run.

In local communities, there are a few stories of public ownership success, but more examples of failures. Increasing access is critical, but at what cost? With government already on a spending spree, a better alternative would seem to be to make it easier for enhanced private sector investment.

Revolving Doors — Not Just for Tormenting Your Claustrophobic Friends Anymore

A revolving door that generates energy? Sounds feasible, right? Well apparently, it is. Boon Edam, the Dutch company that created it, discusses:

The Boon Edam revolving door plays a very important part in achieving and maintaining the sustainability of the building. The TQM revolving door will help primarily to save the carefully generated and conserved energy. A calculation was made for this particular situation that indicated an energy saving of around 4600 kWh per year, a considerable saving compared to a conventional sliding entrance.

For this very special project, Boon Edam has gone one step further to become the first manufacturer in the world to develop an energy generating manual revolving door, which will not only save energy but also generate energy with every person passing through the door. The revolving door is equipped with a special generator that is driven by the human energy applied to the door whilst the generator controls the rotating speed of the door and makes it safer. The ceiling of the revolving door is made of safety class and gives a clear view of the technology. A set of super capacitors stores the generated energy as a buffer and provides a consistent supply for the low energy LED lights in the ceiling. In case the LED lights have used-up all the stored energy, the highly efficient control unit will switch to the alternative mains supply of the building. This ensures that the door is illuminated at all times, even when the passenger flow is minimal. 

Very encouraging. But sadly, this photo is already giving me RCA/Hoosier Dome withdrawals. The building has been demolished for weeks and I still long for those days walking out of the stadium, getting vacuum-sucked by the air pressure onto the concourse like a wayward hamster who’s been found by the family’s Hoover. Oh, the memories.

Hat tip to 13th Floor.