Classic Rant #211 (March 10, 2010): Please Mr. Employer, I Don’t Want To Go

I have to go on a business trip this weekend. I don't do many of these, but this time, I have to go, because there is no one else who is available to do it.

The problem is that I really don't want to go.

I should stop complaining, actually. Some people get sent to business trips in the heart of nowhere, where there is nothing to do outside of the place you will be staying at and attending the conference or expo you are going to.

On this business trip, I will be going to Orlando, Florida, home of Disney World and one of the top tourist destinations in the world.

The problem is that I would rather not go.

This thing that I am attending is being held over the weekend, which makes things very difficult for me. I use the weekend, like we all do, to unwind and to relax after a hard week at work. Those two days give me some time to reconnect with my family. Even if we do nothing but sit at home, the weekend still serves a purpose.

Well, there will be no unwinding and relaxing this weekend. The company I work for is not sending me to Orlando to sit around the pool--I have to work.

I have to interview several people at this event that I am going to, and we need a quick turnaround in the writing of the story that the interviews will appear in. So, I will be doing interviews all day Saturday and Sunday, and writing at night. I won't be too good of a dinner companion, as I will eat, go back to my room, and put together this story.

I leave on Friday afternoon and come back late Sunday night, and no, my company does not give you any days off if you work the weekend. In fact, they crab when you have to take off time for personal matters.

Yes, they think they own you, and in a way, they do. In this economy, this nearly 53-year old guy does not want to be out on the street in the unemployment line.

So I will go, do what I have to do, and hopefully, it will go well.

But on Monday morning, I will be like a zombie. So don't expect too much here then, and for that matter, next week.

What can I say ... going to Florida and not enjoying what the state has to offer is like going to a pizza parlor and drinking water without having a slice.

What a waste.