by Anthony Megna

Created on: July 31, 2008   Last Updated: February 15, 2012

I get so damned depressed when I know I have to return home from my vacation. It's not that I don't like being at home, it is just that I love to be on vacation!

Getting ready to go on vacation is a pleasure. There is nothing I like better than to plan what I am going to take and running to the store for last minute items. My adrenaline kicks in and I can go all day long as I look forward to my trip. My mind races a mile a minute thinking of what I need to bring. How can this be boring? How can this be a chore? You are going on a vacation for heaven's sake, this is supposed to be fun. How anyone can find difficulty or anything negative when getting prepared to have the time of your life is beyond me.

Planning to go is easy with a list and a little planning. Figure out how many days you are gone, imagine what you are going to be doing, and don't over-pack! Remember, if you are flying, most airlines charge for extra baggage, and it's not cheap. Unless you are going someplace remote, if you are really stuck for an item you can usually purchase it when at your destination, but it probably won't be cheap.

What really brings me pleasure are those little travel items in mini form. You know, those baby shampoo bottles or toothpaste kits. Looking at those in your local drugstore reminds me of going away. They save a ton of space and are usually enough for your trip.

Depression hits me like a ton of bricks when I know the vacation is ending. All the things I have to do when I get home. Going back to nasty weather if you live in a cold climate. The worst I remember is growing up in the Boston area and when I went to Florida as a kid. I was so excited when I left school for my vacation in January I couldn't contain myself. Everything was new. I had never flown before, had never been to Florida before and so on. Turns out that I ended up with an extra week of vacation because all the flights were cancelled when we were supposed to leave due to bad weather. I never forget tearing off my traveling clothes, putting my bathing trunks back on and diving into the warm waters off of Miami beach. This was in 1965, and I was just 8 years old and I felt like I had just got a reprieve from a death sentence. What a wonderful feeling! Thinking that I would be in school the next day struggling in math class or something, then getting another week of vacation was such a joy! By the time I returned home I was so tanned and healthy looking that all the kids at school stared at me like no tomorrow. Soon enough though, I was peeling like an orange.

Returning home from vacation is always a chore. I don't look forward to it and probably never will.

Learn more about this author, Anthony Megna.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.