One of the last tasks I complete before leaving on vacation is setting my Out of Office message. In the past, I always worried about missing something.
Setting my out of office time was easy; everything else gave me anxiety. Did I give a reason why? Did I set expectations for how often I would check my email? Would I let people know what types of messages would get responses? How many places should I redirect people?
My second guessing of these questions always depended on the duration of my leave and the point of the semester we were in. I wanted to be helpful but I also wanted a real break.
Then I went on maternity leave. I had zero qualms about staying offline then. My automatic reply essentially said: I will be gone these dates on maternity leave. Contact this main email or schedule an appointment with another librarian here.
That was it.
It's a recipe that still works. Now, I just say what dates I will be away, give an alternative email, and link to our appointment scheduler. I don't say why I'm gone. I don't say I'm going to check email. If I do check (and reply) to email, it's a bonus.
I've been using this system for three years now and it's never been an issue. People don't complain. Nothing gets missed. More importantly, I don't feel the need to justify why I am on leave or working while I'm away.
What does your out of office message say?
No Wrap next week. We’re on vacation. The Weekly Wrap will be back to it’s usual posting schedule on August 21, 2022.
I’m a few chapters into Enchantée by Gita Trelease. It’s magic meets the French Revolution. I honestly don’t know if I like it yet. The book is on the verge of being addictive, but I can’t quite fall into it like I thought I would. The writing is descriptive, but it borders on slow. I don’t DNF books (don’t at me) so the jury is still out on a final verdict.
Glutamates make things taste better. [Atoms vs Bits - reader submission]
MLB's baseball mud comes from one man. [NYT - may be paywalled]
Academics are finally refusing to work for free. Good! [Slate]
How to dejunkify your Instagram. [NPR]
The people who keep the cloud running. [Aeon]
This highlights why our kiddo is in swim lessons right now. [Popular Science]
Adding this culinary adventure to my list of things to do. [Atlas Obscura]
If you need to make a decision, use pen and paper. [HBR - may be paywalled]
Spicy Food: For flavor or the kicks? [Short Wave]
How to be less online. [Life Kit]
But does the wild horse fire brigade get to wear cute helmets? [Short Wave]
I need to use my olive oil faster. [Gastropod]
There's a reason the monkeypox vaccine has been so hard to get. [Science Vs]
I haven't watched a Men in Black movie in, perhaps, a decade. Men in Black 3 is an amped up version of the first two films in the series. There is more tech, more CGI aliens, and more backstory of the characters. Additionally, a masterful casting decision makes this movie work. Nothing will top the first film, but this one is pretty darn good. [Netflix]
While we're staying with my in laws, we're trading off cooking duties. My mother-in-law made a delicious version of our gnocchi with summer vegetables. Her version was just zucchini and, I think, had a little more lemon. I added several cranks of freshly ground pepper which gave it a nice zest. [Martha Stewart]
On our second night here, my in laws made duck. It was a quick cook from CostCo. The packages came with half a roasted duck and an orange sauce. They were a fast cook paired with rice pilaf and roasted carrots. So good! [Maple Leaf Farms]
The storms in South Carolina have been intense this week. We watched some clouds roll in before deciding to skedaddle off the beach.
When I was a young librarian, I managed the stacks of a large academic library. That meant I got to see all the things that got left in books. My favorite find was a Schrute Buck. Most libraries keep a small collection of fun things found in books. (I taped ours to the side of a bookcase in my office.) A librarian at the Oakland Public Library is putting what they find online. I love random digital collections like this. [Found in a Book]
Vacation mode activated!
Hi Meghan, the HBR article about pen and paper decision making really caught my eye, thanks!
Haha, it is so awesome that you found a Schrute Buck!
Maybe its a good hedge against inflation, apparently the exchange rate of US Dollars to Schrute Bucks was approximately 10,000.