Do you really want to go on vacation?

I had the feeling it was just me, but apparently it's a big cultural trend that people don't want to go on vacation anymore. Assuming this actually is happening and it's something new, what's the cause?

People have always worried about leaving their work. It will either pile up and make things harder when you get back or it will be a problem because someone is covering for you. They'll either do it badly -- and you'll have to undo the mess -- or they do it well -- and you'll look bad by comparison.

And then there's also the problem -- is this new? -- that the vacation might not be good enough. In typical NYT fashion, the article tells the story of one Manhattanite woman. It's Randi Friedman, the 27-year-old publicist. Can you believe it? She went to a resort and it rained and it was rather cold. But she did -- wince -- gain a sense of perspective when she turned on the hotel TV and saw how bad the day at the beach was for the victims of the Asian tsunami.....

(Oooh, I wish they'd edited that part out...)

Anyway, I'm not surprised people rebel against vacation. Presumably, you have your regular life set up to provide a decent level of satisfaction. Your living quarters are reasonably comfortable, your job is somewhat enjoyable, and you like your town and at least some of your friends and acquaintances. Why go to the trouble of going somewhere else, where every day is going to cost you lots of extra money, and where you have no guarantee you'll be one bit happier than you are at home? To try to ensure the experience will be better than home, you can make a big effort a planning or lay out a lot of extra money, but that increases the burden and only makes it more important that the vacation turn out well.