It’s Hot Hiatus Time

And the living's easy.

One of the lovely and also frightening things about freelance work is that it’s not consistent. I’m blessed with a fantastic and rewarding gig producing and hosting the podcast “Dear Headspace” for the meditation app Headspace. I get paid to do what I love: be on the microphone, have deep and meaningful conversations, help some folks feel better, and make spreadsheets with timelines, deadlines, and checkboxes. How great does that sound?

But it’s a production gig that sometimes has downtime, so I’m about to be out of work for August.  

“You have the whole month of August off?” you say. “That sounds glorious. What’s frightening about that?”

Yes, I know a month off from work is a great big ol’ gift wrapped with a bow. It falls when my kids are off school and done with camp, when it’s hot, the New York City pools are open, and the tennis courts are free. Well, it’s more like free-ish. It is NYC, after all; you need a paid permit to breathe. Whatever, I’ll be outside.

What’s the downside? Mama doesn’t get paid when she doesn’t work. But the good news is I’ve got so much money anxiety that I’ve been setting money aside all year long so I can enjoy this time off. And I really want to just freaking settle down, be less Robin, and enjoy it. 

My first order of not doing business was to dub this time off as my Hot HIatus. It’s like Hot Girl Summer, but with menopause.

There is one thing standing in the way of me living my Hot Hiatus to the fullest, and that’s my tendency to say I’m off but then also say things like, “Well, that meeting does seem very important, so of course I’ll be there.” Or, “This time off would be the perfect time to start up that humongous new project I’ve been thinking about while not sleeping at 2 a.m.” 

This essay is nothing more than an attempt to combat my natural instincts. It’s me saying it (and yes, I’m making a cringe face as I type this): I will not add one more thing to my plate in August. 

So, dear reader, if you see a post from me on this Substack about a crucial financial tip or a life hack about how to pick out the best mattress or any other musing that I wrote down, edited, formatted, and posted, please yell at me, and yell at me good. 

If I can pull this Hot Hiatus off, you won’t hear from me until mid-September. In the meantime, I’d love to hear from you in the comments with any thoughts you have about what you would do with a Hot Hiatus. 

But you can also feel free to boss me around and tell me what you think I should do with my time off. All suggestions are welcome unless it’s, “Hey, Robin. Why don’t you go to hell.” 

It’s too hot there, even for a hot hiatus. 

See you soon, folks!