I need a vacation.

I'm not the type of person who usually takes long trips; I prefer four-day weekends. In fact, I hadn't taken more than a week off from work in my entire adult life until three months ago. How glorious it was! I got a chance to go overseas and really unwind for two weeks.

How I wish I had something like that on the horizon.

It amazes me how quickly the rest and refreshment fades away. It's been only three months, and I'm ready for another trip. (I did take a four-day trip a mere three weeks after the two weeks off, but that was based around a family weekend, so it doesn't really count.)

I have a work-related conference coming up in April. It's four-nighter in another time zone, but it's for work, so I'll only count the downtime I'll have to go to the theater or the Hard Rock Cafe. So, by my calculations, it's 5 percent vacation, 95 percent work.

In May, we're traveling to Houston for my sister's graduate school graduation. That's only a two-nighter. I figure the whole graduation day will be graduation-related, so the other half-days on either side when we're one either in a plane or waiting for a plane will be vacation. Verdict: 50 percent vacation, 50 percent family event.

In July, I may travel to see friends for Independence Day. That's not set in stone yet, but I'm pretending it is, just so I have something to look forward to. By then, my friends will have a newborn and a 2-year-old, so I'm betting this three-night trip won't be all fun and games. The score: Vacation, 85 percent; Helping Out, 15 percent.

I hope to squeeze in a long weekend in New York at some point this year. I've gone to the Big Apple every year for the last 10, and I have no plans to break my streak in 2008. A couple of times, it was me and mom for three nights at a Times Square hotel, four Broadway shows, at least one visit to a museum, one trip to the Carnegie or Stage Deli, one soft pretzel from a sidewalk vendor and the traditional pilgrimage to Fortunoff on Fifth Avenue. (And, if we're lucky, autographs of and pictures with some stars!) Mom and I are always on our best behavior, and we both enjoy the theater more than anyone else in our family, so we have a great time. My prediction (should we do this trip again): 100 percent vacation, 0 percent heartache.

And that's all I've thought of so far. In fact, just thinking about the possibilities has considerably lightened my mood. And I didn't even have to pay for airfare.