Spring Break Guilt

Monday I told myself that I was going to spend the day working on comps and/or grading papers. I stayed in my pjs and played on the internet. Tuesday, I told myself that I deserved a day off and I could just get started on Monday's plans and not feel guilty about it. I got a hair cut, went shopping, and played around with new blog templates. This morning I woke up and felt incredibly guilty for not having accomplished anything for school (or really anything on my To Do list*).

I know that my students are not working on projects for my classes, so I shouldn't really feel obligated to have graded all of their papers over the break.** My advisor isn't working during the break, so I shouldn't really feel obligated to finish everything for comps. All that said, I still do. I feel like I've wasted my break if my only accomplishments were uploading new blog templates, watching tv, shopping, and getting a hair cut.

I'm not sure quite when this guilt developed. I know that as an undergrad, I did not feel guilty about escaping school during breaks. Is this something I learned in grad school orientation? Can I sue for pain and suffering if I find the source of this guilt? I know that my students are not sitting at home wondering if they should be working on something for school.

So, halfway through Spring Break, I have not finished the baby's room or cleaned out the closet or written lesson plans or graded anything or worked on my sythesis statements. I feel guilty about all of these things, but not guilty enough (as of yet) to give up doing nothing. Maybe I'll start being a grad student again tomorrow, but I think I'll pretend like I'm an undergrad for one more day.

As alway, PhD Comics understand this dilema...

*Maybe I'll start feeling more successful if I include items like "play on Facebook" and "stay in pjs all day" on my lists.
**For the record, they turned them in the Friday before the break.