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I worked craft beer sales for a hot minute. Place was a disaster, so I was already looking for a new job anyway. Labor day rolls around, and I inform my bosses A MONTH OUT that I will be taking a week off at the end of August to go on vacation. They approve it, all is well, everything's great, I get back to work. The week I leave, I remind them that I'll be gone for a week, I won't be available for work things, and that I'll see them next week. They say cool, tell me to have a great time, and I clock out for the day.

9:01AM, the day I leave, I get a text. "Hey Dogiedog64, when are you coming back? We need to have a chat about some things." I don't bother responding, since I'm on vacation, and moreover, I'm driving on the highway. The day passes, I get where I'm going, but it's past work hours, and I want to enjoy my vacation. THE NEXT DAY, they call me. 9:01AM. I miss it, they leave a message and another text to the effect of "Call us back. It's important." I don't. I'm on vacation, they KNOW I'm on vacation, and it can wait.

6PM rolls around, and I get a text. "Dogiedog64, since you didn't call us back today, we're unfortunately going to have to let you go. Your performance wasn't cutting it and we've gotten numerous customer complaints about you." I know for a fact this was bullshit, as I had done the rounds before I left, and all my customers loved me and our beer, but hated our managers and distribution scheme.

Now, you may ask "what was the point of that story?" It's simple: companies will find a reason to fire you for nothing, no matter how well you lay out boundaries or plans, so don't bother treating them like they're special. I lost my job, but I did nothing wrong; I set clear boundaries and expectations, with ample documentation, notice, and approval, and they STILL fired my ass.

So yeah. Take your PTO. It's YOURS. Go on that vacation, leave your work life AT WORK, and have a good time. Your coworkers will be fine without you, and if the company collapses while you're gone, they deserved to collapse anyway. Life is simply too short to spend it all slaving away for a company that hates you.