Just coming off my final uni holiday before I start a grad job in September and I hope it's the last August holiday I have to take for a long time. I want to be able to work through summer and enjoy the city in nice weather (even if this summer has been a bit *too* 'nice') whilst enjoying great seasonal arbitrage by taking holiday in the off season when holidays are cheaper and the weather in most places is not unbearably hot.
Indeed, as this article helpfully explains, the August shutdown is really a relic of bosses trying to cut costs by sacrificing their workers' flexibility, so it is absurd we glorify it anyway.
One rather enormous problem with this premise: climate change is the reason the French are starting to question whether closing in August is even viable anymore.
Who wants to go on holiday when it's too hot to do anything? Better to stay at work with the AC and holiday at a different time.
This is a fun piece. But would it be too much to ask to refer to our neighbours as "continental Europeans" rather than "Europeans"? Last time I looked, Great Britain was still part of the geography of Europe, Brexit or no Brexit...
You know, I re-read it a final time this morning and I wondered whether people would read something into that - I'll leave it as written rather than doing sneaky retrospective edits but your comment can be the corrective!
I don't understand the whole "work from home when it's hot", for younger workers with no aircon, myself included, the office is always going to be a lot nicer.
The best thing would be to do as Russia did -give everyone a plot of land to build a nice little county retreat. Alas we’re a tiny island, so guess that will never be possible.
If your office has decent air conditioning then working this August has been a life saver.
London, a city that is desperate to work in August.
No, it's not that, it's work from the office and not from home, because that's where the AC is.
Just coming off my final uni holiday before I start a grad job in September and I hope it's the last August holiday I have to take for a long time. I want to be able to work through summer and enjoy the city in nice weather (even if this summer has been a bit *too* 'nice') whilst enjoying great seasonal arbitrage by taking holiday in the off season when holidays are cheaper and the weather in most places is not unbearably hot.
Indeed, as this article helpfully explains, the August shutdown is really a relic of bosses trying to cut costs by sacrificing their workers' flexibility, so it is absurd we glorify it anyway.
One rather enormous problem with this premise: climate change is the reason the French are starting to question whether closing in August is even viable anymore.
Who wants to go on holiday when it's too hot to do anything? Better to stay at work with the AC and holiday at a different time.
(I write this from Paris)
(not to mention the risk of being evacuated from the path of a wildfire)
This is a fun piece. But would it be too much to ask to refer to our neighbours as "continental Europeans" rather than "Europeans"? Last time I looked, Great Britain was still part of the geography of Europe, Brexit or no Brexit...
You know, I re-read it a final time this morning and I wondered whether people would read something into that - I'll leave it as written rather than doing sneaky retrospective edits but your comment can be the corrective!
I don't understand the whole "work from home when it's hot", for younger workers with no aircon, myself included, the office is always going to be a lot nicer.
If your office has air con!
The best thing would be to do as Russia did -give everyone a plot of land to build a nice little county retreat. Alas we’re a tiny island, so guess that will never be possible.
Nonsense
Interesting take on things! Thanks for your input.