By this time in any other year, Chelsea Johnson and her family would probably have been to a few states, maybe even another country, for vacation.
“My family has always made travel a priority,” said Johnson, the director of community relations and the BlueCross Foundation at BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee. ” We don’t do big birthdays or holidays. We share the memories we make on the road.”
When the pandemic hit, the Johnsons paused their vacation plans, unsure when they might be able to get back to traveling. Months of working and schooling from home went by, and suddenly it was summer.
“It was mid-year before we took any time off, and I started realizing – I think everybody had that uh-oh reality that we have now half a year to take a year of vacation,” Johnson said.
As the spread of COVID-19 scuttled travel plans and turned homes into makeshift schools and workplaces across the country, unused vacation time has piled up for many people.