Retreating

Amongst a certain crowd (*ahem*), it's a popular practice to go "on retreat" where the geek completely unplugs from all communications for the length of their vacation. This allows the geek to "retreat" from the stress of their connected work and social lives.

The problem is that stress conforms to many "laws" that physical objects do. In other words, the stress doesn't disappear just because you're not in it at the moment. Rather, the majority of it gets transferred to your coworkers and friends. In fact, it actually creates more stress from the inconvenience it creates on those friends and coworkers.

Translation: Sparks! Dammit! Answer your phone! You're not going to Denver on Monday!