The Endless Thread is showing signs of stress and fatigue. I know, it wants to keep working, and it would probably willingly continue to sit there at its desk, scribbling madly, until it had a heart attack and keeled over, but as a kindly taskmasker hoping to wring a few more years of cheap labor out of it, I had to do something.

So I cashed in my frequent flyer miles and am sending the Thread to an exotic tropical island for a month.

Just imagine the Thread lying contentedly in a hammock on a sunny beach, with beautiful bikini-clad women and topless buff men bringing it sweet drinks in a coconut (with an umbrella!) all day long. It’s under orders to not say a word, to not even write a postcard back. Then, after days of languorous idleness beneath blue skies and nights of sweet romance and heedless dreams, it will come back refreshed and cheerful, ready to talk about nothing but fun and joy, and to embrace old friends once again.

I wish I were going now.

Perhaps you want to say goodbye and get in a few last words before departure, but no…I know how these prolonged farewells can drag on and on, so I’ve whisked the thread away under cover of night. You’ll have to content yourself with many alohas when it returns in June.

Bon voyage!