Academia provides ample breaks (even though the work is never done).
I choose to spend this winter break "sharpening my saw" by improving my typing ability and learning a new computer language.
Improving typing is simple but not easy, any program or class will work. It is developing procedural expertise, you will get better if you receive immediate feedback and practice copiously.
The harder, more interesting project was learning Python. I have massive sunk cost in MATLAB programming. However given my move into web-based research, I need a language that is designed for where I am and where I want to go. Python appears to have the best return for minimal investment. "Learning Python the Hard Way" was the first step in my journey.
The magic was stopping the "doing" of work and pairing the two projects. Temporarily pausing other projects provided focused blocks of time to learn. Also, freely oscillating between cognitive and procedural challenges kept both fresh.
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