That's too bad. My employer has "normal" vacation policies (though we accrue faster than most other employers), but most managers (including mine) won't blink

That's too bad. My employer has "normal" vacation policies (though we accrue faster than most other employers), but most managers (including mine) won't blink if you ask for four weeks at a time. The CEO typically leaves the country for at least four weeks a year (as well as taking other holidays throughout the year), and my direct manager was gone for five weeks, with no contact, this year. I was out of the office for six weeks as well, though I did work remotely for about six days and spent four days at our west coast dev office (where my manager is stationed). Another person mentioned golden handcuffs--I agree. There are some things that bug me about the way the company works, but when I look at what the company offers me, I'm more likely to either look past those things, or work to fix them.