The VC industry is somewhat unique in the US in that it takes a long, almost-industry-wide vacation at a time of year when other American professionals do not have a coordinated vacation. People who have to interface with the industry (like e.g. founders) are occasionally annoyed at what is, from their perspective, an unannounced total work stoppage.

It is useful background knowledge here that American professionals culturally expect less vacation total than European professionals do (the norm is ~2 weeks) and expect it to be largely non-contiguous with the exception of the end-of-the-year holiday season.