To Grade or Not to Grade

Grading is the only part of teaching that I do not enjoy. I always leave things until the night before I want to hand them back, and then stare at the pile with very little motivation.

I told my sophomores that they would get their tests back tomorrow. As I am looking at my pile of 30+ tests (including short answer + essay!) and glancing at the clock, I wonder... what is more important? Keeping my promise and being semi-prompt with my grading? Or going to bed and getting some sleep, despite the fact that they took this test a week ago and still havent gotten their grades back?

Why do I feel guilt about this? Yes, teaching is my job. But it is not my LIFE. I am a much happier person if I get to bed before 11p... a deadline that is rapidly approaching. As educators, where do we draw the line? When is it ok to say "NO, I am not doing that right now", or should I always be striving to complete as much work as possible even when I am not at school?

I didn't start grading these tests until today due to the crap-ton of other work I have to do, however I feel obligated to finish tonight. I always think to myself that there was more I could have done over the weekend or during the day or at night.

How do I know if I'm doing enough or if I need to push myself more? Should I put a quota on time I allot for work? How do I know when I can say, "No, you're not getting your tests back today" and not feel bad about it?