roLLerCOasTErrrrr....continued...

Well this life will forever be an up & down ride so this post I will begin & end at part 2. The past 3 weeks have been emotional & physical & mental &.... continual. Sometimes life offers little interference & very few instances to stop & breathe... or write. To start, here are a few highlights in pictures:

Massive Pork Chop special- muy, muy bien!

An interview for the local newspaper regarding the Indy project

Line caught Cod special

Baby brother's birthday celebration @ the Museum of Science &  Industry

So, other than the brief day of fun....
The restaurant has been busy. Not nearly the mad Groupon rush we experienced a few weeks ago but the- finally its spring and the sun is out- buzz! Praise God for that! Party after party we are booking graduations & weddings & showers & corporate extravaganzas! In fact, this weekend is the "kick-off" to the summer here in Winona Lake, the Fat & Skinny Tire Fest!!! I LOVE this weekend! Over a thousand bikers generally come to the area to compete. There are tents set up & bands are in place. We cater the food in the tent and this year we are also serving beer from the Garden. Just another thing to contribute to the craziness but... I.LOVE.IT. This is when the magic happens in the Village & this is when nothing is better than living in the Village! I can't wait!

On top of all that, it is also Grace College Graduation this weekend & our local high school's prom. Oh boy! Lots of celebrating going to take place... The books are loaded & it's only Tuesday. I have already spent over an hour erasing & writing & re-writing the seating chart for Saturday. Although it may seem obsessive- every pencil mark, every seat, every specific place that each reservation is placed- matters. Each.detail.matters. Sometimes I cannot believe the attention to detail I have been forced upon over that past few years. Owning a business will do that to you. I will openly admit- I am obsessive compulsive. There, I said it! I would have laughed OUT LOUD at myself 5 years ago...

Before a shift begins I walk through the restaurant & check each table:

 Is it set correctly?

Is the napkin 1 in from the side plate?

Are the glasses polished?

 Is the candle centered?

That table needs moved 2 inches to the left.

Those place settings are not symmetrical.

Change the special card, it has a spot.

And the list goes on & on... However, the most humbling moment of the week occurred last Saturday  night. I was hosting the dinner shift & we were slammed. We were way past the preliminary checklist & every dining room was full with an hour wait up front. I was making a round to the kitchen to check on all the servers when BAM! I was on the floor! Yes, dining room full of customers, I hit a spot of water full speed... I went up, I went down... all the way down. In fact, a kind booth of women decided to elaborate on the situation & scream, "Honey, are you ok?!" Praise God I decided to wear pants that day. I had to get back up, put on my smile & continue the night. A few, "How is your knee?" & "Man your hip must be sore" 's later....I realized the irony of life's little ways of slowing you down. Ha. I now have 2 lovely & LARGE bruises to show for it! 

So this week I chose to approach life a little lighter & a little slower. The sun is out, people are happy, & there is not much to complain about. 

Welcome spring. I have been waiting for you.