Fore!

I'm working at a charity golf tournament today.  I get to sit at a par 3 and watch to see if anybody hits a hole in one.  As I was telling a friend yesterday, this has got to be the best job at a golf tournament other than beverage cart girl.  Nobody is EVER unhappy when they see a beverage cart girl drive up.  But if somebody hits a hole in one today, I am likely to be their new favorite person.  Seriously, maybe it'll be a rich guy who doesn't need a new car and he'll just give it to me.  Better yet, maybe it'll be a rich guy looking for a wife and....

I need to put together some golf packages to see if I can sell them.  I know a lot of people who love to play golf and like to play different course.  My parents have gone on one of those golf vacations before where you hit every golf course you can find between places like Georgia and South Carolina.  Apparently if you are into golf, you like those states.  I'm sure they are fine.  I just happen to think that there's really no point in going to South Carolina if you aren't going to spend several days at a beach.  But that's just me.

I looked a few months ago for golf vacations in Ireland.  I had trouble finding anything through my suppliers that was already put together.  I guess I'd have to research it and put it together myself.  I have a brother who would really enjoy that and he and his wife will be celebrating their 25th anniversary this summer.  Something tells me it would be an easy sell.  I just don't know if I know enough about golf to get it right on my own.  The worst thing that could happen would be if I sent my brother and sister-in-law on a golf trip to Ireland and something got screwed up with their golf courses or something.  If you mess up something that your brother is doing, you never hear the end of it.

I watched a Globus webinar a few months ago in which they talked about a golf package in Ireland and Scotland.  But it sold out less than a week after they started taking reservations.  I guess that should tell you that people are interested.  You would think that would result in Globus doing more golf packages.  But not so far.  During that same Globus webinar they talked about a whiskey tour of Scotland.  I did a little research on a whiskey tour recently for a client.  I think that is definitely one where a tour guide would come in handy. Don't get me wrong, there is plenty of information available on line about Scotland's whiskey trail and there are lots of opinions out there on the best distilleries to stop at.  The problem is after drinking all of that whiskey you still need to get to your next stop.  It would suck to have clients call from Scotland drunk out of their gourds and unable to find a train station.  Then what do you do?

Well, I still have several things to do today before I make my way to the golf course.  So, I'll cut this one short.  Have a good Monday.

Fins UP!

There's only one week to go before we will be packing everything into 4 cars and trucks and heading out for a long day of FINS UP!  I can't tell you what a big production all of this has become.  Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining.  In fact, I LOVE it!  The annual trek to the Jimmy Buffett show has become one of my favorite events of the year.  Last year was awful.  We didn't get to go.  The concert was at Fair Park and on a week night and who tailgates on a weekday?  I mean except for those crazy Nascar people....  But anyway, this year, he's back in Frisco and we are planning a tailgate bigger than ever before.

You might wonder why I am writing about a Jimmy Buffett tailgate party on a travel blog.  Well where else would you write about it?  Seriously, Parrotheads travel all over the world to see Jimmy in concert.  Over the years it has become a ritual for many...  sort of a Parrothead Pilgrimage, if you will.  They plan their year around whichever Jimmy Buffett show they have chosen to go to.  I know several people who have gone to see him in Paris.  I talked to someone a year or so ago who was at the show in Sydney, Australia when he fell off the stage.  Parrotheads don't just plan their vacations around Jimmy Buffetts tour schedule.  They plan their lives around it.

So yeah, he'll be in Frisco on May 4th.  But the really important news is that he'll be in Boston on June 22nd.  Everybody says that's always a great show.  Cincinnati is July 16th and he has some sort of weird connection with Cincinnati so I've always heard that it's a great one to go to.  Paris is September 28th.  Who doesn't want to see Jimmy Buffett singing He Went To Paris IN Paris?  I know I want to!  A few years ago my travel buddy, Jenny and I were planning a trip to London and Paris in September.  That year the Paris show was scheduled for September 24th.  I remember that date vividly because I wanted to go so desperately.  But Jenny's birthday is at the beginning of September and she wanted to be there on her birthday so it wasn't going to happen.  But during that time that we were planning that trip, before it got diverted to Hawaii, I had this reoccurring fantasy of me refusing to come back and just staying in Paris and going to the show and getting a small apartment and a job there and never coming back.  A girl can dream.

Jimmy Buffett is actually becoming pretty huge to the travel industry.  You might think it is all about Frozen Concoction Makers and such, but there is a whole travel niche out there devoted to the Parrothead traveler.  There is a Margaritaville Resort in Pensacola, FL that I am determined to spend several days at.  The Land Shark Landing which is one of their bars was listed as #24 in CNN's listing of the 50 best beach bars in the world.  His new resort in Bossier City is scheduled to open around June 20th.  And reviewing his concert schedule, he has a big break between Frisco and Boston.  So I'm betting he'll be there.

He has casinos in Las Vegas and Biloxi.  Now I'm not a gambler.  I just don't enjoy watching people rake my money away when I set it on a table.  It hurts me.  But if you are into gambling and you want to enjoy a little bit of paradise without a passport, this could be your answer.  Bossier City will also be a casino in case you were wondering.  

Some of the biggest news in the last few years for Parrothead travelers though is the announcement that he is teaming up with Wyndham Resorts in Smith Bay on St. Thomas to open a Margaritaville Beach Club.  Construction will begin in July.  Wyndham is investing $90 million to renovate the old Renaissance Grand which was abandoned in 2004.  It will be a time share with units for sale.  So that means unless one of you buys one and invites to me to come with you, I'll never go.  But still, it's a pretty cool thing.  

So as close as I get to Jimmy Buffett is a concert in Frisco once a year or so.  I'll take it.  For one day a year, Frisco becomes a beach resort and people go nuts.  There is nothing better than 20,000 or so Parrotheads all getting together in one landlocked location for a day.  You never know what you might see.

  

There's a guy on Facebook who has a page called I'm Gonna Live My Life Like a Jimmy Buffett Song.  He has over 32,000 likes.  I've been trying to live my life that way for as long as I can remember.  I think I'm getting closer.  I better shut it down for now.... I have to go to the post office and pick up a Tiki Bar....

The Value of a Travel Agent

I haven't been able to write a blog all week simply because I have been so busy with travel pricing for clients.  I've had so much fun this week working on Walt Disney World trips for a few different families as well as a few trips abroad.  But perhaps one of the most satisfying things I've had the opportunity to do this week is to reduce the price on a previously booked trip for a valued client.  Quite frankly, the price didn't go down much.  I think the total reduction was $89.54.  But still it went down and I was able to save someone who booked with me last month nearly $100 that they wouldn't otherwise have saved.

That's one of the advantages of booking through a reputable travel agent that you don't often hear about.  Periodically, I go through all of my bookings to see if prices have changed.  If a client requests that I do so, I'll re-run their travel at any time to look for price changes.  If all components of the trip are still available, the client has purchased travel protection and we find a price reduction prior to travel, they can get the lower price.  I love this advantage because it enables the client to lock in their optimal travel dates and times along with what we hope will be the best prices without worrying that they could have gotten a better price if only they had waited one more week.  One of the worst things that can happen to me is if my client goes on their trip and talks to someone while they are away who got a better price than them.  It will happen from time when someone books a trip prior to my clients at a lower rate.  But if the price goes down after my client books, I can help.

In this instance the $89.54 that this client saved almost completely paid for her travel protection for both members of the traveling party.  And they still have the peace of mind of knowing that if something were to come up they could cancel the trip at anytime up until their departure date with no penalties, they have medical insurance for their trip that goes beyond the medical insurance they enjoy at home.  They have trip cancellation and interruption protection among many other things.  Since they'll be in the Caribbean during hurricane season, this is particularly important.

But one of the best things about saving the $89.54 is that since in their head they had already spent the money anyway, it gives the client a choice of reinvesting that money in the trip itself and putting it into an excursion that they might not have previously wanted to spend the money on.  I don't know if the client is interested in doing this or not at this point.  But as a traveler, I know I would love that choice.

I can tell you about other advantages to using a travel agent in booking your travel.  I don't think that many travel agents give you as much information on your initial query as you might get from Places You'll Go Travel.  I'm a detail person.  If you have read my personal blog in the past you may know that nothing makes me happier than a well organized spreadsheet.  I pridefully use that love for organization when it comes to travel in fulfilling my clients requests for any information they need as well as information they may not have asked for that I think might be helpful.  I give you the information I would want if I were the traveler and in researching it, I get almost as excited about many of the trips as the actual travelers do.  It's a hazard of the job.  Just this week I have decided that I need to go to Puerto Vallarta, Venice and Disney World (not necessarily in that order).

So with all that said, I may be biased, but I do believe that there is great value in using a travel agent to book your travel.  To at least one client I'm worth at least $89.54.  But the best thing about using a travel agent is that your agent is paid by the suppliers.  You are able to do all the work yourself.  I know that you can.  I used to do it for myself all the time.  When you do, the suppliers make more money since they don't have to pay a travel agent.  They however, don't care whether or not you get all of the information you might want in making a decision, they don't care whether or not a better price might be available two weeks after you book your trip.  They simply accept the fact that they made a little extra money since no travel agent was paid.  So think about that the next time you get on line and book a cruise yourself or call the cruise line directly.  You are not saving money.  In fact, in the long run you may spend more.

Have a great Thursday.

When You Wish Upon A Star.....

Apparently, I've just been trying too hard.  As soon as I started painting my kitchen and stopped worrying about attracting potential clients for travel, they came out of the woodwork.  I have a wealth of new clients this week who all called or emailed while I was busy painting the kitchen and breakfast room.

Just based on the inquiries I am getting I'll tell you that it is apparently the time of year to start thinking about Disney.  I have to confess that although I see the attraction, I am not a big Disney girl.  I never went as a child.  In fact, I've only been once and it was on a work related trip.  Actually, I was at Epcot watching fireworks on my birthday that year.  It was the last Personal Best trip I went on, so it was probably about my 44th birthday.  I only remember that it was my birthday because as I sat on a bus being transported back to the hotel on either Thursday or Friday night, my brother, Ronnie called to tell me happy birthday and when he asked how I was spending my birthday I felt a little guilty saying that I was spending it at Disney World.  I actually felt the need to explain that I hadn't paid for the trip.  I was there on business... over my birthday weekend.

Me and Melissa Swarbrick with Mickey and Minnie!

 On Saturday of that weekend, the former employer who shall not be named gave us tickets to go to one of the parks for the day.  My friends and I chose Epcot.  We had fun and it was clean and very cool.  I liked it.  If I had been there as a kid I am pretty sure I would have been awed.  I think that one of the things I learned about Disney while I was there is that they understand who their customer is.  They are aware that their customer might not be the wealthiest American or the most successful person in the world.  Most of them are just regular people who want to take their kids on a vacation they will never forget.  On those Personal Best trips, there was always one day in which we worked.  It occurred on Friday.  They would have speakers come in or there would be team building seminars.  At Disney, it was easy because they had PR people from Disney come and speak to us.  They told us about the parks themselves and gave us a little bit of history.  But then they went into a thing about knowing their customer and their expectations and meeting those expectations.

One of the things that Disney understands better than just about any company out there is that they are asking for a pretty big chunk of your money when you come for a visit and if they don't deliver your money's worth, not only do you not come back, but you tell your friends about it too.  They told us about how their customers save literally for years to be able to take their kids to Disney World and then they spend days at the resort visiting each park, eating all their meals on sight, using Disney transportation and staff for their every need.  If any single one of those people get something wrong during that customers visit, they can potentially lose a customer for life.  With that in mind, they coach every person from the guy sweeping the floor in an employee breakroom to the girl currently playing Snow White at the front entrance to go out of their way to make this the best day of someone's life.

While the PR person talked to us, she told us about customers with illnesses who had saved for 5 years to bring their family of 4 to the park and when they finally had the money the illness had progressed to the point that they thought they would have to cancel but working through Disney team members the family was able to take the trip and the people at Disney made sure that it all went off without a hitch.  If you talk to various people at Disney, they can tell you countless stories like that because they are in the dream making business.  They don't make dreams come true through discounting or through doing extraordinary things daily.  The dreams come true because the parks themselves are extraordinary and the people who work there are taught to treat every person in an extraordinary manner daily, regardless of the situation.

After lunch on that Friday we were given the rest of the day to ourselves.  We had choices to go on 4 or 5 different little tours or excursions.  But we could only choose one.  My friends and I chose to go on the behind the scenes tour of Magic Kingdom.  Let me tell you, it was not disappointing.  They took us down below Magic Kingdom.  We went past breakrooms, a medical facility, locker rooms, dressing rooms and offices.  Everything they need to run the park is below it.  One of the most interesting things I learned is that there are multiple people running around in each of the character costumes.  But only one of each is allowed to be above ground at any given time.  If Sleeping Beauty starts to break a sweat, then she comes down and another Sleeping Beauty goes up to take her place since we all know that Sleeping Beauty doesn't sweat.  But there can never be any two Sleeping Beauty's above ground at any one time.  In their minds, it would be tragic if a little girl was talking to one Sleeping Beauty and another one walked by in the distance.

So if they feel that they need a character in one part of the park and he or she is too far away to get there easily, then he or she just goes to the nearest area to get below ground which are strategically hidden everywhere and as soon as they are below ground another one comes up in the part of the park where they needed him or her.  It's pretty ingenious.

It is the attention to detail that makes Disney stand out.  That's why I really want to go on a Disney cruise.  Cruising is all about attention to detail and if Disney can make a trip to an amusement park the experience of a lifetime, imagine what they could do on board a luxury cruise line!  It's gotta be amazing, right?  So, I'm going to continue to try to book clients on a Disney cruise so that they can come back and tell me if it was everything they expected and then as soon as possible, I'm going to go on one myself so that I can tell all of you that it was even better than expected.  But in the meantime, I'll research and book these trips to Disney for my lucky clients who are planning on going in the next year.  Have a great week!

Kitchen Update and Other Places I'd Like to Be

Good news and bad news....  First the good news:  I'm getting a lot closer to being finished with my kitchen. But the bad news is that it isn't finished yet.  Here's a photo update.  As you can see, all of the rolling is complete but I still have to finish the trim.  I ran out of paint around 4:30 or 5 yesterday afternoon and went to get more but I was meeting my friend Katherine who took me out for a birthday dinner.  So, I didn't come home and finish last night.  I hope to be finished by lunchtime today.  I'll still have to go back and paint the molding.  But all of the walls will be done.

With all of that said.... there are obviously still a lot of other places I'd rather be and I won't be able to truly concentrate on those places until I finish all of this.  So, as with the last two days.  I'll just show you photos of all the places I would rather be.  Have a great day and God Bless West, Texas.

Shiner is admiring my handywork.

Mile Marker 0 in Key West would be nice right now.

The Southernmost Point whether it's been painted or not is a good place to be.

Tibidabo would be outstanding.

Any area of Park Guell.

Ummm.... Yeah any area in the south of France would be okay with me.

I could enjoy a day in Vatican City right about now.  Maybe I could say a few prayers for my kitchen....

Yes!  I would like to be visiting the K. Spoetzl Brewery in Shiner.

Victoria, BC would be a welcome area to visit right now.

This would be a perfect day to walk through the Butchart Gardens.

High Tea at the Empress Hotel would be really pleasant right about now.

Why yes!  I would like to be snorkeling in the Keys today!

I'd Rather be ANYWHERE Than In My Kitchen

If you were looking for some serious reading about a great location today and thought you would come to my blog to fulfill that need, there are two things working against you today.

1. I overslept.
2. I have to get back into my kitchen to paint the walls.

You see here's the deal.  I painted the ceiling yesterday.  I had to run a bunch of errands first and I couldn't start painting until around 4 anyway since I had to wait 24 hours after patching the ceiling.  So, I quickly painted it between 4 and 6.  My kitchen/breakfast room ceiling is only about 190 square feet and everything was already taped off.  It took a full gallon of white ceiling paint.  And when I was finished I was confident that I hadn't missed a single spot.  Then last night as I talked to a friend on the phone, I walked in the kitchen and noticed a number of really big spots that looked like I hadn't even come close to them with paint.  UGH!!!!  I had already removed all the tarps and was preparing to paint walls today!  

So as we continued to talk, I turned lights on and with the lights on things looked much better.  I almost had myself completely convinced that the entire problem had been that shadows were being cast while the lights were off.  But alas.... this morning I see huge areas that I did cover, but they do need another coat.  This will require re-taping walls and cabinets and going back for another gallon of ceiling paint.  Then being another day behind on painting walls......  So the issue becomes, do I:

1. Re-do the ceiling today and not do the walls until tomorrow knowing that my parents will be here Friday afternoon and if there are any problems tomorrow, this whole thing could move into Friday?
2. Go ahead and paint the walls today, allow everything to dry over the weekend then tape off the walls, cabinets and re-tarp the floors on Monday and re-do the ceiling?

I'm leaning toward #2.  While it will be more difficult in the long run, I can live with splotchy ceilings over the weekend and I really don't know if I can face taping walls and cabinets again today so that ceiling paint doesn't splatter on them.  Also, I have a hair appointment tomorrow so my day will be cut in half.  

So now you see why I'd rather be anyplace than my kitchen.  So let me show you a few of those places I'd rather be....

Yes, I'd rather be standing on Waikiki gazing at Diamond Head.

Ummmm... Yeah, I would rather be on the Anahulu Stream Bridge....  Preferably going north.

I don't know if I could tolerate being on this South Shore beach when my kitchen is soooo inviting....

Nu'uanu Pali Lookout or my kitchen.... you decide....

Oh!  Now see here's a tough one... the balcony of Breezes in George Town, Grand Cayman overlooking the tender harbor or my kitchen...  Gonna be a close call.

Margaritaville... Any Margaritaville....

Sting Ray City?  Even if the rays are in a bad mood.  Still better than my kitchen.

Another Margaritaville to consider.... Ummmm.... yeah, I'm in.

The cruise terminal at Falmouth, Jamaica?  Sure, let's go!

All the tranquility, peace and quiet of Muir Woods vs. the hell of my kitchen, it's a no brainer.

Anywhere in San Francisco as the fog rolls in?  Ok, I'll tough it out.

A 1.7 mile walk across the Golden Gate Bridge?   Sure!

Capt. Tony's with a whole band of pirates.  Can't wait!

Anywhere on or near Duval St.?  Who are we kidding, I'll race you to the airport.

Key West even in a soaking rain.  Sure, I'm on vacation who cares what I look like?

Any nook or cranny of Barcelona.  Okie Dokie!

Sagrada La Familia.... Anytime, day or night.

Any European Market?  Sure as long as they have samples.

Sunset in Sitges?  Yeppers!

Any alleyway in Eze?  Count me in.

The Trevi Fountain?  Tough one, but okay, fine.

St. Peter's Basilica?  I don't know... looks a little cold.  But ok, I'll tough it out.

The Amalfi Coast....  I don't know this might be where I have to draw the line....  The kitchen has GOT to be better than this horrible place, right?  Notsomuch........

Okay, I think I've had enough coffee and goofing off in front of my computer now.  So, I am going to tackle the kitchen.  FYI....  I did decide on option 2.  So, I'll be painting walls today and putting off the ceiling until next week.  Have a good Wednesday!

I'd Rather Be On The North Shore Than in My Kitchen

This is a photo of my kitchen from a few minutes ago.  It looks this neat and well organized right now, because I spent an hour after I stopped working on it yesterday putting things away, removing tarps that didn't need to be in place overnight and wiping down various areas that hadn't been 100% covered when I started spraying popcorn yesterday.  I don't want to go back in there today but I must.  Today, my project list consists of painting the ceiling which was patched yesterday, patching walls, taping around the baseboards and painting walls.  I don't know if I will complete all of this today.  It could go into a third day.  You see, before I can even get started, I have a networking lunch at 11:30 that I'll start getting ready for as soon as I finish this blog entry.  I have a full day ahead of me.  I don't mind a full day of pulling pricing quotes for someone's dream vacation, destination wedding or honeymoon.  (hint, hint... call me if you have any of these activities coming up....)  But a full day of manual labor has never been my cup of tea.  Ask anyone.

This is where I would rather spend today.....

That was a very cool day.  This photo was taken at Pipeline on Oahu.  Of course, it was in September so you don't see the giant waves that you see during the surfing championships during the winter.  But there were still a lot of surfers out that day.  I would like to be there right now just watching the surfers and paddle boarders.  It's a happy place.  Very little ceiling patching takes place on this beach.

Here's another place I'd like to be...

This is Laniakea Beach also on the north shore of Oahu.  It's a happy place.  None of the people you see standing on this beach are thinking about their kitchen ceilings.  In fact they are probably not thinking about their homes at all unless their thoughts are, this is sooooo much better than home....  I vividly remember thinking that while I was on the north shore of Oahu.

This is another place I wouldn't mind being....

Both of these photos were taken from the top of Diamond Head.  Yes, that's right.... I'd rather be standing on the top of a volcano right now than working on my kitchen.  The top one is looking back at Honolulu and Waikiki Beach.  The one below is the Diamond Head lighthouse.  Of course, I understand that Diamond Head is an extinct volcano.  But still, you get my point.  There are a lot of places I'd rather be right now than preparing to work in my kitchen for the second day of the week.  But I will work on it.  I have a lot to get done and my parents will be here on Friday so I'd like to have the entire mess cleaned up by then.  So, I hope you'll excuse me if I cut this entry short today.

Please keep those effected by the Boston Marathon bombings in your thoughts and prayers as you go about your day.  Have a good Tuesday!