Our Experience at Fountain of Youth (FOY)

We left a few weeks earlier than we planned but we had some fun while it lasted. There was no one reason we left early, just a combination of many including some great work opportunities presented to us.

Things we loved about our experience…

Working only part time, 4 nights a week and only 5 hours per night.

Most all of our coworkers were wonderful to work with and we had some good nights just hanging out and conversing.

Weather was wonderful, not much wind and rain this season, a bit cooler than normal in this area but we were able to enjoy many sunny days and comfortable nights.

Whenever we work at places that we get tips we always keep them in a separate pile and watch them add up…this time they added up quite nicely…a big ending bonus for us!

The mineral springs were wonderful to soak and we took advantage of them once the weather was warmer.

Things we didn’t love about our experience…

The internet sucked…our first week here we used more than half of our monthly allowance of data since we were constantly searching for service…using their free WiFi was even worse but the first month here we paid an additional $50 in data overages. A completed phone conversation was nonexistent which made it difficult to make future plans.

The disorganization in the Café was horrific which left us working harder on our shifts to find things we needed to fulfill the menu items. Usually we were out of many products on a daily basis that we could not complete many items on the menu. That made it difficult to handle the customers in front of us who were irate and wanted what was on the menu and blamed us for the incompetence. We did not do the ordering and we had to make do with what we had daily which also included our till, we had no place to go to get change most of the time and the times we went to get change was like an act of congress.

Management had absolutely NO knowledge of putting people in the right places so that things would flow easier. We were all allowed to just do whatever we wanted and at times this just created more chaos, especially among the very inexperienced workers.

WAY too many people up the ladder that influenced our immediate manager who was always undermined by someone else at the higher level which made things constantly confusing. One particular day we were reprimanded for a few complaints about the presentation of the pizza…not taking into consideration that particular day it was just Jerry and myself since people were out sick and our helpers had to fill in for them which left us with nobody to help us on a busy night of pizza and Karaoke. Little things like that which just showed us very bad management skills on many of the people in those higher positions. There was a time when they did see the good we were doing and they did make a point of letting us know but it never really made up for the complaining times.

Even though we only worked 5 hours per day it was hard work for those hours since the moment we came in we had to get the dinner special ready while cleaning, organizing and fixing lunch for the late comers. Then dinner began at 4pm and ended about 6pm so for two hours we were cranking it out…just a strange situation that kicked our butts many nights. Part of that was 100% our fault since we had a helper but she was so incompetent that she only caused us more work so we asked that she not be on our shift so we did it alone.

As far as returning…probably not! Even though it was really not that bad the major things for us is the internet, or lack of and the usual season is October through March which is a LONG time for us. Being asked to fill in for 2 ½ months was long enough for us.

NASCAR Returns & Unchartered Territory

YEAH…Sunday is the Daytona 500 but there has been cars on the track for the last week which is the beginning of the season and we are ready for it. We want to attend a few races this season but only time will tell, we realize what we want and what life gives to us is not always on the same page so we will just relax, go with the flow and see where life takes us.

We are heading out in just a few days into unchartered territory...

We have a few jobs lined up with PepWear and then the plan is to get with this other company selling items at Sam’s Club across the country, mainly in California for now but then if it works out we plan to travel extensively working with a few different companies that allow us to travel. This has always been our dream but for all these years it just didn’t seem to line up with us but this is a brand new year and we are going for it once again…we just refuse to let go of our perfect dream lifestyle.

Our definition of "perfect" is not necessarily as the word 

is intended but just being perfect for us is what matters.

We are still in the deciding stage of what to do about Maggie and transportation…we are really leaning towards a truck to tow for a short time and then possibly pulling a trailer and letting go of Maggie. We looked into driving the NHRA circuit since it sounds exactly like what we want to do BUT they do not supply the truck like PepWear does so for now we had to pass on that idea. PepWear is back on our agenda beginning in September but for now we need to find work for the next 6 months that would keep us traveling and keep our wallets full, we are determined to find that "perfect" fit for us.

We are excited about these next adventures and cannot wait to see where life takes us…

For more photos, check out our Google + Web Albums.

That Time of the Year…Again!

Our time here at the Fountain of Youth is coming to an end…we will be leaving in a few weeks and heading for a new adventure with PepWear. We have a few events lined up with them, not as lucrative as the BOA that we do in September but hopefully this will once again allow us to travel and work. We also have another company that we plan to get some work from during the next few months that we believe will also allow us to make some decent money and travel extensively. Most of these upcoming events will be in California, one might take us to Oregon but that one is still pending. Once we leave here in a separate post we will share our thoughts about our few months working here at FOY.

We had one of those special moments yesterday when one of our followers just happen to be in the immediate area and made a quick stop to see us. Tammy and Randy have been reading our blog since 2008 and they are celebrating their 12 year wedding anniversary today and have been full time traveling for over 7 years and we finally got to meet up with them. It’s so funny when you meet up with folks you have been only conversing with online for years, it seems you know them and the conversation just goes on and on and could have went on longer but unfortunately we needed to get to work but we hope our paths will pass once again when we have more time to share our stories with one another.

There are several dates that get in our way of totally enjoying our lives and this year is taking a huge effort to continue being functional while they pass. We were so grateful that we made it through the holidays without too much internal damage but for some reason this year it’s been tougher getting through these anniversaries and birthdays.

There’s the anniversary of my youngest brother’s death and his birthday which is what began a string of events that influenced us to make our decision to begin living this wonderful traveling lifestyle so many years ago.

Then there is our daughter’s birthday that we have not been allowed to be in her and our grandson’s life now for about 10 years.

Now if that is not enough, there is the anniversary of my mother’s death…

Put them all together in a few weeks span and you get some pretty hurtful times that we have to work on day by day. And even though most happened well over 10 years ago they are events that stay deep in our hearts refusing to ever let go of the hold they have on us.

We pretend not to feel because even after all this time we still ache deep inside but we refuse to allow any of these events to take over our lives. We smile, we laugh and give off the impression that all is fine but when we are alone with one another, especially at this time of the year, well that is when we can be ourselves and cry and talk about the hurt still inside our souls. We can then allow the wounds to heal but it seems at times they never will but we know better because there was a time years ago when the pain was so overwhelming we never thought we would get through it but we did and we will get through these hard times.

Through all the loss in our lives we are both just so very grateful that we found one another and are able to share not just the tough times but also the great and wonderful moments we are so blessed to enjoy. Life is not always easy but we know that we will get through these times and look forward to better days when the pain is more tolerable and the fun is abundant.

For more photos, check out our Google + Web Albums.