The Downside of Living In A Seasonal Paradise or Why To Invest In A Treadmill

Gorgeous Lake Michigan and the South Pier Lighthouse

From my last entry I have indeed survived The Plague that downed the men in my house . I left shortly after that to stay at my Mother's for the better part of the month and assisted her in her recovery from a full knee replacement. I returned home on Monday of this week very very grateful and relieved to be back. Mother's house is nice but its not mine and I missed my husband terribly...

  So I'm back here and a March thaw has made all of the Spring ideas spring! Unfortunately --and frustratingly -- this is 'The Starving Time' for us; little to no income, savings wiped and several worrisome shut-offs looming. It will all take care of itself (we are well versed in this seasonal waste land time) but it sure never gets easier. I'm sure my friends are very tired of my continued admonishments to 'support independent artists' but truly- the sale of just one canvas can make the difference between having electricity and not; buying groceries and not. Its hard to make it up here; beautiful as it is.  On the positive end of things (where I like to keep them! I'm whining here mostly because so very few people read this blog I just use it as a diary lol) once we make it through April things start looking up- hours become available at the restaurant for Jack, Spring spruce up jobs from remodeling clients start to come in and the concessions will open at the end of May bringing in the majority of my yearly income. Until then its all about creative budgeting and tightening the belts. Its tiresome, really...

The Beach House at Michigan Beach awaiting summer flowers

  Broke or not, the foot work for the summer jobs still needs to be done. I'm busy painting tables and chairs for  the soon-to-be-vamped up patio seating area at the Michigan Beach concession. I've completed this year's menu ; adjusting prices up or down as supply cost dictates and adding a few more 'farm to table' offerings. The arrival of Food Trucks in Charlevoix facilitated the patio up grade as it looks like I will need to offer whatever those things do not. I am not a fan of having them in our town; the footprint is too small and there are too many dedicated bricks and mortar eateries that stand to lose out should they move in. The city is in the process of writing language to maintain and contain them but I remain concerned.
 Ferry Beach and its concession is also looking at a bunch of changes mostly in menu upgrades and I am advertising for at least 2 paid positions for the summer. I will be very happy when I can get to work on site for these places rather than run in place here at home but I am taking full advantage of my 'down time' to get as many ducks in a row that I can :-)
  Interested in checking out The Beach House? Here is the link. 
How about that artwork I mentioned? Everything is available on the Etsy store HERE.... (and seriously; support independent artists and artisans. You can make an immediate and important difference for the better in their lives <3)

   Thanks to whomever reads this and thanks for listening to my whining . I am off now to pound the pavement ,so to speak, on my treadmill and listen to some great music while letting my mind wander and my body get healthy.

 Its All Good