Vacation TIme

Yep, I am off until the 19th of August. I left a note on the Concierge desk for my co-worker who comes in on my days off, so she doesn't get the idea that I got the axe. On this note I wished her well and made menton that I would be off until August 12th. ( WRONG ! What was I thinking? ) After five years of employment at the CIA, you get three weeks of paid vacation ... not two !! and I am going on SEVEN Years ( I can hardly believe it myself, considering I usually start looking out the back door around four years ). The truth is, I love my job and I am learning to respect those people I have held grudges against. Admittedly, I do get upset from time to time, but other staff knows that it is only because I don't want to disappoint anyone. In the business of Hospitality , It is all about having a "Sense of Urgency" that Thomas Keller refers to at his establishment, The French Laundry ( The sign is posted above the kitchen door ). It strikes me that without this presence of mind, the ball gets dropped and things don't get done in an efficient and timely manner. It has also been said that the "Devil is in the details" . Don't I know this... when a guest needs a recipe at the cooking demo and I am short a few, I have to get a fresh batch printed out and brought to the Theater before the demo progresses too far. This happened on Saturday and I freaked out because my co-worker wasn't getting these copies to me fast enough. I stopped what I was doing,and ran out of the theater, 50 yards toward the place in the building where the copier is located. I met her half way as she was coming towards me explaining how slammed she was at the Concierge desk. I just wanted the recipes without any time to spare. I was completely out of breath when I got back to the theater and in the heat of a tense moment, I broke down. Luckily, is was not in front of guests... but my team... Patricia and Andy. They were both very supportive until I could bring myself into some semblance of composure. It was clear to me, then and there, that a vacation was eminent.