Summer Fun Without the Cost

Posted on March 31, 2010 by admin

It is hard to believe it but summer will be here before we know it. Although many states are still buried beneath feet of snow, in just a couple months kids will be out of school and looking for things to do. As parents there is only so much that you can do to keep them entertained inside the house, especially as temperatures continue to rise. It won’t be too long before both of you will be in need of a break from the house and a chance to experience something new. With many people unable to afford elaborate family vacations this year, it is time to get creative and find some inexpensive ways to help the family make the most of their summer break.
Planning ahead is an important part of making your summer fun on a budget. You can find many deals in your area and online if you are able to plan ahead a little bit and really take advantage of some great offers. Sometimes local hotels/resorts will offer special discounted rates to in-town guests. The Point at South Mountain in Arizona offers special deals to Phoenix residents every summer. And with the water park admission free to guests, it is a great place to take the kids for a couple of day. You can relax in the lazy river while the kids enjoy the slides and wave pool.
Another place to check for deals is the public library. They not only offer their own programs this summer, such as reading programs where kids can win prizes like gift cards and iPods, but also advertise summer specials for local museums and other cultural sites, many of them being free or greatly discounted.
Summer is a slow time for many businesses, so they will often offer free or discounted services to help draw in extra business. Feel free to take advantage of these offers. Because they usually don’t cost that much, some people have no problem taking out a short -term loan or a payday loan to cover the extra expense. Even on a budget you can have a fun and memorable summer.

Sales and the End of the Day

Posted on March 27, 2010 by admin

When the world is your oyster, there’s a lot of ground to cover. It doesn’t have to be the end of the day to give the people who work for you a well-deserved break, and it’s likely that such acts of kindness will actually come back to reward you in the end. Employee loyalty is hard to come by. It’s one of those elusive quantities that’s very difficult to build and very easy to lose.

Naturally, there’s some built-in mechanisms that will help instill at least a surface kind of loyalty, such as the mere fact of the paycheck, but there are other ways of building deeper bonds on a sales or service team. These are things that can last a lifetime, too, if carefully tended.

It does begin with an attitude of excellence, where it seems obvious that the world is abundant, and all that’s necessary is a little bit of charm and a lot of elbow grease , and things will start to pay off or pan out. However, everything has its ups and downs, and sometimes when the downs are lasting longer than anyone suspected, it’s time to get in and do some solid team building and employee training seminar s are a fantastic way to get this under way.

When the team begins to learn how to work together again, some wonderful things can happen. And it’s also magic to see a group of new employees getting it for the first time. There are certain constant principles that are good to know, and they can apply to nearly every level of service . There is a great deal of common sense to all of it, and it takes some commitment to realizing the dreams by participating in common methods of learning, in an environment where the results are tried and true.

There’s no better feeling that to get to the end of the day and see that the track you’re on is the right one.

Mercury and Oldsmobile Run Route 66

Posted on March 24, 2010 by admin

Back in the early 1900s, 1908 to be exact, is when the new mode of transportation made its way to the people of America with the Ford Model T. Before it’s birth, travelers had to ride horses, wagons, trains, bicycles or walk to were they wanted to go. The stage coach was a popular way to get across the country.
With the new motor technology came a need for more independence in traveling long distances. The Indians made the first tiny trails across the country, then came the mountain men trying to get away from the populated cities, then the railroad with its need for flat land and water which became the best line of travel for the new automobile. The automobile would cut the travel time from days into hours on long journeys as they followed the first roads beside the train tracks across the country. The car would bring on a whole new industry of paving roads.
There were groups who tried to pull together maps for cross country use but they were confusing. By the 1920′s the Federal Government finally decided to make an effort to bring some paved roads and organization to the automobile travelers. This is when the Federal Aid Road Act was passed in 1921. It was time to build some new highways. From Chicago to Santa Monica the Route 66 was born in November of 1926. People can still jump in their new Mercury Sable or bring the Cutlass Manual along a fantastic trip from one side of the country. There are some areas that have changed from the original but there are some parts of the Route 66 that have stayed the same. Catch some of the more interesting sights like the Cadillac Ranch in Amarillo TX or the Grand Canyon Railway in Williams Arizona. This is a fantastic adventure that everyone should take.

Honolulu Bonfire

Posted on March 22, 2010 by admin

This is a memory that’s still waiting to happen, and one that happened all the time, at least when it was happening. It only seems right later on that it was necessary to think it was everyday, otherwise it would have been regarded as too precious, so much so that the pressure would have been too large on the moment to allow it to happen.

It has to happen where there are luxury hotels. Honolulu has to be the place because it’s a perfect place in the oceans of the word, and even though it might be fraught with impossible levels of previous histories, where loves so grand they would become stories of goddesses and gods, it has to repeat for it to become like a myth.

It was something like sitting at a very simple restaurant and talking about something very simple. After two nights here where it seemed to be moving like a romance that moves like any other romance, and seemed to even bear some seeds for its eventual end, there was a comment. He makes a comment or she makes a comment, and somewhere in between comments there is something like falling in love. If not exactly falling, then certainly very close, and he moves to touch her face, and she moves closer to him, and they agree.

Later there will be a moment somewhere in public, where there is a bonfire and the smell of something very fresh being prepared for a meal, and that moment will be one that no one can forget. At that moment, he has just asked her a question, one that seemed to come from nowhere but was still so careful and considered that she did not have to consider for very long, because it was obvious that it was all leading up to this, a moment in Honolulu where things would be different, so very simple and different.

Charleston Harbor Tours and Romance

Posted on March 17, 2010 by admin

Charleston, South Carolina, is situated at the confluence of the Cooper and Ashley rivers where they empty into the Atlantic Ocean, creating a harbor that was guarded by Fort Sumter during the Civil War. The fort, which is now a national monument, entices many visitors to leave the city attractions and enjoy the beauty of this historic place from its marvelous waterways.

To see Charleston from the water, book a harbor tour for 90 minutes aboard the Carolina Belle. You’ll glide by elegant, colorful old homes, the well-known Battery and Waterfront Parks, Cooper and Arthur Ravenel Bridges, and Patriots Point. A narrator ensures you will leave with lots of interesting facts about this coastal city.

One cruise takes you directly to Fort Sumter. Civil War history buffs will love this because you actually spend time touring the fort where the Civil War began in 1861. From downtown Charleston, board a boat that will carry you on a 30 minute trip through the harbor to the fort. You will spend an hour touring the fort and its museum, then return to the city. This trip is also narrated.

Charleston dinner cruises aboard an elegant yacht are available for romantic evenings. SpiritLine recommends that you allow three hours for a gourmet meal with entertainment by a live band. Twilight and evening views of the harbor routinely inspire passengers.

To take the romance to the next level, how about a wedding on Charleston’s waters? Who would consider this when the fabled city has so many quaint, historic churches and plantations with their glorious gardens? A lovely sunset wedding on the beach or on Charleston’s harbor (with its silhouette skyline as a backdrop) is a more contemporary choice for the modern bride and groom. Book an engagement party, a rehearsal dinner, the wedding ceremony itself, and a reception aboard a cruise for a memorable experience. Just don’t forget to book the honeymoon suite !

Marco Island in One Word

Posted on March 15, 2010 by admin

The best word to describe the experience one has on Marco Island in Florida is calm. Or is it tranquil? Maybe it is sandy. Maybe, there really isn’t just one word to express the great escape one will have when visiting Marco Island. Just think of hanging around the sandy beaches with some tasty fruity cocktails and a great Nora Roberts Novel and no cell phone or lap top. The island itself is actually the largest island off the coast of Florida’s Ten Thousand Islands. Which is only in the hundreds, it just looks like thousands. Most of the islands are to small to build on only a few have some small private villas on them which can be reach only certain times of the year by canoe or kayak’s. For some of the best accommodations at a hotel marco island you should look on the larger island.

Another tranquil world to experience from Marco Island is snorkeling, scuba diving and water sports. The beaches are lined with towering hotels which would give an amazing view from the top floor. While you are wading in the water one may get a visit from the sweet dolphins that like to interact. They have also created some areas to do some shopping when it is time to get away from the sand and be around other people. Golf is always an option any where you go in Florida including Marco Island. For some night life one will find many great restaurants to eat in and some clubs to dance in as well as a more up town visit to the Philharmonic Center for the Arts which will have something to see while visiting the area. There are some big names that visit the Phil like Melissa Gilbert in the stage production of Little House on the Prairie. If you find yourself visiting for a week or more you could very well see a few different shows.

Austin Needs to be Revisited

Posted on March 9, 2010 by admin

Our first night in Austin, Texas, we hooked up with Alice’s friend who now lives here and went out to dinner at a Tex-Mex restaurant. Then her friend took us on a quick tour around the University of Texas. After Alice’s friend left (having other obligations), we still wanted to do something fun. So, we ended up at this place that was recommended by her friend called the Karma Lounge . It was okay, there wasn’t really any room to dance, but the DJ was great and we really enjoyed the human aquarium (nice touch).

We were slow to rise the next day, so we decided it was time for brunch, so we headed to a restaurant that was recommended by a guy we met at the Karma Lounge. The Moonshine brunch was very interesting. The buffet offered omelets, a casserole with smoked chicken and corn tortillas, grilled jalapeno sausages, roasted rosemary new potatoes, corned beef hash, green chili cheese grits, cornflake fried chicken tenders, chicken fried steak tenders, spiral roasted ham and a hash brown casserole! We tried everything until we had no room for anything else, well except for their pomegranate mimosas, which were very tasty. Plus, we really liked how the mimosas were served, in a mason jars, big mason jars!

When we rolled out of the restaurant, we were faced with scattered rains, so we decided to do what our concierge from the very best luxury Austin hotels recommended: shopping at the shopping district. We ended up not buying anything, but at least it entertained us for a few hours. On our walk back to the hotel, we past a funny hat trinket shop, where we had a bit more fun, then our adventure in Austin was over, it was time to pack and head back home to Georgia.

It was fun to be in Austin for a couple of days and meet with Alice’s friend, but I think I’m going to have to come back and check out all the other funky things Austin has to offer.

Graceful Panda

The Dance Blog

Monthly Archives: March 2010