Thy path be found, be damed that wily coyote

It’s a business, it’s a career, it’s the hardest, ACME mine infested mountain I’ve climbed to date.

I was used to the lackadaisical life of a glorified secretary in a world where you get paid to binge watch Netflix everyday. It was a most excellent paying slack job and the hours were perfect. However, it near drove me to madness, so I left that job and went on a, sort of, soul job journey. People thought I was crazy, lots of people, and maybe I was but it was leading me on a path I had yet to see.

I got another job in quick order; a job where I was unpredictably plunked in a back room with no windows, no wi-fi, no phones, and no fresh air until break time or the home time bell. It was an eye-opening, dire paying job that I rather enjoyed. It got me out of the most boring five-year rut and back to feeling somewhat useful again. I took extreme pleasure in being away from my phone for near 8 hours a day and I even liked (when Mother Nature wasn’t having one of her raging winter storm tantrums) the long drive to and from.

When that contract came to an end I was still on my “I MUST move to BC!” kick. Now that I was “free” of responsibility that kept me in the city I desperately still wanted to leave. It was either I follow my love to Vancouver or find a job in the place he and I wanted to eventually settle; the Kootenay’s. As luck should have it, I got a part-time job, in picturesque Nelson.

Without looking back, suffering only one debilitating tsunami tearful outburst, we sold the house and moved.

It didn’t take any time at all when money became tight, my nerves started to unravel and the guilt came back with a vengeance. The internal berating began again.
“You are an idiot!”  I begin.
“You are wasting your savings.” I continue.
“Why can’t you be happy with what you have, or where you are, rather than the continual search for ‘it’?”
“What is wrong with you?” Sigh.

While the battle between the yin or the yang thing to do raged on, I found I could still absorb the spectacular view of the sun rising up behind the those Purcell’s with such peace. They comfort me like nothing ever could and that to me, that moment of sweet delicious ahhhh, is how one recognizes the path one is to be delightfully skipping on.

Despite the pendulum of emotions I experienced every second of every day, I was, finally, humming a happy, skippy tune. Then… the opportunity to own a diner landed right in our laps.  Pendulum saaawiiing all the way to the other side.  This place is located at a very touristy, summer time hopping, fantastic view, neither a hop nor a skip away from where we rented our little place and a familiar old haunt to boot! Also to mention, my mans ultimate dream job since he was knee-high to a grasshopper.

Well, why the f not?

We took what we had left from the house sale, our savings, and anything related to sweat, blood and tears we could get our hands on to start this fanatical venture. We started in the slowest month of the longest season of the coldest winter. Ya, we did. (This is precisely why I have time to sit here and write to you, my loyal three.)

Eye cracking, cuff to the face, kick to the pockets, straight up culture curve!

February is the loooooongest short month I have ever experienced in my existence and the restaurant business is a bloody cranky one. I swore I would NEVER go back to slackadally days, and, yet, here I am. It’s almost 10am (we open at 6am) and we’ve had six customers. The ups and downs here as far apart as liberals and conservatives are in the house, never EVER to see a single, contented, comfortable middle ground. EVER! Oh I know we will be wishing for days like this when the tourist season of the summer starts rearing its serious head; when ferry line ups are four hours long and irritable children are screaming for ice-cream and duck food. Today, all I want is to be busy, feed people, chat with the locals and go home tired and satisfied. It’s what we started this business to do.

When things like this happen I start the mind numbing, blame game. Like I wrote above, my inner dialogue GOES-NOT-STOP. A never-ending cartoon, filled with disabling ACME weapons of destruction. I swear that Willy Coyote is after me.

“Did we say something to do something to someone with enough clout to throw us under a bus in less than 24 hours?” asks my inner self.
“Did we?” inner idiot demanding a reply.
“Did the person I supposedly (may or may not have), offended have enough time to sabotage a whole day of sales?”
“And who the f would that person be, if this be a person and not just my uninhibited imagination? I would think to hire them as our personal PR manager ASAP!” shouts my lesser irrational side.

My old soul laughs at my barbaric, nattery, monkey brain and as I settle a bit into my souls mission,  I shake my head and try to focus, again. It is what it is. NOW, ENJOY THE MOMENT for the love of all that is sacred!

Okay… Currently, I am enjoying the best Christmas in February meal with my lover, discussing our up coming trip to Mexico (squeeee in excitement for nieces who marry in exotic places!) and playing silly Snapchat soccer together (I’m losing terribly, he is a ruthless cheater). As hard as this month has been, as difficult as it is to start a business, especially at this time and at this age, as much as I want a whole complete day of hiking about with my dog and my Purcell’s in view, I would climb this mountain with him again. Coyote be damned.

Note*
The sun is out on the mountain peeks, the birds are singing, robins still flutter about these wintry days… this is enough.