|
| well i guess it's time for one of my bi-annual updates....sorry. things have definitely been a buzz since i got here. my last post didn't really count for an update so i'll try to keep this one short. business is good....really, really good. i can't believe how good. i've told some folks that God must have known of all the things I'd be worried about...i.e. the sale of my p-land house, finding a church home, staffing of my business, the woes of mall management and of course the income part. the mall seems to be a very stable, semi-upscale mall with some great store options. it's the last of the san antonio traditional malls that still has some status associated with it. we've broken all the records that this store ever had! crazy!!!! on the down side, staffing continues to be an issue. it's a good AND bad thing that school is getting ready to start. my business will go down, but so will my staffing...drastically. so if you think of it, pray for good people. still haven't found a church, though i've visited several...from the mega-sized to the nine-man roll call. i'm currently trying the vineyard in new braunfels. jury's still out on my longevity there. the worship part fits me better than any other place i've gone. it's a full band, but a little rocky sounding---not like rock and roll "rocky", but like garage new band semi-practiced rocky. that's the part that reminds me of home. haven't really met anyone there yet, but it's still early. that's it for now. any specific questions, shoot me a message. otherwise, here are some pics from my reopening...a memorable experience. a look from my store front my ribbon cutting with family & friends  
first bite!!! even the cow came in formal attire!  
my family came.....  
....as well as my best friend and her folks and we opened with some decent business too!   | | |
| Yeah, I know i haven't posted in ages. there's a lot to say but it's past midnight and i have to be at work too early to update everyone. but this is something that you all might be interested in.... This Friday, July 11 is the 4th annual Cow Appreciation Day. Basically if you go to any Chick-fil-A and wear full cow (head to toe) attire, you get a free meal. Cow accessories will get you a free entree. Check it out at www.cowappreciationday.com. You can get free, easy ideas on how you can deck out a lot or a little for some free chicken! C'mon! Do it--you KNOW the chicken's worth it! You might even get your picture taken and get publicity out of it! But at least you get the FREE chicken. Pass this information along if you care about your friends...especially your poor ones! Comment back if you have notable positive or negative experiences with this! | | |
| OFFICIAL OPENING DATE!!! FINALLY.......my opening date is official! June 4 (Wednesday is the big day)! Had a great, informal meeting with my consultant and we ironed most it out. But at least we have a date--well, not like a "DATE-date"--but a grand opening date! :) I'm planning to do some other things beforehand---giveaway tons of food the weekend before (that should be fun!) Then I hope to have a small, but nice dinner for my new employees and their families and for my family and close friends. Now I just have to find an affordable, available place to do it. Traditionally, NEW grand opening units hold what we call a "dedication dinner" to dedicate the restaurant to God. Good tradition, right? So I want to do it with my store. Normally corporate pays for it, but not in my case (b/c I'm not a new store). No biggie....just gotta find a place. Then of course, there's the traditional ribbon cutting for new stores. I'm gonna do that too! Meanwhile, the store is coming along nicely. We had to bring back all the equipment and fixtures that I'll have to re-use again. Most everything will be brand new, including all of the facilities. I had to re-use some things but I'm not complaining...i was very lucky. Those items were not properly cleaned before storage, so we have a little pest problem if you know what I mean. Thanks to my good friends, Liann and Adam for saving the day while I went home for Mother's Day!!!! The store handover (to me!) will be Friday, May 23 (barring any major hiccups). Then Memorial Day weekend will now be called "store turnover weekend" and "cleaning weekend"...my dad even told me to buy him a uniform so he could come up and work as a free employee. isn't that cute? (and very cool!). Then I'll just hire out my buddy Adam for one more good shot of the "get the heck of my restaurant" spray and we're good to go! If you want to know more and see some pics of the store, look at my previous post. I'll try to be diligent and keep this site updated! Thanks for your prayers and support! Hope to see YOU this summer! Big love from the Alamo City! | | |
| i am still trying to adjust to life in a new city. it hasn't been bad at all but you should factor in the following: the first week i spent unpacking boxes, setting up house....well, my best bud donna did all that. the second weekend i was flown to new orleans (courtesy of the spurs organization) to attend the spurs' first playoff game. being wined and dined, emeril's restaurant, french quarter, basketball game, all night casino, shaking hands with tony parker, manu, etc...rough life. then last weekend i went home to visit the fam. the apartment is still a bit of a wreck, but not in the messy way. there are just a lot of boxes everywhere. i'm waiting to bring a lot of them to the store when we can start bringing things into the office, etc. the store is still under construction but things are really shaping up. construction folks assure me that the store will be turned over on 5/23. that's exciting, but stressful at the same time. i don't feel like everything is completely caught up, but i'm assured by others that it is. here are a few looks at what i'm seeing....  
The tile pattern above is one of a kind...no other store in the country has this pattern of tile. The rectangular opening in the wall of the first picture will have a huge piece of etched glass that is the CFA logo so that people can see it from the first level.  
This guy hand-cut all the letters for this sign that is currently hung on my construction barricade. So that's the update. Looks like a June 4 opening at this stage. Come see me if you can. | | |
| let me first say that i am proud to be one of the few adults who grew up without cable. of course, cable probably didn't exist when i was growing up. but that's not the point. i have never subscribed to cable tv, mostly because i'm a cheapo. but it's also b/c i'm never home enough to watch it. admittedly, i can find enough things on regular tv to entertain me. but then i come to san antonio... the apartment game is just one big racket! first you pay an exorbitant fee (more than my house payment) to live here. we won't even discuss "zoned water"...whatever the heck that means. then i can't even watch regular tv!! i'm told i have to sign up for cable tv. really? i can't watch "everybody loves raymond", or "friends" reruns? not even plain ol' news? so i sign up for cable...$70 per month (including internet)!!! but i'll never be here!!! the installer comes and proudly tells me about the gazilliion channels i have available to me...even shows me how to the use the scary remote control. then he leave. :( i feel compelled to keep the tv running all day...just to have cable playing to justify the cost. then last night i decided to spoil myself watch some cable tv. holy crap!!! i don't know what all the abbreviations are. so i just scroll through the hundreds of channels and my eyes glaze over until i find a something i'm interested in watching...."everybody loves raymond" followed by TWO episodes of "friends"!!! am i lame or what? sigh... but on the good side...i'm going to new orleans to a spurs playoff game this weekend. invited by the GM of the spurs organization. operator-ship has its privileges....have a good weekend | | |
|
