Oh my gosh! I cannot believe how time has flown since Tuesday. I have never let the blog go this long and I am very sorry, readers!
Thursday and Friday there was more kayaking. Friday John took a group up to Lake Superior and went from Saxon Harbor out to Little Girls Point. There they swam a little, rested, ate some snacks, and then paddled back to the starting point. They saw deer, eagles and had beautiful views of the cliffs and scenery. Thursday John took a group down the Manitowish Chain. He started at the Pea Patch and then went down to the Wayside. It took them about 5 hours from start to finish. Everyone was very tired but they really enjoyed their trip. They saw a lot of wild flowers, birds, turtles and a deer. Friday John kayaked up stream all the way to Shay Dam with a few customers. The water is so high this year that this is the first time he's ever been able to do that.
I stayed back at the resort for the most part. John enjoys kayaking very much. His shoulder is sore, especially at night when it is at rest. Hopefully he will be able to rest it a lot now and it will get better. I stayed at the resort this week to be here for customers who stayed behind. There were always a few who stayed. So I felt better being home. I love our home and I don't mind staying here when they are out kayaking. I hate to say it, but sometimes kayaking seems like a lot of work. Most of the time it is very fun, the scenery, the time spent with customers/friends, but other times I just keep thinking of the stuff I have to do at the resort, and then I don't enjoy it so much. I need to get over that. I need to learn how to relax and enjoy the simpler things in life more. John told me that I should do something fun every day.
When I first moved here, I felt overwhelmed by all the work there was to do. I used to say that no matter what direction I pointed to that there was something to do there. Now I try not to notice so much. The amount of work to do around here could make someone go crazy if you felt you had to get it all done as soon as possible. John taught me to take it easy and just do what we can in the time we have. Most of our time should be spent making sure our customers have a great vacation. We should take the time to talk with them, offer them things to do, take them on guided outings, etc. I try to do this but I still have to do some work every day. I don't feel right if I don't accomplish something every day. But Sunday is my day of rest or else I would get burnt out. Sunday I try not to do anything but rest, read, sit on the beach or take a walk in the woods. If I don't allow myself one day of "rest", I found out that I will feel burnt out pretty quick.
You may ask how much stuff can there be to do? Well, I thought I would point toward the southeast section of our resort and look. Just at random, pointing to the southeast, I see a lot that needs to be done. There lies our horseshoe pits which need new logs behind the stakes, more sand brought in, have to find the rake that's gone again, have to paint the stakes orange again, have to look for dog poop around there, have to move turned-over boats out of the way that are encroaching, have to mow the grass around there and have to pick up the branches that have fallen in the way. Don't get me wrong, the horseshoe pits are still being used by customers, they just need a little sprucing up. This is just a sample of the never-ending work that could drive a person a little crazy.
John taught me that our customers don't necessarily care if the place is spotless and everything is in perfect order outside. They want their cabin to be perfectly clean, of course, but the things like more sand in the horseshoe pit, aren't that necessary. We can do them later but for now we need to talk with the customers, take them on outings and make their days as fun as possible. He's right because it has been working for many years. He and I work perfect together that way. I get all bent out of shape with all the work that has to be done, and he calms me down. Then he notices the things that need to be done because I mentioned them, and then he and I will make time for them later in the season.
This is where I'm going with the above paragraph. The season is getting later. It will be time to work very soon. I started working in the garage recently to make some room. We will be having sewing tables delivered any day and I need the space for all 12 of the five feet by 2 feet tables. Hopefully they can be stacked on top of one another. I will be having a quilting retreat here soon and I have to prepare. I got rid of 6 old chairs that were not repairable, that we had been storing in the basement forever. There are another 6 down there that I think I can repair. Regardless, I need to do something to make room for the sewing tables that are coming. Our basement is a catastrophe. John's brother tells his kids it's a scary basement. They used to be really scared to even go down to look at the basement it was so scary. You really have no idea.
Our basement consists of all the previous owners' left overs. Anything and everything that the previous owners didn't want, tried to repair or replace and all that they didn't know what to do with is down there. Then John moved in, then his friend, Tom stayed for awhile and left stuff, then I moved in with 2 kids, then my grandmother moved into a nursing home and we got her extra stuff, then John's parents sold 2 vacation houses and gave us extra stuff, then his grandparents' house sold and we got more stuff. It is very scary. I have a lot of work ahead of me. There I go again.
Today we had two old friends come over who we hadn't seen in 2 years. It was a lot of fun to see them and we enjoyed their company, had a pot luck style dinner again, and talked for awhile. They had recently been on a trip to Turkey and brought us some Turkish coffee and some wonderful dates to eat.
This is the first Saturday of the summer we haven't had to clean any cabins. Tomorrow, Sunday, we will have a few cleaning girls come to clean at noon. We will have 4 cabins to clean only since the fifth is staying another night.
Now John and some male customers are watching football or baseball in the lodge. Every night this week there has been some sports game on or another and we've been in there late. During the day we've been preparing to and going kayaking. We've made big meals with a lot of customers pot-luck style almost every night. By the time the game is over every evening, its been pretty late and we crashed for the night. At first I thought this week would feel like vacation but its been pretty busy.
I've been starting to think about my sewing projects again too. I have a wedding quilt started, 2 twin quilts almost finished, 2 double quilts started and a bunch of beautiful fabric waiting for me to start something new. As the nights get colder, I also start to think about crafts. The colors are starting to change on the trees, and I am thinking of my fabric colors. Maybe tomorrow I'll start sewing again.
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