Yesterday could have possibly been my worst serving experience ever. There were two of us servers and one hostess and a full restaurant of people wanting New Years Day brunch. While we managed to hold it together, I have never been so crazed in my life trying to take orders, bartend, expedite food, bus, host, split bills, refill coffees, put on new pots of coffee, slice and butter toast. It was pure mayhem. I was physically shaking because the adrenaline was so high. Servers have this unreal ability to hold about 40 different tasks in their head all at once (this table needs more cream, that guy needs a steak knife, these guys need pizza plates, I need to food check that table, I’ll print the bill for these guys, food is up for those guys and I need to see how much longer that table needs on their appetizer….), but I have never had so much in my head as yesterday… it was hell. Luckily our kitchen puts out amazing meals and food complaints are very few and far between (I had zero yesterday), so customers left happy.
2013 holds much promise for some. I’ve noticed all the positivity and excitement on Instagram and facebook. Many feel like this is the fresh start and a new chapter in their lives. They have big plans, dreams and hopes. They expect the best things this coming year. Flowing from a lean Christmas, I know this year will be a lean one as well. The only expectation I have on this year is that it’s going to be full of a lot of hard work. We worked NYE and after we were done at the restaurant, we dragged ourselves (Scotty worked two jobs that day and I served for 9.5 hrs) to Scotty’s parents for some food and some laundry. After the countdown was over, we loaded our car with clean laundry and went home (the first thing I did in 2013 was kiss my husband and then iron my work shirt). I want, hope for, and dream of a lot of things, but all of them require a lot of hard work to get there. It’s only fitting that I embrace the fact that we’ve got a busy bee type year in front of us: work for it is this years’ mantra, and I feel a sense of peace and acceptance over this. Yesterday was my initiation. It was brutal and poetic (it provided me with the rest of our rent payment).
And that bit about finding beauty: December 31st captured my heart (on my morning walk) as the day that it snowed on the beach. I can’t describe, nor do justice through photos to its magic, but seeing the feathery flakes disappear into the glassy surface of the sea was such a blessing to experience. God is so good.
The Den 
Ah, the work. Know I will be here on my side of things, doing some hard work of my own. My dreams are bigger than the energy I’ve put into them so far. This year will change that. May your journey (and your work) be blessed, rewarding, and worth it in the end.
ps. Went to the beach yesterday in the thickest fog I’ve seen to date. Breathtaking, and the photos just don’t capture it. I bet the snow was unreal!