Thinking back to an earlier time in my life it is strange to call 10:00 PM a late night but it certainly feels like it now. Especially when your alarm is set for 5:00 AM. That is life though. That is life during the holidays in my business. I can’t control it. Well, I can, I own the company, but someone has to do the visits.
It isn’t as bad as it sounds. I had plenty of downtime today. I ended up eating all my meals out but it was good and relaxing. I listened to a book on tape between visits and, let’s face it, my job is visiting and playing with pets.
It is not a tough job even if it sometimes feels like it is. The hardest part is sometimes getting up the next day. It is also difficult to balance everything. Even more coming out of the pandemic when business wasn’t good. There is hope now. There is lots of hope. We made around 30% less on this day in 2019, our best year in business, and expenses are lower now. Everything should be good. We are getting back to where we need to be.
While driving around today I noticed that the beach was very crowded. A ton of golf carts were parked on the grass of every entrance, cars were parked on both sides of the Atlantic Ave access road and about a half mile down each side street. I don’t understand the need to be among a crowd. I am not one to brave parking challenges for the beach. Mostly because the beach will be there tomorrow. It isn’t like a concert where you may never have the chance to see that performer agin. It is the beach and it isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.
Coming out of the pandemic there is a subset of people extremely eager to throw themselves into massive crowds. I do not understand the impulse. I like to avoid crowds. That is why I like to get to places as soon as they open and when I go to the beach I consider getting there after 10:00 AM to be late.
So seeing a bunch of people parking wherever their car can fit and walking a half mile, across a busy street, and then an additional half mile to get to a spot on the beach is thinking I can’t understand. Especially when the beach is so crowded that there is no way it is enjoyable. I like having space and being able to spread out.
Maybe that is why I am fine working on the holiday. It gives me a good excuse to stay far away from the crowds even if I observe them from proximity.
David Huzzard Writes 