helping others

I am someone who is a firm believer that even though your number one person is you and your number one goal in life is to be happy, you should still do all you can do to make those around you happy as well. I believe the first step in one's life is to understand how to make yourself happy, and not just physically. Emotional stability and happiness is always something that needs to be kept to par as well!! :)
I work in the hospitality industry. This is where I feel most at home. I LOVE travelling. I love when I travel, that I have a good time. And, we all know the people who help you during your travels are the one's who can make it amazing or turn it tinto you worst nightmare. It's just like my philosophy, "don't f with the people who f with your food." "Don't f with the people who f with you travel plans!" I cannot tell you how many times people have complimented/praised me for my warmth and caring attitude and doing whatever I can to ensure his or her stay is the best! It makes me happy when people recognize this, but it makes me happier when I realize I was just trying to help. I'm not going far out of my reach to be a helpful, pleasant person. That's just who I am. I've realized that even people who assume they have to be stern and firm end up softening up whenever their around me. You're more likely, with me anyway, to get what you want by being nice, honest, and fair. People who use fear to encourage me to do something, especially if this person is taking advantage of me and my abilities, then I don't cave in. I can be just as stubborn and heard headed as you.

I just realized how off topic I got with those last couple of sentences haha. Anyways. What struck this urge to write in my blog is the fact that a woman commented on her online survey that she was incredibly appreciative of the fact that I helped her find directions to the closest Toyota center, took her reservation, and left it with the next shift to give her because her car was acting up. This is something I would have done for anyone, and it made her day so much brighter because I actually cared enough to help her. Most hotels, you've got to admit, won't do these kinds of things. I'm not saying I don't have anything else to do around here, I do. I know hotels can be incredibly busy, but in order to ensure that business (which is needed to stay afloat) is a caring staff that will help make sure the stay is one that he or she would want to come back to. I cannot tell you how many times I've had our guests tell me this is the best hotel they've stayed at not only because it's clean, spacious, and like-new, but the customer service that they recieve is wonderful! We get mentioned by name in our surveys, which is always heart-warming. I myself have recieved a letter from Bill Marriott himself thanking me for the wonderful work I've done in my time here.

I cannot emphasize how much I love my job and how greatful I am to be a part of a company so outstanding like this one. Not only that, but I am so greatful that my mind is open along with my heart and I'm willing to help and do hospitable things for people who are willing to accept.

Open Expectations

It's interesting where people end up in life. The hotel I work at has quite a few government business associates running through here. I have a talk with a few of them every once in a while, and ALWAYS the questions, "well, what do you wanna do when you graduate" comes up. And, I ALWAYS find out these people are my age, or at most 10 years older than me (who are truly interested in me). That drives me insane. What makest them so successful? Why is it, after all the hard work I've done in life, I haven't yet become successful like they have? That's the harsh reality we have to face sometimes. Sometimes, we don't have a choice if we succeed or not. Sometimes we do, sometimes we don't. There are people who honestly work their asses off in order to be the best they can be, and never go anywhere in the business world. Do they flourish in other aspects in their life? Maybe. I know I'm still young and I have many chances ahead of me. Will I recognize them? Will I take them? Will I realize it when it happens or will I see it years later??? These questions fly through my head so often now-a-days. I wish and wonder and think about what my life could entail in the future. What's important is the now and what I decide to do with my life. What road will I take? It's hard to tell, but until these decisions present themselves to me, I will have open expectations. I will never aim for lower goals than I know I can reach... I will only aim to challenge myself and see what life throws my way :)

what was i thinking?!

So,

I know i'm working a ton, which equals a lot of money... but i'mw orking a ton. i don't feel like i'm enjoying my summer like i should. yes i'm proud of myself for working hard and everything, but i wish i could do whatever i wanted, whenever i wanted! ug. so much happening this week that i DO get to partake in though... bluehole, soccer game, date night, nyc. i'm excited about this week for sure. i wish i could do some laying around and doing nothing. lucky for me though, i love the peeps that i work with. they're incredibly insane, and that's the way i prefer it. if they weren't, they'd be boring, that's for damn sure. i've realized that i need to invest in a new pair of shoes. i've learned that bad shoes are worse support than no shoes at all. ug. i think we should be able to walk around without any shoes. and, i think we should take it even farther and walk around naked! we were born naked, so why shouldn't we be naked? i mean really. there are a lot of really great things that could come from being naked constantly. people would probably be more along the lines of what they prefer their body type to be. right? i know i would. if i knew everyone were constantly seeing me naked, i'd want what they see to be preferable. isn't that what we do when we dress ourselves? not only do we want to look good for ourselves, but we want other people to approve of what they see! it's the hard truth of human nature. even if you get a stubborn person who "doesn't care what others think" if the other people approve, it makes that one person feel even better about what he or she is doing... right? i mean, if i'm wrong just tell me. i know i'm someone who loves others approval. a lot of the time i hope people approve and become slightly saddened whenever people dissaprove. sometimes it should matter what others think, and other times it shouldn't. you just have to differentiate between what should and shouldn't matter. i think that's something people should definitely take into consideration. be proud of who you are. embrace who other people are. stop being so judgmental. obviously it's in our tendancies to judge the people we come in contact with. but, if we train ourselves to get to know who a person is before we see what their wearing or what their image is, maybe we could become a better place. i'm not perfect when it comes to judging people. i have a tendancy to be like, "ew. gooooo away." but, i feel like i definitely don't do it as often as most people. it makes you a better person when you try to understand who other people are. it even makes you consider what kind of person you are. i believe it's not until you see others' differences that you really begin to think about what you do and do not agree with, making you understand who you are. have you ever heard someone say, "wow, i really didn't know what kind of person i was!" i think this is a realization a lot of people come to whenever they get to know other people who are different and think differently... i know, on my journey in life, i have come to learn that i'm not someone i thought i was or could be, and i like the person i've discovered even more than what i thought i would. i know this is a super long post, but i've got a lot on my mind...

i also believe it is incredibly sad when people hate their lives. you can tell when people do becuase of the way they walk or the way they talk or the way they wear their normal facial expression. my heart honestly goes out for people who are in need of happiness. i believe all it takes is a different way of looking at life, and it could be so much better. something people need to realize is the mistakes that are made in life cannot be undone and thinking about them constantly will not make things better. it's only what you plan to do to change your situation that can make you happy. ONLY YOU CAN MAKE YOU HAPPY. sure, there are people that you enjoy being around and it's heart warming when someone gets you a gift out of the blue, even if it's little, but that's just a short burst of happiness. what will you do when you're by yourself? you must better yourself. noone else can do it for you. you can use someone for your utility, but they can only help a little bit. it's what you do with your life that will decide your happiness... enjoy the life you have and stop waisting time wishing you had something else. do soemthing aboutit! that's what i hope to do. i love my life and i know there are so many things i can do, and i am going to do, to make it even better. i love my friends, i love my family, i love my jobs, i love that i can laugh every day. i've noticed that even if something tragic has happened that most people would sulk all day long about, i am the kind of person who cannot help but find the light in the dark. even when i'm arguing with someone, i'm able to turn around and laugh with or smile with that person. that's just the kind of person i am. i hate being unhappy, and i hate watching other people who are unhappy. those who are able to smile through dark times, i admire. those who complain constantly about their unfortunes drive me insane. especially those who don't do anything about it. and especially those who don't stop them from happeneing. do you know what kind of people i'm talking about?
i went to jamaica when iw as younger. those people had no money and hardly any possessions. but, they were the happiest people i've ever met in my entire life. i envy people who can smile through anything. even i have a hard time sometimes. but, anywho, i'm at work, so i shouldn't be rambling so much. i hope everyone enjoys this post. something to think about. see ya!

torn

Like most, i'm trying to figure out my future... it's so hard to choose between staying for loved ones and leaving for great job opportunities. do i stay and develop new possiblities to enjoy the company of those around me, or do i pursue something new and different and scary and exciting? it's hard to decide. i know some people need me, and i know others would love to see me reach new and higher places. i have a feeling some day i will be a great influence on those around me, and i want to be able to have as many opportunities open to myself in order to do so. it's so weird thinking about moving and starting a "new" life. how do you decide where the line is drawn when your life starts a new chapter? looking back in my life i can see the differentiations between those chapters, but as they're happening, it's hard to tell. maybe this will come very easily, but my number one goal in life is happiness, as should everyone's. without happiness, what's there to live for?

oh yes. some switz fellos are staying with us at the hotel. they're quite entertaining and like to teach me their version of german. i love my job!

and another thing. i saw the movie Thor last night. it was spectacular! i'm glad i took the time to see it. it made me wish shit like that actually happened. don't waist your time going to see it in 3d though, only the credits and the tornado jump out at you, and that's it.... i didn't realize the movie lacked 3d until the 3d happened. haha. but, overall, the movie was great. not once did i think, "when is it going to end?"

hopefully this week flies by; i'm going to NYC friday! i'm so excited :) :) :) :) :) :) :)

i think i figured it out

so, i know it's been forever since i've been on this here blog site thingy, but i haven't really had, or made the time to get on! now, working at my new job, i have some free tiem. hopefully i'll be able to keep up more! summer is awesome so far. i actually get to partake in adventures with everyone, and that makes me super happy. the only downfall is working all the time and looking out the window to the beautiful weather. hopefully, this weekend will be sunny when i go to NY!!! i'm pretty excited about that, since it's been many planned weekends, and not so many goings. i'm pretty sure summer = tapeworm though... at least i hope i have a tapeworm! my consumption of food has increased dramatically... weird. anywho. i have so much i want to accomplish this summer. hiking, blue hole, tanning, white water rafting, house hunting. so very much! hopefully that will happen. also, more creativity and building things. i really want to build shelves. is that weird? maybe. but, that's ok. anywho. i'm at work, so maybe i should find some work related things to do. mwuah!

It has come to my attention...

It seems to me, we are always trying to find other people to bring out the good in ourselves. Even I am a culprit to such acts. In order for us, men and women, to truly be awesome, we must learn to bring out the goodness in ourselves BY OURSELVES. We shouldn't rely on anyone else, we shouldn't worry about what others think. We should be the best person we can be without the guidance of others. Only then, can we truly find the goodness in other people, when we are ones with ourselves...

This is my guidance for the time being. NOTTE ZINGARELLAS!

What a beautiful day

On a beautiful day like this, I want to go hiking, or play in a park, or walk around downtown, or sit under a shady tree and read a book... But, instead, I am still playing catch up to the mountains of homework that I have acquired over the past couple of weeks. The only thing getting me through this is the fact that there are only THREE MORE WEEKS left until the semester ends (this includes final's week). Alas, even this is a hard motivator. All I want my days to consist of, at this point, is turbo fire and fun (and maybe work so I can have fun). It's disappointing to realize that I am supposed to be graduating in three weeks, but I guess that's something I am just going to have to get over. Anyways. I guess this sulking is not helping with my motivation for getting things done and doing them well. I will be off for now. VON BOYAGE ALL!!!

if i had it my way

if i had it my way, i would not be going to school right now. i HATE school with a passion. i enjoy all the reading i have to do for my classes and i love some of the lessons i learn, but i hate writing papers and having to have a deadline to do things in. it would be different if it were my job and i didn't have hours and hours of extra time outside of class to do things... not to mention it would be more motivating if i got paid to do this crap. the fact that i look more forward to going to work instead of going to school is sort of sad... although, i do have a pretty sweet crew at the ol' FP. i don't know. i have two more papers to write and a test to study for (which my professor changed from multiple choice to essay based because of all the time i've been missing from school.... like it's my fault) all by friday. it's driving me absolutely insane all this work i've been having to put in in such a little amount of time. not to mention i haven't done the regular readings for my classes. ug. anywho, i guess i better get off here. i don't have quite as much time as i would like because i get to go to work tonight (which i'm actually excited about) YAY MONEY! haha. PEACE!

Why do the gods hate me?!

So, I woke up this morning, and knew immediately something was wrong... I couldn't open my eye. F.IN A MAN! i cannot catch a break. my body hates me. i have pink eye... which means, i cannot go to work or classes until it's better... which means, 2 weeks off of these things = hell. i just cannot catch my breath with sickness and bad things chasing after me. give me a break, please! the semester is almost over, and i need to concentrate!!! oy. anywho, i'm off to do an ass load of homework!!!!

WHAT THA FUDGEEE

So, after a long week in Missouri (RIP Grandma Hohl!!!) I'm so screweeeed. Three papers, 2 tests to make up, and the usual amount of reading I must accomplish for all of my philosophy courses... Apparently these f.ers like to read or something. JEESH! haha. I cannot tell you how amazing it was to come back home though. I love my family, don't get me wrong, but the comfort of a home and familiar surroundings is awesome. I'm back to my kitty, my wife, and my family at flying pizza. I don't know how i'd live without any of these peeps!!! Of course, i've done my absolute best to procrastinate and it's starting to bite me in the rear-end. oh whell. i hope this week flies by and i accomplish everything i need to. that would be most superb. i hope all is well in everyone elses neck of the woods!!! :-*

there's no need to wait!

ok, so i've decided that i'm going to begin in my start of transformation. today, i decided to buy this workout program called turbo fire. i don't know if this is the best idea i've had, but it seems pretty legit. it's got a 90 day money back guarantee, so what can it hurt really? i need to become more fit and active!! i cannot wait. i need to do something for me, and i need to learn not to give in to such indulgences like splurging on my eating. i've been thinking about being virtuous, and in order to do so, you must be able to not give in to short term pleasures. what's better for me in the long-run? i wanna have a family and i need energy and i want to be healthy for them so that i can provide for them the best i can. plus, i'm going to change the world one day, so i have to be in peek physical condition... right? haha 

It's about time

It's come to my attention that I need to move on with my life. You know how we all say, "I need a change!", but we never go through with it? Well, now's my chance. I know that my short term self-interests, along with my middle to long term self-interests need to be satisfied. So, to begin with... I'm moving on finally. I've come to the conclusion that that part of my life is over. (If you're close to me, you know what that means). And, as far as my middle to short term self-interests, I've got a plan. Hospitality is my passion. I know that's what I excel in, and that's what my calling is in life. It feels right whenever I'm doing something Hospitable. So, hopefully this summer, I will be working at Marriott, (which is the job I had before NYFP). And, when I graduate, I can potentially work with Marriott full-time. It's time to grow up, and although I've been preparing myself for "the real world" (which I feel like I've experienced since I was 18), I haven't really had a "goal". Hopefully, with my connections at JMU and some really sweet recommendations, I can become a part of the Marriott family. They're an incredible company full of honesty and humbility (I'm pretty sure I just made up that word). They started, essentially, with a dream and became an incredible empire http://www.marriott.com/careers/history.mi. I would be proud to work with them, and hopefully change the world like they have. Although we don't see companies such as Marriott as world-changing, I think you would be happily surprised to know that they indeed are. Marriott, obviously, is not the only company that has made a great impact on society. 


So, now that I'm excited about this change of pace, I just need motivation to stay on this pace. Sometimes, an end goal is not motivation enough. Sometimes, you need the strength of friends, family, and sometimes strangers, to boost your confidence. In my experience, it has been the strangers that tell me how successful I will become, that means the most. It's one thing to hear it from someone who knows you and cares for you, but it's another thing when a complete stranger sees the goodness in you. Hopefully, one day, my desires to better this world will come true. 

Off to work we go

I would like to take a brief moment to state how much I detest college students who get EVERYTHING from mommy and daddy, yet complain about not having time or energy to do anything. Try going to school full time and work and pay your own bills, then get back with me. I know what the real world consists of, and I'm only 22. Do something productive with your life instead of just going to parties and converting to the "ideal college life". Be someone! More to come, off to work!

Don't fu** with the people who fu** with your food

As you may or may not know, I'm a server. I've worked in the restaurant business since I began working at age 15. My philosophy on hospitality is, "I'm going to give my guests the best service I possibly can, because if I were out I would want to be given the best service another person could give". Well, no matter how much I enable myself to kiss other peoples' asses, even if I'm in the WORST mood of my life, there's always one person who manages to ruin my mood completely.
Now, as the title of this selection is titled, "DON'T FU** WITH THE PEOPLE WHO FU** WITH YOUR FOOD!!" I can honestly say, I have never, ever tampered with anyone's food even the slightest. I cannot say the same for all food-service serving individuals, though. If I were to become president, I would make it mandatory for each individual in society to be a server or work in the food industry business for at least one year of his or her life, and I would require everyone to watch the movie Waiting. It is quite a funny movie, yes, but it is quite a realistic movie as well. 
So, like I was saying, if you want the best service you can possibly get, then you need to give your server respect. (This is the golden rule, even for places like McDonald's... trust me, I've worked there too...). I am now going to tell you stories that will blow your mind, as far as the way some customers have acted. If this doesn't strike you as an odd way to act when enjoying a meal in a restaurant, then I would advise you to seriously reconsider the way you act in a restaurant. 


Example 1: If I'm Not Happy, No One's Happy
This did not happen to me, but it did happen to another girl whom I work with, (who we'll call Spicy Volcano.) I was actually able to pick up snippets of what happened and, I swear to you, I am not exaggerating in the least. So, this family of three came in to my place of business, on a Saturday night, obviously expecting to get their food in 10 minutes. My restaurant not only does dine-in, but it does delivery and pick-up as well. So, needless to say, on a Saturday night it gets pretty busy. (Also, I'd like everyone to know, servers get perturbed as well when their table's food doesn't come out in a timely manner... It affects the way we pay our bills and survive). Spicy Volcano happened to get sat with one of the worst tables in the world (Table A) and another table who placed their order before they came in so they didn't have to wait so long before receiving their dinner while they sat waiting, (who we'll label table B). So, table A (the unhappy table), stopped my friend and said, "we have been waiting twenty minutes for our meal, this is getting ridiculous". Apparently, this was not the first time they had stopped Spicy Volcano asking about their meal. So, Spicy Volcano marched back into the back and said, "I don't care if table A's food is ready or not, I want their meal so I can give it to them." Obviously, my hardly understanding English cooks did not give her an uncooked meal. Instead they looked at her funny and went on their way cooking. Anywho, about 5 minutes later, table A and B's food came up, so Spicy Volcano put all of the food on one tray and went on her way. She stopped by table B's table first and while she was dropping their food the woman at table A said, "how come they're getting their food? We've been waiting 40 minutes." (Notice how the time jumped 20 minutes in a matter of 5 minutes?) Spicy Volcano, with the trey of food in her hand, said, "Ma'am, I have your food right here in my hand. I will give it to you as soon as I give these people their food." That did not stop the woman from table A complaining, so the woman from table B turned around and said, "I'm trying to enjoy my meal. If you could turn around and mind your own business, that would be most pleasant". Let's just say, table A had nothing to say after that. 


I have many more examples to come, but I must enjoy my day at the gym, then in classes. Until next time...

Genesis

So, I'd like to begin by saying, I have never really been passionate about creating a blog for others to partake in my thoughts, but I've come to the conclusion that there are some things that need to be said. Amongst myself and my friends, we all believe that there are some things individuals can learn and need to learn as far as etiquette goes, including restaurant etiquette. This, along with other various topics, will emerge  quite frequently in my blog of sorts... I am incredibly excited about my beginning of being a "blogger". Like most things that I become excited about, though, this will probably be short lived... Hopefully, I will be able to continue this blog without the pressures of my laziness kicking in. There are times where doing absolutely nothing, and being "brain-dead" is more appealing than being productive. So, ladies and gentlemen, let the games begin!