More Cheerleading

The first 2 hour stint at work yesterday was in the same spot I finished the day before. It was practically a front row view of the competition for the National Cheerleading Championship. There were 2 locations in the complex where the competition was being held and after my first 2 hour stint, I finished my work day at the other location in a different complex. The view was almost as good there while working and I was able to watch the competition right up to the end at 9 PM last night.

In conversations with other people I was able to find out that there were 27 categories for this competition. There were Varsity Division I & II High Schools, each with non-tumbling and tumbling, building (creating human pyramids) and non building, Junior Varsity with all the same breakdowns, Jr High teams, Recreation Club teams, and several others. I thought that there were at least 100 teams here, but I think it is closer to 200. It's ironic that both of the National Championship teams from the 2 main categories are from Kentucky. The Division I champion is Paul Laurence Dunbar High School from Lexington, KY, and the Division II champion is Greenup County High School in Greenup, KY. I watched the final performance of each of those and they were very athletic and very deserving from what I could see. There was a video played of the first competition held in 1990 and the presenter of the championship trophy was Jerry Lewis. They've come a long way since then.

This has been a very quiet Valentine's season - the second in a row for Josie. She feels very bad that she wasn't able to get "involved" in the big day from the florist standpoint. We always thought that no matter where we were, there would be a need for help at shops to get the work out. The business has obviously been impacted by this poor economy. Maybe it will improve as time goes on. We hope so.

We will take advantage of the nice weather we are expecting this week. Today we plan to take a drive to some areas we haven't seen yet. That is, after we do our workout and have morning coffee at the clubhouse...

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

Interesting Day at Work

We are pretty much settled in for our cabin week. There were only 2 trips back to the fifth wheel to pick up a few items that we didn't necessarily forget, but thought they would be useful here. It seems like the weather is improving so it should be a nice week.

The day at work was different from any I've had before. First of all, when I arrived for my 2PM shift there were vehicles and people everywhere. I had to park in a grassy area far from the complex and walk a fair distance to get to our check-in office which is in the stadium. Each of our daily assignments is suppose to be 2 hours long after which we get "bumped out" or relieved by another individual. We are handed a printed slip of paper with instructions on where to go for the next 2 hour assignment, or go to break, or lunch. After the break we go to the office, key in our ID number and get another assignment.

It was very cool all day and I wore my shorts which would have been a mistake if I had to work outside somewhere. I was lucky though, and had all my assignments indoors. There were 2 major events - field hockey championships and the National High School Cheerleader Championship. I was fortunate to be assigned in different locations within the fieldhouse where the Cheerleading Championship was being held and was able to watch the competition while directing foot traffic and generally, just guarding my area. I was able to stay warm and also enjoy the competition. These teams have all won regional competitions to get here and there were probably 100 teams representing all parts of the country.

I wasn't able to hear the final results but watched several teams from cities I knew - Rancho Santa Margarita High School in CA, and Germantown High School from Philadelphia, to name a couple. I can say that high school girls didn't look like this when I went to high school. Maybe it's because I'm just too old to remember. Anyway, it was a lot of fun to watch and the work assignments were easy.

My start time today isn't until 3:30, so it will be a long afternoon and ends at 9:30 tonight. The competitions go until 10 PM so it is also a long day for the teams. I will be happy to get assignments like I had yesterday, but we never know until we get there.

There's not much else to mention, so that about wraps it up for now...

New Home For a Week

Since we weren't able to check into the cabin until 4 PM (we originally thought it was 3 PM), and we had to check out of the site by 11 AM, it was decided we should talk to the office people about a late check out. They were very understanding and cooperative and granted a late checkout of 3 PM. That worked perfectly. It gave us more time to get things together and meant we didn't have to go anywhere to kill time.

We checked out at 3 PM and took the rig to storage and got it all set up in its home for the next week:

We packed everything into bags from the freezer and refrigerator to take to the cabin and shut down the fifth wheel.

The cabin is very nice and will be a pleasant break from our normal digs. There is plenty of parking, it is relatively private and is located in a nice area of the Thousand Trails park. Here is a shot of the cabin:

We were very fortunate to get this one that has a hot tub on the deck, which can be seen below:

It also has a bathtub/shower combination which was good news for Josie who likes to take bubble baths and has been craving to take one for quite some time.

The inside is very practical and has plenty of room. There is a loft that is great for people with kids as there are a couple mattresses on the floor which is about all that fits up there. The living room/kitchen area is nice as you can see from this picture:

The bathroom and bedroom are typical for this kind of cabin. There is a queen bed in the bedroom which is OK and plenty of closet space. Everything is provided - dishes, linens, silverware, etc. - and we only had to bring our clothes and food. It should be a pleasant week.

Today is a work day starting at 2 PM and going till 8 PM. It will be the first full work day without training which ended last week. I'm looking forward to this new experience and the fact that each day will have unknown assignments until I arrive and pick up the duty assignment. Until tomorrow...

Cool and Wet

As expected, it was cloudy and raining most of the day. We had .24" of rain and it was in the form of mostly light rain. The temperature never got above 67 all day which isn't too bad, but coming after a 76 degree day with sunshine, it was a disappointment. Unfortunately, today is starting out the same way and we have to move. We stopped at the office yesterday to find out if the cabins had a washer and dryer and, of course, they don't. Josie was going to get some laundry done before we moved but didn't want to use the pay machines if she could do it for free.

The cabin check-in time is 3 PM and we need to leave our site here by 11 AM, so we have a few hours to kill before actually moving in. We wanted to see the cabin before today but they said that if anybody goes inside, they would have to send the housekeeping people back in to clean it all over again. I guess we understand that. So, it will be a total surprise today when we walk in. They told us that everything is included and we just need to bring clothes, toiletries and food. It's good that our real home will be nearby in storage so we can get last minute things if we need them. It is guaranteed to be an interesting experience, good or bad.

My work schedule has me on duty tomorrow, starting at 2 PM and working until 8:30 PM. It will be much better when the Spring Training games begin and I can work the normal hours - at least, that is what I am anticipating. People are telling me that there will be many more working days and with normal hours once they start. Pitchers and catchers are due in on Monday, so it's almost here.

It's time for some breakfast and then we'll begin getting things together for our move, so until tomorrow...

Enjoying the One Nice Day

It seems like we have been getting 1 really nice day per week, and we had it yesterday. It is back to raining again this morning and the forecast isn't pretty for the next 2 days. We were able to enjoy the nice day yesterday though.

After doing our workout at the fitness center, we went to the post office in town to pick up our mail and we stopped at an RV neighborhood that was very different from traditional neighborhoods here. The houses all had RV ports attached to them and almost all of the owners were snowbirds, from what the salesman told us. We looked at several models and drove around the neighborhood and were impressed with the designs and the prices which were in the $150K to $250K range, depending on size (1400 SF to 2200 SF). Below are a couple of these - the first one is a model with a carport instead of garage, and the second one is of one of the homes already occupied:

It was a very interesting option for RV'ers. The community also had a clubhouse and swimming pool and the association dues were a robust $55 per month - unheard of today. Of course,  that probably only covered the pool and grounds maintenance, but it is very reasonable.

We also completed our applications for the job in the Keys and sent them on for processing. The decision still hasn't been made as to where we will go from here. We are still mulling over the options and will decide within the next week. It would be a mistake to make an emotional decision on where to go and we just want to be sure of the choice. One key ingredient to the choice would be which one would provide the best opportunity for future jobs. The experience we would get in Cody would provide future opportunities at other Comfort Inns, since our job this year would be to learn and work with that new system. The opportunity in the Keys would open the door for other jobs in the ELS (Equity Life Style) Property system which includes all of the Encore parks and Thousand Trails parks which I discovered they purchased just last year. They also own several other types of properties across the country. It will be a tough choice. The opportunity in Virginia is one that would only give us an opportunity at the one other park they own which is also in Virginia. That one may be the last one we consider, although the area is one where we would like to spend more time. Whichever we decide, we are grateful to have the choices.

Nothing special is planned for today so maybe we can begin to prepare for our transfer into the cabin tomorrow. We are not sure how that will work out, but the week is free and it gives us a new experience. The fifth wheel goes into the storage area here, so it will be handy if we need to get anything. It will be a situation similar to when we stayed at Patty's where we packed a bag and stored the rig nearby. We also made a few trips to the storage area there to grab some last minute stuff.

That about does it for today...

Adding to the Mix

Just when we think we have everything we need to make a decision on where to go from here, something happens to reset the process.

We responded to an add in our Workamper News a couple months ago when we were looking for jobs in Florida that was for the Equity Life Style Properties. They are the organization that owns the Encore Resorts and are affiliated with Thousand Trails. The Sherwood Forest Campground that we have used here is one of their properties. They also have other properties and campgrounds all over the country. Anyway, we received an email asking if we would be interested in working at their Sunshine Key Resort in Big Pine Key in the Florida Keys, beginning April 1, and working through next winter.

The pay is better than either Virginia or Cody, except that we would have to pay for our site at a spectacularly low $350/mo, where the sites normally rent for $1600+/mo. Even after deducting the site cost, the money is better. We aren't quite sure yet about the location - 39 miles from Key West - but it looks like everything is available - stores, restaurants, wi-fi, etc. - within a reasonable distance. It is a tropical location but don't know if they have the same "bug" problems there that they have on the mainland. Everything we have read so far indicates that it is a wonderful place to go. Decisions, decisions.

We went back and forth with them yesterday asking questions and making sure that we both would be working the same hours/shift and have the same days off. We ended the communications with an application that we are going to complete and send back. That doesn't mean that we have decided to go there, but it means we haven't dismissed it either. We would save lots of gas as opposed to going to Virginia, and especially Cody, but we need to make sure it would be a positive experience for us. Hang on!

It was 37 degrees outside this morning with sunshine. There isn't much to do in the sun when it's that cold. We're hoping it warms up so that we can at least get outside and enjoy it. We stopped at a fresh fruit stand yesterday and picked up a bag of oranges that were locally grown. I work with a gentleman that brought in a bag of oranges and grapefruit from his trees for us, so we have plenty of fresh Florida fruit to eat. We may get tired of it before it's all gone, but it beats the store-bought stuff. That's about it for now...

Very Windy Day

It was windy most of the day yesterday - 20 mph - and we had rain to boot. Who named this the Sunshine State? Actually, it was still warm (82) even with the wind and rain.

We ran a couple errands after going to the fitness center and then settled in back home. I spent most of the day finishing up our taxes which was no easy task this year. I use Turbo Tax software and even though it simplifies the task, I have to complete State Tax returns for 3 of the states we worked where they have taxes. One State return is included with the version of Turbo Tax that I have, so I used the one where we got the most money back - Kentucky - and will mail that in today. As a non-resident of the state, we have to mail the return. The Federal return was e-filed, but I found out that as a result of all the tax law changes at the end of the year, the IRS will not begin processing returns until February 14. That's nice. Suppose I told IRS that because of all the late changes to the tax laws I wouldn't be able to get my taxes done until May 15? At any rate, it will be nice to see a refund check, whenever they can deposit it into our account. As far as the other 2 states where we need to file that have State Income Taxes- CA and OR - they will have to wait awhile. Wyoming has no State Income Tax.

We received the paperwork from the Virginia Campground at Bethpage where we have been given an offer to work this summer. We still haven't decided for sure where we will go, so I guess we need to do that before completing the contract and sending it back. They want us to start as early as April 2, and work until November 21. That's an awfully long time to be in one place. They did say that we could change those dates, but we would want to stop working around the first of October, at the latest, so that may cause a problem for them. We usually get anxious to move on after about 4 months, so we'll see.

The sun has returned this morning. Maybe it should be called the Sunshine State. We will go to the fitness center and do our daily workout for about 45 minutes and then try to enjoy some of the nice weather today. A visit to the park at Disney World will be forthcoming when my free passes kick-in, supposedly after 3 weeks on the job. I need to get clarification on the number of passes and how they can be used. No matter what the program is, it's a nice benefit that saves lots of money. Until tomorrow...