How do you do it?

I think that it is perceived that I travel a lot. And I think, by most standards I probably do. But here's the thing, I don't travel for work. My work is restricted to an 8 foot stretch of kitchen at the restaurant I own. If, for example, I put 12 hours in on the job I genuinely spend 8 hours of that pacing back and forth in the little kitchen area preparing 150 or more meals. The other four hours a day on the job are split between cleaning a dining room, organizing staff and rushing around town picking up supplies.  My work world is truly VERY narrow. And in order to work 10-12 hour days, I have to restrict any outside or personal activities.

I don't shop for leisure. I do not go out for lunch. I don't go to movies or concerts, except for maybe once or twice a year. I don't circulate in a typical manner. I don't go for drinks after work and it's extremely rare that I would go out for a sit down meal. Quite literally, I might eat dinner out with my family once every 2-3 months. (That's not to say that they don't do these things without me.)

I do my shopping on-line, or at 11pm at night. I am a regular at Shoppers' Drug Mart as they are open to midnight in my area. As far as I'm concerned, you can buy just about everything you need at SDM!

The other thing I have come to know as gospel, after owning a restaurant for several years, is that you can try to take a day off, or an evening off, but something typically comes up. Equipment or staff issues require immediate attention when you are open 7 days a week, 11 hours a day to the public. Your customer expects consistency, prompt service and reliability regardless of what issues are going on behind the scenes. Therefore, a "day off" is kind of like a four leaf clover.... you know they exist and you have seen them, but they are not always easy to find.

If I am within cell range, the work world of advertising reps, suppliers, regular customers, staff and people looking for sponsorship will find me. So, I have myself convinced that the only true way to get a holiday or a breather, is to leave town. So that's what I do whenever possible. That in reality is 2-4 times a year.

I have very capable staff and a support team of suppliers and repair folks. They can survive a few days without me. They make good decisions and I trust them. They key is to just "walk away" and tune out work for a few days at a time. I love my 3 day getaways!

If you can imagine spending $150 a week on leisure activities like movies or dining, or events and another $50 on liquor or treats, I simply take that and put it towards my jet-away getaways. Plus, the real "trick" or my key to travel, is my points. I'm talking about credit card miles, Aeroplan points and the like. They are like chocolate to me.... I crave them, stash them and devour them regularly.   I would rather use $200 worth of points for a discount weekend away, rather than try saving for 2 years and take a bigger vacation for free.

Plus, I hunt for travel bargains like a hyena on the range. I don't care if I pounce on a zebra or an antelope, or slow warthog. I just want a tasty little vacation. I keep my eye on a few destinations and when the right one hits the right price, I pounce. For goodness sake, I waited 5 years for the Turks and Caicos!! But I do know that if I'm really hungry for a break, I can always find Vegas or Phoenix at a bargain and that will tide me over until I can grab a feast.

That's just restaurant life. You miss out on some of the regular, ordinary (wonderful) things, but you do have other fantastic opportunities. I suppose for people who travel all the time for work purposes, they would equally value a quiet day at home or in their hometown. For me, in my pressure cooker of a windowless environment, I escape through travel. I love it. I love everything about it. I love the restaurant, the people, the independence, the self-reliance and I love the chance to jet-away and recharge. It's all good!