The Yachts and Yacht Nots

The Bahamas is a country of "haves" and "have nots". We notice it all the time and wonder why people are confused that there is so much crime in this country. You only need to go "over the hill" and see how people are living to understand why there is a drug problem in those neighbourhoods. When Mark worked here a few years ago he refused to use his laundry per diem to have the hotel do his laundry (good Scot that he his) and would frequently drag Lisa "over the hill" to the scary laundromat. Most Bahamians are appalled when they hear this.

We love Nassau with it's dirty downtown, rowdy bars and shifty locals - but most people who come off of the cruise ships and expect Walt Disney World type paradise are in for a huge disappointment. Kansas it ain't. It's all OK though because the Bahamas offers a pill for when Nassau ails ya... it's called Paradise Island.

Emily has this week off, and with no play date was a little restless this morning, so we took her over the bridge to breakfast on PI and followed it with a walk through the Atlantis Marina. This is how the half lives. It is quite a display of ostentatious wealth and Disney perfection. A nice place to visit but we wouldn't want to live there. Unless of course we could live on one of these yachts.

Wordless Wednesday

The Spring Break weather isn't cooperating so we're going back a week.

Emily Rose Update

...the other Emily Rose. Lisa is taking a break from work today and pondering 2007. We realize that it is February and most folks are well past 2007 pondering but unfortunately we just had no time to ponder until now.

Emily Rose was officially a success - and for those of you who are reading who have never visited Emily Rose, go now and see. Thanks to the much needed assistance of the Owens, our new and indispensable Partners, our Holiday season exceeded our forecasts by nearly doubling our expected revenues. The important point being that we were profitable in our first year of business... wow! What a year it was.

As Lisa gets back in to work-mode she is reflecting on what made 2007 so productive - the conclusion? Hard-work and creativity. When you get right down to it nothing beats getting stuck in and working your bum off when trying for success - and that is just what we did. There were too many 14 hour work days to count - going back down in to the office after Emily was fed and in bed to pack and inventory and clean up work from the hectic day. We can't tell you how many mistakes we made or how many overgrown paths of entrepreneurship we wandered down only to get stuck and have to hack our way back out. Creativity saved us. We tried everything that we thought of, sometimes it didn't work, but eventually something did.

We are still a very long way from where we want to be but we are getting there. Our confidence is boosted by finding some great people to join us in our adventure and by the fact that we think we have figured out the formula. Keep going, never stop thinking and exploring and experimenting and above all - take care of your customers as you would like someone to take care of you.

Lisa is thinking of ways to get back in to her very creative mode - she's a little out of practice. It's funny how you have to be very disciplined to be creative. It seems a little contradictory. But some early morning yoga practice, disciplined reading and research (away from the every day business operations) and quiet brainstorming must be scheduled and adhered to.

To segue - our evening drink time would be a good thinking time... if only the weather will cooperate. There was no snorkeling going on during Emily's play date yesterday and the evening drink was a bit of a challenge. We took some photos of us and the angry sea but couldn't quite capture the scene so we tried for video - hmmmmm...all you can hear is the wind.

Lizard Whisperer Returns

Emily's friend Serena is not as thrilled with her new found animal skill as Emily is...

Bahamian Cat Fest

It's Saturday! We aren't resting as we still have unpacking to do - will it never end! But don't worry there is plenty of relaxing going on around here. Colonel and Ow are masters of relaxation.



Colonel finds a charming spot to have a bath - charming for him maybe!



Five minutes later he discovers we have yet to hang the curtains in the guest room. Of course they were arranged artfully on the bed especially for him.



"Oh - it is so tiring being so adored!"



Meanwhile Ow chooses slightly more modest relaxation. See the second shelf down from the top with the plaid pants in front? You wouldn't think it possible a cat could jump up there every morning after breakfast for a nap...



well he does!

Lizard Whisperer

We don't have many squirrels around here. We actually miss the constant chatter and rustling of the industrious squirrel family that lived in the trees behind our deck in Reston. They were always there to keep us company - like the husband and wife cardinal pair (no cardinals in the Bahamas either). In fact there is not much wildlife beyond the birds, including the numerous wonderful hummingbirds. The only creatures from nature that we have had the, not so great, pleasure of spending time with are the mosquitos. There don't seem to be too many mosquitos around, but then again you only need one to ruin your night. When one manages to sneak it's way in to the house during the day - your night becomes an endless ballet of slapping, hiding and twitching all to the tune of that terrible hum (as Emily buzzes the Blue Danube beside me - she is reading while I type). Anyway - we have installed a mosquito net in Emily's room and are experimenting with doors, windows and screens to see if we can figure out how to keep out the strays.

The other creature from nature that we see a lot of, although only briefly as they dash away, are the cute little lizards that live everywhere. Last night when we went out for our evening drink on the patio, Emily made friends with this one. He hung out with her for ages. We have never seen one so calm and content before.