The Importance of Goals

Since launching possibly the best travel website on the Internet earlier this year, my running has really been decreased. I started running after my mother died in 2004 as a way to help process the grief. I've run several half marathons, but I didn't run one in 2006 at all between moving and launching the site.

I've had my eye on the Mayors Marathon in Anchorage in June. I LOVE Anchorage and can think of little better than flying from hot Dallas to cool Anchorage and running in that beautiful city. I've been checking for weeks for award tickets and have come up dry day after day. Finally today a first class award was available on the days I wanted. So, as of right now, I am registered for the half marathon, I have a reservation at my favorite Anchorage B and B and I am the proud owner of a free airline ticket.

Next: develop my training plan.

WOOOHOOO!!

Stuck in the 70s

Next weekend, Philip and I will be headed to Mexico for an annual recognition trip with one of our suppliers. This year they have decided to make the big dinner on Saturday night a big trip back to the 70s.

Philip and I have gone all out. We both have memorable vintage outfits. We had a dance lesson on Saturday and now have a passable knowledge of and ability to execute the Hustle. We have been having pretty much a continuous karaoke party all weekend. I am having flashbacks of being 8 years old and belting out Carpenters songs.

It should be a great weekend.

Infection Control and Ergonomics

Every winter the press seems to have a field day with the Novovirus that tends to rear its ugly head on cruiseships across the globe. Most recently the it hit the QE2 on a recent Transatlantic crossing.

The fact is that these viruses go around schools, businesses, homes and communities every year. This year, it seems to be especially bad. I can personally vouch for how bad it has been. My entire family has suffered through this virus in the last 10 days, now 100% of my office has had it as well. Even today we are at 50% crew because Lindsey and Terrah are at home sick.

Bottom Line: Wash your hands, Purell and Airborne are your friends.

In other, more pleasant, news: I purchased and Marty installed a keyboard drawer under my desk today. WOW! What a pleasant difference. The muscle that runs between my neck and shoulder on the right side has had pretty much a constant twitch for a long time because of the position in which I spent my days. I can already feel it relaxing.

Have a great weekend!

So, I Took my Daughter to a Tattoo Shop for her 12th Birthday.....

In our family, daughters are allowed to have their ears pierced on their 12th birthday. Yesterday was my daughter's 12th birthday.

According to my extensive research those piercing guns like the one that pierced my ears when I was but a tender lass aren't exactly the most sanitary way to go. So, I decided to follow the lead of my Dad's wife when she had to get her ears re-pierced. I took Ruthie to a tattoo shop.

She was nervous when we pulled up. "Don't crazy looking tattooed people hang out in tattoo shops?" She asked. "Probably" I replied.

We walked in an announced that we needed to get her ears pierced. The "Body Modification Technician" came out to introduce himself and get started. I surveyed his wild assortment of tattoos and piercings and reassured my daughter, "Now here's a guy that KNOWS piercing!"

We proceeded to fill out more paperwork and provide more documentation than I remember having to do before getting married (which, incidentally was 16 years ago today). Finally it was time to go into the back and start poking holes.

I have to say that our "Body Modification Technician" was polite, professional and gentle. He told her what would happen every step of the way and helped her stay calm.

When we left, my daughter said with surprise, "Those guys were NICE! I thought people who looked like that would be mean or wierd." I explained to her that how people are is rarely a function of how they look. Some people who look what we think is normal and lovely are horrible people, and some people who look in ways that make us uncomfortable are the best people ever on the inside.

It really is true, you can't judge a book by its cover.

Another Reason to Use a Travel Agent

Early this morning, Marty and I were out at DFW seeing off a couple of small groups we had going out today. We gave each couple a Starbucks card to enjoy a treat at the Starbucks after going through security. While we were waiting, we had plenty of opportunity to chat with the airport rep at Funjet Vacations.

The Funjet Airport reps are a great group of ladies. I did a podcast with a couple of the airport reps recently. They really work hard to give everyone a great send off to their vacations.

This morning one family had an unfortunate situation. The dad came to the airport with a birth certificate and a photocopy of his drivers license. He said he had lost the actual drivers license. Although the Funjet staff went so far as to call the airport officials in Mexico to request an exception, the net effect was that they were unable to travel. It was very sad for dad to see the rest of his family toddle off to vacation without him. (Ed. Note: In just a few days you will have to have a valid US passport in order to travel out of the US.)

Marty and I visited with the Funjet rep about the situation and she mentioned to us that almost everyone that comes to the airport and has a problem with documentation booked their vacation on Funjet.com rather than through an agent. I, of course, found that quite interesting.

Without an agent you're on your own!

More Later.

We're Home!

Here's Trey with the Big Cheese Himself, Mickey Mouse.

It was a fantastic trip, and now it's time to get back at it. I understand the office was quite busy while I was gone. I'm looking forward to tackling tasks ahead.

Since I didn't have the ability to show you pictures while we were in Orlando I thought I'd show you some now.





"There's a snake in my boots!"





"Call me beep me if you want to reach me." - Kim Possible and Ron Stoppable




And in the hit of the week, one of several Power Rangers.

That's all for now. I'm going to get all of my ducks in a row so I can get caught up tomorrow. Speaking of tomorrow, we have a new staff member starting.

I can't wait!

Magical and Not-So-Magical Moments

Finally I have a few moments to fill you in on what has happened so far on our Disney trip..

This morning started out slowly. We were in comas until about 9:30 this morning. After getting ready we found ourselves at the bus stop at 10:45am hoping to make our way to MGM Studios. We stood there until 11:12am (not that I was counting). Today was the Disney Marathon. Traffic was completely snarled up. Finally we did actually arrive at MGM Studios.

Rather than go through a timeline, I'll just summarize our day into two categories:

Magical Moments:
Yesterday we were actually chosen for an official "Magical Moment" while we were waiting to go into Mickey's Philharmagic. "Magical Moments" are part of the "Year of a Thousand Dreams"We got to perform in front of our fellow park goers with some percussion instruments. When we were done, we were met with thunderous applause and received a handsome certificate. Most magical moments, however, aren't quite so official and are a more normal part of a Disney vacation.

Some of our not so official magical moments were like Jeff, our bus driver from MGM to Caribbean Beach Resort. Jeff will not be a bus driver for long. He was more entertaining than a couple of the attractions we saw today. I'll be writing a letter about him.

As we were leaving DisneyQuest tonight, the bus stop for All Star was completely backed up. There were probably 75 people waiting. One almost full bus came and could take just a few. The driver apparently radioed someone, because about 3 minutes later two empty buses came and took everyone.

Fantasmic was...well...Fantasmic! We had made reservations at Hollywood and Vine for the "Fantasmic Package" were we would get preferred entry into the show. This meant that we didn't have to get to the show so far in advance and we also had a preferred seating location.

Hats off to the folks at Disney for listing the character appearance times on the same daily guide as the show times. We were able to get to where the Power Rangers were appear and divide up to wait in line so we got pictures with all of them. I thought Trey's head would explode.

Trey also loved DisneyQuest. We played several virtual reality games. I actually got a little queasy on the last one.

The other category are the "Not Quite So Magical Moments":

A recurring "NQSMM" is that we have encountered way too many broken rides and attractions. Now, I'm not talking about when you get to a park and there is a sign at the entry that says something like "Rock 'n Roller Coaster is closed for Refurbishment". I'm talking about when you walk up to the Haunted Mansion and someone says to you, "The Haunted Mansion is out of order for a few minutes, try back later." It happened at Haunted Mansion, Buzz Lightyear and the Movie Ride. It started to happen at Fantasia, but they were able to fix it and go on with the show. There were also many things out of order at DisneyQuest. Not very Disneyesque, and I hope the trend doesn't continue.

I guess the biggest "NQSMM" is the guy that apparently downed a fifth of vodka before getting on the bus from Downtown Disney back to All Star Music. He didn't make it very far before the contents of his stomach were all over the floor of the very crowded bus. Twice. I'm guessing we were on that bus another 20 minutes after the first event. Hats off to the preparation of the Disney folks, however, They had some absorbant deodorant substance that they threw on it to keep it from sloshing around.

So now we're back in our room trying to figure out what we'll do tomorrow. Whatever it is I'm sure there will be more magical and not so magical moments.

More Later.

Disney Day One

Good Morning from the All Star Music Resort at Walt Disney World in Florida.

I only have a few minutes to blog, and I neglected to bring my media reader..so no pictures.

Just a few comments from day one:

Crystal Palace (Restaurant) at the Crystal Palace was GREAT!

Fastpass - BIG THUMBS UP

Crowds stink...literally and figuratively.

That's all for now. We're off to MGM.

From Marty Mania to Mickey Mayhem

Today Philip, Trey and I are going to Walt Disney World! We are staying at All Star Sports and are on the Magic Your Way with dining.

This will be Trey's first visit to the House of Mouse. We are all very excited.

More Later

Marty Mania Concluded

A few final comments on Marty:

From Dollye Stark: "To Marty with Love and Congratulations on the Big Ten with Legacy!"

From Elechia France, Funjet Vacations: "When I think of Marty, I think of someone who is very open, kind hearted,
smart and full of life. I think that this transfers over into his work as
a travel agent, which is why I never hesitate to refer clients to Legacy
Travel. We all need a Marty in our life to remind us there are kind people
in this world.
"

From Philip Banks: "Many of Marty's great qualities have already been stated. There is one
that has not been mentioned that makes my job easier. One of my functions
at Legacy Travel is coordinating the training for the new employees. Marty
is always the new hire's best ally. Marty takes them under his wing and
shows them the ropes. It would be easy for someone with 10 years
experience to resent new co-workers but Marty assists them
enthusiastically. On 1/11/07 Lindsey Parker will be starting with our
agency. Although she has not worked here a single minute yet, I already
know her biggest advocate will be Marty. This is just one more way Marty
is a huge asset for Legacy Travel."

Again, thank you Marty for 10 great years! (and I'm looking for another 10 at least!)

A Decade of Marty Continued....

Comments from travel industry folks about Marty:

When I think of Marty there are so many things over the years that bring a
smile to my face, so I guess the best way to describe him is that everything
about him is just a pure joy! Working with him, traveling with him, just on
every level, Marty brings a joy to life, that nobody else can and I'm glad
that he has been in my life for the last 10 years!
Molly
Funjet Vacations


When the phone rings here at Funjet and we hear a voice say, "Hey,
it's Marty from Legacy", we automatically get a smile on our face. Aside
from being a whiz of an agent, Marty has what I call the Three "P" quotient;
PERSONALITY, PATIENCE AND PERSISTANCE! Marty has all his ducks in a row when he calls, no hesitation,such a pro and you can't find a better person to be on a FAM with....you can always count on Marty to make it a memorable trip if he's on it! Love ya, Marty...and much congratulations on your ten year anniversary....may the next ten be just as great for you.
Nancy
Funjet Dallas Service Office


Happy New Year! I would like to say, it has been a pleasure working
with Marty the past 10 years. He is always courteous, helpful,
professional, and can even SING! It is rare in this industry for
someone to stay at one agency for 10 years. Congratulations on 10 years
at Legacy Travel!

Sincerely,

Susan Huston
District Sales Manager
Crystal Cruises

More Later....

A Decade of Marty

This week marks the ten year anniversary of when my life changed. January of 1997 Philip hired a goofy kid whose previous experience most recently included working on a landscape crew. He had attended some travel school, which he would now tell you bore little resemblence to actually working as a travel agent.

Marty has been a mainstay here at Legacy Travel. After my son was born (six years ago..where did the time go?) and I was in the hospital, another one of my employees found herself in the hospital and that left Marty - during the busiest time of year - handling the office alone.

Marty has been a major fixture in the lives of both of my kids. My daughter was a young toddler when "Mr. Boehlke" came to work with us. Marty had moved up to the Plano office by the time my son came along. Like my daughter, he spent the first six months of his life here at the office with us. Marty did more than his share of holding him...bouncing him up and down so that Mommy could talk to a client just for one more minute. When Trey was little he referred to our office as "Bokey House" (Boehlke is pronounced "Bell-Key", when you're little that becomes "Bokey"). Since we were, at the time, located near a Whataburger Trey would yell "BOKEY HOUSE!" whenever we would pass anywhere sporting the familiar orange and white striped roof.We have always kept a collection of toys here at the office. According to Trey, those are "Bokey's Toys".

One day I was having a "spirited discussion" with Marty. Two year old Trey marched over, got between Marty and myself and with fierce loyalty and determination in his eyes told me in no uncertain terms "Yeave.Him.Ayone!". (That's LEAVE HIM ALONE for those of you who haven't been around many two year olds.)

My kids aren't the only ones who love Marty. Philip and I have long since learned that if we attend an industry function with him we can prepare to feel invisible. Very few people may know who we are (despite our having owned this agency for close to twenty years), but people will leap up from across the room and yell "MARTY!! HI!!!"

Very humbling.

The same thing happens across the globe. No matter where we travel, someone invarably will see our nametages and ask us..."Legacy Travel...is that Marty's agency?". Early on we used to take the time to explain that, no, Legacy Travel is actually our agency and Marty is a valued staff member.

Marty is a big part of what makes Legacy Legacy. Marty is as dependable as the passing of the seasons. When I hear from other agency owners how much trouble they have with staff embracing new ideas and technology I just can't relate. Marty has always been open and willing to try anything new. He's smart, efficient and beyond trustworthy. He creates an environment with our other staff members where new ideas are welcome.

These days, when someone says "Legacy Travel...isn't that Marty's agency?" We just smile and say "Yes...yes it is."

Thank you for ten wonderful years, Marty. I'm looking forward to many more.

Cathi

(Ed. Note: Stay tuned this week for words from other industry people about our friend Marty...)