nostalgia

It was this week 3 years ago that I signed the lease for 18-20 n washington... I can't believe how much work & time & downright insanity the last three years has encompassed...

I'm sitting at home today, while my highly capable & wonderful staff are giving me my 2nd day off in a row, and beyond grateful & amazed that this is happening.

I was 25 when I decided I wanted to make the restaurant life be my work- and the last 8 years has been a steady climb [and clawing, gnashing, stomping & crying] of culminating the relative success of beezy's. I couldn't imagine, just shy of 3 years on my own, that things would be working this well.

Financially, the business is sustainable and there's a long way to go in paying off the loan, but all the right stuff is happening. We made a bold move deciding to close at 4 daily, but it has been paying off in ways,again, I couldn't have dreamed of.

One of the cornerstones of leadership for me is that without healthy, real people working for & with me, I can't have a healthy business. The importance of having a life beyond the business is tantamount to bringing vitality and energy to our food & service~ of course, I've always wanted this for my crew even before I had my own place, and often I've sacrificed my life & sanity to create a better foundation [in some respects]. Here I sit today, in awe that I AM A PERSON too!

The funny thing is, this business is more like mothering. When my daughter was born, I spent the first three years absolutely immersed in her future success. From sleepless nights and untoward accidents, to napping whenever possible, to guiding, teaching, talking and occasionally losing my mind- I witness today her foundation. She is well rounded, resilient, loving, intelligent, and has a mind of her own- I'd venture to say beezy's is the same way and it hasn't taken 11 years!

I feel blessed that I love my work, and that others "get it". I work hard to be better, faster, more efficient while recognizing that any good system only functions if all the parts are working. There's more to business than systems, and humanity is imperfect and messy, but beautiful when engaged in the business of LIFE. So here's to more balance, more days off, more opportunities for my crew to have a full life outside of work, to nurturing a business that is an organism that grows beyond the foundation I've lain.

thanks for making it happen, and for its continued growth beyond numbers & systems.

love
bee

where DOES the time go?

I've been thinking for a while that I should get back to posting about beezy's- I'm working on setting up a new blog combining my personal thoughts & whimsies & explorations and I came back here to do so... It's invigorating to read the beginning of this, like a time capsule; I miss the unabashed honesty and downright gamble of every word.

Now, I'm more reserved, more careful- like tending a bonsai rather than than letting the garden take over the lawn. I don't think it's a bad thing- I suppose it's something akin to 'maturity'.

We're open Sundays now, have been since Halloween. We scaled back our hours and now close at 4 pm daily. We've got a few 'readers' choice' awards under our belts and quite a run of positive press. It's crazy busy even when the cafe isn't full of guests- always catching up, always trying to make something else better, going back to forgotten fix-it lists... if I'm ever caught up, I don't think it will bode well- it'll mean complacency and ultimately failure. Keep me busy busy busy.