My 2-week vacation to the Dominican Republic is now over and I had a great time in Santiago visiting with my sponsored kids as well as the time spent in Cabarete. Unfortunately, I partied a little too much on my final night and so I was a little under the weather for the flight home! Nevertheless, I still have several more days before having to return to work next Monday. I don’t know about you, but I like to take a few days to recuperate before going back to work. Returning to the place whe... Read Full Story

Have you ever wondered what we used to do before cell phones came on the scene? This hit home as I arrived at the resort in Cabarete for the final 8 days of my vacation. This will be my 4th stay at the Viva Tangerine. Being a creature of habit I enjoy the familiar and besides I’m pretty well known here by the staff and get VIP treatment! Anyway, shortly after my arrival, I headed down to one of the bars on the beach and while sitting there enjoying the sounds of the ocean I couldn’t help but... Read Full Story

Tuesday and Wednesday was spent visiting with the families of the two boys whom I sponsor through Children International here in Santiago, Dominican Republic. This was my third time visiting and I’ve been fortunate to have Yaseni as my guide/translator each time. When she picked me up at the hotel Tuesday morning it was obvious that she was pregnant and told me that she was expecting in January. The first visit was with Roberto, who turned 12 in June. We spent some time at his home then to... Read Full Story

One thing I hate about flying is the time it takes to get off a plane once it has landed. It’s for this reason that I don’t mind paying the additional $10 charge to pre-select a seat near the front and on the aisle. After a 48-minute flight from Ottawa to Toronto, a 3 hour wait for the flight to Dominican Republic that took 4 hours and then a one hour drive to the hotel in Santiago, I finally arrived for my two-week vacation. On the flight to DR, there was a guy in the seat behind who didn’... Read Full Story

One of the favourite things I enjoy doing is visiting my friends Dave & Eileen which I do most every Friday after suffering through another work week. We end up sitting at the kitchen table for hours drinking and reminiscing about past events. Over the years we’ve gone on several road trips together to the States but only once have all three of us gone together. This gives me a definite advantage because we tend to jump from one incident to another in our story-telling. Such was the case... Read Full Story

Some people do it more than others; some won’t admit to doing it; others do it without even realizing it. What is it? We all gossip! According to Wikepedia, “Gossip is idle talk or rumour, especially about the personal or private affairs of others. It forms one of the oldest and most common means of sharing (unproven) facts and views.” But, how do you distinguish between gossip and normal conversation? Often when I’m talking with a friend the conversation will begin with “What’s new?” Recen... Read Full Story

It’s time now to reveal secrets! Have you ever been involved in an office romance? With the news recently about David Letterman’s “indiscretions” with staff, the topic of office romances has been gaining some coverage. Some experts are claiming that millions every year enter into at least one romance starting from work. Personally, I see nothing wrong in being involved with someone from work – but there are certain conditions that should be met. For example, if you’re married, then you shou... Read Full Story

It’s that time of year again and so I’ll wish a Happy Turkey Day to any Canadians reading this. Last year at this time we had a double dose of it because the day after Thanksgiving was Election Day in Canada, so on Monday we ate turkey and on Tuesday we voted for turkeys! I don’t usually take part in these types of posts but I found this “I’ve come to Realize” on a couple of blogs I read (All Stace, All the Time and My kids are my World) and decided, what the heck,a blog isn’t a blog until y... Read Full Story

Do you ever avoid saying something to someone because you know it will cause conflict? Usually, I will say what’s on my mind when discussing subjects that don’t specifically relate to myself – current events, politics, religion, whatever. And, I don’t really care if what I say may offend or if I know that it will definitely cause an argument. But, when the issue at hand might involve a conflict with friends or family, I often don’t bring it up. A case in point involves a discussion I had wi... Read Full Story

I’ve been working in the hotel industry for the past 30 years and have come to realize that no matter how much effort you put into pleasing guests, problems always arise. One thing for certain – there’s never a dull moment because you’re dealing with people from all over the world and with different people on a daily basis. What we have to deal with on a daily basis will probably surprise you. So, here’s a “behind-the-scenes” look at some issues I’ve had to deal with over the past couple of... Read Full Story