... sleep all day!
Or... not. Basically, it is "Up all night... up all day..." This week has been a complete blur. "No rest for the wicked... Plenty of time to sleep when you're dead... Etc., etc., etc..." I have never really mentioned this, but has ANYONE who has ever come into the shop noticed that I am NEVER (I mean never) just hanging out, doing nothing? That is the absolute truth. I am always working. That is not a complaint. It is just a fact -- a fact that I am very, very proud of. I sold a bike to a kid from GA Tech yesterday. He handed me his Tech student ID so that I could enter his information. I said, "I went to school there, too," and pointed at my degrees. He responded (in disbelief), "What was your degree?" When I told him that it was a master's in electrical engineering, he replied, "Wow! I am getting my undergrad in EE!... What happened?!" I hear that often... A customer a few weeks ago said, "It is all over. A double-E working in a bike shop."
I guess I could be down, huh? I mean, how horrible that I have to work with my hands. How demeaning! After all of those years working to become "successful." Why would I "throw it all away?" It must be because I am so passionate about bicycles, right? I am following my heart's desire, forsaking money for love of cycling. Yeah, that's it! The Tour de France has been on for over a week. Guess how much I have watched? NONE!... The irony is that if someone looked around and saw what I own (everything is paid for in the shop), and thought about how much they just spent, they might just get it... Yes, I work with my hands -- and they get VERY dirty every single day. I have to scrub them many times for several minutes each day just to get the grime off. Mike Rowe would be proud! I am completely exhausted at the end of each work day -- physically and emotionally. Nick and I are completely in sync -- we turn out amazing numbers together. A rep told me the other day that we are definitely a "mid-level" shop (in only four years of business, mind you) -- most shops would die to see similar register results each day. I CHOOSE to be at work each and every single day. The harder I work, the more results I see. How many people are that fortunate?
When people ask why I would throw away my degrees, I just have to snicker inside. I am happy. My destiny is completely in my control.
Things have ramped up so much the last two weeks -- I am working 10-14 hour a day. It is strange -- the temperature is hitting 100 degrees almost every day, yet we have never been busier! I am ALMOST caught up with repairs, so that is a good feeling. Then again, we are already booked into next week. I'll be working a lot over the coming days and weeks, but I couldn't be happier. My new "garage in a garage" will be built tomorrow in the warehouse space -- I can't wait! Time to bring some of my motorcycles over and install a flat screen for late night tinkering. Life could be worse!
Time to get some sleep. I have to get up early to work on more bikes. Damn -- I could be in a design review if I hadn't thrown it all away...
