I HOLD THE KEY!

The future is mine. I control my own destiny. I am the author of my own destiny. Today is the first day of the rest of my life. And about a dozen or so more cliche's come to mind as I hold the key to my shabby little shanty with a griddle and a fryer and a gyros machine and a couple coolers and freezers. I remember the first time I had my own apartment, back when I was living outside Atlanta, Georgia. I had moved down and stayed with my brother just long enough to find a job and a place of my own. And the apartment which I signed a lease on was 750 square feet and it was BEAUTIFUL! I didn't have a stick of furniture and still, I felt like for the first time in my life, it was MY PLACE! No longer encumbered by the rules of "mom's house" or answering to anyone but myself (of course, now with this lease came certain rules and restrictions but these seemed more official since the name on the lease was mine). So there I was in my new apartment, and I spun around with my arms extended, and ran through the apartment singing "MINE-ALL MINE! MINE-ALL MINE! MINE-ALL MINE!"

It was sort of the same thing today! The pride after such a difficult struggle with the language on the lease, and who was responsible for what, and how this was supposed to be dealt with, and what happened if this happened? It was all a bunch of crap until finally, our signatures were affixed on the last page after initialing each of the 25 pages of the lease and checking each clause to make sure we had met on each point. FINALLY we were done trying to get over so that we could move forward. There was not a lot I could do but revel in that moment. I stood in amazement as I looked around at my little wooden shack, and walls and ceiling which needed some cosmetic work. The sink which needed a new faucet, and the floors which needed base molding, and the wall which needed drywall, and all of it was MINE! I had so much to do within the weeks and months ahead to get it ready, but in that one moment, when I had my copy and he had his, it was just that! It was a moment, where I knew what I was getting myself into, and I LOVED IT!

It's sort of like, a right of passage. When you are in control of something bigger than you have ever been in control of before, it is like, you feel a sense of pride! And that is how I felt at that moment. I have managed restaurants for other people before, and it was great and all. I felt like I took care and a sense of responsibility for my job as a manager, but I never felt pride in the outcome of that work. I got a paycheck, and that was a good feeling. I paid bills and I got what I was agreed to get for the time I spent doing what I was told to do. But this time, it was MY responsibility to put in the time and effort, blood, sweat and tears. And in the end, all my work will pay me what I hope to be enough to still pay the bills, and perhaps enough to save up to do more.

I want to pass the threshold and see my business grow from month to month, and then to level off eventually, I am sure, and then to keep me in business for not just the term of the lease, but for the duration of the business life. I want this so much! I have wanted this since I was a little kid, chasing the hot dog street vendor and wanting my own hot dog cart someday! Maybe it was the "GREEK BLOODLINE" which just yelled out, "RESTAURANT" to me. Maybe it was just what I ended up cursed with. But it is finally mine. I don't have to work for someone else anymore. I don't have to answer to anyone but my customers anymore. And for once, when I go home at night, when all is said and done, the work won't be for the benefit of someone else. It will be to build MY business.

The entire struggle with the lease this whole time, was to keep that sacred to me. If I was taking a business from nothing to build it up over time, there was no way in HELL that I would just give it over to my landlord or someone he wanted to give the business to someday, and take all the hard work I was doing to give to someone else. That just wasn't going to happen without me fighting for it. And so I hope that within the next 6 years of my lease and options, that I will have the means to buy the place outright, and not have to worry about that happening in the future. Beyond that, if someone wanted to buy my business, and pay me for what I feel my work was worth, in building that business, then I could negotiate a fair price for that, but in the meantime, I had a lot do to make that happen.

This moment is MINE! This little shabby shack which has been referred to as "ghetto" by some, is still MY GHETTO SHABBY SHACK! And I take pride in everything it is and all I will be able to do with it. The keys are in my hand. And I have control of everything there is in it. From today, I have a very short time to turn it from shanty, to beautiful, and make that little wooden shack make a whole lot of hot dogs (and other food) to pay the rent, utilities, and me. And from this point on, IT'S MINE!

Today, I didn't hesitate to begin calling places to set up the utilities, and get the work scheduled to get the place ready for opening. I have about 5,000 things that need to be done from now until the final inspections, and I hope that they all get done without a bunch of struggles... but even those struggles will build my character, and without that, I wouldn't feel as proud. I don't want anything just given to me without me putting any effort into it. So yeah, life, bring it on! I'm ready now. I control the destiny here.

Finally, I must say, thank you to my friends and family who have kept listening to me struggling through this lease process, and dreaming stages since I was a kid. They are in for more, until I finally do get open for business. But thanks for listening to me and just dealing with my rants and my dreams. And for the One who makes all things beautiful in HIS time - the giver of all blessings, THANK GOD!