Maggie Rants [and Raves]

Viva Las Vegas

by Maggie Franklin | June 4, 2012 | Bookmark +

Do I name my blog post that every year around this time?

Well, if so, it should serve as a reminder that the IBS Las Vegas tradeshow is looming before us like the gaping maw of a beast worthy of calling on Godzilla to vanquish it.

Alas, this year I am not looking forward to my Big Show as much as one would expect.

The Moneysuck: The BF and I will be driving to Vegas. It's nearly 400 miles and Google Maps tells me it's going to take a little over six hours. Gas is $4.50 a gallon — and that's for the cheap stuff.

Ordinarily we would take my little Nissan Sentra which gets a humble 35 miles to the gallon and makes the trip in considerably less time than whatever Google drives. This year we will be taking the BF's Nissan Xterra because we are mixing business with pleasure — but the cost of gas just doubled.

Then there's the hotel, the cost of the tickets to the show, everything on my show shopping list, and all those yard-long daiquiris I'll have to drink.

But I budgeted for that, right?

Well, that was before I told my landlord to go ahead and knock a hole in my wall and charge me more rent. In addition to the "more rent" part, I also have to hire someone to build my pedicure set up — cuz I sure as heck won't make it look like I see it in my head. I still haven't started repainting, and I have, naturally, decided I want to go from my dark burgundy and beige walls to the palest of blues, so priming is a must.

I spend a lot of time whining about how expensive my summer is going to be, but I know I know I'll recoup the expenses — it's the time I don't have. When is all this supposed to get done? And, of course, there's the clients — dear, sweet, loyal clients — who are so excited about the promise of a proper pedicure setup that you'd think Santa was coming. But they aren't here every day, working amidst the rubble and glitter. They aren't the ones trying to keep working on schedule, maintaining their personal lives, writing the checks, and finding themselves faced with the issue of finding a competent carpenter to build a set up with concern for working weight limits to be sure to accommodate anyone who comes through the door in search of soft heels and painted toes.

They expect it all to be done when they return two weeks later.

Next time I remodel the salon I'm going to put all my ducks in a row, then take a week off and get it all done at once.

But next week, you will find me wandering the aisles of IBS Las Vegas with a slightly dazed look on my face while I try to forget that after Godzilla vanquishes the show, I'll have to go home and vanquish Godzilla myself.

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