Springtime has finally arrived to the eastern shore of Maryland after a long, dreary winter.
With that comes birds, bees, daffodils, fishing boats, and…
TOURISTS!
We live close to the quaint historic town of St. Michaels, which dates back to the American Revolution. The main drag (Talbot Street) is lined with restaurants, antique shops, and various boutiques selling t-shirts and Chesapeake Bay-related trinkets.
It’s usually in April when the tourists begin to appear. Many come from nearby big cities, such as Washington, DC, Baltimore, and Philadelphia, seeking relief from their daily stressful lives.
The number of visitors gradually increases each month. Then, when summer is in full swing, the quiet hamlet is suddenly taken over, even on the week days.
St. Michaels kind of reminds me of the fictional town of Amity, in the movie Jaws. The local merchants relied on the summer dollars to keep their businesses going, and provide a cushion during the slow winter months.
When I first moved to this area and was living in my parents’ garage apartment, I worked as a server at a St. Michaels café. Business would be crazy there in the summer. People on the sidewalks. People in the street. People waiting to eat.
I made good money and got a whole lotta exercise.
Then I moved on to the Harbourtowne Resort further into town. It was there where I really learned about making the most of the season.
Certain areas of the eastern shore can be like Amity. Overflow in the warm months, then deadsville in the cold. Some restaurants in St. Michaels actually close for three to four months, usually from December to mid March.
Then there are those businesses that never reopen. They just didn’t make enough money during the “hot” times.
A few new places have opened up in town the past few years, started by non-locals from cities like DC and Baltimore, who didn’t understand the seasonal aspect.
They put so much money into making their place fancy, expecting the summer business to carry on to the end of the year. But, that didn’t happen and… they didn’t make it.
Working at Harbourtowne, we had a longer season than many of the other St. Michaels restaurants. The resort hosted a lot of company retreats throughout the year, as well as weddings, almost every weekend in the summer and fall. Then there were various events going on in October, with things slowing down in November. Other than weekend guests and the big Thanksgiving Buffet, and some Christmas parties in December, that was it.
After that, it was time to claim unemployment for several months, until business picked up again.
That’s just the norm for the majority of eastern shore restaurant workers.
I understood this process, so when the busy season came along, I worked as many hours as I could. I told my boss I was available six or seven days a week, if needed.
I knew to take advantage of it, while I could. Kind of like “storing up nuts for the winter.”
Some staff didn’t do the same though, especially the younger servers. They often called out, mostly to go to the beach, or they just didn’t feel like working some days. I tried to explain to the new employees about getting all the hours they could, but they just didn’t listen.
Then, when business slowed and the resort was down to just a skeleton crew, they all griped about not getting as many hours as they did in the summer.
And, when there was a rare event in the down time, my boss gave the hours to the employees who deserved it – those who had been hard-working and reliable during the year.
If you live in a big city like DC or Philly, this usually isn’t a problem. For the most part, there’s business all year-round.
But, if you find yourself employed in a restaurant in an area like St. Michaels or Amity, take it from me… make the most of the opportunities for work. Commit yourself to working your ass off when the crowds hit. Save your money for the cold times.
And, understand the unemployment process. It will keep you warm when the temperatures are frigid out.