Diary of a Rock Star (May 2009)

To answer this burning inquiry of the day, here’s some clue: “Two Weeks in the Life of a Rock  Star.”  And that’s rock star, which is a term I’ve joked about in the past, but …well … let’s see how part of last month played out.
Monday, April 14 – My day begins at 1:30 a.m. as the car taking me to the airport shows up.  My day actually began earlier, as I had to pack and therefore never really slept. (Hey, I got in late Friday from Las Vegas and had to do laundry.).
Because I live two-and-a-half hours from DTW (Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport to the untraveled), the car service is meticulous for guaranteeing that they get me to the airport with two hours to clear security. At DTW, while waiting for my flight, I finish a report that I have to get out for a casino ASAP.
By 10 a.m. I have gone from 55°F and cloudy skies to 80°F and sun in MCO (airport code: Orlando).  I meet the owners and staff of my new Stone Restoration Service (SRS) outlet in Central Florida and begin preparations for Week 1 (out of four) of training.
Tuesday, April 15 – I get to sleep in until 7 a.m. and show up at the outlet at quarter to nine. (Now that is why I love being a rock star.) I begin training and the day starts out relatively nice.  No problems. I pick-up my partner at the airport around 8 p.m. and meet our local operator for dinner and drinks.
Wednesday, April 16 – I stroll in again at around a leisurely 8:45 a.m.(I love my job) and begin training by nine. I also just happen to stock the office fridge with “Rock Star Roaster” Vanilla Latte (Hey, rock stars can be picky). It’s a high octane, non-carbonated, coffee flavored energy drink only available in the South for some reason. 
At noon, I have a conference call with the Marble Institute of America (MIA) about business in lieu of a good lunch. In the afternoon I look over SRS Central Florida’s first “official” job and make preparations for completing it next week.
I try to contact my lawyer back home to get word on a settlement conference. (Apparently some jea- … er, dissatisfied interest who apparently has nothing to do but start frivolous lawsuits is trying to threaten me.)  I can’t get through, so I leave it for later.
Thursday, April 17 – More training at the Florida facility.  In the afternoon, I go over their inventory, check out their new equipment, and help with local purchases to complete the opening requirements. And then, the absolute best home-cooked BBQ steak by our host, Mark D’Agostino (he’s ruined me for Morton’s) at his home.  We stick around for cocktails until about 2 a.m. (I think – now this is more like a rock star).  The editor of Stone Business sends me the first e-mail of many to see if I’m alive.
Friday, April 18 – It’s the regular grind, showing up at the office at about a quarter to nine. (You didn’t think a late night could slow me down, did you?) After final checks on equipment and supplies for next week, I go out to help price out SRS Central Florida’s second official job (which they got, BTW). I have a final lunch with Mark, and then he takes me to the airport for a 2 p.m. flight.. 
Do I go home?  Would a rockstar go home on a Friday night?  No way; I catch a flight for McAllen, Texas (airport code: MFE, through Houston, of course) and spend the weekend in Mexico for some personal business. And, seriously – no partying. (I wish.)
Monday, April 21 – I meet up with a business partner in Brownsville, Texas, and we drive out to South Padre Island to look at buying a business out there.  We talk to the owner, see his equipment, watch a demo, and tell him we’ll discuss and think about it. 
I can’t get Internet service at my friend’s house in Brownsville, but the Stone Business editor figures out I can get text messages on my cell phone and asks if he needs to start working on my obit. (The casino also sends urgent text messages that they want my report.)
Quick replies through cell phone to both assures them that they’ll shortly receive that which they desire. (And don’t ask about my cell-phone bills – it’s the cost of being a rock star.).
I finally hear from my lawyer back home; the settlement conference went well, and the opposing side’s lawyer (well – paralegal) admitted to all of our arguments, essentially giving us a win. (It’s only a matter of time now).
Tuesday, April 22 – I get up and pack to fly back to Detroit. To go home? No; I have to speak in front of architects.  Why? Because I can – and I want them to use more stone so that you and I both have a job through the next 50 years (although I plan on being retired long before that, but I want my people to still have an industry).
Have you ever flown out of Brownsville’s South Padre Island International Airport (airport code: BRO)?  For services to Houston (and only Houston) and only one gate, they have the strictest TSA inspection in the country (and I have seen the TSA in many airports). Anyway, after making it to George Bush Intercontinental in Houston (airport code: HOU), waiting, getting delayed, and finally making it to Detroit (and a time-zone change forwards an hour), my pick-up service is late and I get to my hotel around midnight.  The casino got their report during my layover in Houston and Stone Business was promised something for Thursday morning. (Houston has free wireless – just like a rock-star perk.)
Wednesday, April 23 – I’m still on the clock, as I stay up untl 2 a.m. finalizing details for the architect seminar later in the day. I send out a bunch of e-mails, mainly stipulating that I don’t want to be disturbed for a few hours, and I turn in at 2 a.m. for eight interrupted hours of sleep.  (Hey, I need my beauty sleep.)
A friend texts me at 8 a.m. (somebody didn’t get the sleeping-in memo).  I get up, check my backlog of e-mails, and think of what to write for Stone Business; after all, I only have 24 hours left.  I talk to a friend for an hour (yes, I have friends), and then I iron my suit jacket, shower and get ready for my dog-and-pony show.
Talking to architects about stone is a great rush.  These are the people that essentially can determine if we’ll have an industry or not down the road.  The more they know about stone, the more they’ll love stone, and I want them to spec it so that my children and grandchildren can have a job.
I get to the theater around 1 p.m., as the show begins at 1:30 p.m.  I do my song-and-dance, shake hands, kiss babies, and, by 5 p.m., I’m done. I get to sit in wonderful Detroit anti-rush hour traffic on my meandering journey to the airport so I can go back to Orlando).  My flight is delayed three times and I get to my hotel in Orlando around 1 a.m., so ….
Thursday, April 24 – … I sit in front of my laptop and decide to write my Stone Business column on what it takes to be a writer.  I finish it off in the wee hours and, and e-mail it off to the editor – who immediately sends another e-mail about artwork (Apparently, I’m not the only one on the rock-star schedule.)
I wake up at 8 a.m., and head to SRS Central Florida to put them through their first job. It lasts until Saturday.
Sunday, April 27: Sleep. Sleep. And more sleep.
So until next time, keep your stick on the ice and look out for me at the various airports around the world. It’s only a matter of time.

Tom McNall is founder and owner of Great Northern Stone Care, a Huron Park, Ontario-based stone-cleaning and -restoration company servicing all of southern Ontario. He also serves as the director of training, technical assistance, and operational support for Stone Restoration Services, a division of Stone Shop International. Tom offers corporate and private consultations, serves as a trainer for the Marble Institute of America, and is also on the organization’s board of directors. He can be reached at tom@greatnorthernstone.com