Rosseau: Closest town to the resort, half hour walk. Small town with a post office, beer store, minimart/grocery store, coffee time and a ton of antique shops. My friend Kathryn and I would walk there on occassion to just get away, exercise and get some food to store in our cabin.
Outtings: Kathryn and I became friends with the Sous Chef (Eddie) in the kitchen and thankfully we did because he made our summer! His soon-to-be wife (Rhonda) at that time was my "one-on-one" mentor and they would both plan events for us.
1) Parry Sound: I went with a family (the son was a cook) to a beach in Parry Sound - what a gorgeous place! I'd love to back there again.
2) Burlington/Orillia: Eddie and Rhonda took us for a picnic, some shopping and the drive-in movies for a day. That outting was the best part of the summer.
Eddie was an interesting guy to say the least...which made for some light hearted fun during the days at work.
Alarms: Whenever a guest went missing - we had to be at a certain station within minutes of hearing the alarm. Kitchen staff were to cover a section of the lake - literally. We had to form 2 lines facing each other and wade through the water (waist high) back and forth until they found the missing guest. This happened on a weekly basis or more and most of the time we would be fully clothed (jeans, tshirts, socks and running shoes). Talk about fun! *rolls eyes* And for some reason this seemed to happen quite frequently on our break while we were napping. It was so annoying!
Fun Facts:
- I was nicnamed "Boss Lady" and "Princess"
- I had a song dedicated to me (there was on-site radio station) from someone in the kitchen on the last day of work
- the resort director rewarded my friend and I with free hoodies and t-shirts (he really wanted us back the following summer*)
- only time other staff would talk to us Kitchen staff: after our shift when we were showered and in summer attire....don't believe me? K and I tested this theory numerous times.
- on rainy off days we'd watch movies ALL day long
- our cabin consided of 20 females with only 3 showers, 5 toilets and 6 rooms
- some pics from my summer, click here.
Dispite having such a high stress job, working long hours and crappy pay - I came home a totally new person. I grew to appreciate my family, I learned to become a leader and my personality matured. I think that summer was one of the most difficult I've endured but it lead me to who I am now and I am forever grateful. Last but not least I discovered what hard work is and how much I hate dishes! :P
There are many other short stories and incidents that happened during that summer but this post is long enough! :)
*I never went back to work at MSWR for many reasons: 1)not enough pay for the amount of hours and work I put into it 2) do not agree with how "christian" the camp was 3) very cliquy and I never felt like I belonged 4) I was graduating college the following summer and needed a real job
