I returned home Thursday night and have been sick ever since . The body can only take so much . I am thankful that we pushed back the Fort Worth opening . Gives me time to rest and feel normal .  Some of the Tokyo American travelers got home last night . The Wales travelers should be home Wed/ Thursday . It’s been a crazy month .

Time to give thanks . I am first thankful to my son . I learn from him everyday . His genetics are laden with Colombian and Italian loud craziness yet he always stays calm . He is an old soul in a young man’s body . He amazes me as a person . He is keenly bright and so so kind . His future is so bright . I can’t wait to watch as he becomes a man .

I am thankful for my family and friends . There are some really good people in my life . My hope is that I can give to them what they give me .

I am thankful for Coyote Ugly . Seeing this company grow creates an awe in me . So thankful for the people in Coyote . Bar backs , porters , bouncers, bartenders , regulars , lawyers, franchise people . Everyone contributes . And I am thankful .

A little / big family . Happy Holidays !

At the opening of Coyote Ugly Cardiff!

Coyote Ugly Cardiff open for business .  Brutal . Mantra to the staff ”  as long as the customers get their drinks and don’t know everything that’s going wrong then we have done a good job .”

Had to laugh .  I have now opened many bars . Things always go wrong . Ice machine breaks . Sound system shorts out. Bathroom gets clogged . It happens and you fix it, move on .  Steve , the Owner of Cardiff and I were laughing ” omg, this is crazy . We have had things go wrong but ” he then finished my sentence ” this is a whole new level “.  lol honestly it was a great night .  Everyone had a blast . But my god , buzz saws still going .  Opened an hour late .  Aloha terminals crashing . Dish washer not working . DJ never downloaded choreographed songs . Justin walks over to me ” hope you don’t mind taking pictures with our potential franchisees . I stopped them  from taking pictures of you while you were mopping the floor .”  lol

Good job to everyone . American Staff rocked ! Wales staff worked their asses off . Packed ! Fun! And I made it to Heathrow . 2 hours sleep , 2 trains , now waiting for my plane home .

My body is tired. I need to curl into a ball . I will Chase my 17 year old son around to cuddle with . Can anyone say Spa day !

So proud of the opening in Tokyo last night .

my god I am tired .  Back and forth from Tokyo to Wales . While I am excited for these bars I wished they had been spaced a little further apart ! Sitting at Narita airport . Going home for 3 days .  I miss the kid so much . Jackson  at 17 probably doesn’t miss me quite as much .

Not to jinx it but last night’s opening went well . A bunch of issues but nothing that is not easily fixed . Let’s speak about easily fixed , I gained 5 lbs in Tokyo . Damn rice and soy sauce .  There will be an insane diet/ workou regime in place when I land ! We went to some incredible sushi restaurants including Jiro from the Famous documentary . All the blow fish I could of done without ( especially the blow fish fin Sake ) . Lizzie and I tried everything ! Kind of thankful I am leaving before the ” shark knuckles ” that have been offered to us by the Tokyo management . ” where exactly are the shark ‘ s knuckles ?”

We have our first Coyote Ugly Tokyo staff!! Saturday I was worried. Not many people came in and let’s say they weren’t the best calibre of girls. But Sunday we had a ton of applicants and some great girls. Street Dancers, theatre singers, one girl was a cook in a pancake house and could make thousands of pancakes. Very pleased with the staff.

Last night Marie and Maya took Lizzie and I to a restaurant that only served blowfish. Literally blowfish i anyway you could think of. We had Sake with blowfish fins ( this was my least favorite thing. We had blowfish sashimi, blowfish, soup, even blowfish testicles! Ok it’s officially off the bucket list  .

Sitting at the Coyote Ugly in Tokyo . Girl search starts in about a half an hour ! Let’s do this !

The pressure is on . 3 bars 40 days in 3 continents . Added to that I have never been away from Jackson for 3 weeks . So I have been feeling quite a bit of anxiety . Today I would like to thank Justin . He wrote me such a nice letter and it brought me back into the positive instead of dwelling on the anxiety work has created .  Thank You Justin

Hey boss-

As things ramp up to a crazy next few weeks (and beyond), I wanted to take a moment and say how thankful I am to be a part of Coyote Ugly. I am grateful that you had an idea and the guts to make it a reality in the beginning of Coyote Ugly. I’m grateful that you have built such an amazing team and family to keep building the brand. I am thankful every day to be a part of this crazy family! What we’re doing is something amazing but how we’re doing it, the passion we all have for the brand and for each other is what makes it really special. I’m thankful for you. Wishing you a very Happy Thanksgiving! See you in Tokyo!

Lee, Lizzie and I have jinxed Japan . 7.3 earthquake today .  I leave Thursday for the Tokyo girl search ! I am super excited to go to the restaurant Jiro ( from sushi documentary ) . I have a knot in my stomach leaving jackson for 3 weeks . He’s 17 and does not care . He will be in bachelor heaven at his dad’s apartment .  This will be a crazy 40 days . Opening 3 bars on 3 continents . Nuts .

Fun fun party. What I thought was a joke has become my true nightmare . Lee has sent a bigger then life ( probably about 1.5 life size ) picture of me to post on all the front areas of every bar . It’s not even a great picture . Oh lord.  ( This was just an extra picture . Not the huge one )

Headed to Nashville for the anniversary ! 3 hours spent at airport yesterday . Delays . Change of flight plan .  I finally just went home to try again . Now I am on my layover in Oakland . I am sitting at the little airport eatery watching Tv . News : ” Trump issues statement : he will cut millions of dollars of funding to California . Campaign for California to Sucede from the US”. Let the Tyranny begin . What we didn’t vote for him so now ” off with their heads “?

As you get older you have to go through a litany of health exams . Last night I told Kevin if anything is ever wrong I will use it for everything . ” sorry sir I know I cut the line but I have cancer.” ” officer,  I know I was speeding but I was just diagnosed with …”  ” ma’am my mother had … it’s a hereditary disease so please let me take the last ticket from you .” I wonder how much you could get ?

Election Day!! I always feel such a great sense of pride when I vote. A true honor. My mother was born in Colombia and had to earn her citizenship. I remember how incredibly proud she was to become a citizen. We were allowed to take the day off of school to watch her get sworn in. She was jubilant that day.  It was only in the last ten years that she was asked to choose a country and discard the other’s citizenship. While she loved her Colombian heritage there was not a moment of hesitation that she would pick the U.S. My dad in juxtaposition was a Son of the Mayflower. His lineage dated to the crossing of the Mayflower to Plymouth rock. We were always filled with great stories of our True American roots. So today I am proud to be an American and I am honored to have the right to vote.

Everyone who knows me knows I am very liberal. So no real questions on where I will vote. This election is interesting. I have been fascinated by friends who are  torn about their Republican foundation. Party or Country? Do you vote for someone clearly unqualified and mentally unstable because he is on your party’s ballot? Do you vote against him because you fear his mental incompetence? Or do you stay home and not vote at all?  The psychology of this election. Fascinating. Regardless of party. Go out and VOTE!

So proud of all the bars. We have raised over $37,000 for Susan G Komen Breast Cancer research and awareness. Wow I am so impressed by all the managers. Great job.

Last night OKC crushed it!!!! So nice to see logs like that from one of the smaller bars.

I will be in Nashville this week , Party!

Trailer looks outstanding ! 

MY OCD is in full swing. I am starting to book my hotel stays for both Tokyo and Cardiff. I will be away for a long time going back and forth from one city to the other helping to organize girl searches, training, and opening .  My only request is that I have to stay at a hotel with a gym. There are so few choices that are in walking distance to the Tokyo bar in Rappongi. MY stress level has now tripled.

A shout out to Nashville and San Antonio. Those two bars absolutely crushed Halloween numbers from last year. Great job!

Jackson coaches special Olympics. This Saturday his team won the gold for soccer. You don’t get a better organization then this. Wonderful athletes, parents, volunteers. I am a proud mom!