New Myrtle Beach Living & Life Section on my Fine Resort Vacation Website

Hi everyone!

If you have been keeping up with our Fine Resort Vacation site over the last few months, you'll notice that we have been adding pages about some more adventures!

As some of you know, we have spent the last 2 winters in the Myrtle Beach, SC area (North Myrtle Beach for the winter of 2008-2009, and Myrtle Beach for the winter of 2009-2010), and so are adding information that we have been gathering about Myrtle Beach Life & Living as well! And, we'll be adding more as time goes on!

Even though we are "snowbirds" in the Myrtle Beach area (at least for now!), there are several great vacation resorts in the area through your GRN (Gold Crown) vacation membership. If we go back this coming winter (and it is looking likely... keeping our fingers crossed!), I am going to visit a few of the resorts in our membership and check them out.

Since I spend numerous months there, it doesn't make a lot of sense for me to book a vacation right down the road :) but there isn't any reason I can't pop on over and take a photo or two, and give all of you my impressions (keeping in mind, however, that I won't be able to give you a TRUE 1-week experience run down).

Anyway, the information I add about Myrtle Beach Restaurants and shopping will come in handy to ANYONE who is either snowbirding or vacationing in that beautiful spot!

So, keep your eyes open, and please let us know if you find great places that YOU would like us to add to the site as well!

Page about Christa's Country Corner - the Famous Pineola NC Corner Store & Deli

Well, I know that we took our trip to Banner Elk, NC last May, and that it's a little late to be writing about the trip now. :) Honestly, I don't know where the time goes! I think some of it has to do that we're getting ready to sell our beloved and beautiful Randolph, NH home, and that has had us a bit preoccupied...

Anyway, better late than never! One part of our visit that truly stood out in our minds was our afternoon at Christa's Country Corner & Deli, on Route 181 in Pineola, NC (located at Mile Marker 312 off the Blue Ridge Parkway).

Christa's is a classic country store that is truly so much more than your typical tourist stop. You can see the pride that goes into everything Christa and her crew does. The store is so popular, and it doesn't take a visitor long to realize why.

We were greeted and treated so graciously (not only by Christa Poore, the owner, but also by able crew member Janine Hughes). The ambiance is perfect for a mountain gathering place. Warmly decorated, and full to the brim with unique gift and food items (as well as the more standard tourist items), the real draw for us was the FOOD! Oh wow... Southern Hospitality AND great food all in one place. Heavenly.

Rather than recount everything here in this blog, we invite you to read all about our afternoon visit here at our Fine Resort Vacation site. I think you'll soon know why we needed to write all about it. :) And, if you find yourself in Pineola, NC, we whole-heartedly recommend a visit to Christa's Country Corner!

Review of our Trip to Banner Elk, North Carolina!

At long last, I have compiled a bunch of information (and a review) of our trip to Banner Elk, North Carolina. We had stayed at the Blue Ridge Village resort (one of the thousands of resorts available to GRN members through your membership), and had a great time.

I've posted the information at my Fine Resort Vacation website. What I have done is developed a page called "Vacation Review," and will be adding sub pages pertaining to various vacation reviews - such as the Banner Elk vacation. There will also be a sub page for Caribbean Vacations since we enjoy St. Maarten so much!

Don't forget to check out the short YouTube video I posted about the Banner Elk trip! It's on the Banner Elk, North Carolina review page at Fine Resort Vacation.

In a nutshell, here's the review: Banner Elk is wonderful! It's scenic, the people are friendly (which seems to be the norm in the South!), and if you even remotely enjoy the outdoors, it's a dream come true! A visit would be well worth your time.

Enjoy the review! :)

Interview w/ 5th Grade Class from Woodland Elementary School in Perrysburg, OH

Ok... This was the coolest thing! Folks from Woodland Elementary School in Perrysburg, Ohio found my Fine Resort Vacation site online, and contacted me about a project they are doing that incorporates several fields of study - science, math, social studies, etc.

Mr. Jason Hubbard's 5th grade class has formed an "intergalactic tourist board" to design a planet that will entice Darth Vadar to visit, relax, and shake off his evil ways.

So, they asked if I would participate in a question and answer session to help them understand what types of activities and ammenities might be good at such a resort. And since I market Global Resorts Network memberships which include access to thousands of different resorts (and since I visit them myself), I was able to add some insight based on my own experiences.

What we did was set up a video conference using Skype, and I have to say it was awesome! What a blast! The kids had great questions, and it was the most fun I've had in at least a week! :)

We also talked about the things I have seen based on my experiences in Antarctica and New Zealand. We discussed how New Zealand might be a good country to study since it is such a beautiful destination.

Anyway, I'll update this blog if I learn anything else about how the project turned out.

I'm very grateful to Woodland Elementary School for inviting me to participate, and quite humbled, as well. It was an honor to help.

New YouTube Video - Our Trip to Blue Ridge Village Resort in Banner Elk NC

Ok... This is a little late, I know! Last May, John & I took a quick vacation to Banner Elk, North Carolina in the Blue Ridge Mountains - or the North Carolina High Country. What an absolutely gorgeous area!

As many of you know, I have been attempting to learn how to film and post things on YouTube, and one of the reasons I've been so late with this particular entry is ... um... well, good old fashioned procrastination due to fear since I am still on the YouTube learning curve!

But, I finally bit the bullet and "just did it." Yes, I followed my own advice! :)

At any rate, here is the YouTube video which is only 3 1/2 minutes long, showing a little about our trip, which included a terrific visit to Christa's Country Corner and Deli where we stuffed ourselves silly on smoked chicken, along with a view of the Blue Ridge Village resort where we stayed (and which is one of the thousands of resorts available through the Global Resorts Network membership we like so much), and a quick look at the Banner Elk Winery. Alas... we ran out of battery power during our visit to the winery, so there is only a screen shot.

I will be getting a larger article out there about the trip and some of the amazing activities that are available out in the Banner Elk area. Stayed tuned to my Fine Resort Vacation site for more!

Back in South Carolina - Happy New Year 2010!

Hello everyone!

I'm back in South Carolina - this time in Myrtle Beach (versus Cherry Grove where we were last winter). We were encouraged by the locals who all said that last winter was the coldest in years.

Hmm. Today, it is about 40 - not too bad. But yesterday's wind chills were COLD!

Glad I brought my long-johns! :) We do wish we had come back earlier - we had to be plowed 8 times before we left New Hampshire on December 29th. That's a LOT of plowing - even by New Hampshire standards.

Anyway, I realize that I've been "gone" for quite a while - We've been caught up in beginning to get the house up in NH ready to sell, staying caught up with the summer and fall Portable Garages and Shelters sales, and then sneaking away for a couple of weeks to St. Maarten.

(Ahem... Note to self: NEVER schedule a vacation during the high season for Portable Garage sales. We had scheduled the St. Maarten trip earlier last year, and honestly did not know that November was still a busy time of year for Portable Garage sales. We won't make that mistake again! BUSINESS TIP OF THE DAY: It is a BAD IDEA to leave a busy store unattended.)

So, here I am, settled into our winter quarters high above the gorgeous sands of Myrtle Beach. I have my computer set up, files organized, pencils sharpened, and a refreshed sense of humor.

Time to get back to work! In the coming days and weeks, I'll be writing and posting numerous articles and (yes!) some YouTube videos from some of our trips over the last year. Hopefully they will give viewers and potential travelers some insights into where we've been.

I'll keep you posted! In the meantime, I wish all of you a happy, healthy, safe, and prosperous year ahead.

Selling Our House in Randolph NH (White Mountains)

Hi folks!
I've been a bit "absent" this summer on my blogs since returning from South Carolina, and I apologize for not writing as much lately.

It seems that as soon as we returned, it was time to begin planning once again to leave! Renewing our passports, planning for our upcoming St. Martin vacation in November, working on the house, working on our Portable Garages and Shelters, Discount Kids Clothes, and Fine Resort Vacation websites, welcoming new Global Resort Network team members, and preparing to go back to South Carolina for the winter (we miss all of you guys down there, and cannot wait to see you again!) - all those things seemed to make this summer go by in the quickest blink of an eye.

Plus, to top it off, we have made the very difficult decision to sell our White Mountains (Randolph NH) home after being in this peaceful paradise for more than 9 years. Actually, we have been in Randolph for much longer - John, for nearly 30 years, and I, for 20.

But, after doing a lot of soul-searching and realistically looking at our goals and dreams, it makes sense for us to move on. So, this is another reason for my writing having taken a bit of a back seat for the time being.

For right now, we have placed a complete listing for the Randolph NH house on our Fine Resort Vacation site here => www.FineResortVacation.com/RandolphHouseForSale.

I promise to get back to regular posts as soon as possible! Thanks for your patience!

Avoiding Travel Scams - Read & Heed!

I just saw this great article at the travel section of MSN regarding avoiding travel scams. Since I market really nice fine resort vacation memberships, this topic is of great interest to me, and I'm passing it along to all of you with the hopes that you will avoid these when travelling.

The more we know about stuff like this, the more pleasant our vacations and travel in general will be! Here is the article => The World's Worst Travel Scams

And, in the meantime, I just booked my own flights to St. Martin! We're not going until November, but we thought it was time to start looking at what's out there.

I'm pleased to say that through our own Global Resorts Network membership (the membership is actually with Gold Crown Resort), we got a FAR better deal from Boston to St. Martin than we found on Expedia. For the 2 of us, travelling non-stop on Jet Blue to and from, it cost a total of $1,207.10 (This price includes the taxes, which were over $100 each. Aren't taxes amazing?).

So, I am very glad to report that the travel membership has terrific value well beyond the actual resort stays. Please check us out! Fine Resort Vacation - Truly a vacationer's dream come true!

Our NEW SITE! It's Up & Running! Welcome To Fine Resort Vacation!

We did it! We have FINALLY gotten our new Fine Resort Vacation site up and running - and it's looking pretty good! It's pretty exciting to see the progress. So, if you visit us at the site you'll see our smiling faces on the home page - the same picture we are using here at this blog.

We wanted to use the same picture since it was taken on vacation at one of our favorite Caribbean luxury vacation destinations - St. Martin (where, by the way, we'll be heading back to this coming November for a few weeks).

We figured we should use a vacation photo since we are marketing luxury vacation travel memberships at the site. Makes sense, doesn't it? :)

Anyway, we also posted a page if you want to learn a foreign language - John & I have begun using the Pimsleur approach, and lo & behold, the method works! We are retaining what we have learned in our initial lesson, so it's quite impressive. Check it out here.

We also have posted a foreign currency converter, links to the US State Department and other links for up to date information on international travel, and a blog for the site itself (of course!). :)

We've also added a page so that potential members (or anyone who is interested) can view our newsletter where there are some amazing deals. For example, if you wanted to travel to Maui next week, there is a $298 special - which is amazing! $298 for the WEEK! This page gives potential members a glimpse at what the membership portal looks like.

We've also given a dollar-for-dollar comparison of what our timeshare ownership has cost us against how economical our Global Resorts Network luxury vacation membership costs. You can see that at our "About Us" page.

We've added an exhaustive FAQs page that addresses a lot of the questions people have about our luxury vacation travel memberships.

Throughout the site, we have illustrated the pages with lots of photos from the resorts themselves.

We'll post more information as it comes in. For now, I just wanted to share the good news about the new site! Please stop by and visit us - and if you are interested or have questions, don't hesitate to contact us - all our contact info is at the "Contact Us" page.

A Little Review: Five Guys Burgers and Fries in North Myrtle Beach

Occasionally, I am moved to write about a business that stands above others. Since I like to write about truth and integrity in business and life, I thought that I would share my thoughts about a little restaurant I visited today.

What We're Working On...
If you have been reading my blog, you may know that John, my husband and I have been spending the winter in the Cherry Grove Beach section of North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. It has been a great place to get move forward on our online businesses - whether it's updating our Save On Kidswear discount children's clothing website, our Portable Garages and Shelters website, the marketing system for our Global Resorts Network business and Luxury Vacation Travel memberships, our latest site to go live.

Bicycle Riding is GREAT in North Myrtle Beach
One of the nice things about this area is that it is very conducive to bicycle riding. Today, John had the car and so I took the bike into town to get the mail and then go over to the bank a few miles away. Riding a bike in the brisk spring air tends to work up an appetite, and I had a hankering for a burger. For at least the second time, someone mentioned Five Guys Burgers and Fries as a place we just had to visit.

Geno's Pizza - Gator Hole Plaza in North Myrtle Beach
Since it was only a few blocks further, I took the recommendation and ambled over to the restaurant. I should also mention that one of the folks who recommended Five Guys happens to be another restaurant owner. The folks at Geno's New York Pizza (located in the Gator Hole Plaza on Highway 17 in North Myrtle Beach) told us that if we wanted REAL fries, then we needed to go over to Five Guys. How's that for a recommendation!

By the way, Geno's is excellent, as well. We've been back several times. Another easy bike ride! So, please, visit Geno's too (I'd give you their website, but they don't appear to have or need one - the place is always filled with locals)!

Back to Five Guys...
So, as I walked into Five Guys, I immediately noticed that, like Geno's Pizza, it was filled with locals. I also noticed that it was spotlessly clean. There was what appeared to be a pallet of hundreds and hundreds of pounds of fresh potatoes ready to be cut into fries. This was a good sign! I have since learned that Five Guys is a private franchise with about 300 restaurants, but you'd never get that impression since it has the appearance of a home town place.

On the advice of one of the folks at the bank, I went with the "Little" burger as opposed to the "Regular" burger. I also ordered "Regular" versus "Large" fries. This was a combined wise move. I barely made a dent in my fries - which are wonderful! I packed the leftovers into my backpack and brought them home for John. Definitely reminiscent of the "Pier Fries" that we indulge in every time we go to Old Orchard Beach in Maine, which is the closest beach to our place in northern New Hampshire.

John will be very pleased at this little snack that awaits him when he gets home this afternoon!

The burger was excellent - freshly cooked. If I had attempted to load my burger with the 15 different free toppings offered at Five Guys, I never would have been able to take a bite - it would have been huge!

For once I was glad to ride back home into a stiff breeze - it made me pedal harder, so it helped to work off at least some of the meal!

The menu is simple. Burgers, Hot Dogs, Grilled Cheese, French Fries, and Soft Drinks. Great value, friendly staff, the ever present crowd of locals, cleanliness, and their honest menu give Five Guys Burgers and Fries my vote. They obviously run the show based on truth and integrity.

So, if you find yourself in North Myrtle Beach, SC, and have a craving for a burger and fries, stop by Five Guys - they are the corner of 2nd Ave North and Highway 17 - the northbound side, in the Lowes Home Store plaza. A jillion locals can't be wrong!

Ok... Back to work on the websites! Have a great day!

Affiliate Marketing System? What About It?

Since most people who know me know that I work 100% from home now, they often ask me how I do it. I have been getting a lot of those questions this winter, since John and I left the north country (northern NH) for the warmer climate of coastal South Carolina.

Except that it snowed here on the beach yesterday. And it's in the 20's tonight. Brrr! Old Man Winter wasn't letting us go without a fight! :)

Anyway, I guess the reason people ask us this question is because we don't fit the typical "snow bird" profile - which means we are not retired (yet!).

We assure people that we most certainly DO work! And we work hard. Well. "Work Hard" is a relative term. My back aches, but only because I'm hunkered down over the computer keyboard for work.

As you know, if you've been reading this blog, we work our online business opportunities. A couple of our internet marketing strategies are centered around products which are physically drop-shipped from our supplier, and yet another is an affiliate marketing system.

I know that some readers might ask what I truly believe the best affiliate marketing program is - and that is a difficult question to answer. Everyone is different, which means that different people will prefer different products. I've addressed this topic in other blog entries, wherein I advise people who are interested in business opportunities online to carefully review their likes/dislikes, how much time they have to devote, etc.

Also, when asked, I will typically tell folks that I prefer to represent a company that has a solid, stand-alone product. You've probably seen that in my writings, as well.

And an affiliate marketing opportunity may very well be different from an affiliate marketing system. At least in my eye.

Because the affiliate marketing opportunity you choose to represent may not necessarily have a marketing system to help you learn the ropes of online internet marketing.

So what to do?

Well, you've undoubtedly heard me tell my readers to do some due diligence and soul searching before joining up with anything. Because, I don't care how good the internet or affiliate marketing system is - if you are not going to put in the time to 1) LEARN the system, and then 2) WORK the system - and by work the system, I mean on a CONSISTENT basis, then you are setting yourself up for disappointment. Because nothing works unless YOU do.

So. That said, there are a few affiliate marketing systems out there that have good information, good educational products, and the type of training that - once you wrap your head around it - you can implement, and begin to see results in the following ways: 1) More visitors (aka "traffic") to your site, which leads to 2) more sales at your site, which leads to 3) more commissions in your bank account.

I like Mike Dillard's style - talk about "no nonsense." You can check it out and get some free information and see if this affiliate marketing system resonates with you.

Of course, it's no secret that I'm extremely fond of Global Resorts Network as an excellent affiliate marketing opportunity, since John & I love to travel and have been very impressed by the exclusive luxury travel club that we market (which really is a standalone product). For people who want to travel AND earn some money marketing a luxury vacation travel product, the GRN commission structure is impressive. For us, it's both an entrepreneur's dream come true as well as a vacationer's dream come true (Hey! That's our motto!)

As far as the affiliate marketing systems that we work, we've learned a great deal through the sites we've already mentioned - which you can visit at your leisure. They are certainly not the only affiliate marketing resources out there, but they're certainly a good starting point. The direct links are:
Presenting GRN (this gets right to the point of the opportunity)
Black Belt Recruiting (this is Mike Dillard's approach)
Truth To Wealth Online (this is a great GRN Team Building System - plus you can get a nice free eBook about dispelling the myths of working online)

But ultimately, it is up to you to discover what it is you enjoy doing, decide if you have the time to devote to learning an affiliate marketing system - and then, once you choose your particular affiliate marketing opportunity that "grabs you" - STICK WITH IT!