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Chapter 5:3 The Empress Hotel< Chapter 5:2 Chapter 5:4 > The Empress was no vacation spot. The only people living there were people who worked at the hotel, and a few people who were on welfare. It wasn’t really even open to the public. The owners had originally planned on renovating the building but the club was in financial trouble so they had never finished anything other than the lobbies and the club. Anything above the first floor was a mess. The carpeting in the hallways was half torn up. You had to be very selective of which room you chose because of broken windows and broken toilets. The furniture in the rooms that we were staying in was made up of what could be put together after rummaging through the unused rooms to find beds and tables that weren’t destroyed. It wasn’t much, but it was now my home. Staying at the Empress was a situation of dealing with life on the simplest of terms. I had begun working in two new clubs in Northern NJ in an attempt to break into the NYC market. NYC was where a DJ could make some amazing money. Sometimes in life, when we choose to do something, we have to be willing to do whatever it takes to make that something a reality. For the next 7 months I would be working a rotation that consisted of working 13 days straight, including two doubles and then I would have one day off. On that one day off, I would drive 3 and a half hours to visit with my daughter, then drive 3 and a half hours the next morning back to NJ so I could begin the next 13-day cycle. My visits with my daughter had to be drastically reduced while I was living in the hotel. The place was packed with drug dealers and hookers so I was not willing to have her stay there over the weekends that she was supposed to visit. During my stay at the hotel I was constantly looking for new clubs to work in NYC and also for an apartment that was closer to the other clubs that I was already working in Northern NJ. I was driving an hour each way to the clubs and the workload was breaking me down physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. Phyllis, one of the owners of the hotel, began to tell me that the hotel was in more serious financial trouble than any of us imagined. It was on the verge of being condemned and she knew that most of the people there had nowhere else to go. The place was insane. I came home one night to find the coroner taking a body out of the hotel. It was one of the former club patrons who had been killed in a drug deal that had gone bad. It was the end February of 1995, and things at the hotel were getting worse. The furnace in the hotel was leaking oil so badly that it was turned off. The average temperature was around 30 degrees Fahrenheit and now we had no heat. Soon after the furnace trouble, the water was turned off due to the bill being so high. I was faced with a choice. Phyllis said that we could continue to stay there free of charge until the city completely shut the hotel down if we wanted to, or I would need to find another place to stay until my apartment was ready. I had found an apartment in north New Jersey, but it wouldn’t be ready until April 10th. All the money I had managed to put together since leaving Angie was going towards the apartment and new furniture. So, I decided to ride it out and stay in the heatless, waterless hotel. I had lived through Baltimore City Jail; this shouldn’t be a problem. Due to delays on my apartment being ready I ended up staying a lot longer in that situation than I had originally planned. For the next month and a half, I slept under a mountain of blankets and took sponge baths in water that I bought at the local grocery store then heated in a microwave. Every night I would come home after work and wonder if I would even be able to get into the hotel. I would pull into the parking area and look at the lobby door to see if the city had finally boarded it up and I would have to sleep in my car. It was around April 30th when I left the hotel for the last time and moved into my new 1 bedroom luxury apartment. What a change it was. I had gone from living like a homeless person to a gorgeous palace in one afternoon. It’s amazing how quickly your life can change. My preparations in life had made it so I was used to making sacrifices and using survival tactics. I had lived in jails, my car, and now a condemned hotel. It was time to get back on track.
If you enjoyed this article, help raise the ranking in Google's Search engines by clicking here. If the information on this site helps you and you'd like to make a donation to YourDailyLifeCoach.com, please click the Donate button. The amount you contribute is entirely up to you. I am grateful for your support. Why donate? I want to spend my time directly helping people by creating new video series, blog posts, articles, and podcasts; by speaking to groups; and by working with others to bring you the best content possible. If you want to support me in my mission of creating a community that will elevate the Self Awareness of humanity by providing Inspiration, Education and Empowerment; please make a contribution. Any amount is appreciated. The Warrior Sage Chapter/SectionWho Is Willard Barth?Author's Notes Preface - Exploring Strength And Weakness Chapter 1:1 - The Process Of Self-Awareness Chapter 1:2 The Stages Of Child Development Chapter 2:1 The World Changed Forever Chapter 2:2 The Vicious Cycle Begins Chapter 2:3 Losing Faith Chapter 2:4 My Dark Secret Chapter 2:5 Where Is The Love I Was Promised? Chapter 3:2 The Road To Alcohol Dependence Chapter 3:3 Leaving My Childhood Behind Chapter 3:4 Escaping Responsibility; The Joy Ride Ends Chapter 3:5 Living A Duality Begins Chapter 3:6 Out Of Control Chapter 3:7 Crossing The Line To Insanity Chapter 3:8 The Black-out Drinking Begins Chapter 3:9 Facing The Music Chapter 3:10 A New Beginning Chapter 3:11 More Lessons To Learn Chapter 4:1 The Final Party Chapter 4:2 A Moment Of Clarity Chapter 4:3 My New Life Begins Chapter 4:4 Sober, Time To Face The World Chapter 4:5 The First Year Of Sobriety Chapter 4:6 Major Change Comes In Year Two Chapter 4:7 My Daughter Is Born April 20, 1992 Chapter 5:1 Life Changing Decisions Follow My Daughter's Birth Chapter 5:2 Recognizing The Voice Inside Chapter 5:3 The Empress Hotel Chapter 5:4 A New Chapter In My Life Begins Chapter 6:1 Finding My Way Home Chapter 6:2 Falling Into Place Chapter 6:3 A New Awareness Chapter 6:4 Personal Finances And Personal Development Chapter 6:5 The George Washington Story Chapter 6:6 Letting Go So Others Can Grow Chapter 6:7 The Wrap Up For more on personal development and self-awareness visit the Article Archive Enjoy our series of free videos Self-Awareness 101 Explore the deeper meanings of our Inspirational Quotes Jump HOME from The Empress Hotel Get access to a 30 MINUTE EXCLUSIVE FREE VIDEO "The 7 Keys For Success and Fulfillment" by signing up for our FREE Your Daily Life Coach NewsletterSign up for the FREE YDLC newsletter to receive updates about videos and articles designed to assist you on your journey of personal development through self-awareness. When you have confirmed that you want to receive the YDLC newsletter you will be given a link to an Exclusive 30 minute Video that we created just for our subscribers called The 7 Keys for Success and Fulfillment.Newsletters are sent about once a month, just enough to keep you in the loop but not enough to overwhelm you. If you enjoy the free information available on this site, you're sure to appreciate the free newsletter as well. Sign up right here:
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