Tax Day Near and Food Cart Season Starts

YEAH !!!  Tax's are done, well still need to print and sign, but that is it :-)  This is my most and least favorite time of the year. Tax time is just frustrating.  The last 5 years have just shown how my hard work (12 - 18 hrs a day) have led to a pit in our everything.  however this year has finally turned the other way !!  It feels great :-)
  So tomorrow is considered the first day of the 2010 food cart season :-)  Super exciting.  So, a little background on operating a food cart in Madison, WI on the Capitol Square or State St.  Every Food cart is judges by a panel of 28 people (hand picked by the vending oversight committee).  The scores are based on Cart appearance, originality of Food, Quality of Food and Originality of entire package. This judging takes place in late Sept. of every year. Scores are then released and locations for vending are released based on the results.
Now most seasoned carts actually stop vending when the snow starts flying. Some of us crazy people, me !!, keep on going .  On April 15th everyone changes locations (if their results deemed that) and the new season begins :-)  So, I wish I could say this is a really cool process, but it really has some downsides !!  I really truly wish the vending committee would consider having a month to get to each cart.  That would make it much more "True".  When you know the judges are coming it is really easy to clean up one's act for a week , a month is much more difficult !!  I also really wish there was some sort of differentiation for the carts that are judged by only a few judges vs the carts that are judged by everyone !!  However that said it is really cool that the City cares about the appearance and taste of each cart !!  Not just anyone can vend and you have to keep up the great work ALL the time.  
   So this year I have a new "Comfort food " Cart starting on Library Mall, in Madison, WI and my Pasty Cart is still on MLK JR BLVD :-)   We are very excited and ready to embrace summer's craziness!!