How I Got Started & Why I’m Celebrating My 10th Anniversary in Thailand
I’ve told this story many times, but this feels like the perfect moment to run it back—because, honestly, if it weren’t for a chain-smoking psychic, a travel disaster, and a state agency breathing down my neck, JetLife Vacations wouldn’t even exist.
So let’s rewind to 2016. I was at Essence Music Festival, living my best life, but also out here searching for love. I had it all—a great IT career, a thriving Amazon store, and a paid-off house. The only thing missing? A man to share it with. So I did what any logical person would do… I went to a psychic.
Now, this wasn’t just any psychic—this was an old white lady with a Chihuahua and a cigarette habit that could rival a 1970s lounge singer. She shuffles the cards, takes a long drag, and says, "Honey, what is it that you do? You travel for work?"
Umm, no. The farthest I traveled for work was Kansas.
She shakes her head, exhales a cloud of smoke, and says, "No, baby, I see a LOT of international travel."
At this point, I’m laughing because, let’s be real—I was terrified of flying longer than three hours. I needed Xanax just to make it through a domestic flight! So now, I’m sitting here thinking, this lady is full of shit (leave that in).
But she doubles down. "The cards don’t lie, baby. I see you traveling to countries that start with the letter A."
I’m like, Ma’am, what about LOVE? She shuffles again, lays the cards out, and boom—same exact setup. No love, just more travel. I left that reading highly disappointed.
Fast forward a year, and guess what? I went to Aruba (hated it, but that’s another story for another day). Then a friend posted about a Thailand & China vacation. I wasn’t into China, but Thailand? That intrigued me—mainly because of the Buddha statues (continent Asia—see what’s happening?).
The Thailand Trip That Changed My Life
Now, here I am in Thailand. And just so you know, the flight was actually smooth as hell. Those long-haul flights? Elite. Bigger planes, barely any turbulence—turns out I was scared for nothing.
But of course, drama followed. My roommate canceled last minute and then sued me (yes, sued me—haha, another story). This is exactly why I push Travel Insurance now!
So here I am, walking the streets of Thailand alone—and let me tell you, it was amazing! The street food? Fire. Tuk-tuks? Wild. Jazz clubs? Vibes. The energy was just different.
Then the next day, I walked past this stunning hotel—gold rooftop, Rolls-Royces and Benzes lined up in front. I asked our trip organizer, “Why didn’t we stay here?” She hit me with the “You can’t afford that. It’s $500 a night.”
Umm… I could’ve afforded it, but OK, girl.
Meanwhile, the hotel we actually did stay at? Let’s just say… it was decent, but we arrived at 2 AM and had to wait three hours to check in because somebody clearly forgot to pay the bill. They were arguing in Thai, and I was just standing there like… 👀.
Accidental Travel Agent Era Begins
When I got back to the U.S., people saw my Thailand photos and started saying, "Next time you go, I wanna go!" So I invited eight friends… who invited their friends… and suddenly, 40 people wanted in.
I hit up the same lady who booked my first trip and asked her to set it up again. She took months to respond, so I said, "Forget it, I’ll do it myself."
I found a supplier, and guess what hotel was on the list? Yep, the hotel I walked past—the one I apparently couldn’t afford! I was like HOT DAMN! I put the package together for $1,500 per person, and the vacation was everything!
Now, at this point, did I have any desire to own a travel agency? Not. At. All.
But then someone asked, “Can you put together a trip to Egypt?” And I said, “Sure, as long as I can go for free.” (Still not charging for profit… big mistake).
The State of Florida Enters the Chat
Long story short, I lost so much money on that Egypt trip. But here’s where it gets messy—some hater reported me to the state!
Florida hit me up like, "Ma’am, you CANNOT sell travel without a license." I had 30 days to either return $90K in payments (which was already overseas and damn near impossible to get back) or get licensed.
Fun fact: If you’re booking vacations through someone who’s not licensed, it’s illegal. The IRS wants their cut!
To get licensed, I needed:
✔ A registered business
✔ $30K in sales for six consecutive months
✔ Three IATA-registered referrals
…and I only had 30 days to pull it off.
Luckily, Thailand came through for me again! Because of the connections I made on that first trip, I got everything in order, and JetLife Vacations Corp was officially born. And ever since then, the IRS has been up my ass. No more tax refunds, just tax bills.
Why I’m Celebrating 10 Years in Thailand
So here we are—10 years later. And how am I celebrating? By taking it back to Thailand—to the hotel I walked past when life was still simple. Before the lawsuits, before the state came knocking, before the IRS had my number saved.
Thailand is where it all started. And now, it’s where I’m celebrating JetLife Vacations’ 10th anniversary.
Moral of the story? Sometimes a psychic, a lawsuit, and the IRS are all just part of your destiny.
