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  • Drumming to their own beat

    I work at a Resident Service Desk in the dormatory where I live. As the name implies, my job entails taking care of the building's college-age residents and offereing them various services. I moniter things like the pool tables, the gym, the vending machines, resident check-outs, and the music practice rooms.

    We're an art school, so having a set of "sound proof" music practice rooms is the only good way to keep obnoxious vocalists and tuba players from keeping their roommates up at all hours of the night. Part of our policy is that NO EQUIPMENT can be left in the rooms. They are public rooms which can be rented out to anyone, so residents arn't allowed to store their instruments there.

    This story starts with my co-worker, who I'll call "May." May is sitting at the desk when a group of guys toting a complete drum set as her for our biggest practice room. May logs them in, gives them the key, and informs them of our very simple policy -- the drums leave when you do.

    Things get busy and May doesn't notice that these particular SCs check out later WITHOUT the drums. The issue comes to her attention at the end of her shift when she does a walk-though of all the rooms to make sure everything is in order.

    May tries to track the customer down but to no avail. They end up returning the next day, when May happens to be working again. Obviously, the owner of the drums thinks he can use our practice rooms as storage space. She explains the policy--AGAIN--and demands that they remove the drums. So, bye-bye drums and bye-bye problem, right?

    Another co-worker of mine, we'll call her "June," is working later that week. She's signing people into the gym, checking out practice room keys, the usual, when she starts getting odd requests from the musicians.

    Customer: Can I check out the room with the drums in it?
    June: We don't...have...a room with drums in it.
    Customer: My mistake. *leaves*

    Customer2: I need a practice room.
    June: Do you need a piano?
    C2: No, but I was hoping I could get the room with the drums?

    At this point, June decides to investigate. Sure enough, SC managed to get his drum set BACK into our practice room and was no where to be found. June went on the rampage. She looked up the guy's room number and phone number, and when that didn't work, she had security flag him down at the door. SC was found and our manager did something I had never before known her to do. She YELLED at a resident! My manager is Miss Happy-Happy Cheerleader from hell, her motto is "the resident is always right," and she consistantly reprimands us for not bowing to the wishes of the residents with a big fat smile on our faces. And this very same woman threw away her own handbook and YELLED at a resident for his repeated stupidity. It was delicious. She explained in not-so-subtle terms that he was not to leave his drums in the room for any reason, finishing up with "[Dormatory] is not responsible for your belongings and will not be held accountable if they are stolen or destroyed while you continuously leave them here against our policy."

    Most people would be detered by this. Not this SC! Instead, he learned a new trick. SC returns with the drums while May was working. He returns the key and insists that he'll "be right back, so can you hold the room for me?" This is something we do on occassion, but May informed him that we'll only hold the room for 15 minutes. After that, any resident can use it because we can't tie up space indefinitly. He agrees and takes off.

    And never comes back.

    When May's relief comes, she puts the practice room key back with the others, since the key had already been held for far too long. The room gets checked out, drum set still in it.

    A day or so later, I come to work to relieve May. There seems to be some hussle and bussle at the desk, so I ask her what's going on. She tells me all about SC and how he's in the practice rooms right now, lementing over his DESTROYED drum set. Apparently, whoever mistakenly checked out that room was as sick of those drums as the rest of us and smashed them all to pieces.

    By now, I've heard a LOT about SC and what he's been doing, and since I've got more of a backbone than May, I took over for her when SC returned to the desk.

    SC: Someone is going to pay for these drums!

    Me: I believe my manager already explained that [Dormatory] isn't responsable for your drums. You were even warned that this could happen. This is your own fault.

    SC: I know, and I don't expect YOU to pay for them. You keep logs, don't you? I want to know who checked out that room so I can sue them and get my money!

    Now, I'm not actually allowed to give out any of our log information, but I check it just for shits and giggles. There are 3 logged entries in that room since SC left his drums there. It could have been any one of them.

    Me: According to our confidenciality policy, I can't give out that information to residents.

    SC: WHY NOT?

    Me: Usually, it's to prevent stalking. I can't tell you where residents have been or what they've been doing, because that's none of your buisness. Besides, for all I know, you'll track down each of these people and beat the living hell out of them, and that's not something I want on my hands, k?

    SC: I WON'T DO THAT! *balls his hands into fists*

    Me: ...

    SC: Grrrrrrrr!

    Me: I think you should leave now.

    SC: I WANT TO SPEAK TO YOUR MANAGER!

    Me: You mean, the woman who sent security after you, yelled at you for leaving your drums here, and warned you never to do it again because someone might--I don't know--destroy them? The same woman who insisted that if I gave out residents' personal information to other residents, I would be instantly terminated?

    SC: I WANT TO SPEAK TO YOUR MANAGER!

    Me: Okey dokey, Mister. Don't say I didn't warn you. *writes down manager's phone number.*

    SC: *storms off, only to get his head torn off by my angry manager for his repeat-repeat-repeat offense*

    Of course, my manager refused to compensate the jerk. May, June, and I shared a good laugh about karma. It's very rare that Sucky Costomer stories finish up with happy endings, but I can't think of anything more perfectly ironic than this.

  • #2
    Drummers...what can you do?
    Last edited by freaktard; 03-13-2008, 03:02 PM.
    "Wouldn't that be unethical?"
    "That's only an issue for those who aren't already in Hell."
    --Dilbert

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    • #3
      Quoth Artimis View Post
      We're an art school, so having a set of "sound proof" music practice rooms is the only good way to keep obnoxious vocalists and tuba players from keeping their roommates up at all hours of the night.
      Now wait just one cotton-pickin' minute! I used to play the tuba, and its melodious sound MUST be shared with the world at all times!

      Actually, I never brought my tuba back to the dorm rooms - I always kept it in the music building and practiced there. That thing was just too big to carry around.

      Tuba - the original heavy metal instrument...

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      • #4
        Just had to ask...

        I had to ask this question, I noticed that you have coworkers named May and June. Just wondering if you're picking aliases from a calender or if this is one of the stranger coincidences I have seen in awhile?

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        • #5
          Quoth Artimis View Post
          A day or so later, I come to work to relieve May. There seems to be some hussle and bussle at the desk, so I ask her what's going on. She tells me all about SC and how he's in the practice rooms right now, lementing over his DESTROYED drum set. Apparently, whoever mistakenly checked out that room was as sick of those drums as the rest of us and smashed them all to pieces.
          Ahhhh.. Karma. Not to mention a touch of Murphy's Laws. If someone says that something can happen to an item, chances are, it eventually /will/. A lesson learned, and likely a very expensive one because I doubt that set was cheap.
          A fact of life: After Monday and Tuesday, even the calendar says W T F.....

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          • #6
            Thats priceless! You know how bad he is if your manager Miss sunshine yelled at him. My manager is a really sweet religous type that is very accepting towrds everyone. I once got to hear her tell some SC to shut up! I was floored. But you know their over the top if these types of people lose their cool. He got what he deserved.

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            • #7
              And here I was expecting your manager to have put her foot through the bass drum or somethin', just to show him.
              "I call murder on that!"

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              • #8
                Quoth Juwl View Post
                And here I was expecting your manager to have put her foot through the bass drum or somethin', just to show him.
                For all we know, she did. And who could blame her?
                Curiously Lydean - curious interests of a curious person.

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                • #9
                  ahh, the beauty of karma strikes again; she is the lovliest of all ladies.

                  this particular rock will need more lessons in the hardships of life, methinks. two warnings should have done it, but the third time's the charm, or so they say!
                  look! it's ghengis khan!
                  Sorry, but while I can do many things, extracting heads from anuses isn't one of them. (so sayeth the irv)

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                  • #10
                    Methinks if you'd given this guy the information he wanted, you might have gotten a chance to act out the old joke:



                    What do you say to a drummer in a three-piece suit?




                    Will the defendant please rise?
                    My basic dog food advice - send a pm if you need more.

                    Saydrah's leaving the nest advice + packing list live here.

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                    • #11
                      Quoth Saydrah View Post
                      Methinks if you'd given this guy the information he wanted, you might have gotten a chance to act out the old joke
                      Or,

                      Three drums and a cymbal fall off a cliff

                      A PSA, if I may, as well as another.

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                      • #12
                        Quoth Saydrah View Post
                        Methinks if you'd given this guy the information he wanted, you might have gotten a chance to act out the old joke:



                        What do you say to a drummer in a three-piece suit?




                        Will the defendant please rise?
                        !! I have a few friends in bands and I'm definitely going to have to pass that joke along.

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                        • #13
                          Quoth Saydrah View Post
                          Methinks if you'd given this guy the information he wanted, you might have gotten a chance to act out the old joke:



                          What do you say to a drummer in a three-piece suit?




                          Will the defendant please rise?
                          I don't get it

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                          • #14
                            Quoth Cyphr View Post
                            I don't get it
                            Drummers are the 'bad boys' and would only be seen in a suit if in court, and if in court he wouldn't be there as a witness...
                            A PSA, if I may, as well as another.

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                            • #15
                              ahh thank you crazylegs

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