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I nearly gave myself a concussion facepalming over this one.
There's a lot riding on a convention I'm set to attend out-of-state next weekend. For one thing, it's my first book signing in about three years (w00t). Having determined that the least expensive way to make the trip is by car, I decided to confirm my check-in date. I went to my E-mail, where I never throw anything away, found the relevant E-mail, and just about had a heart attack on the spot.
Dates of the convention: June 24, 25, 26, and 27. Dates of the reservation...June 28, 29, and 30.
I swear I must have turned green on the spot. I had made the reservations using a Smart Phone before I was terribly well-versed in the technology, and my fat fingers have made a hash of its joke of a keyboard before. But this was all kinds of a big deal. For one thing, there were simply no other rooms this close to go-time. Not in this hotel, not in the hotel next door, and not in the hotel up the street half a block. Not ten days before launch. No way.
There are cave explorers in central China who probably heard my string of expletives.
I pounced on the nearest phone and dialed the number with hands a-tremble. A very bored voice with a faint Indian accent answered. I explained that my hotel reservations seemed to be not quite what I had intended or anticipated. He promised to look into it.
Then Roommate Red, who had been watching the whole thing in amazement, said, "Wait a minute: the 28th isn't a Sunday, it's a Monday."
I wasn't really listening. Someone in the background of the phone call, with a slightly thicker Indian accent, was insisting that there were "No rooms. None. No, tell him. None. No way." Well, of course not; the whole town's been sold out for weeks. Maybe I could get a room in a motel within commuting distance or go on a standby list, but it says right here that my reservations are for June 28, 29, and 30, 2009, and I need to know what...I can do...to fix...
*ahem*
The gentleman on the other end of the line came back on. "I'm afraid we can't find your reservation..." he began, but I said, "Erm...I've got some new information here. I may need to call you back..." "Okay, is there anything else I can help you with?" "No, I'm fine. Thank you so much." "Okay." "Okay. Bye now." Click. THUD.
I keep the reservation confirmation E-mail on my iPhone so that I can show it at the desk if I need to. I flipped to it now. "Rest easy - your reservation is confirmed! June 24, 25, 26, and 27 at the lovely <COMPLETELY OTHER HOTEL> in downtown <COMPLETELY OTHER CITY>."
I had been looking at a confirmation E-mail I received from a working vacation I took to Washington, DC last year. To be fair, that hotel has been sending me a hell of a lot of junk mail lately - I'd just received another one that day - so it's the one most prevalent in my E-mail inbox and I'm a complete idiot, aren't I? A panicky idiot, too. In fact, I'll still flip out my Smart Phone and re-read the confirmation every once in a while just to make sure I'm NOT crazy.
Much.
Still says "June 24." It said that yesterday. It'll probably say it tomorrow. Maybe I should try to get some sleep.
Or at least flush out my Inbox.
Love, Who?
There's a lot riding on a convention I'm set to attend out-of-state next weekend. For one thing, it's my first book signing in about three years (w00t). Having determined that the least expensive way to make the trip is by car, I decided to confirm my check-in date. I went to my E-mail, where I never throw anything away, found the relevant E-mail, and just about had a heart attack on the spot.
Dates of the convention: June 24, 25, 26, and 27. Dates of the reservation...June 28, 29, and 30.
I swear I must have turned green on the spot. I had made the reservations using a Smart Phone before I was terribly well-versed in the technology, and my fat fingers have made a hash of its joke of a keyboard before. But this was all kinds of a big deal. For one thing, there were simply no other rooms this close to go-time. Not in this hotel, not in the hotel next door, and not in the hotel up the street half a block. Not ten days before launch. No way.
There are cave explorers in central China who probably heard my string of expletives.
I pounced on the nearest phone and dialed the number with hands a-tremble. A very bored voice with a faint Indian accent answered. I explained that my hotel reservations seemed to be not quite what I had intended or anticipated. He promised to look into it.
Then Roommate Red, who had been watching the whole thing in amazement, said, "Wait a minute: the 28th isn't a Sunday, it's a Monday."
I wasn't really listening. Someone in the background of the phone call, with a slightly thicker Indian accent, was insisting that there were "No rooms. None. No, tell him. None. No way." Well, of course not; the whole town's been sold out for weeks. Maybe I could get a room in a motel within commuting distance or go on a standby list, but it says right here that my reservations are for June 28, 29, and 30, 2009, and I need to know what...I can do...to fix...
*ahem*
The gentleman on the other end of the line came back on. "I'm afraid we can't find your reservation..." he began, but I said, "Erm...I've got some new information here. I may need to call you back..." "Okay, is there anything else I can help you with?" "No, I'm fine. Thank you so much." "Okay." "Okay. Bye now." Click. THUD.
I keep the reservation confirmation E-mail on my iPhone so that I can show it at the desk if I need to. I flipped to it now. "Rest easy - your reservation is confirmed! June 24, 25, 26, and 27 at the lovely <COMPLETELY OTHER HOTEL> in downtown <COMPLETELY OTHER CITY>."
I had been looking at a confirmation E-mail I received from a working vacation I took to Washington, DC last year. To be fair, that hotel has been sending me a hell of a lot of junk mail lately - I'd just received another one that day - so it's the one most prevalent in my E-mail inbox and I'm a complete idiot, aren't I? A panicky idiot, too. In fact, I'll still flip out my Smart Phone and re-read the confirmation every once in a while just to make sure I'm NOT crazy.
Much.
Still says "June 24." It said that yesterday. It'll probably say it tomorrow. Maybe I should try to get some sleep.
Or at least flush out my Inbox.
Love, Who?
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