Just a couple from last night
You need to TELL me what is wrong!
*phone rings - call is from in-room*
Me: "Front desk."
SC: "Yeah, I have the TV on and I'm trying to watch a game."
Me: "Okay...."
SC: "...."
Me: "...."
SC: "...."
Me: "....aaaand is something wrong with the TV?"
SC: *sighs* "Yeah, it says it's blocked."
Me: *thinking* Now that wasn't so hard, was it?
Me: "Okay, which channel is it?"
SC: *annoyed sigh* "Erm....channel 14."
Me: "Okay, can you read to me exactly what it say on the screen?"
SC: *exasperated sigh* "Um.....it just says blocked."
Me: *thinking*Yes, but what exactly does it say? Read it to me!
Me: "Okay, well let me call Boss Man and see if he can reset the channel."
SC: "Goddammit...." *exasperated sigh* "...okay."
The whole time, this guy just sounded pissed. Every time I tried to wrangle information from him to find out what was wrong, he would sigh and act like it was a huge inconvenience answering my inquiries.
I called Boss Man, thinking the channel just needs resetting, since sometimes that happens. He called back and says that the channel is working fine, but the game was being blocked because they're not allowed to broadcast in our area. I don't really understand why (I don't have TV at home, so don't ask me about these things!) but it was something clearly out of our control.
I tried to call SC back, but his line was busy.
A few minutes later, SC called me.
Me: "Front desk."
SC: "......." *no acknowledgement*
Me: "......."
SC: "......."
Me: ".....well, I talked to Boss Man, and *explains situation*."
SC: "Are you serious?"
Me: "I'm sorry, but it is out of our control."
SC: *exasperated sigh*
Me: "However, I can refer you to [sports bar up the street]. They may have access to the broadcast."
Fortunately, he seemed fairly happy with that suggestion. I think so, anyways. He wasn't exactly the most talkative, so it's difficult to say...
It's a smoking conspiracy!
Guest comes up to my desk pissed off.
SC: *in a very accusatory tone* "Yeah, so is there a reason [nonsmoking room] smells like smoke every time I walk in there?"
Me: "That is a nonsmoking room. I'm very sorry if it smells smokey."
SC: *glares*
Me: "Unfortunately, I am booked tonight. I can however offer you a 10% discount and the use of some air freshener."
SC: "Great. I need something!"
I hand him some air freshener, which he investigates carefully. We don't have air freshener like you buy in the store -- we buy our chemicals in bulk concentrate, and mix them into spray bottles. And they're from a commercial vendor, so the labels are very text-y without all the pretty pictures like you see in the store. I had to assure him a few times it worked just like Febreeze.
SC: "And you've taken care of that discount, right?
Me: "Actually, I'll need the credit card you paid with, and I'll have you sign something."
SC: *grumbles and pulls out card*
Me: "So...it's $13 and some change, so I'll round it up to $14 for you."
SC: "Whatever."
A few things, sir. (1) It's not some big conspiracy to piss you off by putting you in a room that smells like smoke. It's a nonsmoking room. Unfortunately, some other guests don't respect that, and despite our best deep-cleaning efforts, the smell can come back. It gets into the carpets and mattresses and is a royal pain to eliminate. And furthermore, (2) You checked in yesterday. It's been over 24-hours since you've been in the room. If it smelled smokey the first night, and you let us know, you know, like first thing in the morning when we still had other availability, then we could have moved you, or at least deep-cleaned and ozoned the room, and fixed things. But you decide to keep your mouth shut until you're thoroughly pissed off, and at that point it's too late to really do much about it. Next time, if you're not happy with the room, speak up earlier and let us know!
You need to TELL me what is wrong!
*phone rings - call is from in-room*
Me: "Front desk."
SC: "Yeah, I have the TV on and I'm trying to watch a game."
Me: "Okay...."
SC: "...."
Me: "...."
SC: "...."
Me: "....aaaand is something wrong with the TV?"
SC: *sighs* "Yeah, it says it's blocked."
Me: *thinking* Now that wasn't so hard, was it?
Me: "Okay, which channel is it?"
SC: *annoyed sigh* "Erm....channel 14."
Me: "Okay, can you read to me exactly what it say on the screen?"
SC: *exasperated sigh* "Um.....it just says blocked."
Me: *thinking*Yes, but what exactly does it say? Read it to me!
Me: "Okay, well let me call Boss Man and see if he can reset the channel."
SC: "Goddammit...." *exasperated sigh* "...okay."
The whole time, this guy just sounded pissed. Every time I tried to wrangle information from him to find out what was wrong, he would sigh and act like it was a huge inconvenience answering my inquiries.
I called Boss Man, thinking the channel just needs resetting, since sometimes that happens. He called back and says that the channel is working fine, but the game was being blocked because they're not allowed to broadcast in our area. I don't really understand why (I don't have TV at home, so don't ask me about these things!) but it was something clearly out of our control.
I tried to call SC back, but his line was busy.
A few minutes later, SC called me.
Me: "Front desk."
SC: "......." *no acknowledgement*
Me: "......."
SC: "......."
Me: ".....well, I talked to Boss Man, and *explains situation*."
SC: "Are you serious?"
Me: "I'm sorry, but it is out of our control."
SC: *exasperated sigh*
Me: "However, I can refer you to [sports bar up the street]. They may have access to the broadcast."
Fortunately, he seemed fairly happy with that suggestion. I think so, anyways. He wasn't exactly the most talkative, so it's difficult to say...
It's a smoking conspiracy!
Guest comes up to my desk pissed off.
SC: *in a very accusatory tone* "Yeah, so is there a reason [nonsmoking room] smells like smoke every time I walk in there?"
Me: "That is a nonsmoking room. I'm very sorry if it smells smokey."
SC: *glares*
Me: "Unfortunately, I am booked tonight. I can however offer you a 10% discount and the use of some air freshener."
SC: "Great. I need something!"
I hand him some air freshener, which he investigates carefully. We don't have air freshener like you buy in the store -- we buy our chemicals in bulk concentrate, and mix them into spray bottles. And they're from a commercial vendor, so the labels are very text-y without all the pretty pictures like you see in the store. I had to assure him a few times it worked just like Febreeze.
SC: "And you've taken care of that discount, right?
Me: "Actually, I'll need the credit card you paid with, and I'll have you sign something."
SC: *grumbles and pulls out card*
Me: "So...it's $13 and some change, so I'll round it up to $14 for you."
SC: "Whatever."
A few things, sir. (1) It's not some big conspiracy to piss you off by putting you in a room that smells like smoke. It's a nonsmoking room. Unfortunately, some other guests don't respect that, and despite our best deep-cleaning efforts, the smell can come back. It gets into the carpets and mattresses and is a royal pain to eliminate. And furthermore, (2) You checked in yesterday. It's been over 24-hours since you've been in the room. If it smelled smokey the first night, and you let us know, you know, like first thing in the morning when we still had other availability, then we could have moved you, or at least deep-cleaned and ozoned the room, and fixed things. But you decide to keep your mouth shut until you're thoroughly pissed off, and at that point it's too late to really do much about it. Next time, if you're not happy with the room, speak up earlier and let us know!
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