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AKA Bitchfest '06. I'm going to complain. A lot. Feel free to read something else if you don't want to read it all.
I work at a hotel and have for the past four and a half years, and I'm beginning to wonder if I should look for other work or if I just need a vacation. I'm more burned out than I thought I could be. This is probably what I get for not taking my customary week off this year. That'll learn me. At any rate, these are the things I'm beginning to find intolerable:
Broken dryers -- towels and linens get caught in the space between the drum and the door as they're going around, which leaves huge black stains and smears on them. This leads me to my second complaint, which is...
Incompetent housekeepers -- it's as if they've either been struck with a massive attack of stupidity, or they just don't give a shit. Common sense would tell you not to put stained sheets and towels in the rooms, but every day we get more complaints about it.
Conjunction of the customers -- hotel guests simply cannot resist the sweet, sweet siren song of a desk clerk attempting to eat, mop, or use the bathroom. You can go hours at a time, and I'm not making this up, without a single guest or phone call, but the instant you set your lunch out, sit down on the bowl, or slap the wet mop on the floor, in they come, or that goddamn phone starts in.
Pwecious Foo-Foo abwoad -- Increasingly I notice that the American public is incapable of going anywhere, including the grocery store or to the bathroom, without hauling one or more dogs along. We allow dogs, but we charge you for them because we have to clean the rooms more thoroughly, assuming of course that the housekeepers aren't feeling especially dumb that day. However, lots of people try to sneak their animals in, and then get indignant at us catching them, and especially when we charge them.
The bad knee pandemic -- Speaking of the American public, the entire population of the United States, and a good bit of Canada, has bad knees. This is why they can't climb the stairs to the second floor. Either that, or for their single night stay, they've brought enough luggage to fill a full-size eighteen-wheeler. We are bad people for not having an elevator, and expecting all these people with bad knees to climb the stairs, by the way.
CONSTANT scamming -- It never, and I mean NEVER, lets up. Not a day goes by that someone isn't trying to screw up out of their room rent, or trying to get a refund just for shits and giggles.
CONSTANT stealing -- It's true: People will actually steal anything not nailed down. We've had them walk out with lightbulbs, batteries, coffeemakers, remote controls, televitions, pillows, towels, bedspreads, chairs, tables, lamps, mirrors, clocks, lampshades, shower curtains, trays, and a luggage cart. This is not so much a hotel to these kinds of people as it is an all-you-can-steal goodie buffet.
Repetitive repitition -- My lowest rate is "blah." What about a discount for "blah"? The lowest rate available is still "blah." But what about a discount for "blah-blah"? And so on and so forth, and speaking of...
Discounts for the dickless -- I don't care that you are from Florida, a man, a woman, old, young, ugly, fat, beautiful, short, tall, that you drive a Mercedes, or any-goddamn-thing else. No discounts, because they're a pain in the ass to process, our rates are lower than most as it is, and frankly, you're just trying to get a few bucks out of us. Go across the street, where the rates are usually about double what we charge, and then get back to me. I will probably snap and say that to someone one day, but it will only be followed up with, "But what about a discount because I'm from Georgia, and not Florida?"
Televisions on parade -- If the owners here bought with consistency in mind rather than what's cheap, then perhaps we wouldn't have five different types of televisions, complete with missing, lost, or stolen remote controls that need any of forty different codes depending on the brand, to program.
Feigning innocence -- Yes, there's a problem with that room. We've known about it for months. However, what with one thing or another either we can't get it fixed, or fixing it would involve tearing down a load-bearing wall, and we can't fix it period. Until people stop noticing the problem, whenever it's brought to our attention, we must pretend as though we're shocked -- shocked, I tell you -- that there is a problem.
Feigning concern -- oftentimes, the problem is either nonexistant or very minor, but you want to complain simply because you have no other joy in life. The room smells dirty, or it smells too clean. The carpet is too clean. There are stains on the towels (see above). The room faces the front of the building, or alternately, it faces the back. Regardless of whatever bullshit complaints you toss our way, we have to pretend we care.
Ass-kissing -- In the event that incessant bitching to the desk clerk or manager while you were staying here didn't fix your non-existant problem, it's time to take your concerns on the road to corporate, who will bounce them back to us with the requirement that we write a snivelling letter to you pretending that we really give a shit.
The catch-all -- This is what desk clerks are. We do what everyone else won't, or can't do. I've killed snakes, caught mice, changed lightbulbs in a chandelier fifteen feet above the floor, mopped, swept, moved furniture, done laundry, dried laundry, painted, spread salt, chased lizards, picked up litter, planted flowers, cleaned rooms, changed sheets, set out food, cleaned up the food, fixed pipes, unclogged toilets, and gotten down on my hands and knees to clean up shit, piss, and blood. I usually tuck my tie into my shirt do it won't get dirty while I'm doing these things.
At any rate, I'm sick of my job. There's more but I'm also sick of typing. What I don't know is if a vacation will fix me being sick of my job and hating everyone who walks through the door, or if I really need to consider looking for new work. As it is, I have no health insurance, and as an HIV-positive man, I know I'm living on borrowed time. My HIV care and medicines are handled by a free clinic, but God help me if I ever need surgery. I'll probably have to just die in that situation because I'll never in a million years be able to afford so much as a single night spent in the hospital. If I went looking for a new job, I'd need one with insurance, or else there's no point in looking for new work. Might as well stay here at hate everyone rather than start fresh and hate everyone and not know what I'm doing to boot.
Ironically, when it comes to affording things, I'd also need to find a job that paid me an amount equal to or more than the $325 or so that I take home every week.
Or perhaps I should go find a nice secluded spot in the woods and just scream until I feel better. I'm sure feeling pretty awful now. Frustrated, pissed off, depressed, and burned the hell out.
Thanks for reading.
I work at a hotel and have for the past four and a half years, and I'm beginning to wonder if I should look for other work or if I just need a vacation. I'm more burned out than I thought I could be. This is probably what I get for not taking my customary week off this year. That'll learn me. At any rate, these are the things I'm beginning to find intolerable:
Broken dryers -- towels and linens get caught in the space between the drum and the door as they're going around, which leaves huge black stains and smears on them. This leads me to my second complaint, which is...
Incompetent housekeepers -- it's as if they've either been struck with a massive attack of stupidity, or they just don't give a shit. Common sense would tell you not to put stained sheets and towels in the rooms, but every day we get more complaints about it.
Conjunction of the customers -- hotel guests simply cannot resist the sweet, sweet siren song of a desk clerk attempting to eat, mop, or use the bathroom. You can go hours at a time, and I'm not making this up, without a single guest or phone call, but the instant you set your lunch out, sit down on the bowl, or slap the wet mop on the floor, in they come, or that goddamn phone starts in.
Pwecious Foo-Foo abwoad -- Increasingly I notice that the American public is incapable of going anywhere, including the grocery store or to the bathroom, without hauling one or more dogs along. We allow dogs, but we charge you for them because we have to clean the rooms more thoroughly, assuming of course that the housekeepers aren't feeling especially dumb that day. However, lots of people try to sneak their animals in, and then get indignant at us catching them, and especially when we charge them.
The bad knee pandemic -- Speaking of the American public, the entire population of the United States, and a good bit of Canada, has bad knees. This is why they can't climb the stairs to the second floor. Either that, or for their single night stay, they've brought enough luggage to fill a full-size eighteen-wheeler. We are bad people for not having an elevator, and expecting all these people with bad knees to climb the stairs, by the way.
CONSTANT scamming -- It never, and I mean NEVER, lets up. Not a day goes by that someone isn't trying to screw up out of their room rent, or trying to get a refund just for shits and giggles.
CONSTANT stealing -- It's true: People will actually steal anything not nailed down. We've had them walk out with lightbulbs, batteries, coffeemakers, remote controls, televitions, pillows, towels, bedspreads, chairs, tables, lamps, mirrors, clocks, lampshades, shower curtains, trays, and a luggage cart. This is not so much a hotel to these kinds of people as it is an all-you-can-steal goodie buffet.
Repetitive repitition -- My lowest rate is "blah." What about a discount for "blah"? The lowest rate available is still "blah." But what about a discount for "blah-blah"? And so on and so forth, and speaking of...
Discounts for the dickless -- I don't care that you are from Florida, a man, a woman, old, young, ugly, fat, beautiful, short, tall, that you drive a Mercedes, or any-goddamn-thing else. No discounts, because they're a pain in the ass to process, our rates are lower than most as it is, and frankly, you're just trying to get a few bucks out of us. Go across the street, where the rates are usually about double what we charge, and then get back to me. I will probably snap and say that to someone one day, but it will only be followed up with, "But what about a discount because I'm from Georgia, and not Florida?"
Televisions on parade -- If the owners here bought with consistency in mind rather than what's cheap, then perhaps we wouldn't have five different types of televisions, complete with missing, lost, or stolen remote controls that need any of forty different codes depending on the brand, to program.
Feigning innocence -- Yes, there's a problem with that room. We've known about it for months. However, what with one thing or another either we can't get it fixed, or fixing it would involve tearing down a load-bearing wall, and we can't fix it period. Until people stop noticing the problem, whenever it's brought to our attention, we must pretend as though we're shocked -- shocked, I tell you -- that there is a problem.
Feigning concern -- oftentimes, the problem is either nonexistant or very minor, but you want to complain simply because you have no other joy in life. The room smells dirty, or it smells too clean. The carpet is too clean. There are stains on the towels (see above). The room faces the front of the building, or alternately, it faces the back. Regardless of whatever bullshit complaints you toss our way, we have to pretend we care.
Ass-kissing -- In the event that incessant bitching to the desk clerk or manager while you were staying here didn't fix your non-existant problem, it's time to take your concerns on the road to corporate, who will bounce them back to us with the requirement that we write a snivelling letter to you pretending that we really give a shit.
The catch-all -- This is what desk clerks are. We do what everyone else won't, or can't do. I've killed snakes, caught mice, changed lightbulbs in a chandelier fifteen feet above the floor, mopped, swept, moved furniture, done laundry, dried laundry, painted, spread salt, chased lizards, picked up litter, planted flowers, cleaned rooms, changed sheets, set out food, cleaned up the food, fixed pipes, unclogged toilets, and gotten down on my hands and knees to clean up shit, piss, and blood. I usually tuck my tie into my shirt do it won't get dirty while I'm doing these things.
At any rate, I'm sick of my job. There's more but I'm also sick of typing. What I don't know is if a vacation will fix me being sick of my job and hating everyone who walks through the door, or if I really need to consider looking for new work. As it is, I have no health insurance, and as an HIV-positive man, I know I'm living on borrowed time. My HIV care and medicines are handled by a free clinic, but God help me if I ever need surgery. I'll probably have to just die in that situation because I'll never in a million years be able to afford so much as a single night spent in the hospital. If I went looking for a new job, I'd need one with insurance, or else there's no point in looking for new work. Might as well stay here at hate everyone rather than start fresh and hate everyone and not know what I'm doing to boot.
Ironically, when it comes to affording things, I'd also need to find a job that paid me an amount equal to or more than the $325 or so that I take home every week.
Or perhaps I should go find a nice secluded spot in the woods and just scream until I feel better. I'm sure feeling pretty awful now. Frustrated, pissed off, depressed, and burned the hell out.
Thanks for reading.
their normal level of suckiness is increased by tenfold.
And hope things so a little better real soon.
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