“I’ve been waiting here for ten minutes!”
No, you haven’t. Why do people say s*** like this? I know how long I have been away from the desk.
I’m not going to just forget that I walked away three minutes ago because you claim to have been here for ten.
Do people really think I’m going to believe what they say over what I did? And what is the point? You want another towel? Do you think I’m going to feel bad and give you a super special towel for your inconvenience?
I had a hotel guest get mad because I was not at the desk when he came down.
I was gone less than five minutes, and on my way back, I heard yelling from the lobby. I got down there, and there was a guy in his late twenties or early thirties in the lobby yelling.
Guy: “Hello! Is anyone here?! Does anyone work here?!”
He was loud enough that I knew he was disturbing the nearby rooms. I kept my cool.
Me: “I’m sorry for the wait, sir. What do you need?”
Guy:
First, I had been gone for five minutes. Second, I hadn’t even been at work for two hours yet. Third, I take care of that at home. And fourth, six hours? That’s both VERY impressive and equally horrifying. Ouch.
Me: “I’m sorry, sir. I will bring towels to you right away.”
Guy:
And then, he just kind of stood around in the lobby, waiting.
Me: “Do you want me to give you the towels or take them to your room?”
Guy:
And then, he continued to just hang around. Suspicious, but whatever.
I took towels to his room and went back to the lobby to find that “someone” had taken all of the business cards off the counter and thrown them all over the lobby.
I called the guy’s room. No answer. Called again, no answer. Called again, no answer. Called again…
Guy:
Me: “Sorry to disturb you, but after I left the lobby, someone threw our business cards all over. Would you know anything about that?”
Guy: “They were fine when I left. I didn’t do anything.”
Me: “So, if I review the cameras, I’m not going to see you throwing them all over?”
Guy:
Me: “All right. Then I’ll review the cameras, and when I see that it wasn’t you, I’ll knock 10% off your room rate for the inconvenience. And if I do see you doing it, you’ll need to find a different place to stay for the night.”
Guy: “Fine, I’ll come pick them up.”
Me: “Thank you.”
He then came down and picked the cards up, but then, he started yelling at me about how he had to wait around for fifteen minutes while I was in the back masturbating.
(I don’t know what his preoccupation with masturbation was.) At that point, I’d lost my patience, and I was done being nice.
Me: “I was gone for less than five minutes, so there is no way you were waiting for that long. And even if you had been, it’s 1:00 am, and I have other things to do. It doesn’t justify your temper tantrum.”
Guy: “I want to talk to a manager! Call your manager!”
Me:
I called him.
Me: “Hey, [Manager], sorry to wake you. I’m just calling to give you a heads-up that I have a guest in the lobby yelling at the top of his lungs because I was in the back for a few minutes taking care of [whatever I was doing].
He then threw the business cards from the counter all over the lobby, and he is now in the lobby again screaming and yelling. So, I’m just calling to let you know that I’m kicking this guest out, and if he doesn’t leave, I’m calling the police.”
Manager: “Okay. I trust your judgment, and you have my support.”
End phone call.
Guy: “You can’t kick me out! I paid for the room!”
Me: “And then you have been continuously disruptive and disrespectful to me and to the other guests who are trying to sleep. You can leave, or I can call the police.”
Guy: “Call the police! They won’t do anything. I’ve paid for the room.”
I called the police. The guy’s attitude changed really quickly the moment I dialed the police — “I’ll be quiet; I’m sorry” type of s***. It turned out he was there with his wife and two kids. I didn’t care. The four of them could find somewhere else to sleep. And he was still paying for their room. His wife was not happy on their way out, but her anger was directed at him, not me, so it seemed like she was used to this kind of behavior from him.
