As regular followers of this blog know, I work part-time as a front desk
Folks, as long as I've been at this job (15 years now, hard to believe these past fifteen years tacked on to a prior 36 year banking career), I always encounter a new challenge. Always.
Of course there is the always present chance of encountering a Guest From Hell, who, nothing you can do, will please them. However, I am happy to say that kind of guest is very rare. Oh yes, they do happen and when they appear in front of me with their nastiness, my professionalism is tested to the max. But, as I said they are few and far in between, thank God. I look upon them as a challenge.
Then something happens like what occurred last night. As long as I've been at this business I think I've encountered just about any situation and have been able to handle it. But tonight I was thrown yet another curve ball. Yet another challenge.
So here is what happened:
I get a call from a man who wants to make a reservation for next week. The phone connection is bad. He's probably on his cell phone. He asks me what rooms are available next Tuesday. I tell him the availability and give him the rate for the room. He wants to make the reservation. So I snap into my routine that I've done thousands of times before. I asked him his first name. He says "BUMFUCK." I begin typing then I realize what he said. As I began to boil, icily I say "Are you kidding me?" He said "No. My first name is Bumfuck." I . AM . MAD.
Now lets back up so I can put my mindset in context folks. I have to explain to you why on several levels this made me so angry so very fast. A few years ago one of my co-worker's husband was using her Facebook account. He didn't like a video I posted to my Facebook account of two men (brothers) dancing the tango. He posted a rude and offensive and homophobic comment under my co-worker's name. We got into a big verbal to do. The situation was finally resolved by me unfriending all of my co-workers from my Facebook account so such a thing wouldn't happen again.
Secondly, someone called me a few weeks ago at work and said "How's that burning ass?" and hung up. I have NO IDEA who called but I didn't appreciate the humor. I think the "burning ass" comment was in reference to one of my uncomfortable side effects from my brachytherapy surgery for my prostate cancer.
Thirdly, as you regular followers know, my longtime partner Bill and I got married on July 3rd, our 49th anniversary. Our wedding was on the news and the local newspapers. I was very pleased that I hadn't received one negative reaction to our marriage. However, when I received the anonymous hang up phone call I assumed the worst.
Now back to our regular programming, I get "Mr. Bumfuck" making a reservation tonight.
I asked him his last name. There was a pause and he said "Wait a minute! What did you just say to me?" I said "I asked if you were kidding with that first name?" Very angrily he said "Did you just make a racist comment to me?" I said "I asked you your first name and you said Bumfuck." He said "No! My first name is Bumsuk!" OMG! As I extracated my size 12 foot from my mouth, I quickly apologized to him. I told him I thought he said a "different word that I didn't want to repeat to him." His anger subsided as quickly as it rose just a few seconds prior. I apologized to him again and completed the rest of his reservation.
By the way, his last name was Korean (which I won't repeat out of respect for his privacy) but I guess "Bumsuck" is probably a very common name in Korea. How would I know? Probably "George" in Korean.
So folks, seems like Ron was a bit paranoid tonight. What do you think? Can you blame me?
I thought for sure that I was being punked tonight. Either by a homophobe or one of those idiots who work for the Howard Stern radio show. I'm one of those people doesn't get the humor in these radio shows making obsence calls to people trying to make a living.
So it was a legit call and I have another hotel antecdote to add for book "More Adventures of a Hotel Front Deck Agent." And the beat goes on.
