Work It

I think, no matter who you are or where you come from, that everyone should work at some type of menial job, preferably while in high school or college, but certainly later if you miss out on the possibility sooner. Ideally, it would be a menial job involving physical labor and a low wage, but if one or the other isn't possible, that's okay, too. I definitely think that it makes you a better person if you have to get through some sort of tedious, low-paying job to make end's meet for awhile. I'd bet that the most personable millionaires in the world are those who have worked their way up, starting at the bottom. That's why, despite the rough days, I as the ever-intrepid professional housekeeper persevere in my work in the hope of becoming a better person.
Unfortunately, some days I run into the type of people who apparently don't share my work ethic. Take today, for instance. I was cleaning along, minding my own business, when what should I stumble across but a rude note. Ah, yes. Why is it that when people have something nice to say, they so often say it directly to your face, but when they want to be harsh, they have to write it down so that it seems engraved in stone and plastered to your mind's eye for hours, if not days, maybe years? In my line of work, I leave notes for the hotel guests, welcoming them, asking if they need anything, you know, the usual maid niceties. As a result, I occasionally get back friendly comments from passing guests in the halls or in the form of notes - "Oh, thank you for that lovely note!", "You're so sweet!", "We appreciate the extra coffee!", etc. But some days, duh duh duh, I get the rude note. The one today actually wasn't half bad as far as rude notes go. Actually, this one was more silly than rude. A bit embarrassing for the guest, I might add. First, I want to point out that this note was found by a tip. Yep. Probably not what you're thinking, though. This tip was precisely 13 cents. Aw, you shouldn't have. No, really, you really shouldn't have; it's awkward for the both of us.
Before I continue I should also point out that people do typically leave notes with tips. I love those friendly notes with little "thanks" or "great job" in the corner alongside a crisp $5 or $10 bill. Those are my personal favorites, just saying. But some people leave little awkward tips like this 13 cent one, and then the notes they leave act as some sort of sad excuse for why they are not leaving any more than that. Usually these notes just make me sigh and shake my head, because their reasons fall flat or have nothing to do with me. For example, one note read "Room too expensive" alongside a beautiful penny. Uh, thanks...? I'm sorry that I didn't run downstairs upon your arrival to remind you that this is one of the most expensive hotels in town and that you passed about twelve of the city's economy motels, hotels and lodges on your way to this spot. I might be mistaken, but I'm fairly certain that when you reserve a hotel, they tell you the room price. Maybe they've changed that since I've last checked. Maybe there's now something called "Mystery Reserve" where you aren't told the price until check-out and then it's like, BAM! Surprise: $5,000! Yay!
And you're like, AH! $5,000! Dude-what!?!
That would be kind of cool, but mostly inconvenient. Anyway, I am getting off topic. Today's note was interesting. One of my favorites so far, and I've seen some trophy notes over the years, not to brag, of course. This one read, "The fan was way too loud so I can't sleep. I can't get it to turn off and it made the room too hot." Interesting. I know what you're thinking. Actually, I don't; I can't vouch for that. But I'm guessing some of you may be thinking how on earth a fan makes a room too hot. I honestly don't know.
So there are two things that could qualify as "fans" in the hotel rooms that I clean. The first is just the common air vent in the bathroom, which helps with ventilation during showers, etc. Nothing out of the ordinary. The second is part of the heating and cooling system, also nothing abnormal. We are required to set this system to 72 degrees with the fan on during the winter. I wasn't precisely certain which one the note referred to. I doubt it was the one in the bathroom, since that one is turned off and on by your typical American-style light switch (strangely enough, the light switch is different all around the world - who'd-a-thunk?). Obviously, this fan is not at all difficult to adjust. But then again, the heating and cooling system has a big blue button on it that says "fan". With one push to the "fan" button, it is turned off. With one push to the "power" button, it is also turned off. Those are, in fact, the only two buttons besides the up and down heat control button. I'm not sure which fan the guest couldn't turn off. Maybe he was unfamiliar with the typical light switch controlling the fan in the bathroom. Perhaps he was foreign and didn't recognize our fancy pants American light switches. Or maybe he wasn't sure if the "fan" button on the heating system did in fact mean "fan" and was too nervous to touch it. Either way, I hope that the 13 cents he left me was worth the hard time I am currently giving him.