Can’t Be Bothered To Babysit Their B&B

My wife and I were part of a social dance group in a large city before being transferred. Whenever we had the chance, we’d go back as we maintained good friends there.

The group had an annual weekend festival that involved dances or workshops on Friday evening, all day Saturday, and Sunday through early afternoon. This was always a great deal of fun and, as you can imagine, tiring.

One year, I scheduled a business trip for the week before the event and arranged to fly back Sunday evening. My wife couldn’t make it so I went stag. I decided to stay in a bed and breakfast fairly near the venue.

I participated in everything through Saturday at 4:00 pm when we had a four-hour break. I was fatigued, so after I had a small meal and a shower, I took a nap. When I awoke just before 7:00, I was groggy and disoriented, explaining what happens next.

My bathroom was not connected to my room but instead was across the hall. I staggered up and went across to use it, only to realize that I had locked myself out of my room. Other than pants and a T-shirt, I had nothing and no way to get to my car key, wallet, and dancing clothes.

No problem. The hosts can help, right? I went downstairs looking for them. Not around. Luckily, there was an emergency cell number posted. The front desk was empty, so I used the landline there. No answer. I called again. No answer. I called at least ten times continually without anyone picking up.

I was going into full panic mode and was considering the cost of breaking the door in when I found that the drawers of the front desk were unlocked with bunches of unlabeled keys therein. I grabbed them all and ran back to my room. The fifth key unlocked the door and I got to the dance on time.

As I checked out the next day, I spoke to the host and told him what had happened. He said they’d been out bowling. When I asked about the phone, he said that they’d heard it ring but, quote, “We couldn’t get there in time.” He’d had it in a coat pocket near their lane but couldn’t be bothered to take it with him regardless of the number of calls he heard. 

I said a few choice words, such as “lazy,” and worse. We did not part friends, and every review I made was negative, pointing out not only the lack of service but also the lax security; I could have gone into anyone else’s room! When my wife was able to accompany me two years later, we were careful to stay somewhere else.