Singing the Hotel Blues

Okay Grace, you win. You won me over and now I am sucked into the world of blogging. Wow. I can see her now...evil smile of victory creeps across her face. Yeah, yeah....I give you the credit, older sis.

So here it is! Sue's first blog. This blank page is just waiting to be filled with juicy tidbits of Sue. So where shall I begin? Well, I am currently spending my evening in a boring hotel room in Arizona. You know the thing about hotel rooms is that they all look the same. Boring, neutral wallpaper, neutral curtains, ugly bedspreads that don't really keep you warm, and old bathrooms. The temperature is never right either. Its either way too hot, or way too cold. And what about those light switches? Why are none of them actually connected to a single light in the room? I mean, they are randomly placed in awkward spaces on the wall, and you end up having to go and actually turn the switch on the light itself. What's up with that? Then to top it off, they don't put off much light anyway! You have to turn all the lights on just to see where you're going!

I come here about every 5-6 weeks. The less the better, I think. The first hotel in Tucson was just fine, as usual. Phoenix is a different story, though. I took my socks and shoes off last night and was walking around the room, but the floor felt strangely cold. Didn't think anything of it at first until I stood in the same place for a while. The floor was actually WET. I don't really know why. And I still don't, cuz I didn't bother to call the front desk and say anything. I was simply too tired. In addition to a wet carpet, I got another little surprise. Oh these hotel people are just finding new ways to entice guests to return to THEIR hotel. You know, they throw in little things like mints on the bed, or nice shampoos/conditioners. This was a new one, however. On the back of the toilet, I discovered a complimentary tube of.....caulk. Yep! You heard me right....adhesive caulk. What does that say about hotel maintenance? Well, I guess it means that they are maintaining it. But of course it made me notice the sloppy caulking job anyway. And then the best part is that I came back this evening after being gone all day only to find the caulk still there on the back of the toilet! And get this...they even replaced the towel that sits on the back of the toilet (the towel for your feet when you get out of the shower), which means they had to pick up the caulk, set it aside, fold the towel, place it on the toilet, and put the caulk back on the towel! Wow!!! Did they happen to notice a tube of ADHESIVE CAULK??? Did they think it was MINE? (Hmm...I think I had better pack some adhesive caulk in my suitcase, cuz I might need to fix a leaky seal around the bathtub in the hotel. )

Well, tonight is my last night on the road. I expect to be home tomorrow night. I don't really like this part of the job all that much. I used to think that the traveling would be fun, but when its not on your own terms, then it just doesn't seem to be that fun. And for someone like me who is mostly outgoing, it can be extremely lonely. The TV and cell phone become your best friends. Oh yeah, and going to bed early is a lot easier cuz you don't have much else to do! I usually skip dinner. Eating by yourself on the road is the ultimate in lonely. I try to bring a book along or something to read so I don't look like a loser at the restaurant staring off into space, but sometimes I do just sit there. People watching can be fun, but before long, people notice that you are staring at them and they have no problem staring back, cuz after all, you're the one who is alone! Well, 6 hours on the road tomorrow and I'll be home. Thank the Lordy.

And maybe during that time...I'll think of something else!