Random Acts of Kindness...

Wow, looks like its been 20+ days since my last post, 21 days to make or break a habit..uh-oh! Never fear, I'm back.

This has been a tumultuous month, to say the least. December was painfully slow which led to financial and labor cuts here, which led to stress and anxiety! Then, rain, rain and more rain- which I decided to use to my advantage, people check in and they don't want to check out- so give them an amazing rate and well, they stay a few extra days! (and hey, there are a few rooms that I can now promote as "having a water feature...")

So...with the flexibility to do whatever it takes, I took an extreme approach to pricing. After all, good guests paying less, better than no guests at all, right? And it keeps the housekeeper busy enough that I don't have to worry about her runnning out to get another job:). That said, I, unfortunately, had to cut Newbie down to just being on call, what is most unfortunate about that is that I don't get a day off right now, but it will all work out in the end...right? I mean, YES, it will!

I have been working on creating relationships with a few nearby businesses and that is starting to pan out too. The inspiration for this post was a walk in last night. It was Saturday night around 9, we hadn't had any walk ins for the day, which is pretty painful on a weekend night, fortunately we have 4 rooms booked with people in town for the week. Anyhow, I greet the man at the desk, he inquires about room rates, I tell him I am giving the place away through February so tonight, $55+tax. He says ok, then pauses and asks if I can go any lower, I pause and say $50+tax...(these really are AMAZING rates! This is actually the friends and family price, but hey, we are all family in the grandest scheme of things....right?!) So we chat a bit and he tells me he is having a beer over at the nearby sports bar with his girlfriend. I ask if thats how he heard about us and he says yes, he was chatting with the bartender who suggested he come down and check us out. (this made me happy!) So, he says that he just really wants to have a relaxing night with his girl and they don't want to worry about drinking and driving (big thumbs up here!)- he says they have a babysitter for the first time since he can't remember when and he just left the bar under the ruse of getting gas in the car and popped in to see what we had to offer. This was all very cute, I told him I thought it was fantastic and his girl was going to be thrilled, you gotta cultivate that spark to keep the love alive, afterall. So, then I tell him I am going to upgrade him to one of our swanky and fun designer rooms, I show him the picture, get him all checked in (put the fear of God...or Suze Ormond in him if he has any inclination of smoking in the room- this smoking thing will be a whole 'nother post!) any who, he thanks me sincerely, and I tell him to have a really wonderful time, late check out is in place, and I encourage him to check out the room before he heads back to the tavern. We chat for a minute or so more, he refers to his girlfriend and says she should be his wife by now because they have been together for 9 years, I, jokingly, tell him he oughta make an honest woman out of her and OF COURSE mention that I just got engaged:) (Hey, come on now, this is the majority of my social interaction at this point in the motel game, I gotta tell anyone who will listen..hehehe) Then he stops, chuckles, gets serious, and says, "Ya Know, I just love her so much and its so good I don't want to risk messing it up, I was married before (and apparently traumatized) and I just wouldn't want us to end up like that..." I tell him that sounds perfectly logical, for the time being. And tell him to make the most of having a babysitter for the night;) I keep an eye on him on the surveillance to catch his reaction to his room, he stood in the doorway for a good minute and a half...I was hoping this was a good thing....

I saunter back to the living room to listen to hunny snore while I try to find something to watch (TV Guide channel has disappeared so its torturous) back to ghost hunters or something of the sort...interesting and spooky all at the same time!- I digress...

I glance over at the surveillance and see him walking toward the office, I dart back in (I don't really WANT people to have to ring that little bell, so I try to get in there before they get a chance.) I greet him and ask if he likes the room, this is where it gets sweet. He takes my card and asks if this is me, I confirm. He says that the room is so awesome, and he is so touched that I truly care about them having a night out and says that he is actually fighting back a tear because he is so emotionally touched and grateful. So, then I have to refrain from getting watery eyed and tell him that its my pleasure to be able to do something nice for someone nice. He says that I have no idea how hard things have been lately and this whole evening is giving him hope, the BT at the bar also hooked him up with free cover charge for the evening. He then gives me two movie tickets and reminds me that my fiancee and I might need a date night. We say goodnight and he heads back to enjoy the night with his gal at the tavern.

I gotta tell you, this interaction, it really made my week. I've actually had a few really fulfilling moments in this business in the past few weeks. I got a call from the guy who was our first guest, he was here through mid-December, he left a message a few days after New Years just saying thank you again and that he wanted to wish us a happy new year. That same day, I get a call from a guy who is new to the area and has stayed here a few times, he is just calling to thank us for our hospitality and to say how much he loves the place and he will be back soon. Then, remember the guy who got locked in his room? the homeless fella who I gave the bicycle to... well he hadn't been in since NYE, he had crossed my mind a few times during the month, and I hoped he was doing okay, he just had his 71st birthday in December...well he showed up on the 18th, (stayed for a week) with his bike, actually 2 bikes now, not sure about that...anyhow, he was much different...he stopped drinking on the first of the year! He looked great, is one heck of a funny guy, and checked in because we were soon to get rain (he likes to be sure there is more room at the shelter for those who need it when it rains!) He had a great stay, learned how to make cup o noodle soup in the microwave, Newbie taught him this! And he just kicked back and watched the History Channel all week. He stopped by the office a few times just to tell me how he really appreciated how nice we are and how he has been telling all of his friends about us...yes, this is true because a few of them have stopped in...oof...anyhow, in my own little way, I seem to be bringing a little sunshine to the people who walk in the door. That rocks. I mean, that's what it's all about right? If your random act of kindness inspires another to do the same, even better.

Enjoy the day my friends...