Two Embarrassing Failures and a Revelation

If you're not interested in bitter rages at myself, skip to the bottom!

Remember how I was pissed at that tourist lady in my last entry? I'm as dumb as she is. I'm a fatally optimistic person. I figure that if I don't ask for specifics when receiving information, if I assume that everything will turn out okay, I'll usually end up fine... and sometimes that's true. It doesn't seem to be the case here, however, because apparently in travel detail is everything. To that end I have made two huge and embarrassing mistakes that have gotten Sleepzone in trouble... and it's killing me, not because I actually care about the hostel but because I hate being an idiot.

Firstly, there was a couple that came in, and I told them their room number and how long they'd be staying and gave them a key. They looked surprised and asked if they were in the same room the entire time. I didn't search for other reservations under their name, because usually there's no need- most of the time people make only one booking and then go. So I looked at this one reservation and said yes, they were in the same room. They looked grateful and left, and I felt good about accomplishing something, though I had no idea why they were so happy. Then I went on my four-day break, and when I came back there was a FURIOUS e-mail on the door of Michelle's office from the couple, who had had to move rooms 3 days into their stay and hadn't known it, because I didn't know (and didn't tell them) that they were staying another night in a different room. They were livid, and demanded a full refund and that we call another B&B for them, which Travor did and apparently handled very well. So they went away and the e-mail on the door stayed, to mock my stupidity.

Then yesterday, an Indian man came in, asking to know whether the tour company could drop him off in Recess, at the Ben Lettrey hostel. I called up Declan and asked if they passed through Recess, and he said they did, and could drop off the guy. No problems.

Then this morning, not five minutes ago, Declan came in and said the Indian guy had disrupted the whole tour and messed up everyone's day by getting all pissed off that Declan wouldn't drop him off in front of the hostel. Turns out that Recess, the town, takes 45 minutes to span, and the guy wanted to be dropped off 25 minutes outside of Recess, and Declan said no. The guy was furious and demanded his money back, which Declan did, but once again it's all my fault because I didn't look up where this freaking hostel is. (Declan was very nice about it and didn't blame me.) And so now I'm nervous that the Indian guy is going to come back in here and yell at Anja, who's currently on duty and had nothing to do with his greivance, and there'll be ANOTHER angry e-mail up on the board for me to try to ignore. I hate this job!

And now for the less bitter part... remember how I hated high school, and middle school, and was overall a very depressed and messed-up kid? I would always think of myself in the future, and what I'd look like and what people would think of me, and it was always a very optimistic view, which I needed at the time. In any case, I was walking past a mirror the other day and I looked at myself and realized that I am now everything that I wished I would be, minus the telekinesis. (Still working on that.) If my younger self knew I'd end up like this, I think I would have breathed a little easier... not because I'm perfect, because I'm nowhere near, but because I'm happy. I'd been feeling down because I'm traveling alone, and because I'm messing up at work and honestly, because I just read Dorian Gray and now the thought of growing old depresses me immeasurably, but it made me feel better to realize how blessed I am to have the family I have, and the friends, who helped me shoo the storm clouds away. I wondered what I'd have turned out like without you? And it's a dark picture, so I'm not going to think about it. So I just wanted to say thanks to everyone. You know who you are.

I miss you all, but if it seems like I'd rather be at home than in Ireland, I'm giving the wrong impression in this blog. I love Ireland and I'm so glad I'm here... I just want you all to get on a plane and come visit so we can enjoy this together.