Dr-Fix-It! Notebook Archive:
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-> Continued
"I wonder what it is about Jaguars . . ." John cocked his head sideways, "What do you mean? A faint smile crossed Todd's face as he spoke to the snowflakes outside, "Once, back when I was the GM at The Plaza, we had a guest check in who would not leave me alone about her car. She demanded special parking privileges. She wanted to leave her car parked at the front door for the whole week. She wouldn't leave me alone about it. I politely told her 'NO' at least ten times on the first day." Todd looked at John, "I just couldn't have her car parked right at the front door of the hotel for a whole week. It would have played hell with the traffic flow, the valets, the taxis and the airport shuttle busses. . . absolutely everybody." John nodded agreement, "Sure." Todd looked back out the window, "On the second day of her stay, she barged into my office and announced, 'I just paid 66 thousand dollars for that Jaguar . . .' I cut her off with the line, 'Don't take it so hard; we all make mistakes. Everyone has made a bad deal at least once in their life.' " John hooted and slapped the chair's leather arm, 'That's hilarious, Todd. And so unlike you!" John caught himself, "I mean . . . Not to say you are never hilarious. Sometimes you can be real hilarious. Uhh, but, normally you are quiet and reserved." Todd shook his head, "I donno, she just set me off . . ." John prompted, "Then what happened?" Todd picked up the story, "She got really red and stormed out of my office. She checked out of the hotel and drove away . . ." "Never to be heard of again?" "I wish !", Todd continued, " The very next day, I received a Fed Ex Letter containing airline tickets and a short invitation to fly up to the Corporate Offices in San Francisco to have a little face -to -face chat with the President of the company." "Whew, The next day !", John said, "That lady worked fast !" Todd rolled his eyes, "Turns out, the lady's husband was one of the people who helped the President finance his very first hotel. Old friends. She pretty much had a direct line to the President. Well, Mister President sat me down gave me a lecture. First, he reviewed my credentials and my reputation. Then, he told me that he was disappointed and dismayed that one of his best General Managers would resort to such juvenile behavior as using insulting wisecracks. He reminded me that it was never proper to offend a guest no matter how they behave. Finally, he said that he had politely agreed with every point the lady had made and promised her that he would fire me immediately. That was about eight years ago." John suddenly understood. Todd leveled his gaze directly at John, "Mrs. Dupris also said that, after you turned your back on her temper tantrum, you proceeded to plow a snow ridge around her Jaguar." John suddenly noticed an interesting blemish on the toe of his boot. "Well, yes. Maybe a little snow ridge", he mumbled. "A little snow?", Todd snorted, "Mrs. Dupris said she couldn't see the back bumper of her car!" John shrugged, "It's maybe a foot tall. . . Maximum . . . Maybe two feet. . . " "That snow ridge will be rock-hard by morning and she will need to have it shoveled." , Todd joined his hands behind his head, leaned back in his chair and studied the ceiling, " I should make you go over there and hand-shovel her car out. But, that won't work because I told her I was going to fire you . . ." "Ok, Todd, I'll get up about four tomorrow morning and sneak over there to shovel her car out. When she wakes and sees that, Mrs. Dupris will probably call you and thank you for being so thoughtful." "Ok, That will work for me." Todd shook his finger at John, "Just don't let her see you. I don't know ; wear a disguise or something". With that, Todd pulled a pile of papers toward him. He picked a memorandum off the top of the pile and began to study it closely. John smiled and got up to leave. "John?" John stopped with his hand on the doorknob, "Yes, Todd?" "That WAS a pretty good punch line." "Yours was too, Chief". John quietly latched the door behind him. The skies cleared as John drove the BobCat back to the equipment garage. There would be no more snow today. The BobCat bounced down the frozen trail to the garage. John contemplated what had transpired this afternoon and what the morning would bring. True, John realized, Mrs. Dupris certainly could have communicated her concerns without being so demeaning. True, John admitted to himself, his reaction to Mrs. Dupris' tirade was pretty 'juvenile.' And, by the grace of a compassionate General Manager, John still had his job. Indeed, the only price he would have to pay would be to get out of a warm bed and shovel out Mrs. Dupris' Jaguar by the light of the moon. But, somehow, John thought the penalty fit the crime. It all seemed fair. Sometimes, you have to pay a price for a good punch line. He chuckled again as he mentally replayed the episode. Sometimes, when the golden moment for a really good punch line arises, the opportunity can be just too tempting to pass up. . . . Especially for an 'insolent smart-ass'. Doc 2004.04.24 |
