I’d like to speak to the manager!!!

I’m officially on fucking vacation!!!

We had a private event tonight, that went off without a hitch.

We finished end of year items, like inventory, cleaning etc.

I have 23 days of fun in front of me.

However, I told my staff that the day would end with someone wanting a gift card at 8:30 screaming and yelling at me at the door.

Because.

I got through the night without being yelled at.

My host, Kelsey was not so lucky.

Around 6:00, a woman calls to say that she has accidently purchased 3 gift cards when she only wanted 1. 

She demands that Kelsey call the manager, so that they can refund her purchase immediately.

We are in the middle of a party for 130 people.  There is no way, I can be pulled off the floor for this.  

And.

To be fair.  

We announced a week ago, that we’d be closed for our Xmas break from 12/17 to 1/11.  

My host says all of this, and the woman loses her shit.  

She begins to shout and curse and demand that we refund her immediately.  

The host holds her composure, tells the lady that she is sorry that his has happened, and that she needs to email me and that is the only way to get the refund.

The woman curses some more about how she is going to call her credit card company, she doesn’t want any of the gift cards now and that we have horrible customer service.  

The call is over.

I feel bad for the host.  

An hour or so later, I get the email.  

And the email, demands the refund, tells me all the ways we have horrible customer service, how awful we are, how no one would buy three cards with the same amount on the same day, that she doesn’t want any of the gift cards now, and that she will be taking this up with her credit card company tomorrow.  

I processed her refund tonight.

The purchase was from 4 days ago.  

And responded with the following email:

Hi Jane,

Your refunds have been processed.  All three of them.  The Gift Cards now have a 0 balance on them.  

I’d like to say that it’s never okay to berate and curse at an employee of any establishment.  Your use of the word fuck repeatedly with my staff is unacceptable.

I’d like to point out that the mistake was yours.  NOT ours.  We pride ourselves on providing excellent customer service.  And that was true today.  

There are many times people buy multiple gift cards, of the same amount, so it’s not implausible that you did so today.  

Perhaps now would be a good time to think about the reason for the season, why we give gifts in the first place, and know that my staff is amazing and should be treated with nothing but respect.  

I hope that you have a great holiday.

Best wishes.  

J

I’d like to speak to the manager!!!

After my job at Day’s Inn, I worked at Wendy’s in Georgetown.  This would have been 1983 or so.  I worked there until my second year of college.  I have no idea why I didn’t learn to wait tables, or pursue something more lucrative.  

The Wendy’s is still there. 

But Wendy’s it was.  

Back in the day, the orders were all called over the microphone.  You had to keep up with 2 small fries, 3 large fries, 4 medium fries.  All the while, dropping more fries, trying not to sweat in the fryer.  

Fun Fact:  Only girls were allowed to work the cash register.  They felt that guys didn’t give the right vibe.  Occasionally, they’d let us work drive thru, but usually, only after the dinner rush.  

Fun Fact #2.  I was working at Wendy’s when they introduced the baked potato.  That was also the responsibility of the fry guy.  

I never graduated to grill.  It was hard.  And took talent.  Or so we were told.  

It is true the hamburgers are never frozen.  

Until they are past well done. 

Then they are tossed into pickle buckets and frozen to make chili.

  The chili is delicious.  But its gross to know how its made.    

At some point, my favorite manager Annie, who was a pint size, hellion, who chained smoked in the office, was transferred to the North Park location in Lexington.  

It is also still there.  

I followed her to Lexington.

By this time, I was in college.

Annie and I got a long great, until someone very high up, decided we should be open till 3:00 a.m.  I protested.  I told everyone else to protest.  You can’t stay open if no one will work.

I lost, and not long after I quit, because you can’t be at work till 4:00 a.m. and attend a 9:00 a.m. class the next day.  

However, this is not the point of the story.  

It’s 1984.

I’m in college.  

I knew I was gay.  I’d known for a long time.  

By then I’d had my first experiences.  

But.

No one knew.  

NO ONE.  

One night, I had the privilege of working the drive thru and a cute boy comes through with his friends.  He flirts with me.  I with him.  

He gives me his number and tells me to call him.  I call him 2 hours later.  

I ended up at his house that night.  

He was super cute.  Super sweet.  And lived with a drag queen.  

For the next 3 weeks, I spent a lot of time with him at his apartment.  And I’d stop by the Video Village, to help him close before we ended up back at his apartment.

Fun fact:  My friend Todd Lacy from UK was also working at Video Village at the same time, although we never met.  

Fast forward 3 weeks, and the cute boy lets me know that we will not be an item.  I’m too young and too inexperienced.  

Looking back, he was absolutely correct.

In the moment, I was crushed.  I’d never been broken up with before. 

I moped around for several weeks.

One night, after work at Wendy’s, I was sitting outside in the summer evening, sitting on the curb talking with a co-worked at 3:00 in the morning.  

We had just closed.  

As a teenager, and young adult,  I used to love late night chats.  

I remember vividly a very late-night chat on the Garth Elementary swings with my friend Jayne Sadlon, as we contemplated life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

I digress.  

So.

There I am, sitting on the curb with Tammy, my co-worker from Wendy’s and I felt the urge to say the words and I brought the conversation to a point, where I said to her, just so you know I’m gay. 

I was terrified.  I was a convinced she’d tell everyone.  I was convinced I’d be disowned. 

It was the first time I’d spoken the words out loud to anyone.  

But nothing happened.  

She confided that she too was gay. 

And we talked for about an hour. 

And I got into my car and drove home.

About 6 weeks later, at the beginning of my sophomore year of college, I pledged a fraternity.

Yes.  

I WAS IN A FRATERNITY.  

It’s true.  

With secret handshakes.  And chants.  And hazing.  

Brotherhood forever.  

Part of the hazing one weekend, was to do a scavenger hunt.

1 item on the list was to get the signature of the bartender of Johnny Angels, the gay bar in Lexington.  It too, is still there under the name of The Bar Complex.  

I forget who I was with, but in I went and marched up to the bar, and asked for the bartender’ss signature.

And a person to my right said, what are you two cuties doing in here.

I turn and it’s my brief boyfriend’s roommate.  

I do wish I could remember her name.  

I smile and say, doing a scavenger hunt with a look that could kill.

She very kindly told us to have fun, be safe and turned back to her drink.  

I will remember that moment of kindness forever.  

I’d like to speak to the manager!!!

Home Edition:

Xmas 2009: Our first Xmas together

Santa’s little helper at work…

The view of our apartment from the front door.

And the stocking were hung by the chimney with care…

A view from the kitchen…

We went a little crazy with the poinsettias.

Little known facts:  They are not poisonous.  90% of all poinsettias are exported from the US.  California grows the most.

It’s fun to cozy up next to the fire and sip hot chocolate…

Adam’s Memaw made him this stocking.

In the foreground the stocking I grew up with.  In the background the stocking Adam’s mom made for him.

My aluminum Christmas Tree with vintage ornaments.

I love my plastic vintage light-up snowmen.

Martha Stewart ain’t got nothing on us.  Check out this Frosty Winter garland.

I’m the lighting designer but it was Adam who solved the problem of lighting the garland…we hid an LED battery operated light on the top of the fireplace…it was subtle yet perfect.

Our Christmas Party Spread.

This is just a little glimpse into the home Adam and I have created together.