The wrong room
Jon Box commented in my previous post about name confusion that he was almost checked into Don Box's room. Which reminded me of this story (hotel part comes at the end)...
5 years ago I had just flown into VBITS Orlando all the way from Johannesberg from doing a very interesting developer conference with Phil Weber. After the conference we rented a car and drove something like 6 hours out to a private game park in the Krueger. Phil had booked over the Internet and my only requirement was that they have power so I could write a few articles on my laptop. Of course, there was no power. They had one battery powered camp light. The water for the place was heated over a wood fire under an adobe cistern. So...the camp people took my laptop each night to another camp about 1/2 hour away and recharged it, bringing it back in the morning. Needless to say, that earned them a substantial tip!
Anyway, when it was time to leave, we drove the 6 hours back to Johannesberg where I jumped on a plane to London. Where I had to switch between Heathrow and Gatwick (which caused my luggage to disappear for 3 days) and then fly non-stop to Orlando. It took a while to hassle through the non-appearance of the luggage, and then a shuttle to the Dolphin. Get the picture? I am completely burned out by this point and just want to find a corner to curl up and die in.
So the Dolphin assigns me a room (non-smoking requested) that, when I open the door, is reeking of smoke. OK, a familiar problem. Back to the lobby (fortunately, no luggage to carry except laptop) to get a new room. When I open the door to that room, it contains about a half-dozen guys in a poker game! Hey, I would have stayed but they were smoking too. So, back to the lobby for a 3rd room.
3rd time's the charm, right? No stench of smoke, and no people. But there's some luggage hanging up and some VBITS collateral on the desk. I'm not really thinking clearly any more, but the thought goes through my head "hey, maybe I'm sharing a room with Chris Kinsman again...that's the brand of laptop he uses and that kind of looks like his luggage". So, I decide to take a shower before heading for bed to sleep for 24 hours, but after stripping down I decide to check e-mail (hey, it's been like a week!) so I dial up. While it's downloading, I head for the shower and notice the VBITS attendee badge lying on the desk. Which has the name "Juan Lopez" on it! I'm standing there buck naked - frozen - with the only thought in my mind being what the heck is Juan going to think if he opens the door to his room and sees me standing there!?
So...jumping forward...can you imagine the scene where Don Box finds Jon Box...in his underwear (hey, Jon might even be wearing a pair of "Don's Boxers") in his room? <g>