Trouble in paradise

I have lived here for about nine months, and they have been full of adventure of late. At the beginning of the week, when the "bell hops" (teen age or slightly more mostly college students) began clearing the tables and taking our dessert orders, I placed my usual order of two servings of ice cream. 

Dessert comes "pre-packaged" and we generally carry it to our rooms, along with the daily soup. Kate immediately responded there was a new rule, to keep us from making a run on the finances of the kitchen by carrying so much food to our rooms. We could take nothing to our rooms, all food must be consumed in the dining room. By the low buzz circulating, it was obvious the word was spreading.

Immediately a dining room supervisor standing nearby chimed in that Yes, this was the new rule, from the Managing Director, and possibly even from the owner himself; the food cost overruns were astronomical, and in order not to raise rents, other steps were being taken. Food restriction was one.

I was dumbfounded. What business did the Managing Director have laying such a policy change on us via low level staff. What was the management reasoning, in writing, changing this policy I had been told and took as a reason for renting here. I was told we could take uneaten portions of breakfast or supper back to the room. I looked around for a staff member reasonable to complain to, but the dining room was empty of all staff. Everyone had retreated to the kitchen.

As we sat at the tables, wanting to speak, personnel began to reappear. The previous information was a mistake, the chatter began. We could take one portion of anything back to the room. I caught the eye of Christina, the dining room supervisor, and said "Tell me this isn't true!" I do not eat breakfast in the cafeteria, though I hear it is very good. We are not served lunch, and I take a modest dinner. My fondness for the ice cream is such a joke that Christina snuck me a serving of one of my favorites when I was isolated.

Christina said "Joanne, I simply do not care any more. This has been so bungled!" I said I didn't want to make trouble for her, and would settle for one ice cream, which I carried on my walker tray back to my room. This was Tuesday. In my room, I wrote a letter to the Managing Director, telling him how unprofessionally the matter was handled and asking what evidence had they considered in deciding the dining room residents were solely responsible for food cost overruns.

Wednesday my dander was up. I asked Kate for two, not one but two coffee ice creams for dessert, to go back to my room. Kate came back with two ice creams, sent one before me, and informed me there would be a $2.00 room charge for the second. Being the nasty, greedy child assumed, I said FINE! and accepted it. Back in my room I wrote the Managing Director a second letter, telling him how unprofessional was the delivery of this new policy by an eighteen year old to an eighty year old woman whose business experience exceeded his.

Today was a day off for Kate, I assume, as Christina had her table duties. She took our dessert orders and soup orders, and returned with one more ice cream than we'd ordered. She tipped it into the bag on my walker while putting the other on my tray, in clear, and permitted view. The three of us laughed, and Chris said, for our information, this isn't over yet.

She knows more about that than I do. I've made my point, and tomorrow is another day. Interestingly it is Friday, when four to five in the afternoon is happy hour. There is entertainment of some sort in the cafeteria, and we are served drinks while we listen. Tomorrow also is Cinco de Mayo, so the drinks will include Margueritas, as well as wine and fizzly grape juice. For not the first time this week I have wondered the cost of two drinks of their choice to a room full of people costs the establishment.

In the meantime, I have Kitty to cater to. I did purchase the full array of toys, as promised, and in order to keep my living room looking fairly decent, gave her a toy box, like Debby mentioned. I keep it pushed in during the day, and pull it out after supper for her to make choices. Typically Torti, here she is pulling out first the raggedy bit of pink and black rug selvages she brought from the Humane Society.  Yes, the same stuff used to weave rugs.

Before I go to bed tonight, I'll use my "grabber" to reach down the grey mouse she jumps for every night.