Loveday Writing

Describe a group of humans who have a lot of time on their hands.**

The Front Desk

I’m the gatekeeper of fun at the Sapphire Ocean Resort.

I’m the first person people see when they check in and that’s when they’re at their nicest – they’re excited for their holiday, eager to see what their room will look like and what their view will be, drooling over the possibility of room service, and loving the idea of having me and other staff do their housekeeping for them.

As their holiday goes on, they think I’m their personal assistant, calling me endlessly with room service requests, where I occasionally get to overhear juicy conversations in the background, as they think I’m too busy taking their order. Some guests are upfront about their needs, sometimes overly so, whilst others can be a puzzle for me to figure out – they don’t smile or look like they’re having fun, but they won’t complain either.

The kind ones treat me like I’m a temporary yet old friend, greeting me with a smile as they walk out the front doors to go off on a frivolous shopping spree, an indulgent spa day, or off to the beach. One notably introverted guest, one of my puzzles, who was always reading by the beach and sipping on a non-alcoholic pink cocktail, came out of her shell to give me a book recommendation upon check out. I never understood why she stayed at our Resort if she didn’t indulge like everyone else did, but it’s her holiday.

Being the last person people see when they check out is always the most interesting part of the job, as I never know what I’m going to get. Some are grateful and polite, others are in a rush to leave, then there are the cheap skates that will drink themselves stupid at the bar but contest the price of the chocolate they chose to eat from the mini-bar, and others are nervous about getting the bill and clearly worrying about whether I’m judging them on their room service and pay-per-view movie choices (sometimes I am).

Whichever one of these categories the guests fall into, it doesn’t really matter for me, as they leave and new guests arrive, the cycle starts over.

I’m the gatekeeper of fun at the Sapphire Ocean Resort.

**Reference: Marsden J 1998, Everything I Know About Writing, Pan Macmillan, Australia.