Business travel

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I was ready to be happily surprised by anything at all when I checked into the hotel in New Orleans. I had had that paranoid feeling that all the infrastructure and utilities would come to a standstill during the storms so all that would happen during the night was every switchboard would be down and every ceiling fan, air conditioner and other useless devices would stand still.

Everything like a refrigerator or a light bulb was useless. Everything would not work for a few days at most. I was aware that I had to wait for the hotel's own lobby to become functional. I was also aware that I had to wait for my room to be repaired.

I had made a reservation for a single room. I do not know why I had done that. It would have been so much easier if I'd book a double room. But I did not want any trouble at the last minute.

It was not a good idea to have the repair men come and check in a double room and fix it without any personal intervention. I could very well sneak a few drinks. I wasn't that cheap. The room was due to be rate as a double room. That would have made it more expensive, but I could bear that damage.

I had a long day at the office. I never made it to the office others complained that I was at fault because of being late. I felt tired. I was not sleeping well at all. I was trying to make a business deal but my frenemy blocked it. These were all very stressful days. All of a sudden, I decided that I would not tell the hotel about my predicament.

I did not not want to get a room rate reduced. I did not want the hotel people to know that there was a fault in the booking arrangement. If they knew I was going to be stuck in the room they might have tried to get me to throw a party in the room or something.

I do not make a lot of business trips. However, I had made lots of them in the last year. I had always been informed at the last minute. Never, ever was any source of stress. I always booked in advance.

I was upset by the thought that my hotel point would not get counted. Every point counted. If a hotel had a good five star rating it was due to the number of points accumulated by the hotel. And then it was very easy to get a rate reduction.

It was also easy to get a note of appreciation if you did not have to be too happy about joining the hotel for a whole week. I could have easily hummed a few grooves of appreciation. I could have hummed them to myself at home when I was alone.

But in the end, I decided that I would not inform the hotel about my plight. I was secure in doing this because so was the hotel. The hotel was planning on making the most of a hurricane that was approaching New Orleans.

They did not have to decide to stay open to accommodate me. They could easily let me know that the room had been booked. I had that information. On that day I decided that I would not inform them at all.

I do not know why I decided to be alone in my room. I would have to ensure that other business announcements were not made. I was not going to tell the kitchen guy. He could have used it as a means to impress the guests in the other wing of the hotel.

I could have told him about my plight. He too mumbled about how many points I still had. We had to be aware that the potential guests would look at other hotels if they had to select a place to stay while they were in the city.

I opened every door in my room. I wanted to ensure that no one was hiding there. I could not have locked my room tightly. I could have been chocked under a piece of furniture.

It would have been difficult for them to get out. But if it thought that the hotel was trying to abuse me, the next place I would end up would be the airport and there would be no looking back.

I was on the 15th floor and I was on the other side of the hotel alone because it would not have been that easy for me to climb to the floor. I did little moves. I ran my hands up and down the walls.

It was a very big hotel. It was the first choice for people when they were in the city. I think many of them were here because the food at the hotel was freshly made and they could make extra business deals while they were still eating their meals over here.

And it was a very beautiful hotel. The lobby was very elegant. The front desk was very beautiful as well. And the rooms were beautiful too. I could have easily switched rooms but I kept my room.

The corridor was a little narrow but that did not matter. I would not lose my grip on the walls in an emergency. I made my way down the corridor and then I took a left and then a right.

That was the way I usually entered my room. I had a lot of things to do that day and I did not want to be seen. My home was barely two hours away and I could easily return there when the hurricane had ended.