Duvet

Oh Dear. It was not a good start to the day. The Gorse Fox got up at much to the same time as usual, and though not as organised as usual, he managed to hit the road at the usual time. He drove up Kingston Lane and found the gates closed at the level crossing. He hopped down to the next crossing (which sometime skips the problem) but it made no difference. GF had to wait. The gates eventually opend and GF headed off through Angmering and up to Hammerpot. Half a mile up the the A27 GF joined the back of a traffic queue and 1hour and 20 minutes later he arrived on the hill outside Arundel, 5 miles from home. This was not an auspicious start to the journey, nor the day.

Despite that, the rest of the journey was fairly uneventful and the day spun by, though many of his colleagues were working from home because so many of the Bristol hotels were full this week (Cheltenham Festival). GF headed off to his hotel.

He queued as people checked in and eventually got to the front and was greeted by a cheery "Hello Gorsefox". (After all, he stays at the hotel frequently and is well known). There was a long pause. They couldn't find the GF's details, nor his booking. The receptionist was most apologetic regarding the delay and fact thatthe booking couldn't be found. GF smiled, and said that it was"not a problem", and "certainly not her fault". He smiled and said "Problems happen, don't worry. It's all about how you handle them, not the fact they have arisen".

It was at this point the the Gorse Fox had a crisis of confidence and checked his phone. Ooops. He had forgotten to book a hotel this week at all. He bluffed, "I can't seem to find the confirmation number". "Don't worry" she said "I'll create a new booking - after all, you are a Diamond Member, I'm not sure what the rate will be, though".

The Gorse Fox thanked her and said "Oh, the rate is easy - it should be the Starfleet rate" and went on to tell her the rate. Booking sorted, she upgraded the room and gave the Gorse Fox his key. He thanked her kindly and snuck away.

Sometimes you suspect that you should not leave the comfort of the duvet.