"I'm very afraid of bugs"

[Michelle53]

I have a guest who booked for 5 days, but only showed up last night, day 3, because she was very busy at work and "crashed at a friend's house" for 2 nights.

I just received a panic phone call from her that there is a bug outside on the wall and she is "very afraid of bugs".

She wanted me to provide a rake to kill it. I asked her not to do that, and I would take care of it when I got back from work.  Questions indicate it may be a cicada. Not harmful. 

I told her that I mention bugs specifically in my listing and asked why she would book a garden unit if she was very afraid of bugs.

She said she didn't see my bug disclaimer. 

Before I document this in messaging, when it's taken care of,  anyone have any suggestions as to next steps?

I'm a bit suspicious this is a refund request in the making.

Thoughts, anyone?

[Colleen253]

@Michelle53 The CC is filled with stories of CS granting refunds inappropriately. CS is a clueless circus. It's a danger that's very real. 

[Brian2036]

@Michelle53 

I’m really, really tired of people who try to make their personal stupidity my problem.

 I would have been tempted to tell her that the rake is only to be used for killing guests who are too incredibly stupid to live.

Encyclopedia Smithsonian.

This online resource tells us that there are an estimated 10 quintillion insects on Earth. That's 10 followed by 18 zeros. Taking the Earth's human population at seven billion, that means there are 1,428,571,428.57 insects for every person on the planet. Let's round it out to say there are about 1.4 billion insects for every human. (Incidentally, this doesn't include spiders, because they're arachnids, not insects.)

I have been to nearly every country on earth that has a seaport, and the only places I haven’t encountered bugs were Thule, Greenland and McMurdo, Antarctica. (I’m pretty sure they have fleas, lice and other fun things though.)

She really should be told that she EATS at least a quarter pound of bugs annually, and if she’s a vegetarian who carefully buys only organic produce it’s more like two pounds, some of them fresh and juicy.

I’m really surprised that it wasn’t a setup for a refund demand. That sort of thing is common.

 I had one. Saw a wasp. Also a flea.

[Inna22]

@Brian2036 I love your numbers! I may actually use them I’m talking to guests about bugs next time. And of course your impressive travel list. Although that I don’t think will ever come in handy in any of my conversations 🙂

[Emilia42]

@Michelle53 A rake to kill a bug!? Hmmm. I would have been tempted to give her the rake, then stood back and watched her in action. My guess is she doesn't know what a rake is either . . .

[Michelle53]

@Emilia42  My best guess would be that it's a metal implement with a long handle. 

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

working with people is in fact great for building self-esteem... at some point, you realize you are above average intelligent 🙂

[Sarah977]

@Branka-and-Silvia0  As I'm used to hanging out with fairly intelligent people, it took me a long time to realize that some people really are just plain dumb. I kept trying to come up with some logical reason for their words or behavior, when there really wasn't any aside from stupidity.

I had one guest tell me there was a spider on the ceiling over her bed and that she had a spider phobia, so could I remove it, which I did. That was fine, and I could  understand it- most of us have phobias about something. But she wasn't panicked about it, it was all very matter of fact, like I tell nurses I have a needle phobia and they should have me lie down in case I pass out.

But remove a bug outside ? Borderline insane.

[Kelly149]

To be fair, cicadas are kind of awful. Worse though, here we have a wasp whose one mission in life is to kill cicadas. Look it up. They’re terrifying. And mostly harmless

[Brian2036]

@Kelly149 

Cicadas are delicious when sautéed in olive oil and lightly salted.

[Kelly149]

@Brian2036 my dog is happily crunching them as is. Awful. 

[Brian2036]

@Kelly149 

I can hardly wait for the next 7-year locust hatch here.

[Sarah977]

@Kelly149  What's awful about them? Aside from them sounding like an air raid siren.

[Brian2036]

@Sarah977 @Kelly149 

Actually they’re one of my favorite bugs. They do no harm, they’re a pretty green color, are delicious and nutritious, and provide endless entertainment for Miss Kitty, who needs the exercise.

[Sarah977]

@Brian2036  I barely feed my cat, who was a stray in the neighborhood for a couple years until she decided my outdoor chair cushions were her new home. She's an awesome rodent destroyer and between those and the insects and lizards, she lives in cat smorgasbord. No fat pampered cats in my world 🙂