People vs. Sherlock Holmes

 As background, although many of you readers probably are already aware, we've had two cabins on our property since 2014.  One has always been for short term guests, either paying or otherwise. The other started life as my sister's home.  

Always been a guest cabin on your left. Now a guest cabin on your right.

Once Mrs. J and I completed the build of our new home, She moved into our old house.  It had a very large master bedroom which she converted into her quilting room.  She's very talented at that and the size of the room works to her benefit, so she's happy.  We then refreshed her old cabin and turned it into a second guest cabin.

Which we promptly used for a gathering of the extended clan for a late Christmas

The good news? We're pretty well booked every weekend and quite a few weekdays through June.  So...We got that going for us.  Additional good news? We make it a point to meet our guests as soon as possible after arrival.  Answer any questions, see if they need anything and make a quick assessment of them. One, we like to meet new people and two we like to see if they're likely to tear the place up.  It doesn't happen often, but...

So, a couple of weeks ago, Mrs J and I were on a wine cruise she had put together for a local winery.  This was complicated by the fact that the first weekend and the last weekend of the cruise, both cabins were reserved.  We have a cleaning service to clean the cabins, change linens and towels etc.  Little J and DIL were staying at our house to handle any routine (e.g. "Need more toilet paper") emergencies. So, we thought we had everything covered.

Speaking of TP, after every stay, we put a new roll on the spindle, another roll on the tank and a third under the sink. Folks, short of an outbreak of dysentery, two people in a weekend don't go through 3 rolls of toilet paper.  We aren't stupid, you're taking it home.  Really?  You do know that part of the way we calculate our rates is based on our costs.  That, however, does not mean you own the TP.  It just means as our costs go up, the rate you pay to stay does also.  

Just sayin'

So, we're on the cruise and the folks that had checked in on the first weekend have checked out.  Little J repopulates the TP.  The next folks check in and that evening we get a message from them saying the TV doesn't work.  We're coming home that evening, so we stop by to take a look.  Everything looks right, but it still doesn't work. I ask Little J to come with me to help troubleshoot.  He takes a quarter second look and says, "Dad, the USB cable to the Amazon Fire Stick is missing."

I look under the TV stand and not only is the cable missing, but so is the adapter for electricity to USB.

They had to move the TV stand to get to the electric socket and in so doing, the bottom shelf (which stabilizes the legs) came apart.  They just shoved it back together and hoped for the best. 

ARRRGGGGHHHH! So I run to WallyWorld, spend $5.97 for a replacement USB cable and adapter and $3 for some wood glue.  Grabbed a long pipe clamp and fixed the stand. 

Folks, don't steal!  And, if something gets broken, at least let someone know.  If the legs had come undone, the TV would have fallen and gotten broken.  Much more expensive and billed to your account as well as a quite lousy rating for you as a guest.  You do know that both VRBO and AirBnB request owner evaluations of guests as well as guest evals of their stay, doncha?

A rating of Absolute Zero by us would negatively impact your ability to stay in either company's rentals for a long time to come.

As a song says, "God is great, Beer is good, people are crazy".

So, this past weekend, we've got a couple staying for two weeks.  They live in Wisconsin.  They came down last year for a stay and a couple of days into their stay, Winter Storm Uri hit.  When the electricity and water went out, they, wisely, elected to return to Wisconsin.  I believe they said, "We can be THIS cold in our own home."  We refunded their money.

They're back now, and, on arrival, I thanked them for bringing the warm Wisconsin weather with them this time.  But that evening, they called and said they couldn't get internet access.  So, I stopped by to see what was what.

Now, each guest house has it's own internet connection directly from the internet provider as well as its own network each named for the cabin they're in.  I arrive and pull out my trusty phone and look at available networks.  I see only one and it's for the other cabin. Do the usual tech support stuff (Check connections, turn it off, turn it on, unplug/replug). 

Nothing.

So I call Tech Support for our Internet Provider.  After a long time on hold, I get a very nice technician on the line who walks me through the same stuff I did two paragraphs previously.  Same result.  She then tries to access the network from her end.  She is successful and asks what the network is named.  I tell her, she pauses and says she's not seeing that and reads off the name of the other network, and asks me if it's a LinkSys router.  I go inside to check.  

Yes, it is.

She then reads of the SSID (Service Set Identifier, Beans, It's a Factory Set ID used in virtually all electronic equipment to ID all sorts of things.  Basically SSAN for electronics.).  The ID matches and she says that network is the name of the one in the other cabin.

She also says that there is no router on the other account (the cabin that this router should be in).  It's now getting late, I've been outside for most of this conversation as both cabins are occupied, and while the guests from WI brought warm WI weather, that doesn't mean it's warm TX weather.  And it's Saturday Evening.  Help won't be available til Monday.

I'm discussing the problem with Mrs. J while she's cooking dinner.  I'm having a medicinal glass of wine, or two.  We talk it over and get no further figuring out this conundrum. I'm stumped.  This just isn't possible.  

Here's where Sherlock Holmes comes into the title.

“When you have eliminated all which is impossible, then whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.”

Mrs. J, asks "Hey juvat, Do you remember the two couples that knew each other and stayed in each of the cabins for Super Bowl weekend?  They did mention that they'd had a connectivity problem in the cabin they wanted to watch the game in.  We were on a cruise, so couldn't help.  You don't supposed they swapped routers, do you?"

I hear Deerstalker hats are on sale at EBay.  I see one in her future.

Source

Unfortunately, all good things must pass and as you are reading this, Mrs. J and I are delivering Little J and DIL to the Austin Airport for their return flight to HK.  We've had a blast for the past two months and wish them good health and safe travels.  So, I may be a little slow answering comments today.