Going to jail

Im sitting in the security office with security guards, a metro officer and our detainee. He's sitting on a bench with his hands behind him handcuffed while he stares at his dark sneakers. He's not sleeping or even fighting back, he's just staring at his shoes, perhaps thinking if his shoes would afford him the diner he just had.

He walked into one of our restaurants asking for a table. He looked run down but not too dirty to call attention to himself. I guess in retrospect I should have looked more carefully. Shoes have a way of telling a lot about someone's personality and or "status" in life; and his sneakers told me that he'd had a rough few days; dirty and dark and of a good brand. His clothes didn't say much other than being dark in color so no three day dirt showed. The smell though was there. Of this I was told by the waitress, who got much closer to him than I did and she was also the one that knew he was a "bum" and therefore had no money to pay.
At first it seemed a bit preposterous and condescending. It's very easy for some people to "profile" others by the way they "look" and I did not want to partake into the profiling game.
In my eyes the guy looked like he belonged in ours and or any other restaurant. Nonetheless, I told her just to wait till the end and to continue with service.
Sure enough after she dropped the check, he swiftly went for the door. Three steps behind came the server trotting in my direction while waving the check presenter with a sixty dollar tab inside.
Mr. Dirty sneakers had treated himself to a nice dinner of a Caesar Salad, seafood pasta and dessert. I'm surprised he did not order a bottle of Champagne to celebrate his outing but that would have called to much attention to himself.
I took the check from the server and quickly turned to follow dirty shoes.
As if by an act of magic worthy of David Copperfield, one of our security guards was standing by the hostess podium. With a quick motion, I asked him to keep an eye on our shoe guy while I caught up to him. I asked him how he intended to pay for his bill. With a look in his eyes that spike the truth, he managed to say that he was just going to the restroom and would be returning to pay the bill.
Not sure why I agreed but I showed him where the restroom was. The security guard was still on the look out when the shoe guy eventually came out. Of course he started walking out in the opposite direction from where he had just had a sumptuous meal.
Other guards arrived quickly. It must have been a slow night on the floor.
Procedure is to take the suspect down to "the office" while handcuffed until the proper authority comes and makes the arrest official.
Turns out that Mr. Dirty shoes had no record and was from out of town. He had a receipt from a local pawn shop where he apparently had turned in an apple lap top for an undetermined amount of money.
By the time he waked into our restaurant, he had probably gambled it all.
He was charged with "intent to defraud an innkeeper", cited and released.

The plot thickens

So our Food and beverage director is leaving our hotel and it turns out that he is not the only one. I just found out that another one of our managers is also leaving which just makes it a little more interesting because now, aside from needing a VP of food and beverage and perhaps a food and beverage director, the only people left are; the director of restaurants and 6 other managers, including me. Sounds like enough mangers, but it really isn't, when you consider that besides a full casino floor with bars and lounges, we have 3 restaurants, 2 of which I manage, one a full service 24 hour service restaurant a room service department, a Starbucks and a food court.
So,
Ideally, the 24 hour restaurant should have 3 managers, the room service should have 2 and the two remaining fine dining rooms, should have 3 managers total.
The casino bar areas also should be a 3 manager team to cover all shifts and 7 days, with the help of an overnight manager to oversee all areas.
That's 11 managers, not including directors.
Yes. We are missing 5 managers.
Will we get them all? No. We'll just be stretched all over and work all shifts and at all restaurants.
That is until the new VP arrives and presents a plan for the new F&B team at The New Tropicana.
Work just got more interesting.

Uncertainty

Confusion, turmoil, uncertain, troubled, conflicted,