FARK.com: (6110861) You want the little bar of soap? Fine. That tiny shampoo bottle? OK. But if you take the bathrobe, we are tracking your ass down

If you can read this, either the style sheet didn't load or you have an older browser that doesn't support style sheets. Try clearing your browser cache and refreshing the page.

		You want the little bar of soap? Fine. That tiny shampoo bottle? OK. But if you take the bathrobe, we are tracking your ass down (msnbc.msn.com)		94
		More: Interesting, shampoos, soaps, linens

• • •

14721 clicks; posted to Main » on 13 Apr 2011 at 4:09 AM | Favorite | share:

Share this link:

URL:

http://fark.com/go/6110861

Bookmark:

Article Comments close

94 Comments (+0 »)

Archived thread

First | « | 1 | 2 | » | Last | Show all

Farker T		2011-04-13 08:24:20 AM

OMG!!! RFID's sewn into the bathrobes?

I hope it won't set off the alarms when I wear it to Wal*Mart?

Because that would be embarrassing.

I_Can't_Believe_it's_not_Boutros		2011-04-13 08:25:38 AM

Spade		2011-04-13 08:31:18 AM

Schadenfreude ist die schoenste Freude: Bathia_Mapes: Schadenfreude ist die schoenste Freude: How exactly is that going to cut down on people taking that shiat? They'll just grab one off the maid's push cart.

FTA...The New York Times travel blog, In Transit, reports that a washable RFID chip can be sewn into sheets, bathrobes and towels.

That's what will stop people. The RFID chips will already be in place, even on the maid's cart.

And? Lined bags that block signal transmission have been around for years thanks to RFID paranoia. Stuff one in there and voila, walk out the front door.

Anybody who's planning that far ahead was going to get a towel anyway.

People behave better when they even think they're being watched. That's all this is.

Brad_Will		2011-04-13 08:34:14 AM

Another option for liberating linens, of course, is truck-stop motels. But the thread count tends to be lower and the bathrobes nonexistent. (Just be sure not to pay with a credit card.)

JonZoidberg		2011-04-13 08:35:10 AM

unicron702		2011-04-13 08:36:49 AM

Kanemano: wedding vegetables: I wonder if the hotels that are doing this have had an unusual number of cash-paying guests correlating with disappearing linens lately.

The ones that rent by the hour?

Good times...

Pollexabator		2011-04-13 08:40:45 AM

JWideman: I have to confess... I've never stolen anything from a hotel.

Came to say this. I just don't get it. Hey, Lex Luthor, they don't need RFID tags to charge your CC when they figure out you took what wasn't yours (it's cute that you're so proud of your petty theft though). Whatcha gonna do next, unplug the mini-fridge so they won't notice when you drink every drop in there...?

/genius

Brad_Will		2011-04-13 08:42:31 AM

wedding vegetables: I figured it was similar to the chips people have implanted into their pets in case they run away.

The chips people have implanted into pets don't help track them down, but rather ensure that they're identifiable if they're found.

Squawky		2011-04-13 08:42:58 AM

Why would anyone intentionally bring home bedbug infested linens or robes?

/to start a ~~ant~~ bedbug farm?

Splish		2011-04-13 08:45:10 AM

So you're saying you want the shower curtain and desk chair back? Sorry.

Beerbarian		2011-04-13 08:49:25 AM

I steal an occasional hand towel. They're good for washing the car.

reubendaley		2011-04-13 08:50:21 AM

NYRBill: Mock26: I stayed at the Hilton in Frankfurt, Germany for two months (on the company dime). When I was checking out I asked how much the bathrobes cost as they were nice and I wanted one. The clerk at the front desk said that one was complimentary. She then went into the back room and came out with two and gave them to me.

I had a similar thing happen in a restaurant near Munich. My dad said the beer glasses were really nice and asked if they sell them, the waiter came back with two new ones in a bag and said we could have them.

1. Give your employer's property away to guest who, as a result will very likely be more generous when they compensate you.
2. Profit.

/unless it's company policy to do this, it's employee theft

mekkab		2011-04-13 08:51:39 AM

PghThermal: Evilnissan: The Greenbrier hotel has the best bathrobes.

Nemacolin Woodlands

ZOMG that place is insanity... after it's gone completely crazy!

mr0x		2011-04-13 08:55:48 AM

Schlock: FTA: "It used to be that a conscience that would keep most travelers from pilfering a set of comfy linens or that nice pool towel."

I thought it was the fact that the hotel had your credit card info on file

You've never run a credit card business. Credit card disputes aren't to be dealt with lightly.

Suppose the hotel charges $100 for a missing bathrobe. The client will then dispute the charge. That's $25 investigation fee from the credit card processing company. Then, you have to prove that the client took the bathrobe - which is exactly how? Almost always without a good proof (signature or delivery confirmation), the credit card company will reverse the charge and you lose the $25 investigation fee.

gglibertine		2011-04-13 08:59:50 AM

NYRBill: Mock26: I stayed at the Hilton in Frankfurt, Germany for two months (on the company dime). When I was checking out I asked how much the bathrobes cost as they were nice and I wanted one. The clerk at the front desk said that one was complimentary. She then went into the back room and came out with two and gave them to me.

I had a similar thing happen in a restaurant near Munich. My dad said the beer glasses were really nice and asked if they sell them, the waiter came back with two new ones in a bag and said we could have them.

See how this works? Asking == good. Stealing == bad.

I mean, for god's sake, people. If you can afford to stay in the kind of hotel that provides bathrobes for the rooms, you can afford to buy your own goddamned bathrobe. Taking things other than the soap and shampoo etc. is just tacky, tacky, tacky.

/I don't even take the soap and shampoo. I have plenty of soap and shampoo at home, and I'm not exactly landed gentry. Sheesh.

kidgenius		2011-04-13 09:07:42 AM

Mock26: I stayed at the Hilton in Frankfurt, Germany for two months (on the company dime). When I was checking out I asked how much the bathrobes cost as they were nice and I wanted one. The clerk at the front desk said that one was complimentary. She then went into the back room and came out with two and gave them to me.

Difference is that you at least *asked*.

Also, when I was in Greece, the hotels there were overpriced and sucked. Holiday Inn is a known quality. You stay overseas, start rolling the dice my friend.

mekkab		2011-04-13 09:14:51 AM

Here's the deal; if you charge me money for Internet service, I'm taking something. If the entire hotel is sharing one dsl line and being bandwidth-throttled (and I'm there on business), I'm taking something good.

And if you're charging $30 or more per 24-hour period, I'm following you home and egging your house. And leaving dirty underwear.

cwolf20		2011-04-13 09:24:01 AM

They're a little behind the times. Most hotels offer the convenience of adding the sales cost of anything removed from the room to the bill, or they conveniently mail it complete with a deadline to pay before they transfer it over to a collection agency.

offacue		2011-04-13 09:30:52 AM

K3rmy: This is great. I use the towel to clean up my splooge and I can smile knowing that someone will be rubbing their face on that same towel at a later date.

Yeah yeah. . .bleach, detergent and hot water. But think about it. . .splooge. . .as you are rubbing your face with the towel after your shower. . .splooge. . .your rubbing your face where millions of potential future presidents (or future Taco Bell employees) met their fate. . .

I like to splooge on the iron, in the hair dryer, and in the water reservoir of the coffee maker.

/enjoy your stay

skankboy		2011-04-13 09:35:03 AM

Pollexabator: Whatcha gonna do next, unplug the mini-fridge so they won't notice when you drink every drop in there...?

How would that do any good?

/genius

wage0048		2011-04-13 09:40:05 AM

wedding vegetables: Schadenfreude ist die schoenste Freude: And? Lined bags that block signal transmission have been around for years thanks to RFID paranoia. Stuff one in there and voila, walk out the front door.

I'd imagine at some point you'd take it out and use it, at which point they'd track it down.

MaudlinMutantMollusk: I must have missed something...

I thought it was common practice to charge things like robes that came up missing to the credit card of the room renter.

/got away with a towel or two, and soap and shampoo are fair game disposables, but I'd expect to get gigged for something like a robe

it is. I wonder if the hotels that are doing this have had an unusual number of cash-paying guests correlating with disappearing linens lately.

There are hotels out there that don't require a valid credit card at time of check-in? (even if the renter is paying cash, most hotels still require that you give them a credit card for them to keep on file in case of damage.

NYRBill		2011-04-13 09:47:16 AM

gglibertine: See how this works? Asking == good. Stealing == bad.

/I don't even take the soap and shampoo. I have plenty of soap and shampoo at home, and I'm not exactly landed gentry. Sheesh.

the little shampoo bottles are handy for camping. also once I stayed in an Omni that had robes and there was a sign "if you take a robe you will be charged for it. tell the brand desk and we'll sell you a brand new one"

no shirt no shoes		2011-04-13 10:09:59 AM

I love sleeping on a Westin bed. I'll probably buy one as my next mattress.

/csb

brantgoose		2011-04-13 10:35:51 AM

Bathrobe rant

Why are bathrobes so expensive? They're made out of cheap towels and yet they cost more than most of my furniture.

True, most of my furniture is second hand, picked up on the street on garbage day, or purchased in a flat box, on account of I am a tightwad when it comes to anything I don't like buying or assembling, but what the hey?

A bathrobe is three $5 towels sewn together by a child in Indonesia for 8 cents an hour. For this they'll charge $150 without an inkling of shame. They should at least apologize and lie about how expensive the labour and materials are.

"Our bathrobes are made only with the finest Egyptian cotton, hand loomed to the standard of 800 thread count, and dyed with the rare and precious purple from the genuine endangered Mediterranean shellfish. We have them sewn together by English ladies of the highest rank and station, using thread made from the fur of the rare albino hairy frog."

***
Tiny soap rant (Obligato)

And what's the deal with those tiny soaps? Why do people take those, seeing as they never finish a bar of soap that gets that small at home?

Personally I stick the old soap to the new soap and use it all. I always have too much soap. It loses the scent long before I get to use it. My soap actually gets dusty before I get to unwrap it. I open a fresh bar of soap and put it on deck while I'm using up the old bar of soap. That way I get to use some of it while it still has a nice scent and looks new.

There's something sad about old, dusty soap. Like maybe it has failed in life but still keeps trying to make it.

***
Rant Disclaimer

Oops! Sorry. I was channeling Andy Rooney there for a moment. I think I may have been getting some interferance from Karl Pilkington, also, but he's really far away and doesn't come in well except on cool nights when the signal bounces off of the stratosphre. All hotel room jokes are the property of hack comics and talk show guests. The management is not responsible.

Loren		2011-04-13 10:38:50 AM

MaudlinMutantMollusk: I must have missed something...

I thought it was common practice to charge things like robes that came up missing to the credit card of the room renter.

Yeah, that was my understanding, also.

rockmoss		2011-04-13 10:51:54 AM

I've read that any hotel item with a big logo on it is fair game. They only put it on if they assume it's going to be taken. Then when ever you put that robe on with that logo, you remember going to that hotel. I've never taken any towels or that, but I've got a fetish for those paper pads and crappy pens.

12349876		2011-04-13 11:21:33 AM

If you're rich enough to stay in a hotel with a bathrobe, why do need to steal?

mekkab		2011-04-13 11:34:00 AM

no shirt no shoes: I love sleeping on a Westin bed. I'll probably buy one as my next mattress.

/csb

We have a Sealy equivalent to the Heavenly bed and paid a few hundred less.

There's a reason they stopped making it!

Uzzah		2011-04-13 01:02:21 PM

Tencolin: What about the free shower curtains?

www.rob-clarkson.com

Agrees.

BurnShrike		2011-04-13 01:07:00 PM

12349876: If you're rich enough to stay in a hotel with a bathrobe, why do need to steal?

How do you think they got rich enough?

Mock26		2011-04-13 01:25:00 PM

JonZoidberg: NYRBill: Mock26: I stayed at the Hilton in Frankfurt, Germany for two months (on the company dime). When I was checking out I asked how much the bathrobes cost as they were nice and I wanted one. The clerk at the front desk said that one was complimentary. She then went into the back room and came out with two and gave them to me.

I had a similar thing happen in a restaurant near Munich. My dad said the beer glasses were really nice and asked if they sell them, the waiter came back with two new ones in a bag and said we could have them.

He just wanted a good tip and wasn't paying for them.

Nope. Tipping in Europe (for the most part) is nothing like it is in America. Rounding up to the next Euro (or up two) is considered normal in most places.

ShiniBents		2011-04-13 03:01:12 PM

sleeper2995: Also once we have your credit card good luck with not paying. HA-HA!

BAM... chargeback, guest refunded. Welcome to the front desk.

/Had to deal with one of those today.

Bacchus-ette		2011-04-13 03:17:15 PM

I am obsessed with all complimentary grooming items. I line them up in perfectly neat rows in the guest bathroom cabinet. By now, my collection covers virtually any need a guest might have while staying in my home. From razor to nail file to sewing kit.

And it should come as no surprise that I also travel with my own "hotel condom", in the form of The Original Dreamie.

Wouldn't touch the bath robe even in the finest 5 star hotel. *shudder*

/OCD? What are you implying?

Nmissi		2011-04-13 03:33:55 PM

brantgoose:

Personally I stick the old soap to the new soap and use it all. I always have too much soap. It loses the scent long before I get to use it. My soap actually gets dusty before I get to unwrap it. I open a fresh bar of soap and put it on deck while I'm using up the old bar of soap. That way I get to use some of it while it still has a nice scent and looks new.

Buy some Yardley soap; the scent never goes away. The last sliver you use will still smell soapy.

Kanemano		2011-04-13 04:19:03 PM

BurnShrike: 12349876: If you're rich enough to stay in a hotel with a bathrobe, why do need to steal?

How do you think they got rich enough?

by selling stolen bathrobes, duh

Joe The Plumber		2011-04-13 04:55:25 PM

The trick is getting the housekeeping staff not to report you... and there are two approaches to this end:

1) strip the bed and stuff the linens and towels (minus whatever you took) into the pillowcases. This is how they break down the room, and you've saved them some effort already.

2) Leave a note (along the lines of "Housekeeping, Thank you and God Bless!") along with $2-5 bucks on the desk when you check out.

... and why has nobody mentioned toilet paper, lightbulbs, AA/AAA/9V batteries (remote/clock radio), or the Gideons Bible?

poot_rootbeer		2011-04-13 06:49:23 PM

Bathia_Mapes: That's what will stop people. The RFID chips will already be in place, even on the maid's cart.

And... what? The bathrobe's wheels will lock up if you try to take it past the yellow line painted on the curb outside the lobby?

Phil McKraken		2011-04-13 07:37:42 PM

fark thieves.

ScreamingHangover		2011-04-14 03:47:27 AM

12349876: If you're rich enough to stay in a hotel with a bathrobe, why do need to steal?

I remember reading an article off Fark a couple years back about a guy who ran a business delivering bagesl/donuts to break rooms in office buildings (tried searching, but no luck). He used the honor system. If there was too much slippage/loss in a particular room, he'd simply stop resupplying it.

The interesting thing about the article was that he was a retired statistician who kept detailed records. It turns out that there was more slippage in the executive break rooms then in the mail rooms or garages he supplied.

ScreamingHangover		2011-04-14 03:54:33 AM

ScreamingHangover: 12349876: If you're rich enough to stay in a hotel with a bathrobe, why do need to steal?

I remember reading an article off Fark a couple years back about a guy who ran a business delivering bagesl/donuts to break rooms in office buildings (tried searching, but no luck). He used the honor system. If there was too much slippage/loss in a particular room, he'd simply stop resupplying it.

The interesting thing about the article was that he was a retired statistician who kept detailed records. It turns out that there was more slippage in the executive break rooms then in the mail rooms or garages he supplied.

Found the Article Here (new window)

Mock26		2011-04-14 04:08:47 AM

LSUMJ		2011-04-14 05:14:40 PM

"who has time for a robe anyway?"
cassieinthecity.files.wordpress.com

Loomy		2011-04-14 10:34:38 PM

ScreamingHangover: ScreamingHangover: 12349876: If you're rich enough to stay in a hotel with a bathrobe, why do need to steal?

I remember reading an article off Fark a couple years back about a guy who ran a business delivering bagesl/donuts to break rooms in office buildings (tried searching, but no luck). He used the honor system. If there was too much slippage/loss in a particular room, he'd simply stop resupplying it.

The interesting thing about the article was that he was a retired statistician who kept detailed records. It turns out that there was more slippage in the executive break rooms then in the mail rooms or garages he supplied.

Found the Article Here (new window)

I know this thread is pretty much dead, but I read that and thoroughly enjoyed it. Was pleasantly surprised to find it was written by the Freakonomics authors (albeit years before they published it). I'm a sucker for nerd-non-fiction.

So, thanks. I appreciate that you went to the trouble of finding the article for us.

mr0x		2011-04-15 04:31:31 PM

ScreamingHangover: ScreamingHangover: 12349876: If you're rich enough to stay in a hotel with a bathrobe, why do need to steal?

I remember reading an article off Fark a couple years back about a guy who ran a business delivering bagesl/donuts to break rooms in office buildings (tried searching, but no luck). He used the honor system. If there was too much slippage/loss in a particular room, he'd simply stop resupplying it.

The interesting thing about the article was that he was a retired statistician who kept detailed records. It turns out that there was more slippage in the executive break rooms then in the mail rooms or garages he supplied.

Found the Article Here (new window)

Gah, read the article again. In "A" executive room than room"S".

He also says he believes that employees further up the corporate ladder cheat more than those down below. He reached this conclusion in part after delivering for years to one company spread out over three floors -- an executive floor on top and two lower floors with sales, service and administrative employees.

This is a huge huge case of correlation assumed to be causation.

I don't think executives eat break room food like 50c donuts and $1 bagels.

Displayed 44 of 94 comments

First | « | 1 | 2 | » | Last | Show all

Redisplay/refresh comments

This thread is closed to new comments.