May 23, 2007 I think. I think it had to be in Shamrock TX. And I think it was called the Texan or Big Texan or something like that. Seemed it was just west of 83, just south of the interstate. Couldn't find anything in Canadian so it was either try Pampa or go to I40. Neither were the direction I wanted to go, toward home. But I wanted a damn room and not to drive into flooded areas or dataless storm areas in nw OK. So sucked when nothing was available in Canadian. First thing I tried in Shamrock was already full. Others looked full. I then saw that "place". Looking at the outside of it I should have known it wouldn't be a nicely kept mom and pop type place once in the rooms.
The office was extremely hot and smelly and out comes the Indian owner in a wife beater. He wouldn't say a thing to me. Took my money and handed me a key. $30 should have been a sign too, but really, I thought it was ALL that was left anywhere in TX by now and really really wanted to sleep. As tired as I was, it didn't take long walking around that room to say to hell with that. It was the most depressing thing I'd ever been in I think. Unspeakably bad. Most aren't picturing it bad enough, I know. I left and drove around some more, not even bothering to try and get my money back from that guy. I just took the key with me. I'd have slept in my car if there was nothing else. Figures, there were some rooms at the Econolodge down the street. I got a room there. I checked out of both motels the next morning lol. Gave that other motel my key as if I had stayed there the whole night.
Amarillo had a nice "Camelot Inn" me and some chasers stayed at in 2001 that was "interesting". Not sure if that place is still there or not. That one I wondered not just where the hell any toliet paper was...but where it would even be hung. There was none of either. It was the threshold of a bad motel stay up to that May 23, 2007 stay in Shamrock. It was a HILTON! compared to that place I got in Shamrock. My last apartment was pretty damn cheap and run down, old building above a bakery. This motel was so many levels even past that. But yeah, what does one expect when the office manager comes out in a very dirty wife beater, some kids in tow if I remember correctly. Actually I think the kids were the ones that took the key when I checked out.
WiFi ends up a joke at 50% of the motels, so I won't even go there. Seems so many they have to go and flip the router on and off to get things to work again, and they won't keep up with it. Not an issue now with tethered or usb data now, thank god.
I guess I could come up with more examples to avoid. Roadway Inn in Thedford NE. Not that there are a lot of options out there. Stay there if you like trains every 30 minutes right across the street.
One caution might be cranking the heater and going to sleep. In Broken Bow some recent year as well as in West Yellowstone got woken to the fire alarm going off.
That reminds me and might have been what I was doing. I can't sleep with silence, need a fan or something. My god I can't stand the motels that have the ac/heaters with no fan option. It just kicks off completely when it reaches a certain temp. That had to be what I did at those places. I would about be to sleep and it would shut off. It would get in my head till I was pissed off and wide awake. Only cause I was trying to beat it to sleep. So I'd CRANK ac till it was a freezer. Then I'd bump the heat on and hopefully have enough time with fan noise before it shut off too fall asleep. Trying to beat this didn't work well as it was in your head you were trying to fall asleep. Uggg, I hate finding those motels and seeing those certain types of ac/heat units. Should buy a small fan and stick it in my trunk.
I think it was a super 8 in Bartlesville OK I thought the owner was going to tackle me at my car. Evidently they aren't supposed to give you a receipt if you book online. The only time I booked through motels.com or something. She came flying out and acting like I was in trouble or something, like it was my fault she gave me the receipt. Then gave me the whole rant how she could get fired, yada yada yada. I was like, cause you actually gave me a receipt?! Made more annoying as I actually wanted a receipt! lol that was all around odd.
LOL
