I Never Get Sick

Writers: Cali, Jane
Date Posted: 23rd June 2008

Characters: Barthella, Zandreu
Description: Barthella and Zandreu have a personnel discussion.
Location: Vintner Hall
Date: month 10, day 15 of Turn 4

"Nantha's worse." Barthella said to Zandreu as she handed him a morning cup of klah. "Konni woke me last night and we took her over to the Hall to get looked at. The healer says that head cold she had has moved into her chest so they're keeping her there to rest."

"And away from the staff here," Zandreu grumbled with an unusual lack of sympathy. "Though it's probably too late to save some of us." He eyed the Tavern's cook suspiciously. "You haven't caught it, have you?"

Barthella looked offended. "I never get sick. I don't have time for it." then she added. "I'm adding restoratives to last night's stew, I'll make sure all the staff eats a bowl at lunch."

"Good. I _do_ get sick; everything that goes around visits me for some reason." It hadn't always been that way. It had only started since he'd stopped drinking. One day he'd like a healer to explain _that_ to him. "So you make sure the sick ones stay in their beds or at least their rooms until they're well. Do we have enough staff for this evening?"

"Yes, for tonight we do," she nodded and added, "I actually wanted to talk to you about that though. We really have been holding things together and making do since Beheverhan left, but we're short in several places, and with the sicknesses going around and Konni leaving after she has that child of hers... we just won't be able to do it much longer."

"Is there anybody around that you'd consider employing?"

Barthella shook her head. "Not yet, or you'd be sure I'd have dragged them in to you already. But maybe you could mention it to someone at the Hall or Hold? Even if we just had one or two more drudges to do dishes and clean up the front room, it would leave my girls more time to serve and cook."

"I will mention it. Are you happy to have more women working for you?
Or would you prefer men?"

If it had been Beheverhan asking, she would have teased him about trying to set her up with someone, but she didn't know Zandreu well enough yet to know how he would take it. "Either is fine, as long as they are willing to work."

"All right. And is it just kitchen drudges? Or are there other places where an extra pair of hands would make a difference?"

"Well of course kitchen experience is best. If we had more cooks, when one of the girls takes ill we don't have to scramble. But yes, just a couple drudges would help alot." She thought about mentioning adding another guard or two since they were back down to their pre-thieving numbers, but there hadn't been a theft at the Tavern in several months so they were probably okay. Better not to worry him about nonexistent problems.

"All right. I'll mention that to a few people and beg the loan of a drudge in the meantime. Did you know we're going to be getting the apprentices working in here?"

Barthella's eyebrows raised at that information. "No, I didn't know.
What will their duties entail?" She felt like she was being kept out of the loop, but she knew people ran things differently than others and it probably wasn't intentional.

"Juniors will help with all the work, just so that they understand each part of how a Tavern runs, and the seniors will study with me for bar management."

"Well then," she said as she placed her hands on her hips and let her gaze fall on the floor while she tabulated man hours in her head.
"Maybe we don't need the drudges after all, or at least not as many.
Those apprentices could really pick up the slack when we needed it."

"But they'll come and go and will need some supervision," he countered.

Barthella nodded, "True, but so will the work. You're probably right though, and if I've got to pull one of my girls away to supervise then we'll be even shorter. We'll just have to see how it goes I guess."

"If you have reason to complain, complain to me," the Tavern Master said firmly. "The first of them will be arriving first sevenday next month."

Barthella nodded again, already thinking ahead and planning, "I'll start working up a schedule and we can work out the details when you can give me numbers and hours and such."

"That would be excellent, Barthella, but don't you do too much while so many are off sick or you'll end up in the same state."

"It's like I said," Barthella explained with a grin, "I don't get sick, I don't have time for it."

"And as I said, I always do," the Tavern Master admitted morosely. "It's a skill I acquired in my misspent middle age."

Last updated on the June 28th 2008

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I Never Get Sick