LOL — this happened to me last summer when I toured Europe! The clerk at my first hotel explained ahead of time (well, he tried to explain, but I didn’t really understand). I got it, though, when I took the card out of the slot and all the lights (and TV) went out, unexpectedly plunging the room into total darkness.
When I attended Indiana University in 1974, there was a music store in town called “Caveat Emptor.” I was introduced to Bartok, Vivaldi and Randy Newman there. It was truly a goovy place.
I swear that Pastis has a microscope on my life.