This is why I am always late. I've figured it out. It's not because I have kids; it's not because drive slowly (hah!); it's not because I wait until the last minute to leave and it's not because I forget things at home and have to turn around. Nope. It's because I hate being early. In my eyes, there's nothing worse than arriving early. I'll risk not getting there on time if it means I don't have to be sitting there, with no real purpose, waiting 10 minutes early and then an additional 15 minutes while I wait for the next person to arrive.
This being said, I am always late (never on time). I tend to run between 7-20 minutes late for every event I attend. I tend to run about 2 minutes late to every special that I walk my students to. Even when I set myself up for leaving early, I fill my time up with other tasks just to aim to be there on time (which ends up being late). I will wash dishes, fold laundry, even untangle a ball of yarn. Of course, then there's always the unpredictable tasks... which happen so often that they could actually be considered "predictable". These include: a dirty diaper, spilled oatmeal, when only can find 1 of my shoes, oops we forgot to pack snacks and also "Did anyone brush their teeth?" So once I've sufficiently postponed leaving early and instead managed to make myself late, we end up speeding through the quiet neighborhoods near our home and making excuses at our destination.
But the alternative is much much worse. This morning we had a play date and we were early. I tried to become late but despite my efforts, we ended up getting there early. I actually looked at the clock and misread it. I thought it read "9:29" when actually it must've been 9:19 because once everyone did their whole shoe-putting-on routine, it was only 9:30 and we were out the door. I caught a glimpse of the clock on the way out and was rightfully perplexed. Our destination wasn't more than 15 minutes away. I couldn't think of any ways to make us late. Both kids had their shoes on and were out the door. My mind filled with ideas... I could move the wash over but no, maybe I should just return that inspiration purchase I bought at the Halloween store (I admit it, a caped Wonderwoman shirt).
Unfortunately it was Sunday today so the Halloween store wasn't open yet. And we didn't hit any traffic either. I did consider going to a grocery store but... that'd make us helplessly late so I decided against it. We ended up at the park just about 10 minutes early so we took a potty break. Usually the kids just play until they can't take it anymore so stopping before playing was a novel concept. But it was 10:06 and the playdate wasn't there. I got a text, "We'll be there shortly". We played awkwardly for 10 minutes, 15 minutes, 20 minutes... which is hilarious because if we were just at the playground to play with just the three of us, we'd have had a great time swinging and climbing and sliding. But for some reason when you are waiting for someone, it's just plain awkward.
Here's the thing. If I'm meeting you somewhere, I'll never get mad if you run late (except if you're my husband). I completely understand. Believe me, I understand. And I'd hate to disappoint you if you've been waiting patiently for us when we are running late. But if I had a choice, I'd show up just about 2 minutes after you.
No comments:
Post a Comment