How Punctual Are You?

I am habitually on time. I always try to plan things so I have at least 5-10 minutes of cushion time. I don’t walk in too early, though–usually, I primp in my car or listen to the radio until I’ve only got 3-4 minutes left. Generally, if I’m late, it’s due to something other than planning (MapQuest giving me the wrong directions, my car battery dying, the class schedule being adjusted for that day and me forgetting, etc.).

Late people really bother me. When I say “7:00,” I mean 7:00. I don’t mean 7:15, or 7:30, and yes half an hour does make a difference. Also, I like to arrive to the theater while the lights are still up and before the previews (I LIKE hearing about new movies). People who assume that fifteen minutes or a half hour aren’t a big deal really tick me off. If you couldn’t make it until 7:30, you should’ve told me so. Otherwise, I’m stuck being ready/there at seven, and waiting for your happy ass.

The same applies for phone calls. I’ll tell one of my friends to call me around, say, 2:30 on Monday, and they agree (say it’s when they get off work). Sometimes, they’ll call at 3:00 instead, and get pissed that I’m on my way to class and can’t talk. I said call at 2:30, not 3:00; if you can’t then and want to try later, that’s cool, but don’t get mad that I can’t talk. I tried to warn you.

I’ll be late to my funeral. My family has a habit of telling me family functions occur an hour or two before they actually do, so I’m only 15-20 minutes late. It’s a standing joke amongst my friends that I tend to show up 2-3 hours late to any given party.

I blame it on genetics, none of the women in my family could be on time to save their life. Unless there was a sale involved, of course.

I’m typically an early person. For about a year after my first child was born, I was late to everything, because it took me that long to figure out exactly how much time is involved in packing up and transporting a baby!

Last night, I was taking my 16-yr-old to an AA meeting, about 10 miles from here, start time 8:00PM. She was over her best friend’s house, and had to be picked up from there. I planned on leaving at 7:30, picking her up at 7:40, and still be there in plenty of time to grab a cup of coffee before the meeting started; forces transpired against me. My 3-yr-old was ready to start her bedtime routine at 7:05, which would have given me plenty of time, had she not been constipated, and spent 10 minutes on the potty instead of the usual 2 minutes. So, I had hubby call daughter at friend’s house, and tell her I’m on my way, be waiting. Well, when I got there, she had still not put her damn shoes on, and had to run upstairs to get them! We didn’t walk into the meeting until 8:10. Announcements and such were still being read, but still, I hate being late! Steps will be taken to make sure this doesn’t happen again!

In short, when I am late, it’s usually because of someone else’s actions, not mine.

More or less 100% punctual, dependable and reliable.

There is no merit in being like this, and it’s not a virtue. But that’s the way I am.

I am very rarely truly punctual. I’m either horribly (not unfashionably, just flat horribly) late or disgustingly early, equally often. Neither is very comfortable, but no matter what I do to try to plan my time appropriately there is no middle ground.

I am always late, it has gotten to the point where I have my clocks an hour early just to try to make it on time. But my friends know that I get there when I get there and probably expect me to be late. I do call, when I’m going to be late. On the times that I have to be somewhere at a specific time because I have someone waiting for me, I will be there on time. For events that start at a specific time, usually I will be late. Its a habit because events of a cultural nature rarely start on time, so I dont bother.

I like that I have flex time at work, so I dont have to be there at a specific time or else I’d be fired in a week.

Running joke in the family has long been that I was born a month past my mothers EDD (this was the early 70’s, so I figure the date was just plain wrong to begin with), and I haven’t been late for anything since.

I hate to be late. I have gotten better about being on time, but I’m still more likely to be early than anything - anywhere from 10 minutes to 1/2 an hour (if it’s someplace new and I’m not sure where I’m going, I’ll err on the side of being too early. this worked out great with the vet visit this week - they’d moved about 10 minutes farther out and it took me longer than I thought it would to get there - so I needed the 45 minutes instead of 30).

Anal-retentively on-time.

The exceptiion is work - I have flex time and a long commute (37 miles each way), and almost never have morning meetings. So I get there when I get there, which lately has been around 10 am.

Another Anal clocking-in…get it, get it??? :stuck_out_tongue:

Yet I have a sister at the other end of the time spectrum who, when you invite her for lunch, might just manage to make it in time for dinner. So I can’t blame genetics in our family.

Pathologically punctual. I run on airport time. The good news is that I’m on time even if something happens to delay me (flat tire, unexpected phone call, etc.). The bad news is that I’m frequently the first person at parties…

Barry

This truly boggles my mind. How could you be consistantly that late? A few minutes is one thing, but a couple hours? I’m not attacking you or anything, it just truly flabbergasts me. I’m genuinely curious. I’m sure you know how long it takes you to get ready and get out the door right? How does one underestimate by the hour load, the amount of time they’ll need?

I’m anal-retentive puntcual. It drives me nuts to be late to anything, I’ll almost start hypervenilating! I’m become a bit more lax recently, since I’m in politics where no one seems to be able to get anywhere on time, but when I first started, it was touch and go for awhile. I didn’t think I’d make it, just because the lack of overall punctuality was making me into a nervous wreck!

On the upside, since I plan events, I get tons of compliments for actually having the program run on time. To the minute. People always tell me they appreciate knowing exactly when they’ll make it home when they’re attending one of my events.

:smiley:

Normally, I’m early everywhere. I usually sit in my car or go get some coffee until it’s actually time for me to arrive, since showing up uber early is generally considered rude as well.

I always tend to be 10-15 minutes early, even when I don’t plan to be. I consistently overestimate the time it will take me to get somewhere so always make it early.

My best friend is always 15 minutes late. She knows this makes me nuts yet does nothing about it. Her excuse is that it always takes her longer than she expects to get ready, something comes up at the last minute, etc. My feeling is, if you know that you always takes you longer than you expect to get ready, start getting ready earlier. I ind it incredibly disrespectful to always show up late, especially when you know the person you’re meeting hates it.

The only serious fight we’ve ever had was over this. We were meeting someplace where it would take me 30 minutes to get to. I called her and gave her a meeting time in 20 minutes, thinking she would get there in 30. Unfortunately she knew it would take me 30 minutes and so showed up in 45. I didn’t appreciate her being late, she didn’t appreciate my trying to manipulate her, the upshot being we didn’t speak for a week.

And still she shows up late. Damn her.

Always 15 minutes early…

If it’s work time (lurk time) then I live by the second.
Work starts at 0530am but the computers here go spastic at 0535am if no one pays them any attention so I get here at about 0534am and slap them around a bit. Bloody computers try and rule my life…bastards! Certain things have to be done here on the dot, routinely, everyday for the term of your natural life!!

Playtime, I’m more relaxed. 8pm might mean between 7:30 or 8:30. Unless timing is crucial, like movies…or picking GF up from work (never ever be late for that one), a few minutes here and there is not going to bother me.

Always on time or early. I’ve had my current job for 11 years. I have been late zero times.

I can read a clock. I know how long it takes to get to work. I don’t live in a metro area so I don’t have to worry about trafic and such.

Like others have said, I think it’s disrespectful to be late. And for myself, I hate to hurry. So I always allow enough time.

I am odd in this respect. I consider myself compulsively punctual. I get to the point where even when I go to a party where there is a time one should arrive to be fashionably late I plan the exact time. For example if I am invited to a party hosted by less than my closest friends I would not want to be the first to arrive. Thus, if the invite is from 7 to whenever, I arrive precisely at 7:30. Kind of a planned lateness.

My job requires that I meet with people at their houses or businesses in the DC metro area. The traffic here is so bad you have to leave yourself plenty of time to allow for unexpected delays. I am always there early and happily park on a side street and read a book until it is time to show up.

The strange thing is I don’t get in a snit when other people are late. I am quite happy in my own company reading the paper and shrug off people even when they completely blow off their appointment. I suppose its because my family stews in tardiness and I had to learn to be tolerant.

I tend to be five or ten minutes early. I don’t plan to be, but I do leave a little cushion time. Unfortunately, my friends are all late-arrivers.

One of the reasons I have avoided my “friend” is because she is always late–drastically so (that is, if she bothers to show up). Like I said, my other friends are late, but they’ve never been later than 20 minutes (average about 5 or 10) and they always apologize. She never did. She just sort of giggles about it. I think tardiness of that sort is just disrespectful.

Hmm, guess I’m a little late to this thread. Usually, the earlier something is in the day, the more likely I am to be late for it. This is why I’m late to work most days (by other people’s standards, not mine).

When I was younger I was annoyingly on time. As I’ve gotten older, I’m a little more lax about it. Add a wife whose idea of “be there at THIS time” is rather fluid, a couple kids, and poor planning and laziness, we’re never ever on time for anything ever. Getting the kids ready always takes longer then I think, there’s dirty diaper, one of the kids is napping, wife is napping, I’m watching TV.

Never on time. Ever. It annoys me, but I’m too lazy to rally do anything about. If I wasn’t so lazy I’d be absolutely unbearably anal about everything, but that takes way more effort than I’m willing to expend.

I’m very punctual. Being late causes me very intense acute stress, much more so than is normal. I blame it on a reaction to how my parents were always late picking me up from places when I was a kid.