They Say Time is the Fire in Which We Burn

The Persistence of Memory (1931)
Salvador Dali (May 11, 1904 - January 23, 1989)
Museum of Modern Art, New York
Image obtained from http://www.wikipaintings.org/....

Punctuality and preparedness are very important to me.  They illustrate respect for both everyone involved and for the occasion, whatever it may be.

A premium example of this comes from my youth, when I attended Catholic Mass every week, and it was common to see people arrive after the readings had started and leave immediately after Communion.  It often left me with the thought "Why bother?"  In my entry dated March 3, I wrote about how there are situations wherein "it's the thought that counts;" however, that addressed geographic separation.  When someone attends Mass and is actually there, live and in-person, the late arrivals and early departures are distracting, and they draw attention to the individual and away from the celebration.

Elizabeth Tower, Palace of Westminster
Commonly known as "Big Ben"
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/....
Copyright Tim Graham/ Getty Images
No Copyright Infringement Intended

Now, before I lose non-Catholics or non-religious individuals, let me encourage anyone who fits within those categories to exchange the word "Mass" with "movie," "play," or similar concept.

Of course, we all run into unforeseen circumstances - traffic, inclement weather, accidents, emergencies, et cetera.  That happens to everyone every once in a while, and that is not finally the nature of my concern today.  There are people for whom lateness is pattern behavior, and in my opinion, it is a selfish and insensitive practice.

There is a flip side to this coin though....

Glockenspiel in New Ulm, Minnesota
http://lifeat55mph.blogspot.com/....
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Earlier today, I spoke with my Mom, who advised me that she was going to have to let me go so that she could go set up the bingo game in the community room at her apartment complex.  It was approaching 12:30 PM at the time, and the game was not scheduled to start until 1:30 - one full hour later.  My first reaction was to be somewhat incredulous - "An hour... to set up a bingo game?" 

Apparently, people like to get there early, so that they can pick out "their spot" and select their own regular cards.  My classmates used to have their own spots in the lunchroom when we were in grade school.  Although I usually went home for lunch, there were times when it was necessary for me to stay at school, and on those days, I really upset the apple cart.  How dare I sit in (someone)'s spot?

Additionally, given that there are a possible 552,446,474,061,128,648,601,600,000 cards, it boggles me to know that my Mom has to take an hour out of her time, just so that her neighbors can pick out their three favorite cards.  She advised me that everybody is just used to doing things this way.  My counter was two fold:  "The only reason that people continue this behavior is that everyone allows it to continue - what would happen if you showed up at 1:20?  If everybody wants to play bingo at 1:00, why don't you just say 1:00?"

Kassel Small Cuckoo Clock
http://www.grandfather-clocks-for-less.com/....
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My attempt to make any sense of this was as successful as squaring a circle.  In the end, it's not a big deal, of course, and it would be patently ridiculous of me to turn it into one, but the whole thing seems very silly to me.

My ex-wife was the type who would always be late because she would have to have her hair curled and her makeup "just so."  One time, we were getting together with my parents at 1:00 PM, and I told her that we were supposed to meet them at noon.  This happened to be the one time that she thought it prudent to arrive early.  We got there at 11:30 AM.  She was not amused.

Digital Alarm Clock
http://background-pictures.feedio.net/....
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On another occasion, I was helping set up a volunteer appreciation reception for the faith-based non-profit where I worked.  It was supposed to start at 4:00 PM, and a group of people arrived at 3:00 PM.  Not only did they want coffee, but they were shocked that we didn't have it ready for them - even though they had arrived an hour early.

That seems to be the way of things for me - too late or too early.  I could give a hundred other examples of both, but so could you, I am sure.

How do you handle your schedule?  Do you cut it close or wind up giving yourself too much time?  For social engagements, do you allow yourself time to have some social interaction beforehand, or to offer assistance to the host?  What is your experience when you have guests?  Do you ever challenge people on their lack of punctuality?  Please share your comments below.