Time’s Up: Serial Latecomer Pushes Friend To Snap, Leaves Lunch Date Without A Word
Young people might not think that tardiness is a rude thing to do. When it comes to work, for example, Gen Z miss a quarter of their deadlines each week. Baby boomers, on the other hand, miss only 6% and Gen X 10%. People may have different definitions of what being late is, but lateness might cause trouble when it’s between friends.
This woman decided to teach her perpetually late friend a lesson. When he didn’t arrive 40 minutes after the set meeting time, she just up and left. She did, however, later start to wonder; was that a jerk move or was she right to not put up with his antics anymore?
A woman had enough of her friend always being late and just left when he didn’t show up on time for a lunch date
She didn’t notify him, so she later wondered if what she did was a jerk move
Image credits: Mitchel Lensink (not the actual photo)
Image source: danceofthefireys
There’s still no consensus on whether habitually late people can help being late
Image credits: Curated Lifestyle (not the actual photo)
There are two schools of thought when it comes to dealing with friends who are always late. One side says that the late person is always the jerk and disrespecting their friends. Others try to validate their experience and say the perpetually late just can’t help it.
Etiquette experts say that it’s disrespectful to treat others like their time and plans don’t matter. As the Golden Rules Gal Lisa Mirza Grotts told Bored Panda in a previous interview, “Punctuality is a courtesy that we extend to others and they extend to us. It’s the golden rule on steroids.”
The always late folks themselves sometimes blame time blindness. They just don’t perceive time like the rest of us do and can’t accurately judge how much time doing certain things will take. Dr. Michael Manos, a pediatric behavioral health specialist at the Cleveland Clinic, told the New York Post that it’s a real thing that has been researched. “Everybody has time blindness at times,” he said.
We think of being late as an annoying characteristic our friends have. But, in fact, tardiness might serve the chronically late people in a way. In 2019, researchers from Harvard found that those who are always late may live longer, as they have lower blood pressure and have less risk of developing heart disease.
Perhaps it’s us, serial worriers, who are wrong? We’ll probably never find out, as this issue is more a battle of opinions rather than an argument that can be won with facts. Maybe we all should try out being late? It might give our chronically late friends a taste of their own medicine and give us a few more years to live.
The chronically late and their friends can try meeting halfway to solve this annoying problem
Image credits: kevin laminto (not the actual photo)
There are things those who are always late can do to rectify their annoying bad habit. But friends of the habitually late folks also can take some steps so they’re less aggravated by their friends’ behavior.
The first suggestion for friends who are fed up with always waiting for their friends comes from cognitive behavioral therapy. Experts say that we shouldn’t take it personally when a friend doesn’t arrive on time and try to shift our perspective.
Psychologist Alex Stratyner, PhD told SELF that often it’s not about you. It’s about that person and what they are dealing with. Perhaps they’re dealing with a sick family member, maybe they have a medical condition, or they just come from a family that never prioritized punctuality.
Dr. Stratyner believes that the best strategy in dealing with someone who’s perpetually late is to honestly tell them. Don’t judge or reprimand them, but communicate how it makes you feel: hurt, disrespected, maybe even disappointed. When they do show up on time, encourage them; according to Dr. Stratyner, people are more motivated to change when they’re praised and not criticized.
Those who always arrive late to things can also do a few things to curb their bad habit. Psychotherapist Stephanie Sarkis suggests taking advantage of the technologies available to us: use alarms, reminders, and note apps. Sleep deprivation and a stressful mode of life can exacerbate time blindness, so be sure to take care of your physical well-being.
Many people said they would have done the same thing: “People [who] waste other people’s time are rude”
Others, however, say there’s more nuance, and that both friends could’ve communicated better: “Passive-aggressive isn’t cute”
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I have zero tolerance for chronically late people. And no, I don't care that you have kids or ADHD or whatever your excuse is. Your issues are YOURS to manage, not mine. If you refuse to manage them, that's not my problem.
I agree, "Child of the Stars." Putting a label on a personal issue doesn't mean it's now my problem to manage. It's still personally their problem. Giving grace means making a mistake because they struggle, not chronic carelessness.
Load More Replies...People saying she is a hypocrite because she didn't text him, but I disagree. She only matched her behaviour to his to show him what that feels like. It's not childish to do something like this if talking to them over the years has not made any difference. Also, the biggest difference in what she did is that she texted back straight away so he wasn't left waiting. She had already waited half an hour without a courtesy text before she left. If you set yourself a standard of behaviour and someone else shows you that they don't deem that necessary, it doesn't make you a hypocrite if you relax your standards with that one person. However, that other person would be a hypocrite if they then complained about it since they never lived up to that standard in the first place.
Good point about the immediate reply of his text. OP would have been well within her rights to wait 38 minutes to reply to help drive home the point.
Load More Replies...Chronically late people are showing you that their time is more important than yours. I choose to decide that my time is just as important so I leave and do not make plans with them again until we are on the same page. If it happens again, I'm done. I tolerated this behavior for way too many years. I'm choosing to stand up for me. :)
Being chronically late shows how entitled and disrespectful someone is. OP did the right thing by matching her friend's energy, why should she text him if he can't show her the same courtesy. I had a friend who was constantly late for years; during that time I refused to meet anywhere new because I knew I would be on my own for anywhere up to an hour and a half. She is the reason I always have a book/kindle in my handbag.
After rearranging my plans 3 times to accommodate my now-ex best friend, she called at the time we were supposed to be leaving to go hit some specialty shops an hour away. "OH, I had to do X & Y this morning and that put me behind so it'll be another hour or 2 before I get there." I told her that A: she could have told me sooner; and B: don't bother coming because the shops will be closed by the time we get there. She did that c**p all the time, but that was the final straw for me. I went by myself and had a good time, BTW. She cried about how mean I was on the Book of Faces and most of our mutual friends told her she was an inconsiderate idiot. That was my fault too, somehow.
I do not agree that leaving when being stood up equates to passive aggressive "punishment." I do think it's reasonable to at least ask if the late person is okay, and still coming, but it's not a requirement. Honestly if the person is chronically late though I'm not sure I would have made it beyond the second time.
Sometimes delays happen. If the bus is late or the person four cars ahead of you crashes and blocks the road there's really nothing you can do to influence or change that. There's also times when it's fine to be late without calling. Say I'm on my way to pick you up, realise I'll be five minutes late, try to call you to say so, but for whatever reason my phone didn't connect to my car. If I find somewhere to pull over, stop, get my phone out of my pocket, call you, put it away, wait for a gap in the traffic so I can get back on the road.. now I'm gonna be 12 minutes late instead of 5, so it's better to just keep going. Baring a serious problem half an hour is too much though. The commenters saying ESH or YTA forget this isn't a one off incident, OP isn't just responding to one single instance of being left sat there like the last turkey in Sainsbury's on christmas eve - this is the culmination of all the times wasting their day until he decides it's convenient to arrive.
5-ish minutes is the typical grace period of 'fashionably late'. That's "traffic was a little more then I expected late", or "I had to make a quick stop late". After 10 minutes it goes from acceptable variance to lateness and a person is obligated to inform others potentially waiting on them they're running late. Hopefully with an apology and quick arrival or at minimum an acceptable excuse along the lines of, "I was held up at work", or "I'm stuff in traffic".
Load More Replies...The husband was wrong to comment that the OP 'knew his tendency to be late' and should have texted him. That's enabling a habit that I think is both a lack of respect and toxic AF, and why should peeps have to put up with time-stealers? Sounds harsh, (most of us have prob experienced it), but their behaviour impacts us negatively.
Correct, and if we stop enabling the behavior, they’ll either stop being late or miss the opportunity of enjoying their meetings/dates. At some point, they will hopefully realize being late isn’t fashionable nor cute.
Load More Replies...I would have texted "I've waited for 30 minutes and am heading home. Hope you're okay."
"You should have texted him you were leaving." F**k that! Courtesy isn't owed to those who can't show it.
Especially since the dude never texted he was going to be late. Texting is the least he could have done.
Load More Replies...I realised I was going to be seriously late to meet somebody in a pub back in the 80's. I found a telephone box with a directory, rang the pub and asked them to pass on a message. If sending a text is too much for anybody then they have no right to complain when somebody else doesn't.
100%. Funnily enough, I had a text saying a friend would be visiting "In 10–15 minutes" (she lives around the corner, a 2-min walk). This was at 10.45, and now it's 13.46... I've learned not to put the kettle on or stop what I'm doing, as she does this every time, & sometimes she doesn't turn up at all. It's annoying, but I make sure on the days I've arranged to go out, and she messages me to pop around, I tell her I'm on my way out - even if it's a good few hours later before I actually need to leave.
Load More Replies...If he's consistently late for everything he does, then I'll buy the time blindness theory. But if he is able to turn up on time for meetings with his boss, or at the doctors office, or with his lawyer or accountant, or for theatre shows, then it proves his lateness is a choice, and it shows who he respects and who he doesn't.
IMHO, if you're a chronically late person, then you need to chronically learn to message people that matter to you that you are running late and the approximate time you'll be arriving.
Next time, instead of going to meet the chronically late person at the designated time, wait until they text you saying they have arrived. Now you can tell them you are almost there, then actually leave to meet up with them. That way they are never wasting your time, and they get a little taste of what it’s like having to wait on someone who is late.
That wouldn't work for me. If I'm meeting someone at a certain time, i can plan my day around that. Not knowing exactly when we're going to meet turns it into an anxiety-inducing "sit around and wait" situation because I don't know if I have enough time to finish a task before I need to go.
Load More Replies...My ex husband... Always preached "women are always late!". I proved his a** wrong!! I am the one that is ALWAYS on time or early! When we were together he'd be like " lets go see this movie! ". I'd get ready... Am ready to go... He hasn't even showered yet! " lets leave early, because I want to see the previews!". Yeah, whatever! Movie started example @5:45 pm). He's just then getting ready!! P****d me to off some damned bad!
I know a few people who are chronically late (one is medically diagnosed ADHD....so excusable to an extent) and the other?...let's just say she'd be late to her own funeral. We had invited her and her ex boyfriend over for dinner as she wanted to catch up and see the girls. We set the time fir 7pm. 7 rolls round and she's not here. Fine, hold off till 8 (as the girls were complaining they were hungry, so we fed them and they still weren't here. 9 and still no show, so we put the girls to bed and we ate. They finally show up at 10. 3 hours late and then bïtched that the food was cold and the kids were in bed. That was the last straw for us. Never did that again. If you're not gonna respect our time, our children's schedule and give us a courtesy call and say something came up (she gave no excuse, but joked how we know she likes to be "fashionably late")....nah girl! You done fücked it with me.
You are so selfish to not have a hot meal waiting for her and kept your kids up just to accommodate her disrespectful self. LOL jk!! What an entitled person. If I was going to be three hours late I would have just cancelled and profusely apologized and tried to make it up to you somehow. I don't blame you for cutting ties. I would have done the same and she doesn't deserve to be in your atmosphere.
Load More Replies...Did this and publicly shamed serial offender saying our time you're wasting and disrespected, especially in snow conditions. Boy now punctual after the pile on.
If someone is significantly late I text them to see if they are okay/still coming. At that point though I already feel a bit worried or disrespected. Whoever is late has the main responsibility to communicate.
I used to text one of my friends when she's (always) late, but after a couple of years, I stopped bothering, bc I'd get a reply several days/ weeks later with lame excuses.
Load More Replies...Texting a person who is always late is useless. They will always tell you. They’re on the way. They are almost there.They are five minutes out. You will sit there and wait longer while they are still late after telling you that. Five minutes means at least 30 minutes to an hour to those people. I have a life and I have stuff to do and your time is not more important than mine.
Totally agree. The problem with people like that is even if you reach out to them to find out where they are they're always "five minutes away" whereas in reality they probably haven't even left the house.
Load More Replies...45 minutes into a lunch isnt just late; thats basically a no-show. I often meet friends on lunch breaks from work, or while their kids are at an activity. None of us have an extra 45 minutes to kill.
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Load More Replies...NTA this person has proven over and over again that you and your time are not important. Good on you for standing up for yourself, give them maybe 10 min at most if there is no call then leave.
Punctuality is basic manners and shows that you respect the other people involved. Chronic tardiness is disrespect of the highest caliber and shows that the late person is as self centered as a gyroscope.
One of my biggest pet hates is people who are chronically late. Even worse is when they can't be bothered to let you know they're running late. Even worse than that is when they do eventually turn up they think it's hilarious and one big joke. It's disrespectful. It takes less than a minute to message the person who is waiting for you and it is basic common courtesy.
NTA. He's a grown man. He decided she wasn't worth a text or a call and that he could just show up when he felt like it, so she owes him nothing.
Agreed. If the shoe were on the other foot I wonder how he would have handled it.
Load More Replies...I had a friend who for all the years I've known her, she was late, like really late. Recently we planned to meet with another friend for dinner. Shortly into the planned time to meet I started ordering apps and wine for myself. An hour into our planned time no one had shown. I ate a great dinner by myself and left. Of course as soon as I hit the road I start to get calls. One friend was pissed. The late one was chill as hell. I'll never wait on folks again.
I refer to myself as the bus or the train, As in "the train leaves on time". And I leave on time. Some people get upset with me, and that becomes a self correcting problem, they either respect my time or bugger off, either way problem solved. Now sometimes I make dates with friends on the "ish". As in I'll meet you for lunch at 12:00 ish . Either of us could be a little late, but we both will probably order and start eating our food no long after 12.
I have ADHD and I personally hate being late to anything. Like it physically effects me and if I am going to be late, due to unforseen circumstances, I always call to let them know that I might be a little late, even if it's only 5 minutes. I used to hang out with a girl, who isn't a friend but more than an acquaintance, who was constantly late. One time she convinced me & another girl to throw her a impromptu birthday party, for later that day. Both of us being broke didn't help but we got a little cake, hotdogs and chips, as well as some decorations. This bytch shows up 4 hours, after the time she chose. 🤬 That was the last straw for me, clearly she only cares about herself. Ain't nobody got time for that! Pun intended
I don't have a cell phone. How are you going to text me? I won't put up with chronic lateness. When I was riding in competition, one woman was always late to the point where we once almost missed our start time. We started telling her we had to leave the barn an hour before we really did. That worked. Plan B was to go ahead and leave without her. We paid our entry fees, we trained, and being late has consequences.
Going out on a limb here, if your friend was a female I think your husband would be saying that was the right way to deal with it 🤷🏻♀️
That part about young people thinking being late isn't rude is using a false metric. Also, it is not applicable to the story, considering mellinials were not even mentioned. That metric is about deadlines and does not account for reasons, like being in a new job and not having the experience the older generations do in their chosen field.
I worked and often traveled with a woman who was chronically late. Our team was at the airport and boarding and she was nowhere to be seen. My boss said, you need to call her, talk to the desk and see about a new flight for her…. I said, absolutely No Way. She is a grown a**e woman, she has the itinerary and she can figure it out on her own - never missed another flight.
I have pretty much the full alphabet soup going on with me yet I am never late. I know I have issues and I take steps to address them because I am considerate of other people's time. I may have to set three alarms to remind me : one, time to get ready. Two, time to stop dawdling and really get ready, three time to leave. In this day and age of cell phones there is absolutely no excuse to treat others with such disregard.
I would only send a text just to have my conscious be fully clear and show that I, indeed, did my part, even if they don't deserve it. But I would not expect either a reasonable excuse or response, if any at all. Unfortunately I have a LOT of experience with people like this. I've heard the excuses, the pity party, the whole shebang. It all boils down to they think their time is more valuable than anyone else's. They are not your child. You should not have to be responsible for them. It's up to them to make sure they get somewhere on time. I certainly hope they don't have that same attitude when it comes to work.
As a person with a lengthy history of being late, my lateness was not a careless disrespect of others. In fact, I lost a good paying job due to repeated tardiness. I did not want to lose that job. After discussing my tendency to be late, my understanding is that due to abuse I began to procrastinate. That resulted in me being late. I told my family to not wait on me, to begin eating or whatever. I understand others are waiting whose time is valuable. I also know that I have been attending therapy to change being tardy.
Why give someone more respect than they deserve? For folks saying that both are wrong, I disagree. Waiting a decent time for an adult to show up and then leaving is completely understandable. If they are ALWAYS late, set boundaries after the 1st or 2nd time then leave. If they get upset because "that's just how they are", then they don't respect others.
Time blindness? Is that a disability now? Does it also impact someone's ability to text or call? Is that Courtesy Blindness. I have ADHD and I am not a great planner so I am sometimes 5 to 10 minutes late, rarely more. But I call or text and make extra effort to be on time because I respect other people's time.
Yeah definitely don't judge or reprimand them because no one ever taught them to respect other people's time. *eye roll*. 20 minutes is the max if they don't call or text. You should say something to them about it of course if you care about the friendship but I am terrible at that.
When, as a resident eons ago, I gave lectures to our interns, I would lock the door to the classroom at the start time. They learned fast. I had a cousin from a habitually inconsiderately late family stay with us and one Sunday, I announced our departure time for church only to see her scrambling to get dressed at the departure time. We left her chasing after the car, alone, at night for church and dinner. She waited the whole time outside the house as she was a scaredy cat who always believed all houses are haunted. Never did it again. I don’t think the OP has the duty to call or text her friend as they had already agreed on the time to meet.
When I would give lectures to our medical interns as a resident ) eons ago, I would lock the door to the classroom at the time set. We always work around a set schedule and in our case, patients lives matter so doctors need to be trained early to also respect other doctors’ and staff time. At home, I would announce our departure time, say 15 minutes before mass started. A cousin of mine —their entire family habitually inconsiderate late comers-only started getting dressed at our departure time. We left her alone in the house at night. She waited outside since she always thought all houses are haunted. She never did it again
I'm chronically early, it's almost compulsive behavior. I worry about being late so I arrive early to everything by 15-20 minutes. I don't expect on time people to adjust for me but this person is excessively nice for waiting 40 minutes. I was early so you being late is not compatible. I'll be gone 20 minutes after agreed upon time, i won't call if if you've done it more than once or twice consistently I won't make plans with you again. I understand unavoidable situations and wouldn't hold that against someone but if you're late just because you can't get your c**p together don't make plans.
Sorry. At the age of 80 I have become chronically late. It used to take me 30 seconds to put my shoes on. Now it take two minutes. I used to take no time to find my phone, now it takes 3 minutes. It used to take me 2 minutes to brush my teeth. Now it takes me two minutes to get to the sink, It used to take me 45 seconds to put my coat on. Now it takes me 45 seconds to find my keys, another 45 seconds to make sure I have tissues, another 45 seconds to make sure I have the garage clicker. I will be dead before my years of conditioning catches up with reality.
My ex BF (before cell phones) was ALWAYS late. I was young and attributed it to his job. One time, he wanted to take me shopping at a nice shop. After 45 minutes, I left. When he arrived he asked if I was there. They told him I waited so long then left for lunch. He was still late on other occasions though. Never learn
Love people as they are, but act accordingly. If you know your friend is always late, then tell them to be there 30 minutes before you actually want them to be or start showing up later yourself. You're only upsetting yourself, you should've already learned and adjusted your behavior by the third time, after communicating clearly the second time.
There are various ways she could have handled this, especially since she knows he's always late. I think the best way would have been to warn him advance that she would only wait for him for a set amount of time, and if he didn't show up during that time, she would leave.
I think you could basically say, "I'm afraid although I like spending time with you, I no longer have faith that you care to show up on time. I feel that you are disrespectful when you always show up late and I am left waiting. I'd rather not make plans with you since you show little regard for me or my time."
My former BFF was like this. We lived close by, whenever we needed to go somewhere I would go over to her house and waited for her to get ready. Every single time I asked what time i should be there. I always came at the set time and she wasn't ready. After months I started coming over later, and she was not yet ready to go, she only started to get ready when I got there. Long time ago I was a people pleaser and sadly being an asian, so I never brought up the issue with her and just boxed up my anger. Good thing I never had to deal with her anymore because we don't hang out anymore.
Sounds like the friendship has run its course. Neither of them really wants to see the other or they'd put a little more effort in.
Knowing that the other party is always late is why you send a reminder text as soon as you arrive to say that you are at the meeting place waiting for them. After 15 minutes, you indicate that you are going to be leaving and hope they are OK. Avoid meetings with this person in the future.
My late aunt was chronically late to our family gatherings. She was a social worker and often got caught up in work hence the lateness. One year it was very important that she be on time so we told her an earlier time. She actually showed up when we told her! She thought it was funny because she knew her tendency for lateness. She just helped us get things ready for the party! We had a great time with the extra visit alotted! The surprise party went off without a hitch including the magician my grandfather hired!
Your aunt sounds like someone who was legitimately late because of work and not because of selfishness. Glad you were able to enjoy her company. ❤️
Load More Replies...Modification of what she told them. Since you didn't call or text, I assumed that you forgot about our lunch, and made plans with somebody else.. I would have called you, but I did not want to interfere with your plans.
I would've told the friend ahead of time: "I can only wait 20 min. for you, so if you're not here by 12:20 PM, I'll have to leave." That way, he has a heads up.
NTA. He's simply bad mannered. 15 mins. should be enough "grace time", Even at a medical clinic, if the Dr. is more than 15 mins. behind schedule, admin. staff should notify patients on arrival. It's difficult in health care ( I was in that profession, but now retired ), as one or more patients may take longer than average, but at least admin. should advise others when they arrive for their scheduled appointments.
I had a friend like that, the meet up time for her it was the time she started getting ready, she didn't even made a secret out of it! So the only solution was to change time just for her, as in if we're meeting for lunch at 1pm, we told her it was meeting for lunch at 11:30
"So the only solution was to change time just for her" nope, totally not the only solution. You could stop inviting her, or stick to your plans & if she misses out on all/part of the activity, that's her problem. What makes more sense - for her to miss out due to her lack of planning, or inconvenience the whole group for one person?
Load More Replies...I think the woman is in the wrong and has put up with this behavior. I don't like being late it is upsetting to me . Therefore, I agree with the Havard study that people who don't stress out about being late have fewer physical and psychological stress issues. It is disrespectful, but she puts up with it. Therefore, she could have taken some alone time or me time catch up on some reading, take a timeout. Sometimes your friends are being a friend and stating you need a time out for yourself. As most people are constantly on the go by the clock. She sees the negative, and there is a positive.
I think you are the chronically late "friend", "Michelle." Just because OP put up with the behavior for so long doesn't make her in the wrong because she no longer chooses to do so. No one gets to dictate my time because they choose to be selfish and disrespectful. The way to get the stress out of your life in dealing with such people is not to enable them, but to cut ties with them. No one gets to decide for me when I need a time out when they are the one causing my stress. Bye, Felicia!!!
Load More Replies...I agree with the Harvard research and people who are always late have less stress issues, I always worried about being late and it is stressful therefore, I broke myself of this habit and don't worry as much. It is disrespectful, but things come up, traffic may be bad, it is not worth dying over to get somewhere, when you know the person is chronically late you either put up with their behavior , or move on, why would you make a lunch date with someone you know is always late, I blame the woman in this situation, you know your friend is always late, either show up a bit late and take the time for me time or don't bother making plans. It is her fault for tolerating it.Besides that in government jobs, being ahead of schedule can cost people their jobs for the next year, somethings I learned along the way. Government operates differently than private business, where being ahead of schedule saves a business money, government work can cost people their jobs, as the budget is use it or lose
Oh shut up. It's not about being late, it's about not telling people you're gonna be late. I have severe ADHD. I'm not a baby. Don't baby me.
Load More Replies...Perhaps you missed the part where she said this person is chronically late to everything. This is an established pattern of behavior. It is NOT her responsibility to cater to his faults, it is HIS responsibility to address. This is a guy who knows he's going to be late, and apparently isn't doing anything to address it, like sending a quick text to say he's running late. People need to be held accountable for their actions, and this is what she's done.
Load More Replies...This may be hard to believe, but marriages/relationships that have this mythical unicorn-horn thing called "trust" and "a past where no one has cheated" are fine with opposite-sex friendships. And this wasn't a "date"; are you 13? This was a "hey, haven't seen you in forever, let's catch up with each other on what is happening in our lives" lunch. OP didn't call it a "date". Only YOU are calling it a "date".
Load More Replies...It would be great if you can give the hints that the story isn't true. The reason I can believe it is that I had a friend who was almost always late, generally 30 minutes. She was willing to show up on time to work, but not for meeting friends.
Load More Replies...I have zero tolerance for chronically late people. And no, I don't care that you have kids or ADHD or whatever your excuse is. Your issues are YOURS to manage, not mine. If you refuse to manage them, that's not my problem.
I agree, "Child of the Stars." Putting a label on a personal issue doesn't mean it's now my problem to manage. It's still personally their problem. Giving grace means making a mistake because they struggle, not chronic carelessness.
Load More Replies...People saying she is a hypocrite because she didn't text him, but I disagree. She only matched her behaviour to his to show him what that feels like. It's not childish to do something like this if talking to them over the years has not made any difference. Also, the biggest difference in what she did is that she texted back straight away so he wasn't left waiting. She had already waited half an hour without a courtesy text before she left. If you set yourself a standard of behaviour and someone else shows you that they don't deem that necessary, it doesn't make you a hypocrite if you relax your standards with that one person. However, that other person would be a hypocrite if they then complained about it since they never lived up to that standard in the first place.
Good point about the immediate reply of his text. OP would have been well within her rights to wait 38 minutes to reply to help drive home the point.
Load More Replies...Chronically late people are showing you that their time is more important than yours. I choose to decide that my time is just as important so I leave and do not make plans with them again until we are on the same page. If it happens again, I'm done. I tolerated this behavior for way too many years. I'm choosing to stand up for me. :)
Being chronically late shows how entitled and disrespectful someone is. OP did the right thing by matching her friend's energy, why should she text him if he can't show her the same courtesy. I had a friend who was constantly late for years; during that time I refused to meet anywhere new because I knew I would be on my own for anywhere up to an hour and a half. She is the reason I always have a book/kindle in my handbag.
After rearranging my plans 3 times to accommodate my now-ex best friend, she called at the time we were supposed to be leaving to go hit some specialty shops an hour away. "OH, I had to do X & Y this morning and that put me behind so it'll be another hour or 2 before I get there." I told her that A: she could have told me sooner; and B: don't bother coming because the shops will be closed by the time we get there. She did that c**p all the time, but that was the final straw for me. I went by myself and had a good time, BTW. She cried about how mean I was on the Book of Faces and most of our mutual friends told her she was an inconsiderate idiot. That was my fault too, somehow.
I do not agree that leaving when being stood up equates to passive aggressive "punishment." I do think it's reasonable to at least ask if the late person is okay, and still coming, but it's not a requirement. Honestly if the person is chronically late though I'm not sure I would have made it beyond the second time.
Sometimes delays happen. If the bus is late or the person four cars ahead of you crashes and blocks the road there's really nothing you can do to influence or change that. There's also times when it's fine to be late without calling. Say I'm on my way to pick you up, realise I'll be five minutes late, try to call you to say so, but for whatever reason my phone didn't connect to my car. If I find somewhere to pull over, stop, get my phone out of my pocket, call you, put it away, wait for a gap in the traffic so I can get back on the road.. now I'm gonna be 12 minutes late instead of 5, so it's better to just keep going. Baring a serious problem half an hour is too much though. The commenters saying ESH or YTA forget this isn't a one off incident, OP isn't just responding to one single instance of being left sat there like the last turkey in Sainsbury's on christmas eve - this is the culmination of all the times wasting their day until he decides it's convenient to arrive.
5-ish minutes is the typical grace period of 'fashionably late'. That's "traffic was a little more then I expected late", or "I had to make a quick stop late". After 10 minutes it goes from acceptable variance to lateness and a person is obligated to inform others potentially waiting on them they're running late. Hopefully with an apology and quick arrival or at minimum an acceptable excuse along the lines of, "I was held up at work", or "I'm stuff in traffic".
Load More Replies...The husband was wrong to comment that the OP 'knew his tendency to be late' and should have texted him. That's enabling a habit that I think is both a lack of respect and toxic AF, and why should peeps have to put up with time-stealers? Sounds harsh, (most of us have prob experienced it), but their behaviour impacts us negatively.
Correct, and if we stop enabling the behavior, they’ll either stop being late or miss the opportunity of enjoying their meetings/dates. At some point, they will hopefully realize being late isn’t fashionable nor cute.
Load More Replies...I would have texted "I've waited for 30 minutes and am heading home. Hope you're okay."
"You should have texted him you were leaving." F**k that! Courtesy isn't owed to those who can't show it.
Especially since the dude never texted he was going to be late. Texting is the least he could have done.
Load More Replies...I realised I was going to be seriously late to meet somebody in a pub back in the 80's. I found a telephone box with a directory, rang the pub and asked them to pass on a message. If sending a text is too much for anybody then they have no right to complain when somebody else doesn't.
100%. Funnily enough, I had a text saying a friend would be visiting "In 10–15 minutes" (she lives around the corner, a 2-min walk). This was at 10.45, and now it's 13.46... I've learned not to put the kettle on or stop what I'm doing, as she does this every time, & sometimes she doesn't turn up at all. It's annoying, but I make sure on the days I've arranged to go out, and she messages me to pop around, I tell her I'm on my way out - even if it's a good few hours later before I actually need to leave.
Load More Replies...If he's consistently late for everything he does, then I'll buy the time blindness theory. But if he is able to turn up on time for meetings with his boss, or at the doctors office, or with his lawyer or accountant, or for theatre shows, then it proves his lateness is a choice, and it shows who he respects and who he doesn't.
IMHO, if you're a chronically late person, then you need to chronically learn to message people that matter to you that you are running late and the approximate time you'll be arriving.
Next time, instead of going to meet the chronically late person at the designated time, wait until they text you saying they have arrived. Now you can tell them you are almost there, then actually leave to meet up with them. That way they are never wasting your time, and they get a little taste of what it’s like having to wait on someone who is late.
That wouldn't work for me. If I'm meeting someone at a certain time, i can plan my day around that. Not knowing exactly when we're going to meet turns it into an anxiety-inducing "sit around and wait" situation because I don't know if I have enough time to finish a task before I need to go.
Load More Replies...My ex husband... Always preached "women are always late!". I proved his a** wrong!! I am the one that is ALWAYS on time or early! When we were together he'd be like " lets go see this movie! ". I'd get ready... Am ready to go... He hasn't even showered yet! " lets leave early, because I want to see the previews!". Yeah, whatever! Movie started example @5:45 pm). He's just then getting ready!! P****d me to off some damned bad!
I know a few people who are chronically late (one is medically diagnosed ADHD....so excusable to an extent) and the other?...let's just say she'd be late to her own funeral. We had invited her and her ex boyfriend over for dinner as she wanted to catch up and see the girls. We set the time fir 7pm. 7 rolls round and she's not here. Fine, hold off till 8 (as the girls were complaining they were hungry, so we fed them and they still weren't here. 9 and still no show, so we put the girls to bed and we ate. They finally show up at 10. 3 hours late and then bïtched that the food was cold and the kids were in bed. That was the last straw for us. Never did that again. If you're not gonna respect our time, our children's schedule and give us a courtesy call and say something came up (she gave no excuse, but joked how we know she likes to be "fashionably late")....nah girl! You done fücked it with me.
You are so selfish to not have a hot meal waiting for her and kept your kids up just to accommodate her disrespectful self. LOL jk!! What an entitled person. If I was going to be three hours late I would have just cancelled and profusely apologized and tried to make it up to you somehow. I don't blame you for cutting ties. I would have done the same and she doesn't deserve to be in your atmosphere.
Load More Replies...Did this and publicly shamed serial offender saying our time you're wasting and disrespected, especially in snow conditions. Boy now punctual after the pile on.
If someone is significantly late I text them to see if they are okay/still coming. At that point though I already feel a bit worried or disrespected. Whoever is late has the main responsibility to communicate.
I used to text one of my friends when she's (always) late, but after a couple of years, I stopped bothering, bc I'd get a reply several days/ weeks later with lame excuses.
Load More Replies...Texting a person who is always late is useless. They will always tell you. They’re on the way. They are almost there.They are five minutes out. You will sit there and wait longer while they are still late after telling you that. Five minutes means at least 30 minutes to an hour to those people. I have a life and I have stuff to do and your time is not more important than mine.
Totally agree. The problem with people like that is even if you reach out to them to find out where they are they're always "five minutes away" whereas in reality they probably haven't even left the house.
Load More Replies...45 minutes into a lunch isnt just late; thats basically a no-show. I often meet friends on lunch breaks from work, or while their kids are at an activity. None of us have an extra 45 minutes to kill.
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Load More Replies...NTA this person has proven over and over again that you and your time are not important. Good on you for standing up for yourself, give them maybe 10 min at most if there is no call then leave.
Punctuality is basic manners and shows that you respect the other people involved. Chronic tardiness is disrespect of the highest caliber and shows that the late person is as self centered as a gyroscope.
One of my biggest pet hates is people who are chronically late. Even worse is when they can't be bothered to let you know they're running late. Even worse than that is when they do eventually turn up they think it's hilarious and one big joke. It's disrespectful. It takes less than a minute to message the person who is waiting for you and it is basic common courtesy.
NTA. He's a grown man. He decided she wasn't worth a text or a call and that he could just show up when he felt like it, so she owes him nothing.
Agreed. If the shoe were on the other foot I wonder how he would have handled it.
Load More Replies...I had a friend who for all the years I've known her, she was late, like really late. Recently we planned to meet with another friend for dinner. Shortly into the planned time to meet I started ordering apps and wine for myself. An hour into our planned time no one had shown. I ate a great dinner by myself and left. Of course as soon as I hit the road I start to get calls. One friend was pissed. The late one was chill as hell. I'll never wait on folks again.
I refer to myself as the bus or the train, As in "the train leaves on time". And I leave on time. Some people get upset with me, and that becomes a self correcting problem, they either respect my time or bugger off, either way problem solved. Now sometimes I make dates with friends on the "ish". As in I'll meet you for lunch at 12:00 ish . Either of us could be a little late, but we both will probably order and start eating our food no long after 12.
I have ADHD and I personally hate being late to anything. Like it physically effects me and if I am going to be late, due to unforseen circumstances, I always call to let them know that I might be a little late, even if it's only 5 minutes. I used to hang out with a girl, who isn't a friend but more than an acquaintance, who was constantly late. One time she convinced me & another girl to throw her a impromptu birthday party, for later that day. Both of us being broke didn't help but we got a little cake, hotdogs and chips, as well as some decorations. This bytch shows up 4 hours, after the time she chose. 🤬 That was the last straw for me, clearly she only cares about herself. Ain't nobody got time for that! Pun intended
I don't have a cell phone. How are you going to text me? I won't put up with chronic lateness. When I was riding in competition, one woman was always late to the point where we once almost missed our start time. We started telling her we had to leave the barn an hour before we really did. That worked. Plan B was to go ahead and leave without her. We paid our entry fees, we trained, and being late has consequences.
Going out on a limb here, if your friend was a female I think your husband would be saying that was the right way to deal with it 🤷🏻♀️
That part about young people thinking being late isn't rude is using a false metric. Also, it is not applicable to the story, considering mellinials were not even mentioned. That metric is about deadlines and does not account for reasons, like being in a new job and not having the experience the older generations do in their chosen field.
I worked and often traveled with a woman who was chronically late. Our team was at the airport and boarding and she was nowhere to be seen. My boss said, you need to call her, talk to the desk and see about a new flight for her…. I said, absolutely No Way. She is a grown a**e woman, she has the itinerary and she can figure it out on her own - never missed another flight.
I have pretty much the full alphabet soup going on with me yet I am never late. I know I have issues and I take steps to address them because I am considerate of other people's time. I may have to set three alarms to remind me : one, time to get ready. Two, time to stop dawdling and really get ready, three time to leave. In this day and age of cell phones there is absolutely no excuse to treat others with such disregard.
I would only send a text just to have my conscious be fully clear and show that I, indeed, did my part, even if they don't deserve it. But I would not expect either a reasonable excuse or response, if any at all. Unfortunately I have a LOT of experience with people like this. I've heard the excuses, the pity party, the whole shebang. It all boils down to they think their time is more valuable than anyone else's. They are not your child. You should not have to be responsible for them. It's up to them to make sure they get somewhere on time. I certainly hope they don't have that same attitude when it comes to work.
As a person with a lengthy history of being late, my lateness was not a careless disrespect of others. In fact, I lost a good paying job due to repeated tardiness. I did not want to lose that job. After discussing my tendency to be late, my understanding is that due to abuse I began to procrastinate. That resulted in me being late. I told my family to not wait on me, to begin eating or whatever. I understand others are waiting whose time is valuable. I also know that I have been attending therapy to change being tardy.
Why give someone more respect than they deserve? For folks saying that both are wrong, I disagree. Waiting a decent time for an adult to show up and then leaving is completely understandable. If they are ALWAYS late, set boundaries after the 1st or 2nd time then leave. If they get upset because "that's just how they are", then they don't respect others.
Time blindness? Is that a disability now? Does it also impact someone's ability to text or call? Is that Courtesy Blindness. I have ADHD and I am not a great planner so I am sometimes 5 to 10 minutes late, rarely more. But I call or text and make extra effort to be on time because I respect other people's time.
Yeah definitely don't judge or reprimand them because no one ever taught them to respect other people's time. *eye roll*. 20 minutes is the max if they don't call or text. You should say something to them about it of course if you care about the friendship but I am terrible at that.
When, as a resident eons ago, I gave lectures to our interns, I would lock the door to the classroom at the start time. They learned fast. I had a cousin from a habitually inconsiderately late family stay with us and one Sunday, I announced our departure time for church only to see her scrambling to get dressed at the departure time. We left her chasing after the car, alone, at night for church and dinner. She waited the whole time outside the house as she was a scaredy cat who always believed all houses are haunted. Never did it again. I don’t think the OP has the duty to call or text her friend as they had already agreed on the time to meet.
When I would give lectures to our medical interns as a resident ) eons ago, I would lock the door to the classroom at the time set. We always work around a set schedule and in our case, patients lives matter so doctors need to be trained early to also respect other doctors’ and staff time. At home, I would announce our departure time, say 15 minutes before mass started. A cousin of mine —their entire family habitually inconsiderate late comers-only started getting dressed at our departure time. We left her alone in the house at night. She waited outside since she always thought all houses are haunted. She never did it again
I'm chronically early, it's almost compulsive behavior. I worry about being late so I arrive early to everything by 15-20 minutes. I don't expect on time people to adjust for me but this person is excessively nice for waiting 40 minutes. I was early so you being late is not compatible. I'll be gone 20 minutes after agreed upon time, i won't call if if you've done it more than once or twice consistently I won't make plans with you again. I understand unavoidable situations and wouldn't hold that against someone but if you're late just because you can't get your c**p together don't make plans.
Sorry. At the age of 80 I have become chronically late. It used to take me 30 seconds to put my shoes on. Now it take two minutes. I used to take no time to find my phone, now it takes 3 minutes. It used to take me 2 minutes to brush my teeth. Now it takes me two minutes to get to the sink, It used to take me 45 seconds to put my coat on. Now it takes me 45 seconds to find my keys, another 45 seconds to make sure I have tissues, another 45 seconds to make sure I have the garage clicker. I will be dead before my years of conditioning catches up with reality.
My ex BF (before cell phones) was ALWAYS late. I was young and attributed it to his job. One time, he wanted to take me shopping at a nice shop. After 45 minutes, I left. When he arrived he asked if I was there. They told him I waited so long then left for lunch. He was still late on other occasions though. Never learn
Love people as they are, but act accordingly. If you know your friend is always late, then tell them to be there 30 minutes before you actually want them to be or start showing up later yourself. You're only upsetting yourself, you should've already learned and adjusted your behavior by the third time, after communicating clearly the second time.
There are various ways she could have handled this, especially since she knows he's always late. I think the best way would have been to warn him advance that she would only wait for him for a set amount of time, and if he didn't show up during that time, she would leave.
I think you could basically say, "I'm afraid although I like spending time with you, I no longer have faith that you care to show up on time. I feel that you are disrespectful when you always show up late and I am left waiting. I'd rather not make plans with you since you show little regard for me or my time."
My former BFF was like this. We lived close by, whenever we needed to go somewhere I would go over to her house and waited for her to get ready. Every single time I asked what time i should be there. I always came at the set time and she wasn't ready. After months I started coming over later, and she was not yet ready to go, she only started to get ready when I got there. Long time ago I was a people pleaser and sadly being an asian, so I never brought up the issue with her and just boxed up my anger. Good thing I never had to deal with her anymore because we don't hang out anymore.
Sounds like the friendship has run its course. Neither of them really wants to see the other or they'd put a little more effort in.
Knowing that the other party is always late is why you send a reminder text as soon as you arrive to say that you are at the meeting place waiting for them. After 15 minutes, you indicate that you are going to be leaving and hope they are OK. Avoid meetings with this person in the future.
My late aunt was chronically late to our family gatherings. She was a social worker and often got caught up in work hence the lateness. One year it was very important that she be on time so we told her an earlier time. She actually showed up when we told her! She thought it was funny because she knew her tendency for lateness. She just helped us get things ready for the party! We had a great time with the extra visit alotted! The surprise party went off without a hitch including the magician my grandfather hired!
Your aunt sounds like someone who was legitimately late because of work and not because of selfishness. Glad you were able to enjoy her company. ❤️
Load More Replies...Modification of what she told them. Since you didn't call or text, I assumed that you forgot about our lunch, and made plans with somebody else.. I would have called you, but I did not want to interfere with your plans.
I would've told the friend ahead of time: "I can only wait 20 min. for you, so if you're not here by 12:20 PM, I'll have to leave." That way, he has a heads up.
NTA. He's simply bad mannered. 15 mins. should be enough "grace time", Even at a medical clinic, if the Dr. is more than 15 mins. behind schedule, admin. staff should notify patients on arrival. It's difficult in health care ( I was in that profession, but now retired ), as one or more patients may take longer than average, but at least admin. should advise others when they arrive for their scheduled appointments.
I had a friend like that, the meet up time for her it was the time she started getting ready, she didn't even made a secret out of it! So the only solution was to change time just for her, as in if we're meeting for lunch at 1pm, we told her it was meeting for lunch at 11:30
"So the only solution was to change time just for her" nope, totally not the only solution. You could stop inviting her, or stick to your plans & if she misses out on all/part of the activity, that's her problem. What makes more sense - for her to miss out due to her lack of planning, or inconvenience the whole group for one person?
Load More Replies...I think the woman is in the wrong and has put up with this behavior. I don't like being late it is upsetting to me . Therefore, I agree with the Havard study that people who don't stress out about being late have fewer physical and psychological stress issues. It is disrespectful, but she puts up with it. Therefore, she could have taken some alone time or me time catch up on some reading, take a timeout. Sometimes your friends are being a friend and stating you need a time out for yourself. As most people are constantly on the go by the clock. She sees the negative, and there is a positive.
I think you are the chronically late "friend", "Michelle." Just because OP put up with the behavior for so long doesn't make her in the wrong because she no longer chooses to do so. No one gets to dictate my time because they choose to be selfish and disrespectful. The way to get the stress out of your life in dealing with such people is not to enable them, but to cut ties with them. No one gets to decide for me when I need a time out when they are the one causing my stress. Bye, Felicia!!!
Load More Replies...I agree with the Harvard research and people who are always late have less stress issues, I always worried about being late and it is stressful therefore, I broke myself of this habit and don't worry as much. It is disrespectful, but things come up, traffic may be bad, it is not worth dying over to get somewhere, when you know the person is chronically late you either put up with their behavior , or move on, why would you make a lunch date with someone you know is always late, I blame the woman in this situation, you know your friend is always late, either show up a bit late and take the time for me time or don't bother making plans. It is her fault for tolerating it.Besides that in government jobs, being ahead of schedule can cost people their jobs for the next year, somethings I learned along the way. Government operates differently than private business, where being ahead of schedule saves a business money, government work can cost people their jobs, as the budget is use it or lose
Oh shut up. It's not about being late, it's about not telling people you're gonna be late. I have severe ADHD. I'm not a baby. Don't baby me.
Load More Replies...Perhaps you missed the part where she said this person is chronically late to everything. This is an established pattern of behavior. It is NOT her responsibility to cater to his faults, it is HIS responsibility to address. This is a guy who knows he's going to be late, and apparently isn't doing anything to address it, like sending a quick text to say he's running late. People need to be held accountable for their actions, and this is what she's done.
Load More Replies...This may be hard to believe, but marriages/relationships that have this mythical unicorn-horn thing called "trust" and "a past where no one has cheated" are fine with opposite-sex friendships. And this wasn't a "date"; are you 13? This was a "hey, haven't seen you in forever, let's catch up with each other on what is happening in our lives" lunch. OP didn't call it a "date". Only YOU are calling it a "date".
Load More Replies...It would be great if you can give the hints that the story isn't true. The reason I can believe it is that I had a friend who was almost always late, generally 30 minutes. She was willing to show up on time to work, but not for meeting friends.
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