Things I Hate About Being Late

This topic right here, it is slyly the story of my life.  I think a lot of people (especially black people) can relate to this. I have racked my brain for a starting point or a particular event that has brought about about such a lax attitude to punctuality and unfortunately I can’t think of one.

This post was inspired by this video I watched on YouTube. I’ve linked it below ⬇

So in no particular order, here are some of the things I hate about being late;

1. Having to prepare a credible argument/excuse for why you are late – this is figured out while still on the way to the destination. Excuses may range from oversleeping, to missing the bus, traffic on the way or another valid excuse.

2. Missing the beginning of the event – especially when it’s an event you have been looking forward to. For me this used to be the praise and worship part of the Sunday church service at my church at university. I LOVE praise and worship and hated missing it (obviously not enough though or I would have been earlier)

3. Sprinting/power walking to catch the train or other mode of transport to get to where you are trying to be – you give it your all to catch the said mode of transport, especially the train/bus that will help you scrap “on time”. If you miss it, there is no hope for even scraping on time.

4. Trying to cram the morning routine into 5/10 minutes – this tends to happen after oversleeping or when the alarm doesn’t go off. The morning routine which would normally take 30/45 minutes is crammed into 5/10 minutes. This is not an easy thing to do and involves aspects of the routine being omitted or being done on the way to the destination.

5. Feeling bad as you give yourself a telling off for being late AGAIN – you always scold yourself that it will not repeat itself again. Until the next time….

6. The knowing stares when you have to walk into an event late – especially when everyone else was on time. In these situations, it is advisable to perch QUIETLY at the back of the room to remain as inconspicuous as possible.

7. Having notoriety among friends for being repeatedly late 

9. Feeling a great sense of achievement when you FINALLY get to a place early or on time – it is possible. Takes a lot of planning but it is definitely possible.

Can you think of any more? Share them below

Until next time 

Memoirs Of A Yoruba Girl 

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What is African Time?

Hi everyone, hope this post meets you well.

Wanted to touch on a very sensitive and controversial issue. Africans alike know it as African time, Caribbeans know it as Black man time (I believe) and I’ve heard Indians refer to it as Indian time. All the terms are a nice way to refer to the fact the we as Africans and Black people in general are intentionally late for events and have a overly relaxed attitude to punctuality.

It’s such a legitimate term it has its own dedicated Wikipedia page! “African time (or Africa time) is the perceived cultural tendency, in most parts of Africa, toward a more relaxed attitude to time. This is sometimes used in a pejorative sense, about tardiness in appointments, meetings and events. This also includes the more leisurely, relaxed, and less rigorously-scheduled lifestyle found in African countries, especially as opposed to the more clock-bound pace of daily life in Western countries. As such, it is similar to time orientations in some other non-Western culture regions”. (http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/African_time)

The first place I noticed this was at African weddings and big scale functions. The invitation will state a certain time and nobody gets there at the stated time, even the celebrants! For example, a 50th birthday party is scheduled to start at 6pm. Guests may not properly begin to arrive until 7:30pm. The celebrant may be fashionably late and arrive at 8pm or 8:30pm.

Unfortunately what can happen is this “African time” mentality infiltrates all other areas of your life. Which translates to you just scraping being on time to work, school, college, university, church or interviews. It can mean you miss trains and buses you could have easily otherwise caught. It translates to you arriving late to parties and potentially your own wedding!

I think the conclusion of the matter is discipline! (Admittedly I’m still working on this myself!)

Until Next Time
Memoirs Of A Yoruba Girl
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