What is the most unbelievable-yet-true excuse you have ever had for being late?
It’s not an excuse used by me but keep reading as I was party to probably the strangest excuse ever heard.
I used to work at Kodak in Harrow, nth London. It was a massive production site producing photographic film and paper. I was a team leader on a machine called track four, that produced graphics arts film for industry, a sprawling machine that went through three buildings, went underground and then up through seven stories before being collected about 1500 metres away from where the process started. It was a massive piece of equipment.
Part of my responsibilities was looking after a shift team of around eight men, ensuring the swift and efficient running and maintenance of this machine and to achieve excellent up time results.
Occasionally people were late, it just happens. But one shift this guy was about 2 hrs late and he was called into the office to discuss his lateness. He was a great guy but always had some spectacular excuse to offer.
This evening apparently, his daughter’s hamster had escaped its cage and disappeared under a floorboard. Its escape meant some floorboards had to be lifted to recover the escapee, and whilst doing so the rescuer (namely the chap sitting in the office beside me) had to wedge himself between the floorboards and a central heating radiator. He then got stuck. The central heating then turned on and he then apparently burned his arse.
His wife rescued him before he roasted like a piece of prime silverside and then he was able to make his way to work. The hamster had succeeded in its escape bid and is now living in Brazil for all that I know.
So whilst explaining his misdemeanour to me, he seemed determined to show me evidence that I politely declined, however he was determined and in front of me in my office he dropped his trousers exposing his now rosey red cheek. And as if by magic at that moment another member of staff knocked and entered the office to see me gazing at the full moon that had been exposed to me as evidence. He left very quickly.
But I knew that this incident would now be around the team quicker than a greyhound around a race track.
Later that evening the name “Doctor Dave” was being used around the team. And it stuck for the next four years until the company closed.
Just a moment in time that makes me smile.
Have a lovely day.
Foxes Den 