The other evening, right as my workday was wrapping up, my wife Lena gave me a ring. She was over at her brother James's place and was pondering over our dinner plans. After a brief chat, we all agreed to meet at a quaint restaurant close by. The place usually has a slight wait, so timing was key. Lena and James were roughly ten minutes away, whereas I was a bit farther, about fifteen minutes out. They said they'd head out immediately, so I hustled to get there on time.

Upon arriving, I was surprised to see from my parking spot that they hadn't shown up yet. Curious and a bit annoyed, I dialed Lena to check their whereabouts, only to discover they hadn't left their initial spot yet! Choosing to wait in my truck, they finally appeared after an additional fifteen minutes. Once reunited, I walked in to put our names down, but they showed frustration towards me for not doing it earlier. They argued that I should have anticipated and spared us all from waiting.

This isn't a rare incident; it's a recurring theme with them. They tend to delay their arrival intentionally, sidestepping any initial hassle like setting up or, in this case, signing in and enduring the wait. Fed up with this tactic, I decided to stand my ground this time. Knowing that they had delayed their departure until I almost reached, and after confirming Lena had indeed been tracking my location, I opted not to register us until they were present, insisting on sharing the burden of waiting.

When confronted in the parking lot, they didn't originally request me to check us in, yet were irritated when they had to wait, presumably expecting me to have handled it. As someone who values punctuality, their habitual tardiness to dodge wait times grates on me.

They even labeled me inconsiderate for not putting our names down beforehand, despite my intention to instill a bit of equality in waiting. Was it wrong for me to want everyone to experience the wait this time, or was I justified in my actions to bring some balance?

Imagine this scenario playing out on a popular reality TV show. Viewers would likely be split, with some applauding my stand against habitual tardiness, while others might criticize me for creating unnecessary tension. Social media would buzz with opinions, memes, and possibly even polls siding with either me or my in-laws, turning a simple dinner plan into a highly debated drama.

From this experience, how do you feel about people intentionally arriving late?

Is it reasonable to delay party sign-in for latecomers?