I work nights at the rock climbing gym until 9:00, or whenever people leave (which is ALWAYS later). I'm usually able to get out by 9:30, which puts me at home at least before 10:00, but then I have to take anti-insomnia meds and they don't kick in for almost an hour... So all in all, it's always a late night for me. (Now that I am oooold, I mean. In college, bed-time was 2 am and an all-nighter was nothing.)
Part of my job at the gym is to certify people to belay on the rock wall, and for members I co-teach an hour-and-a-half class once a month, with the provision that people must come back to practice until they've got it down (i.e. until I'd let them belay me) before I will actually certify them. For actual climbers who already know what they're doing, I just have them come in for an open climb to check them out.
So then it's 9:15 tonight, the regulars are all leaving early for once, and some guy walks in hoping to be certified RIGHT NOW because he can never make it to any of the open climbs. I'm exhausted and slightly annoyed, but I dutifully snag one of the regulars before she can get out of her harness and have her climb a couple times for me so I can watch this guy belay.
Eventually he checks out okay, though it somehow took him FOREVER just to put on a harness and get organized and before long my regular was equally annoyed and just wanted to get out of there. Then it's past 9:40 and I just need to get him to sign the liability waiver and certification checklist and tracking sheet and contact information and rules and guidelines... (We have, admittedly, a lot of forms to fill out.)
Except I didn't have any more of the liability waivers. Without which I couldn't actually, formally, certify him. So he'll have to come back another time, and I stayed late for no reason.
BLEARHGLARGHLARGH
+10 points for extra clock-hours, -10 points for fewer sleep-hours, -50 points for using the last of the waivers without noticing...
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