promptness

Had a very interesting phone conversation with my husband an hour ago.

H: I will meet you at main reception at half three.
Me: I'll try.
H: What do you mean you'll try? You'll be there at half three.
Me: You're such a stickler for promptness. Why couldn't we adhere to Filipino time?
H: No, English time. Filipino time could mean anything.

Actually, Filipino time means the art of being late, give or take half to an hour or more. It tests one's patience when the show ( like concerts, galas, etc. or mundane events like a trek to Mount Patag in Silay) starts extremely behind allotted slot. But being away from home has its charms. For instance, Filipino time seems minimised in a lot of functions and being late is not exclusive to us Filipinos, based on basic handover kickoff at work. I'm very seldom late. The last time I was chronically tardy was the 0730 lecture time at university almost two decades ago.

I don't have a clue if Filipino time is still observed in the Philippines. The last dinner I attended we had to wait for others to make their grand entrances. It was a good thing text messages were in existence.