Stephen Mosher On The Clock

For 36 years I have been running a photography studio out of my home.  In the early days I was just taking photos of friends for fun.  Then one day it became a business.  Working from home is a wonderful thing but it has its’ drawbacks.   And this is not the only work I do from home.  I have spent some time as a personal trainer, teaching people in my home.  I am a sometime acting coach and sometimes I film people for their auditions.  I have a day job now but for a very long time I was solely a home worker.  And until I retire from photography on January 1^st I still am.  And would you like me tell you the one inalienable truth I have learned from all my years of working from home?

People who arrive early for their appointments have no manners.

Time Spiral

Are you going to the doctor?  They have a waiting room.  Are you meeting a friend for a meal or a coffee?  The restaurant will allow you to wait if you are early.  Are you going to a job interview?  They have a waiting room.  Are you going to an audition?  There is a holding space. 

Are you ringing somebody’s doorbell?   Are you early?  You’re rude.

Do you know what is happening inside their home when you ring the doorbell of someone’s house five minutes before they expect you?  They are brushing their teeth.   Do you know what is happening inside their home when you ring the doorbell of someone’s house ten minutes before they expect you?  They are sitting on the toilet.  Do you know what is happening inside their home when you ring the doorbell of someone’s house fifteen minutes before they expect you?  They are doing the dishes.  Do you know what is happening inside their home when you ring the doorbell of someone’s house twenty minutes before they expect you?  They are having sex.

And WHO the fuck shows up twenty minutes early for an appointment?!

Lots of people.

I have had people arrive as much as ONE HOUR early.  Those people, I sent to a Starbucks.  Once a client arrived for their shoot half an hour early and I was so caught off guard that I got so angry I punched the bathroom door and broke it.  I was calm when they walked in the door.  But make no mistake.  I was furious.  As a matter of fact, having these continual invasions of my privacy is one of the reasons I decided to retire from photography.  I could no longer tolerate the lack of etiquette and propriety by people who cannot abide by the simple rules of society laid down by Letitia Baldridge and Miss Manners.

So, friends, please consider what I have told you today the next time that you arrive at anyone’s home, be it for business or pleasure, even five minutes before  your appointed time and ask yourself how it felt the last time you were sitting on the toilet and were interrupted by the harsh blare of your doorbell.

Painful.