Hoist by my own petard

For years I have set my alarm clock fast. How much it is fast by has increased from about seven to fifteen minutes over the last few years, and this is done to make sure I get out of bed in time when I am incoherently not awake and can only recognise the fact that I'm going to be late. My alarm clock is set to 5:53 according to the time on the clock. I am also very fond of the snooze button.

If I'm not up by a certain time, I can't get to the gym in the morning. I just can't make the bus. And if I'm not up by about 6.30am, I don't get into the shower before maudlinrose, who, if someone is not already in there, gets in at 6.40am (I don't usually make it out by 6.40am - it's usually 6.45am, but she has more time than I do in the morning before work), and that means I have to race against the clock to shower, dress, have breakfast and get to work on time.

The other part is that if I don't get to bed before midnight, I don't tend to get to the gym in the morning, because I don't get up in time.

Which is why this morning when the clock said _:53 and the alarm went off and I knew that I didn't get to sleep until well after midnight, I panicked, dived into the shower, got dressed (was vaguely surprised that maudlinrose wasn't getting up, but maybe she was sick), heard the bread beep and thought that tamarillow had set the timer wrong, took the bread out and noticed one of the kitchen clocks said 5:58.

Hence, this post because it is 6.40am, I am relatively awake, clean, dressed and ready to go to work.