What crazy, fake-sounding excuse to not come into work turned out to be true.

I once came too late to my first day of work at my new employer because my train took a wrong

turn and ended up in a totally different city. Try explaining that. Worked at a summer camp as a

manager. I had to call because one of our employees didn't show up. Former Marine. Good guy. Gave him a call on the home phone. No answer. Called on his cell phone. I heard, Hey, sorry, I'm in the middle of something. Then there are the sound of shots and glass shattering. I said, oh, um, okay, call you later. And he said, yeah, all right.

And then I heard an automatic firing. See you later.

Director asked if he was going to come in today or tomorrow, and I said, I didn't ask. I wasn't

going to distract him anymore. He was okay. It turns out some people across the street had started

blasting each other.

Some stray shots went through the window and wall while his family was eating breakfast,

so he simply returned fire.

Saddest one was when a guy called in and said he couldn't make it in because his wife just

lost their twins, like two weeks before the due date.

I remember him saying it pretty casually

and that he'd call in later about tomorrow's shift. I was just stunned. I couldn't believe it.

I told him to go spend some time with his wife, and I was taking him off the schedule for two weeks.

He broke down after that and just started crying uncontrollably. I gave him the number to one of

those counselling services that's offered

through our company, but man, I still remember how absolutely broken he was. He was never the same

when he came back, too. Still a great employee, but definitely much more of a solemn person after that.

My weirdest one? A girl called me from an unknown number, like different digits than what I'm used to seeing, but it's my work phone, so I figure it's legit. Hey, Bass, won't be able to make it into work tomorrow, possibly for the next few days. Well, how come? A volcano erupted nearby and my flight has been grounded. What? Seriously? Yeah, turn on the news. Well, okay then, call me when you get back.

Ah yes, the narrator remembers that particular hold-up to basically all of the world's flights

in 2010, Aya Fiala Yurkel.

...