James bolted awake, startled by the sound of his alarm clock. After blearily rubbing the sleep from eyes, he preceded to stretch leisurely in his bed. He made no movement to get up. James knew he had plenty of time to relax. He always set his alarm clock thirty minutes early so he could doze for a while before finally getting out of bed. He enjoyed this time. He knew it was the only time during the day in which he wouldn’t be rushing from place to place, typing at his computer, or composing a report.

        The alarm clock suddenly cut off without being touched. It couldn’t be a power outage; his had left his bedside lamp was on from his late night doing paperwork. James thought that this was quite odd, for the alarm should only shut itself off an hour after it started ringing. James glanced at his alarm clock; only to be astonished by what he saw. The clock read 8:30 a.m. He was going to be late for work!

        James jumped out of bed, stubbed his toe on his bedside table in the process, and grabbed the first outfit that he saw in his closet. Not bothering to brush his teeth or grab his customary cup of coffee, he rushed out of the door, almost forgetting to lock it in the process. He had a small bit of luck; the bus that could take him to his work was lined up on the curve next to his apartment building. He hopped on it, managing to stub his toe once again. After a few muttered curses, he gave the driver his fare and moved to sit in a nice, quiet seat in the back of the bus. James tried to relax on his tranquil bus ride, but all he could think was Go faster, go faster! He didn’t want to be late for work.