Top 10 Wildest Excuses When We're Late for Work

Traffic, poor sleep, and bad weather are the three most common excuses for showing up late to work, according to a nationwide survey of employees and bosses. But what are the most outrageous reasons employees gave in 2011 for being tardy? Here are the top 10, selected by CareerBuilder.com as part of its annual survey:

1. Cat hiccups.
2. A lottery ticket that looked like a winner ... but wasn't.
3. The TODAY Show, which was just too darn distracting.
4. An angry roommate who snipped the employee's phone charger card, preventing the phone alarm from going off.
5. Commute time. The employee figured it would count toward work hours.

Check out five more preposterous explanations here. (More work stories.)