Late clearances
Hi CIM,
From your description, I think I know where the airfield is. I think the controllers there do a wonderful job integrating VFR and IFR training, together with transiting traffic getting a FIS, visiting traffic and dealing with fixed wing props, jets and helicopters. All without radar. On some days, I reckon the controller's load is verging on the ridiculous. He/she still stays remarkably calm. You should hear the controllers at Fort Lauderdale Executive on a busy day, mixing Lears with 152's and running left and right hand circuits simultaneously, and sometimes using two runways. They've got the benefit of radar, but they still sometimes blow a fuse.
I reckon that you were the victim of a simple human error, and you did precisely the right thing. A nuisance, but safe. Well done. Don't bother ATC with a complaint or a question. Chalk it up to experience.
FTD