That is a freak flat, I've never had that happen in over 50 years of riding including when I was a kid! Nothing would have protected you from that. The dollar bill thing works so does a candy bar wrapper, or you could buy a Park Tire Boot that is basically a patch for the tire that is applied to the inside; it's a lot sturdier then a dollar bill or a wrapper.

If commuting by bike is going to be your mode of transportation to work then you need to be prepared. I commute to work and I carry a spare ultralight racing tube (left in it's box to protect it), a spare ultralight folding racing tire (these tires are very thin and narrow thus will fit into my saddle bag), 6 Park glueless (you can use glue if you prefer they both work the same but glueless is faster) patches, the Park tire Boot, a Park MTB3 mini tool (or a reasonable other mini tool), tire irons, and a mini folding pliers. This stuff will enable you to fix most things that go bad on a commute which is mostly tire related, so your not late to work. You should also consider carrying spare batteries for your flashers in case a battery dies so you not left being invisible in the dark.