Would You Tell off a Stranger in public?...
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My colleagues son has conditions and he's exempt from wearing a mask. Shops staff knows him and are ok with it. BUT. He got told off by other customers for not wearing one...
Today I went to wilkos and there was only one till open. The queue started snaking any each way. An older guy behind me started shouting at teenager that he pushed in when the guy said that security staff told him to queue that way... eventually they opened more tills and the queues dispersed...
Would you tell off a stranger in public? I wouldn't. Quite often I'll let someone to go in front of me if they got only few items... I can wait. And I wouldn't want to make another person feel bad.
My husband once told a woman off because she complained at how long it took me to move the pram and trolley so she could get down the aisle in the supermarket. We had just come back from the cardiologist, so were still a bit emotional and she was really rude to me, swore at me, so my husband told her to have some patience and she mumbled about women with prams thinking they own the place. She was really rude and horrible and my husband wasn't impressed, he told her not to speak to me like that and waiting an extra 30 seconds wouldn't kill her. He would never have said anything to her if she hadn't been so horrible.
MrsCraig bless you. And well done for your hubby
that's the thing you don't know what someone's going through...and sometimes we get stressed out and do all sorts of silly things. Its stressful as it is to be out and about with baby.. I was always panicking thinking- have I locked the door? Have i got my keys on me? My purse? Everything I need for the baby? Few times I even walked back home from quite far to make sure I locked the door
also on the bus theres only 2-3 prams tops so sometimes I would have to wait for next bus or try to fumble with pushchair to put it down.. but regardless sometimes I think people are out of order.
jurgita0712 I am always double checking I have everything and I have gotten out the house, gone to where we are going and remembered I've forgotten something like his water bottle!
I always try to be nice to people when I'm out as like you say, you don't know what someone is going through and how stressed they might be.
Getting the bus with his pram is a nightmare, I avoid it unless absolutely necessary!
MrsCraig the joys of motherhood or all the times terrible explosions happened etc or 5min after you received the food theres floods of tears for no reason...sometimes I think they punish you on purpose oh you dare to try and meet someone for some tea and cake? Nope not going to happen or you just got ready to go to baby group and colossal tantrum starts before you leave
then I would get him all undressed again...its not worth it
jurgita0712 I've been lucky and only had 2 explosions when out, both times he was sick all over himself and he was ill at the time! I remember having to find the nearest bathroom and praying he didn't do it again as I only had one change of clothes! Luckily he is normally really good when we go out and there aren't too many tantrums or issues. Although he does love to run around at bookbug instead of sitting and listening!
MrsCraig we had other types of explosionslol once when we were at the zoo.. for some reason I only packed a spare vest and a towel. It was summer...the clothes went in the bin and he sat in his pram in vest and wrapped in towelhe wasnt too bad but it really felt like if we will be going out there might be some tears
jurgita0712 I've only had one of those types of explosions when out and it was when he stomach bug! Luckily we were in a restaurant at the time so were able to run to the bathroom.
When you tell off a stranger you are taking a huge risk, there have been cases of people actually losing their lives! Very rarely is it taken well and a tirade of insults and swearing generally follow.
However, adults are no different to children and bad behaviour unchallenged will continue.
If you respond in like you will get short shrift but if you respond politely with a hint of humour it will often halt a nasty response.
I once had cause to pull up a group of 4 young men who were being loud and swearing in front of my then partner and his young kids. I turned to them with my sweetest smile and said 'aw come on lads, kids present' and each one smiled back and said sorry and I said thanks.
All it takes for evil to flourish is for good men to do nothing, a favourite quote of mine which begins with even minor things.
Lynibis in such case yes probably you can get away with it.. but the problem with teenagers these days is that it could provoke even worse behaviour...once I was walking by myself minding my own business and a group of youths walked by...one of them said "what you're staring at?..." I didn't reply.... it was gang of them and only one of me...
Or another time when me and my son were going to the park the saw several teenagers on their bikes darting in and out in traffic on purpose...And what could you say to them? They were treating it as a game...amd then would tell me to mind my own business
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if I got my son with me and it's just me and him I wont say anything because I dont want any situation with him being in danger.
jurgita0712 yes I agree it is a case of you have to pick your battles. Another example I have shared on here before:
I was registering the birth of a young couple's baby and the father obviously had a problem with officialdom. I had been welcoming and polite throughout but he constantly questioned everything I asked, puffed and blowed, wouldn't speak etc. I put the lid on my pen sat calmly and quietly said words to the effect of: I understand you don't want to be here but I have been polite and friendly and do not deserve the way you are treating me. You are making what should be a joyful time into an unpleasant one.............
I then proceeded with the registration and he behaved well. As he left he stopped in the doorway, looked back at me and awkwardly muttered 'sorry about earlier'. I smiled told him it was ok and to enjoy his day. I like to think he thought twice before he acted like that again.
Lynibis I work in retail I met plenty of rude customers... and to some of them it doesnt matter what you say, how you say it or even that they are plain wrong and you're right - in their mind customer is always right and that's thatits nice if they actually come to their senses and even apologise but it's very few... my ex if he's in a bad mood can become a raging bull... once he went in to get glasses. But he's very paranoid about giving more details than necessary...the sales assistant kept pressing on. They exchanged few words to which my ex said that his customer service skills were poor and the guy replied that he's "not there to make friends"?! So after he complained about him and he was sent to customer service skills course... really they both were at fault but the sales assistant just escalated it further...at work I always try to diffuse the situation as much as possible and to come to some agreement where everyone is happy...
Yahya wow... I bet if you would of done that to him he would of been livid.. or maybe he's just rude and ignorant
I do hate it when an older person queue jumps in front of a teenager. This happened to my son in M&S years ago and I quietly walked up to my son and congratulated in a loud enough voice for that woman to hear saying he has good manners and well done for not embarrassing her. She turned round and apologised saying she thought he was on his own! As if that should make a difference.
Pjran sometimes its really not clear if the person is in the queue or just browsing at something...but it doesnt take much to ask? And I agree... if your son would jumped queue in front of that lady I'm sure he would of heard a tirade about rude teenagers these days...but it's ok if it's the other way around...
i wouldn't unless someone said something to my kids, me or my husband.
however i wouldn't shout i think speaking is enough don't have to shout, why draw attention to your self like that lol
dholly39 I think it makes some people to feel bigger, more important somehow...like they are in charge..and really I would love to see people complimenting the staff and service they receive more rather than just complaining about something
Yes, if it bothered me. If it didnโt, then I donโt bother. But if it did thereโs no stopping me
hspexy would you tell someone off for jumping the queue? Or only if someone said something to you?
jurgita0712 oh yes, definitely, as queue jumping is just plain rude! I always tell them to get to the back - even if itโs just one or two items they have, the fact that theyโve tried to queue jump first, Iโm not having that
Ive worked in retail before and had to tell customers off for their attitude and behaviour before. I had one woman have a go and scream at me as she had read the sale sign wrong in the window. We had a sign for up to 50% off and and read it as everything 50% + off instead. There is a difference between 'up to 50% off' and '50%+ off everything'. Another customer said he wanted to pay me all in change and instead paid me with a ยฃ10 note to then give me a 10p and scream at me for apparently refusing his change, he wasnt happy when i responded and said if you wanna pay with change then why give me a ยฃ10 note get change from note to then complain i didnt accept the change u didnt give me in the first place
chelseaturpin well usually sales are up to whatever % sometimes even up to 70% but usually it's only few sizes left and never your sizelol when I worked in a pub it was the worst on football nights ....everyone would be chanting and shouting loud, smoking with doors open....I would keep telling some regulars that I don't get paid enough to put up with it...
I think they should really charge people who do not wear it.
Also I would charge people who trash it on the street or throw them on the shop floor.
We have to tell them not to try on clothes in work and also to wear masks and I think it is very basic and everyone should understand it, but some people are very rude about it.
AgnesFaludi yes but with some medical conditions they can't wear it..for example with asthma etc.
But yes they should definitely put fines of ยฃ500 for tossing masks, plastic gloves on streets...its disgusting people been in for a while littering was reduced, air pollution went down...and now we're back to square one...
As for changing I would ask probably it's like eating out now you dont know what to do anymore...is it all takeaway or are you allowed to eat in? Its confusing...
jurgita0712 you are allowed to eat in without mask and if u order take away in the same place u should wear a mask
Depends on the circumstances but rarely as you re only inviting confrontation .
Regards of masks the rules surrounding them are so confusing, we don't currently have to wear them in Wales and we currently have a low transmission rate, yet in England where they have been introduced we are seeing the transmission rate increase and local lock downs introduced, make me wonder if the masks are causing a false sense of security in those areas.
I wouldn't tell someone off for not wearing a mask, I'd just assume they weren't able too. I have asthma but it is well controlled at the moment so I can quite happily wear a mask for short periods. In the Winter I tend to have flare ups tho & my breathing can be difficult so I certainly won't want to be wearing one then.
I will & have told people off for bad behaviour tho, I did during lockdown when a guy whilst we were queueing to go in store was wandering up & down between people, he was clearly making everyone feel uncomfortable but no one was saying anything to him. He then stood right behind me in my personal space. I told him to move away & I politely told him he was making everyone uneasy. He very unpolitely told me to 'go away' & walked off. I have no qualms about pulling people up on certain bad behaviours.
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