to think that some people genuinely believe the world revolves around them?

[TandB]

I am posting this half in the hope that the woman in question is a MNetter and actually realises that she and her husband/partner were bang out of order.

DS goes to a nursery in a leisure centre with fairly limited space outside. There is a reasonable sized car park down the side and a handful of disabled/staff parking spaces just to the side of the entrance, as well as a bit of not-quite-parking space near the entrance where people tend to drop off and pick up. It can get a bit chaotic at busy times if there are people trying to reverse out of the drop-off part while other people are coming out of the car-park but people generally manage to sort themselves out with a bit of co-operation.

This morning I got there quite early and the place was almost empty. The car park only had a few cars in it, the ramp (which people often park on to drop off) was clear, and all the disabled spaces and the unofficial drop-off space (about 6 feet to the side of the entrance) were entirely clear. And yet there was a queue of cars unable to get through the entrance.

Why? Because one of the baby-swimming mums was being dropped off by her husband/partner who had decided that it was too much effort to move a car's width to the right or left and had simply turned into the entrance and stopped, face-on to the entrance steps, blocking all access in either direction. She then ( for several minutes before I arrived according to the gentleman in the car in front of me who spoke to me afterwards) proceeded to unload all her stuff from the boot, assemble her buggy (still in the middle of the entrance), unload her child, have a little chat with the driver and wave him off merrily. All of this while the queue of people waiting to get in grew longer and longer.

The driver then refused to turn to the side to get out of people's way - he wanted everyone to reverse so that he could back straight out onto the road. Several people put their windows down, no doubt to have a go at him, at which point he started waving his arms and mouthing things that seemed to be to the effect that he had been dropping someone off and what was everyone's problem?

The car park is about 30 seconds walk back to the entrance. The accessible spaces are a couple of car lengths away. Even if the lady had some serious disability (which I very much doubt given that he made no attempt to help her with buggy or child) what on earth was to stop him from pulling into one of the available spaces. Someone would have to have a very, very serious mobility issue for a few yards to make a difference. Even if there had been such a serious issue, he could have stopped a few feet to his right and caused no real problems.

So really, in these circumstances, I can't possibly see any reason for this behaviour beyond "Can't you see we have a child and are therefore perfectly justified in bringing the whole area to a standstill for our convenience?" I think it was the complete lack of awareness/embarrassment/apology that got me - woman merrily waving him off while he grinned and waved back and entirely ignored the steam coming out of the ears of those waiting.

So AIBU to hope this lady is a MNetter and takes a minute to think about whether their wish to be about 6 feet closer to the entrance is actually a reason for delaying a whole queue of other people?

[ScarahStratton]

Of course it is. [hangry]

My bubz mite get cold w8in anuvver 5 mins. Gotta put da LOs 1st u c.

[lesley33]

YANBU - drives me mad this kind of behaviour. Although it is not just adults with DCs I see doing this. Saw a similar situation where a traffic jam was caused by a woman being dropped off and behaving in the same way. And I agree ime these people think others are ubreasonable when they complain!

[TechnoViking]

I see lots of people like this. Some of them on here. [hgrin]

[TandB]

Was it you, Stratton? Was it? Was it?

[glares]

[Swankyswishing]

YANBU

My eldest DD went to a very "middle class" infant school with lots of parents that thought they were it, many drove massive 4 by 4s. The school was down quite a narrow, 2 laned residential street. One lane would be totally taken up by lazy arses parking 4 by 4s as close as possible to school. And in the other lane, cars would just stop suddenly to get little Jocasta and Hugo, plus musical instruments, lunch bags, PE kit etc. The mum would then leave the car in the middle of the road, walk their children to the gate, stop and chat to another PTA pushymother member, etc etc. Whilst all the time the traffic would be queueing up in both directions behind and in front of their car, which being a massive 4 by 4 took up the whole of the available road.

So yes, some people do think the world revolves round them, and those people that do are usually complete and utter cock suckers.

[TandB]

It occurs to me that I have been very sexist.

I hope that the driver is a MNetter and will see and this and explain exactly what he was trying to convey with all the indignant arm-waving and "but I have a child, doncha know" style mouthing.

[ScarahStratton]

Not me, it's too bloody cold to go swimming.



'Aww you was doin wat you think was best hunni xxxxxx'

[MilyP]

YANBU. Inconsiderate drivers are one of the things that annoys me most in life. I really hate it when people think it is perfectly acceptable to stop wherever they like and just stick their hazzards on, like this will excuse any kind of dodgy parking! I regularly see this in my local high st where parking is limited so some people just stop in the main road and block all the traffic - who exactly has the audacity to do that!!

I also get it in my street sometimes. Parking is tight sometimes and if you get home late you have to park at the end of the street. But some people think it is acceptable to stop their car outside their house and just casually load and unload taking their time. Fine if no one is around. Fine if one person literally jumps out quick then the car moves on. But not when they just ignore other drivers when they come along. Lazy bastards!!

[GypsyMoth]

So did you all reverse out for him?

[SpookhettiTwirlerAndProud]

Ooh yes what happened in the end?

[TandB]

I am mortified if I inadvertently block someone - ie start across a junction and get stopped unexpectedly. I sit there cringing and mouthing apologies while trying to squeeze out of the way.

I am almost in awe of those who just do what they like and are impervious to the rage of everyone around them.

I saw a near punch up the other day while I was waiting for the bus. There is an entrance to an office carpark opposite the bus stop and a bloke had pulled into it to send a text as far as I could see. There was a van behind him trying to get out and another one waiting to get in. Every time they tooted, he just wafted his hand at them and carried on fiddling with his phone. It progressed to yelling. - more hand wafting and texting. He only moved when the 3 passengers of the 2 vans piled out and advanced on the car, shouting about what they were going to do to various parts of his anatomy if he didn't move. And then he shook his head at them as though they were being terribly unreasonable and inconveniencing him!

[MumblingAndBloodyRagDoll]

OOH I'm all irritated on your behalf now!

There's a woman at nursery who does similar but with her arse....at pick up when we're all queuing to get inside, she is ALWAYS first inside and she SQUATS in the middle of the entrance to kiss/hug and praise her child whilst we all queue behind her arse and grit our teeth as we wait till her all-important reunion is over and done with.

[TandB]

I didn't have to reverse [proud of unblemished none reversing status emoticon] as I was still on the road. The cars in front of me very grudgingly reversed to the side, whereupon he performed an elaborate multi point turn (requiring further reversing) so that he could drive out without ever having to give way to anyone.

[TandB]

It wasn't even that big a car! He simply chose the perfect spot for maximum blockage with minimum car-age.

[ScarahStratton]

Surreptitious boot up that arse then Mumbling? [hgrin]

[TandB]

Amused by arse blockage.

[AlpinePony]

Welcome to Mumsnet.

[TandB]

Thanks, Alpine, but I've been here for a while!

[MumblingAndBloodyRagDoll]

Maybe I could just knee her in it Scarah less fighty innit?

IS the OP new then Alpine?

[grumblinalong]

YANBU at all. I have a very scruffy little car (by choice I don't want or need a huge fancy piece of tin to get me from A to B) and the big cars always rule the road and push my old suzuki swift out of the way. We live in a rural area so the 4x4's and lorries literally mow me out of the way like the world revolves around them. Gets me proper worked up.

The farmers in their tractors are usually very considerate and polite though so its all about the person behind the machine. Why do people think they have the right of way just because they're driving a metal box?

[lesley33]

Can't you "pretend" you are not looking where you are going and hit the mums arse with a pram, buggy or your foot? If that happened a few times, she would soon stop.

[MumblingAndBloodyRagDoll]

I thought I had seen you before OP

[TandB]

Mumbling - I reckon just a discreet nudge with your toe might be enough to unbalance her. She might flatten her child though.....

[MoChan]

If there's one thing that gets to me in life, it's people who only ever put their needs first. And those that seem to think that they REALLY DO have extra mitigating circumstances. Like the fact that they have a child. WE ALL HAVE CHILDREN. Well, lots of us do, anyway.