Friend had a go at me over a can of Diet Coke

If I was thirsty, I would. Covid is airborne, so the likelihood is that if you've been in the same house as someone infectious overnight, you'll cop for it anyway.

Unless you spend 24/7 with your partner/child to the exclusion of all others, your partner/child is as likely to pass disease onto you as a friend would be.

And no you don't ask every time you take something from a buffet, but it is unusual to open something that was unopened, the morning after, just as you are leaving.

Do you want to drink the remains of a can that someone else has drunk from? I wouldn't unless it was my partner or child. If this is something that people do its no wonder that Covid won't go away.

I'd tell my kids off if they opened a can, took a sip and left the rest. It feels thoughtless and wasteful. I would be surprised if an adult friend did it.

She obviously didn't object to you opening it, and wouldn't have said anything if you'd drunk more of it or taken it with you.

Even more irritating that you left it on a surface for her to clear away.

I doubt it was a genuine apology. She's just keeping the peace because you looked annoyed or amused when she said it.

For someone else? Not very hygienic given there are still several strains of Covid knocking around and the possibility of STIs etc. I wouldn't fancy drinking the remains of someone else's can unless it was partner or child.

it wouldn't make it any more affordable if OP had drained it dry.

Assuming the mindset that OP's mouth is a cesspit of disease and the can becomes persona non gratis the moment the OP's lips have grazed its edges, so OP's desperate-for-sustenance friend could not possibly finish it off -

.. it makes zero difference whether OP finishes it off or only has one mouthful.

Could have an eating disorder. It all sounds very controlled as if yo just get by. Why are they an ex?

Sorry. But the wastefulness IS wrong .

One of my exes would often:

Take a bite of a sandwich, leave it there for hours, and then throw it away
Have maybe 2 sips of coffee before dumping out the entire cup
Open a pack of crisps, eat a few pieces, throw the rest of the bag away

There's nothing majorly wrong with it but the wastefulness of it all irked me to no end.

To you it's a can of coke because you can afford it.

This! It's a can of coke FFS

f you have any manners at all, you help clear up a little before your taxi arrives. You don't just dump your waste in your hosts face then fuck off.

The two are not mutually exclusive.

Can you acknowledge the fact that it was rude of you to leave the can behind for someone else to clean up? Or is that too much to ask?

It seems that you can’t accept that you’re being U given the tone of your responses and it seems that you have an answer for everything. I’d really like to hear your answer for opening a can, taking a sip, putting the can back down and walking away. I don’t understand the logic of that at all, please educate me OP

This was the next day. Party was over. You don't add to the mess the next day. In fact, if you have any manners at all, you help clear up a little before your taxi arrives. You don't just dump your waste in your hosts face then fuck off.

Whether it's a party, restaurant, hotel room, cottage or holiday rental I would always clean up no matter how I feel before I leave. I haven't got it in me to abuse other people's hospitality or take advantage of staff workers. When I leave I want to leave a good impression.

Yep, recklessly wasteful.

I would be surprised, nay, astonished if the OP's can was the sole item from the party left undisposed of.

Her friend has a bin she could have used it.

Are you suggesting that, over the course of the party, everyone diligently took their cans/bottles straight to the recycling tub as soon as they were empty, or washed and dried their glasses and popped them safely in the cupboard?

At even the staidest, most formal events I have been to, this has never happened.

You should’ve just given her £2 and been on your merry way, @coldayscientist.
Then she wouldn’t have been so quick to complain and all the people here wouldn’t be so snippy.
I think it might’ve been the right thing to do anyhow if you had no intention of drinking it.

What? What kind of ingrate just dumps their waste on the side in front of their host and leaves it for someone else to clean up?

How the hell were some of you raised...

Quite possibly, if I had a bad hangover. In normal circumstances, I wouldn't drink a can of coke or similar for 'breakfast' but if feeling crap and dehydrated, facing a journey home, I'd do what it took to get through the door and home.

Would you leave a can of coke you sipped from on the table for your friend to throw away and walk out the door?

I'd have a budget for a party, buy the drinks within that budget, and regard any leftovers as a bonus. No one should spend more than they can afford to write off on a party. There is always the option of hosting on a 'bring your own drinks' basis if money is tight.

Would you do the same to your friend after she spent money entertaining you? Do you think you're entitled to take what you want because she's the mug paying for it. It's easy when it someone else's money. When it's your own it's a different story.