Please or to access all these features

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To wonder why people fuck about so much?

510 replies

comeandhaveteawithme · 23/06/2025 14:40

My local skip is a very busy place. There is often a huge queue of cars and once you are in the queue, you absolutely cannot leave, there is no way of driving out of it or turning around due to the way it's structured. You're going through the skip, and that's that.

Today, I was in the queue of doom and a worker walked along the line of cars and told everyone that they just needed to use the crusher before they could let anyone through and to do that, they needed to wait until the cars already parked up and using the skips, had all left, then they could use the crusher and start letting people in again. It was my lunchbreak so I was in a bit of a rush, but nothing I could do.

But watching the people already using the skip was so irritating. They knew there was a line of approximately 20-30 cars waiting, they knew no one else could enter until every car had gone, but they all sauntered back and forth with their stuff from their boots, they stopped and chatted to one another, one guy had a quick cigarette before getting in his car, another sat in the drivers seat and did something on his phone before slowly putting on his seatbelt and leaving...

I just cannot understand people who are so incredibly slow and insist on doing unnecessary things in busy places where people are clearly waiting to use the thing they are using.

The other day, a waitress bringing our food to out table stopped mid-way and chatted to a customer she knew, while holding our plates of food, letting them get cold - why? talk on the way back if you must!

And the amount of people I see letting their toddlers use their debit cards to pay while smiling indulgently as the kids drops the card or taps it wrong with a queue of people waiting, or who stand at the till transferring money, or ask the bus driver an endless series of questions with a whole busload of people waiting, plus the 50 cars behind the bus....

If you are one of these people who fuck about, why? and are you also irritated by the fucking about or am I just far too angry?

OP posts:
Ablondiebutagoody · 23/06/2025 15:07

Presumably at midday on a Monday they are mainly pensioners with all the time in the world. Although you would think they might want to make the most of what's left rather than fannying around at the tip. Or for there to always be 2 queuing for air in the petrol station at 8am.

PocketSand · 23/06/2025 15:01

I have the opposite complaint re local recycling centre. A year ago you could just rock up. Well used but never over busy as in a rural area. Now we have to book online. Reduced use by about 75%. No doubt it will be closed due to underuse in the near future.

AIAgent · 23/06/2025 14:53

I often find myself thinking like this OP and being frustrated.

My reflection is I’m time poor and also tend to want to get stuff done quickly - neither of which is always healthy for me or a relaxing way to live.

Hard to stop myself being impatient at times. Also slightly envious of people able to take a more relaxed approach.

comeandhaveteawithme · 23/06/2025 14:51

ClareBlue · 23/06/2025 14:48

Do you not build in 'other people arsing about' time into any task that has to be achieved. It varies from around 10 percent for food to an eye watering 50 percent for any activity at a Post Office. Supermarket car parks 20 percent, bank cash lodgement 15 percent, etc etc
If you do this it makes life easier to navigate.

I factored in "people fucking about" time, but I didn't factor in "tip workers needing to use the crusher" time as I have never experienced this before. I'm not going in my lunchbreak again, that's for sure.

OP posts:
Wintershealing · 23/06/2025 14:50

These are most likely the same people who faff at petrol stations!

I had it yesterday, it was busy and the man could see there was people waiting, but he still chose to go at snails pace, get his (approximately 8 year old) daughter out the car to slowly walk in to pay. He could have paid at the pump... I ended up going to another pump that became free on the other side, filled up/paid at pump and as I was leaving he was only just coming out (there's nothing to buy other than chocolate/crisps in this particular garage so he wasn't even doing his weekly shop). Just an asshole who's in his own world!

ClareBlue · 23/06/2025 14:48

Do you not build in 'other people arsing about' time into any task that has to be achieved. It varies from around 10 percent for food to an eye watering 50 percent for any activity at a Post Office. Supermarket car parks 20 percent, bank cash lodgement 15 percent, etc etc
If you do this it makes life easier to navigate.

ohtowinthelottery · 23/06/2025 14:47

Same at the petrol station. Queue of cars waiting to fill up but they go in to pay, faff about choosing sweets, pay then stroll back to their cars then pratt about putting their cards back into their purse/wallet, check their phones, look in their vanity mirrors before finally getting around to putting their seat belts on, starting the engine and moving off the pumps.

Sort your sh*t out elsewhere not at the petrol pump.

TigerRag · 23/06/2025 14:47

I had this a few weeks ago. Asked someone to move out of my train seat which was by the door. He did. But he stood talking to his girlfriend and going as slowly as he could.

comeandhaveteawithme · 23/06/2025 14:47

ThisOchreScroller · 23/06/2025 14:45

YANBU. I hate it too. Not so bothered about things like workers chatting on tills and stuff which seems to wind up others (because I know what working in retail can be like), but it's the ones in queues with either absolutely no self-awareness or an extremely high level of selfishness! My pet hate is people who park at Pay at Pump and then wander into the shop to get chewing gum.

Edited

Oh god - petrol station shoppers!

I honestly think they shouldn't sell anything except petrol.

OP posts:
ThisOchreScroller · 23/06/2025 14:45

YANBU. I hate it too. Not so bothered about things like workers chatting on tills and stuff which seems to wind up others (because I know what working in retail can be like), but it's the ones in queues with either absolutely no self-awareness or an extremely high level of selfishness! My pet hate is people who park at Pay at Pump and then wander into the shop to get chewing gum.