Men whistling loudly

Yes it definitely annoys the hell out of me and has done for ages. I used to get a bus with a whistling man and it gave me the rage. Mostly because he seemed so selfsatisfied looking around to see who was enjoying the racket. Then my DH started to do this awful tuneless whistling thing without realising it. I had to keep telling him to stop and he did try. Unfortunately he did it at a very somber religious occasion and his friend had to tell him off. Thankfully he has finally stopped.

you are drawing attention to yourself and feeling entitled to do so

Everyone is entitled to draw attention to themselves in a public space if they so wish.

I think the issue is that, for obvious reasons, women are often wary of drawing attention to themselves in public, and the whistling men are a very obvious illustration of the fact that men don't have the same concerns, and can absent-mindedly whistle to themselves without worrying about what attention they might attract.

I’m not bothered by men whistling, I just came here to compliment @Whatisthisfuckery on her username. Good work.

We used to have a man go round our local Tesco playing a harmonica. He was quite good at it, he’d had plenty of practice I suppose playing all round the shops, but it did annoy the shit out of me.

I tend to sing a lot though so I guess I might be equally as annoying to other people. I used to stop myself singing to the music in shops but then one day in Wilko I stopped myself only to hear another woman singing just down the aisle, so I just get on with it now. I like singing, so...

Whistling, well it depends I guess. Sometimes it’s just someone whistling a tune, I think it was more common years ago, but the noisy, aimless ostentatious whistling that goes with the puffed up ‘this is my space’ attitude does make me a bit stabby. I think it just depends on the vibes and the body language as to whether I want to shank them or not.

I do know one loud female sneezer but now I think about it, I've only ever heard her be that loud in the house.

Hahaha, I'm with you OP. I went on a massive rant to one of my colleagues about whistling men (like nails down a chalk board!) and how entitled you must have to be to think the whole world wants to hear that awful noise and it is only men that do it. We were on a train, so whistlers were most unwelcome. Then a whistling woman got on! But I swear she is the only one i have ever seen.

As for performance sneezers, again, I think this is purely a man thing too.

I thought I was bringing up my daughters to not be confined by gender constraints, but now as I note that neither is a whistler or a performance sneezer I realise I must have failed. Still, they are 13 and 10 so there is still time...

Does anyone know any female loud sneezers?

My nan. She does this shrieky 'awwuchshaaaaa', and never sneezes just once. Always 4 or 5 times, with exaggerated gasping for breath in between each one.

I love her, but honestly I could go nc when she sneezes.

"A whistling woman and a crowing hen are neither good to God nor men."

I think that back up the idea that women shouldn't draw attention to themselves in public or try to own the space - but it's fine and right for men to do so.

"Canary seed for breakfast again Antony?" Brilliant.

The menz replacing wolf-whistling with a more subtle whistling when they notice a woman is definitely a thing.

I said previously I'd never encountered it, but I have a vague memory of a postman doing it years ago.
Entitled bastard.

I rather miss the days when whistling was commonplace and the surprising number of men who could whistle tunefully. I knew a couple of women who whistled too. Not me though, I’m not musical at all.
Rather surprised that so many get wound up by it.

Lol you snowflakes!

Lol you master of wit and repartee!

I CAN'T. STAND. IT.
We get whistlers all over the hospital I work in. One of them was doing it loudly outside the room of someone who was dying and needed peace.
I went out and tore him off a strip and he just looked at me with astonishment as if I had just asked him to jump out of a window. Idiot.

There's something seedy about whistling too when it's done by a man with a woman in close proximity, like they're whispering something in your ear.

That, and along with walking along proverbially peeing up your leg to mark territory

Whistling might be annoying, but this thread is hilarious.

"Canary seed for breakfast again Antony?" silenced my workplace whistler very quickly. My god that was such a relief.
I work alone now and I have a feeling that I inadvertently whistle as the dog pokes her snout round my workshop door a few times a day and looks expectantly at me, so I guess I must have been whistling.

Drives. Me. Insane.
Always men, and always older. I'm so glad you said something to him! He's the rude one.

I am sure the cat sneezers do it to piss me off and drive me out of the room.

I whistle sometimes though I more often hum - I'm a woman FWIW.

If fewer women whistle it might be because it used to be considered unladylike. My Nana used to tell me "A whistling woman and a crowing hen are neither good to God nor men." She also used to tell me that if I drank beer right out of the bottle I would not find a husband.

I do know more male loud sneezers, but more women who sneeze like cats.

I HATE this. It makes me feel very imposed upon and angry. I had a new boss who would walk around whistling and it was a major factor in my leaving the job. Yes it was a male boss.

It definitely can be a territorial thing. I've had an ongoing run-in with one of the maintenance guys at work using my workroom as a (pointless) shortcut, and leaving the doors open when there are signs saying "no unauthorised access" and "keep doors closed". Whenever he barges through, he is always either whistling or tunelessly dee-dee-dee-da-da "singing". He will quite often knock on my desk as he passes as well. He's a smug prick; whenever I've complained, he responds by refusing to answer maintenance calls from our building.

I think that blokes are often just in a good mood when they do this, and it's more ignorance that anyone else could possibly find it annoying rather than a deliberate attempt to mark out territory, but I find it really irritatingly intrusive, just as I would someone singing in my ear. I would never dream of bursting into song when I'm in a shop, so I don't see why their noise pollution should be seen as any more acceptable. There's something seedy about whistling too when it's done by a man with a woman in close proximity, like they're whispering something in your ear. I put it in the same category as being told to smile, a kind of attitude whereby their ego dictates that anyone around them should comply with whatever mood they happen to be in.

Lol you snowflakes!

Yup, the loud whistler is definitely symbolic space invader. The pp's phrase 'aural manspreader' is very apt. They are Making their Presence Felt. If you're deliberately making a loud noise in public that others will unquestionably hear, you are drawing attention to yourself and feeling entitled to do so. They make me feel uncomfortable because of the underlying confrontational vibe.

Worst offenders are builders imo and I suspect they do it because they're no longer allowed to holler "Awright darlin'?" or "Nice tits, love" at passing women.

None of this applies to the people having a little whistle or hum under their breath.

They've said as much, unfortunately. We serve a very diverse community, and they both attend the same fundamentalist church

Therefore they are humming music they like and are familiar with. It is ridiculous to take it as a personal attack on you.