I just told a grown man to get headphones

[Globules]

Hotel breakfast. Small room.

A man was on a video call to what sounded like his wife.

He then calls his girlfriend.

All audible to me and the rest of the small breakfast room.

I left quicker than I was going to as his voice was dominating the room. As I left I said

Honestly, please get some headphones. It's much more polite than everyone having to listen to your conversation.

He gawped at me. As in, how dare I. I walked off, as I didn't want an argument, I just wanted him to shut up.

I'm chuffed I said something rather than did the British thing of glaring. So I needed to tell someone 😁

I did once, politely asked the mother if she could turn the volume down. I'm not assertive and its rare i would even do this but the volume was crazy loud. The mother made this big drama and took the phone off the kid who was now squawking, pointing at me saying in a really loud voice that everyone could hear 'that woman said you can't have it. You can have it when she leaves. It's her fault you can't have it' etc on repeat until I left. I was nearly in tears over it. She absolutely lived up to the stereotype of a trashy mother who shoves her toddler in front of a screen all day. If anything it's made me realise we need to start saying things and not be bullied by people like this.

That's why I hesitate and don't go straight in all guns blazing!

I agree.

Well done. This is rife on trains atm where I live drives me insane.

Sadly you do have to think about safety and I wouldn't confront someone who looked drunk or volatile. But honestly people are surprisingly okay. The most I've ever experienced is passive aggressive shite like Alalalalalongalalalalalonglonglilong described, which personally doesn't bother me.

I recently told a guy on Ben Nevis of all places that he should get headphones - he was playing loud music on his phone as he walked along He just stared at me blankly and when we passed him and his girlfriend later the dreadful music was still going.

Please Please show some consideration for the existing inhabitants of Hell

I was on a bus and someone was playing music (I assumed) without headphones. I don't know if anyone said anything or indicated as such but suddenly a very middle class lady said "I am terribly sorry I hadn't plugged in my headphones!" She had obviously turned the volume up because she couldn't hear!

@PrincessofWells

its unfortunate the man is blind, but how does that prevent him from using earphones??

@Globules

Same question, even if he had headphones you'd still be listening to his voice!! (And only one side of the conversation!!). What were him & the girlfriend discussing? Bit crass straight after talking to his wife.

Exactly @KatiesMumWoof Having to listen to his half of the conversation if he did have headphones is equally as annoying as being able to hear the people he's talking to.

If it was a hotel, why couldn't he have made his calls in his room? Or in the car if he drove there? Why would anyone think it acceptable to disturb everyone else's breakfast like that?

People who use phones on speaker/video calls without headphones in public are the worst.

I had to be admitted to hospital during my pregnancy with DD2, and the woman in the bed opposite spent the entire bloody day on calls with her phone on speaker. Absolutely ridiculous.

even if he had headphones you'd still be listening to his voice!!

I think two things about that - firstly I think you talk more loudly when you've got a phone on speaker without headphones.
But secondly, using headphones just shows an acknowledgement that you've considered others and are attempting to minimise the disruption. Not using headphones shows an attitude of not giving a shit who has to listen to your conversation.

Please come to Gatwick before I lose my shit with all the fuckers in the airport.

It doesn't, but I think coping with a disability is difficult enough without having to accommodate additional barriers to communication. I guess if you have a couple of text messages putting on headphones to hear them is more of a faff with blindness than for a sighted person.

Love this idea!

I think the only answer is to find some really irritating obnoxious rap music or similar and play it really loudly to drown them out. Then they might realise how incredibly annoying it is. We seem to be living in a world where everyone just does what they feel like with absolutely no regard for anyone else. Manners are dead.

You should have placed your phone between their headrests and played a really annoying song at maximum level.

DH was completely oblivious to the value of headphones. It took a few weeks stay in an NHS ward ( too complicated for private , before anyone asks) to convince him to use headphones.

It's not impossible that some people just don't have the experience of sharing space. Sigh.

Well done you! 😁

Oh well done! I wish I was brave enough to do this to some of ignorant twats who frequent the bus I use regularly. The one time I actually witnessed a woman asking a man to use headphones,it kicked off into a really nasty row. The bus driver had to intervene and make the offending bloke get off the bus. This has made me very wary of saying anything to anyone,no matter how much they are annoying me.

I remember a similar thread on here where someone suggested OP keeps some really cheap earphones in their bag, and hand them to loudspeaker offenders.

I told my DP about it, and he he actually ended up doing it. Someone was sat near us in a cafe with Youtube on full blast. DP just got up, and put them on the table. The man didn't use them, but he did turn his phone down a lot (and took the earphones with him when he left).

I would of said in a loud voice

Im sorry can you get some head phones please, we have just heard your whole conversation with your wife, now your talking to another female and its rather annoying 😂

coffee shop a month or two ago - loads of GCSE or A Level school kids studying with their headphones in quietly looking askance at one woman sitting scrolling Insta with the volume right up so I collected my coffee and stopped behind her to laugh loudly and comment on the videos she swung round and asked me what I was doing so I just said oh sorry I thought you wanted people to join in otherwise why have the volume up? Turned her phone off got up to leave and then we had to both exit at the same time through a tiny door 😂 I do so enjoy having no fucks left to give sometimes but it will get me into trouble at some point

You should have talked to the staff. The hotel should be telling people to take calls in their rooms or some private