People interrupting conversations so that they can talk to the person you are talking to

[feelokaboutit]

Hi

A fairly trivial matter, but still I would like to know what people think.

I was at a meeting for parents at my kids' primary school last night. After the meeting I was talking to another Mum. We were nearing the end of our conversation but still very much talking when another Mum came up to her, started talking to her in a "helloooo soooo nice to seeeee you" kind of way. Whereupon the Mum I was talking to completely turned her back on me and the one who had interrupted us completely ignored the fact that I was there at all.

I was hurt and think this is rude.

What do you think?

Why is it so hard to say,

"I'm terribly sorry to interrupt, can I just quickly say X?"

Say X quickly, thank the person you interrupted, leave again.

WHY IS THAT HARD?

YANBU OP, it's really rude. I've noticed lots of women doing this, but never a man. Is it just a female thing or does it just happen in more female dominated environments?

I don't know what the solution is. I suppose the person interrupting obviously thinks what they have to say is more important than the existing conversation. Sometimes it might be I suppose, but more than often not ime.

Yanbu. I hate this and feel so embarrassed, even though it's the other person who's being rude.

Tailtwister, it's not just women - the last time this happened to me was when I was talking to a dad while waiting for our dc to come out of a club. He had just asked me a question, which I was about to answer, when another dad came up and asked if he had a moment. I though it was going to literally be 'a moment' so I waited, about to answer this question, but they went on and on while I stood around feeling foolish, til I wandered off with an awkward 'bye then...'.

Hmm, writing that was quite cathartic

Yanbu. It's rude and ignorant. I live outside of the uk (am British) and this happens literally on a daily basis here. I think culturally it's quite accepted here and it seems everyone does it, nothing to do with education or wealth of the individual. I try (my hardest) to not get annoyed when it happens to me but I can't help giving a little sigh or minor eye roll .
It can't be personal though because as I've observed over the years it happens to everybody....all the time .

YANBU. However, I don't agree its only women who do this. I have worked with some men who are appalling in this way. Its particularly annoying if you've something difficult you want to raise with your manager in an informal way; you finally get her on her own in the corridor or at the water cooler and start to speak and up comes one of these people and just butts right in and starts discussing something totally different. Grrr.

Omg I hate hate that. It's so RUDE.

And some people apologise but still do it anyway. Like that makes it alright then