To think some people must be totally oblivious to the fact that there are other people in the world too?

[chandlerbing]

Either that or they are totally selfish, thoughtless arseholes!

I seem to keep coming across people that think the world revolves around them.

A couple of days ago I went into town and parked in a pay-and-display car park, which has only one ticket machine. I went to the machine to get a ticket and there was a thirtysomething woman already at the machine. She took quite a while fiddling around with the machine, which is fair enough as they are quite complicated (you have to put in car reg etc first). However she then took out her phone, called someone, presumably her partner and asked whether or not he/she wanted a '1 hour, 2 hour or 3+ hours ticket'. She then went into a complete conversation with them, saying which shops she wanted to go in, that she had to take such-and-such back to Debenhams. She must have chatted for 3 or so minutes, all the time standing right at the machine with her hands on it like she was using it. She came off the phone, looked round and saw me but didn't apologise for holding me up or keeping me waiting, and then took ages actually getting her ticket.

Yesterday I took my DCs to a café/restaurant chain. About midway through our lunch, three adults came and sat at the table next to us. The tables are very close together and along one side there was just one long bench-style seat. Two other adults, that presumably they knew, walked over to chat and stood between our table and theirs, with their backs to our table, chatting for about 20 minutes. During that time, DD got up to go to the loo and squeezed past them and they just looked at her, as if she'd inconvenienced them. After a while the 2 extra adults went back to their table and the waiter went over to ask the table next to us what they'd like to order. They then took a further 20 minutes, waiter stood at their table, discussing what they wanted to eat, did they want X or Y, changing their minds etc.

During the 20 minutes he was stood at their table I wanted to pay but obviously I couldn't pay him as he was with them. So I went up to the counter and asked for my bill but apparently only my waiter could deal with me, so I had no choice but to sit there for another 10 minutes or so whilst they faffed around, changed their minds and asked questions. It was as if they were the only people in the world! And it's not like it was a gourmet restaurant or something where the food was going to be really complicated and needed explaining to them.

Grrrrrrr!

All you had to do on both occasions is say "excuse me".
But I agree people go round in a selfish, world of their own, bubble.

I know what you mean!

I was queing for petrol with loads of others, man in front of me, filled up whole tank which took ages, then went to pay and because it was busy took ages, then he stopped outside the garge to read the headlines of the papers, even picking one up to read the back page! I then put my engine back on to make the point I was read and waiting and to hurry the F up!

I have someone talking across me on a train the other day whilst I was reading, two people who knew each other catching up, top of their voices, one practically leaning over me until I nearly took his eye out with my book (on purpose) back off you tit!

Yes I agree, there are many clueless people around.

Twoshakes, I agree, I should have said 'excuse me' to the woman but she was one of those very confident, very full of themselves types, talking very loudly in a snooty voice. I imagine I'd have got a gob full.

I said 'excuse me' to the waiter before I went up to the counter, but he just kept saying he'd be with me once he'd finished with that table.

I'm annoyed for you but I wouldn't care if I got a gobful, I am v.v impatient though.

I know what you mean.

The Fiance and I went out for a meal the other day and were sat next to a family. Their darling daughter (must have been about 9 or 10) accidentally knocked my drink over and ran off without saying a word. Her parents saw this, didn't say a word to us, didn't even apologise.

Not a big deal that the kid knocked it over, accidents happen, but how hard is it to say sorry when your child accidentally drenched a total stranger next to you. A couple of minutes later the mother had the cheek to say ''That's a happy looking couple next to us'' really loudly. Yeah, you ill-mannered bint, perhaps if you'd apologised for your brat knocking my drink all over me I'd have looked a tad happier? Stupid cow. I said nothing and fumed quietly.

Grants - this happens fairly often on my commute and I normally swap seats so the friends/acquaintances can sit together. Isn't that the decent (and non-oblivious) thing to do?

Otherwise yes, people can be rude. I'm shocked by your story farrow - I would have had to say something. Did they not offer to buy you a new drink?

Nope, fish - they didn't say one word to me or their DD, they just sat there making bitch comments about us. Had it been my family when I was a kid, my mum would have got me to say sorry (not that I would have needed to be told to do so at that age, I would have been thoroughly embarrassed that I'd mistakenly knocked someone's drink over them), told me off and replaced the person's drink.

A simple ''sorry'' from the parents would have been fine! We all know accidents happen when kids are around, no big deal. It was the rudeness of the parents that shocked me. I know I should have said something but was so annoyed I thought it best to keep quiet.

That's real piggish behaviour. Sorry would fly out of most people's mouths automatically. Can you imagine what they are like at home? As for mum's comment, well... What a charming family.

I hope you still enjoyed your meal regardless.

I'm finding the older I get, the more this enrages me. DP and I are pretty antisocial fuckers, mainly because people, in general, are intolerable.

I could scream at least 5 times a day at others selfish behaviours. There is no sense of community anymore, it's all for ones self.

Urgh, I hate selfish people. My annoyance last week was at the petrol pumps. It was heaving. I was next in line, woman in front got her fuel, then paid, then she got back in her car (seeing me, heading up the huge queue behind her car) so decided that would be the best time and place to touch up her make upup (apply lipstick and some kind of creme blush I think). Then have a swig of water. Then carefully put her purse in the correct place in her bag. Then unwrap a sweetie (yes, really!) She didn't get a chance to do anything else, I lost my temper and parped my horn

I'd already waited ages for fuel, but to faff like that I don't understand why she couldn't pull forward to the empty parking spaces about three car lengths infront of her! The stupid thing is she looked really shocked, like I was being hugely unreasonable not waiting for her to update her slap etc. Me and the four or five cars behind me obviously had nothing better to do.

I had a selfish person parked at the pumps too. She was not even getting petrol, but did not park in the shopping bays, but by the pumps which was closer to the shop. A queue built up, she did her shopping, filled in her lottery ticket and then came out and sat in her car chatting on her phone. I don't know how she could have been oblivious of the queue, but apparently she was

I know I've mentioned this one before, but I saw two women driving in opposite directions recognise each other, stop their cars and have a chat in the middle of the road, with (fortunately not much) traffic gradually building up behind them on each side. After a couple of minutes they went "see ya" and "I'll call you later" and drove off. I couldn't help wondering why they didn't just say "hi, I'll call you later" first off and, you know, do that later, when it was convenient for everyone - especially other road users.

The waiter is an idiot. I did that job for nearly 20 years and there is NO CHANCE I'd ever have stood tableside for half an hour while a bunch of timewasting cunts changed their minds a billion times. He's fucking bad at his job and you would have been within your rights to complain.

The woman at the ticket machine, I'd have interrupted and asked her to get out of the way. She was a dickhead and needed to be told. And if she'd given me "a gob full" she'd have got the same in return - and the rest.

[I'm in a towering, black, roiling rage at the moment].

It's the genuine surprise from selfish arseholes that really bugs me. If someone is a bit thoughtless but apologetic I don't mind, but it's the sheer arrogance, and the look of shock when they realise that someone wants to get past them/asks them to hurry up.

It's the genuine surprise from selfish arseholes that really bugs me

Yes. I think there are two things that everyone needs to learn: other persons exist; and resources exist in finite quantities. I include "my patience" in the category named "resources."

It drives me mad when people are ignorant of others. Just small things like if someone lets me pass in a busy shop I always smile or say thank you. But in Boots yesterday I kept stopping to let people pass, conscious I had pram with me and it can get in the way and no one even so much as smiled. What's gone wrong with some people? We should all make extra effort to be extra nice and shame the rude people into being nice too. Or have I just taken too many antidepressants this morning?

Re the bill you should have gone back to the counter, been very polite, said the waiter is too busy, I have finished my meal, I want to pay and leave and you are inconveniencing me. Please give me the bill now or I will leave without paying

Re the bill you should have gone back to the counter, been very polite, said the waiter is too busy/is ignoring me, I have finished my meal, I want to pay and leave now and you are inconveniencing me. Please give me the bill now or I will leave without paying

My main complaint is when older people (not all) assume that you MUST let them pass, whether you are able to or not. I always get huffs and puffs when I cannot move in a shop because of Ds's pram.

Whereas I make sure to make eye contact and say thank you to everyone who stands aside for me. Whether they are 6 or 60.

I hate inconsiderate rude people. My biggest bug bear is people not moving on the pavement.

If you are walking along the pavement with someone else and you see someone walking towards you what you do is move one in front of the other so that person can pass you.

It is common FUCKING sense.

a) "Excuse me, I have to get my ticket too" anything but an apology and hurrying up deserves a more aggressive "shut the fuck up and stop wasting my time, come on, move..."

b) "I don't have all day to waste, let me pay now or I'm leaving."

People become inconsiderate arseholes when not enough people pull them up on their behaviour, they don't do it when they expect to be challenged. You have a voice, you have to be willing to use it.

I've just been into town and there were two people stood right in the doorway of one shop, having a conversation, so that no one could get in or out. I said "Excuse me" and one of the women looked at me like I was dog shit on her shoe. So I said it again "Excuse me, can I get past?", and she moved literally a fraction of an inch. I ended up just barging past her in the end. She seemed totally taken aback and shocked that I had dared to ask her to move.

And don't even get me started on people that walk towards you and just stand there assuming you will get out of their way!

I never wait to pay. I've yet to be told to wait, but should that day come I plan to breezily say "ok. I'm going now, he (waiter) can catch me up if he's quick."

I know I've mentioned this one before, but I saw two women driving in opposite directions recognise each other, stop their cars and have a chat in the middle of the road, with (fortunately not much) traffic gradually building up behind them on each side.

I had this happen today, just outside my house. It's a very narrow street and they were actually both travelling in the same direction, one overtaking the other. Both were looking straight at me as I sat in the driveway indicating to pull out. When they finally moved, the first car then started doing a 3 point turn (more like an 11 point turn due to the narrow road) in front of me so I couldn't get past.

Normally I would have been quite chilled about it but it was pouring with rain and I needed to fetch one of my DC from an after school activity, and didn't really want them standing around on the street corner longer than was necessary in the dark.

So thoughtless.

I feel the pain of the car to car conversation one, I live in the same street as the primary school and it happened all the time until they built a new road and introduced a one way system out of the school.

I was gobsmacked recently when 3 dc and I were waiting to cross the road directly outside our house to get to school and an oncoming car parked in front of us, when we were all lined up at the kerb clearly waiting to cross. He then got out of his car and glared at us as we were blocking his access to his passenger door so he couldn't get his child out.
I shuffled along and managed to squeeze the kids between parked cars and unsafely across the road, but I really wish I had stopped to tell him what a monumental selfish twat he was.