AIBU about this man in children's park

[Totality22]

To set the scene:

Park is quite big, has some open grassy areas (which is for general use - dog walking, people sitting down on grass etc..) a football pitch and a children's park which is fully fenced off and gated. Kids park has several slides, 10 swings, water fountains in summer, picnic tables - so is quite a size in itself.

It's not an overly busy park and on some days (colder weather, term time) it has been just me and DS. It's also quite isolated if no-one is in the football pitch. There is a warden but he takes care of the whole park so often isn't in the hut which is located inside the children's park.

Popped in today {as we do most days} and all was fine. It was actually quiet considering it was nice weather and a Sunday.

I let toddler have a run around and was feeding baby on bench when toddler shoots off and as I turn round to call after toddler I see some bloke has settled himself behind me and is unclothed bar a pair of shorts but even they are rolled up... They are rolled up the way people roll up clothes to catch the sun, so we're talking short shorts.

He was all happily settled on a blanket, earphones in and I am not suggesting for a second he was peeking at me feeding baby, he probably couldn't even tell that I was.

But AIBU to think it's just to the most appropriate place to sunbathe?

I toyed with reporting him but we left soon after. Should I have found the warden and let him know?

It was before Midday, not even that hot and he had the rest of the park to sunbathe in

Or an I being hysterical?

My son often goes jogging in the evening. Head phones in, mind far away. On one of the warmer evenings he was really hot, took his top off and sat by the childrens play area to cool down by the water fountain. He got a round of applause from the mums who were there.

Anyway I see the error of my ways and of course the kids park is the only suitable place to sunbathe!!! In future I'll make sure I keep the kids quiet so lone grown ups can sunbathe in peace and tranquillity in the middle of the kids park.

Or you could put your money where your mouth is & report the poor sod to the Warden, rather than coming on T'interweb to complain as soon as you get home......

I propose a new law. It will make being odd, and indulging in odd behaviour, a criminal offence. We need first to define what constitutes odd. Maybe OP can draw up that definition for us. Or perhaps it can be a more nebulous concept, that depends on how the OP's waters feel.

Anyway. Perhaps we can also criminalise the wearing of odd clothes. Like shorts. Lock 'em all up.

I think we are too willing to conflate 'odd behaviour' and 'dangerous behaviour'. This man didn't do anything to threaten the OP or her children - he wasn't even looking at them, but because his choice of space to sunbathe is considered 'odd', there must be something wrong, and he must be reported.

If the OP had stayed, what dreadful thing could have happened to her children, with her there to keep an eye on them? She could have made sure they stayed away from him - just as she would anywhere else in the park - "Don't disturb the man, darling - he is sunbathing and having a sleep - play over here instead" - and if he had made any move to approach her children, or had displayed inappropriate behaviour, then she could have left.

But the default setting seems to be - Man behaving oddly/man alone near children = paedophile - and to me, that seems as nasty - and inaccurate - an attitude as Man = rapist.

I have three sons - two in their twenties, and one who is 18 - all men now (still my babies, but men - lol) - if they happened to meet the OP's toddler in a park, one would ignore him, because at 18, he is too cool to interact with anyone else, and the other two would be friendly and no threat at all. It saddens me to think that, if they happened to be in the 'wrong' place, or dressed wrongly or behaving oddly, the OP and others on this thread would immediately assume they were a threat to all small children, and should be reported!

It saddens me too. If a toddler near me looks as though they might be about to fall, I would help without hesitation. The men in my family would help if with their own children but would think twice if they were on their own.