To be irritated by woman playing Baby Shark in the post office queue

[Leapingaway]

Was queuing in the post office. Woman with small child in front. Constantly, loudly, telling the child 'noooo', 'stay there', 'oh you're a big lump' when the kid was really just minding her own business quietly and seemed perfectly content to wait patiently. Basically performance parenting with no need.

Then the mother looks around, and suggests playing f*ng Baby Shark on her phone, loudly, and persuading the kid to perform a dance to go along with it.

People in front of her gave indulgent smiles but AIBU to think she was being a PITA?

I didn't say anything because she seemed a bit odd and I didn't want her kicking off.

Wouldn’t bother me.

Inappropriate in restaurants where others are paying for a quiet meal though, or in GP waiting rooms where people may be feeling under the weather. Definite no-no in funerals! But for five minutes in a post office queue where people are just waiting to post their parcels or change their pounds into euros ….meh… 🤷‍♀️

That wouldn't bother me, I'd probably just roll my eyes

Well I suppose we're all different because I would find that annoying AF!

Agree about restaurants and GP waiting rooms, but it might cheer me up in a Post Office.

That would annoy me, just don't do anything that negatively affects others

Couldn't be bothered and tbh I'm not even sure I'd notice

Surely you could get over something like this seen as I doubt you was both in the queue all day

Keeping small children entertained on a long queue is hard. Playing music is annoying, but whining children are also annoying.

YABU for using the term "performance parenting". Nine times out of ten, that just means "mother of young children having the audacity to exist, within earshot of other people".

It was a lot longer than 5 minutes!!!

A very long queue with Christmas parcels and a couple of complicated queries.

As another poster said in a restaurant or waiting room this would annoy me but in a queue in the post office I would let it go. Maybe the child is a bolter or would be running around and bumping into people if they were not distracted by their parent. Just because a child looks calm when they are being distracted does not mean the same if in the exact same situation they are not being distracted.

But that's just it, she wasn't whining. She was just patiently waiting but the mother was very deliberately looking around and drumming up drama.

Depends on the situation. I wouldn't have a problem with keeping my child happy and content playing something on my phone if they were unhappy and screaming. But if the child was okay then it seems as tjo the patent wanted to listen to baby shark more.

I wouldn't have a problem if a child was listening on the phone regardless of the place as long as the volume is down

I don’t blame her for getting out her phone, queues are boring for anyone but especially a toddler. Baby Shark though, of all the things!! Couldn’t she do an episode of Peppa Pig or something with lowest possible volume?!

Love people’s perception of performance parenting, how is it you expect parents to speak to their children? Baby shark is annoying but you sound like you’d have been irritated regardless.

Baby Shark??!! Noooo. YADNBU!

I have noticed lots of parents seem to enjoy commanding and chiding their perfectly (or at least reasonably) well-behaved child in public too.

Yabu for still thinking about it tbh. Yes, it might have been a minor annoyance for a short period of time (not something that would bother me tho) but for it to make you cross enough to start a thread is a bit weird imho.

The volume was most certainly not down.

Also even with volume down it's a really intrusive noise and I just don't understand people who think it's OK.

YANBU

Anything involving baby shark should not happen in public, ever. Nobody wants that stuck in their head for the next three weeks!

But that's just it, she wasn't whining. She was just patiently waiting but the mother was very deliberately looking around and drumming up drama.

I get that this is your point - it’s not a case of a desperate attempt to placate a child, which would be more understandable, but a plea to be noticed. Yanbu, I would be inwardly rolling my eyes and deliberately ignoring them.

I'm still thinking about it because it happens too often and I was pondering why these people think it's OK to inflict themselves on others. Interesting to see how many posters think it's no big deal. I'm fascinated by people who go through life with no regard for others tbh. I wish I could be like that!

Yes, this is what I found odd, the performance. The blasting phone in public is unremarkable, sadly.

I've stood in loads of queues with kids without having to resort to annoying phone use

what is baby shark?

Don't look it up, you'll never get it out of your head 😁

Surely life is too short to be worrying about other people though! I would understand if it was something they were doing directly to you - e.g mum letting child play with your coat or something, but a child watching something on a phone in a long queue really isn't a big deal.

Edit: maybe just pop some headphones in and crack on next time!

Pondering, not worrying