Things people do that just baffle you

[Whatexcellentboiledpotatoes]

What does either a specific person in your life, or just the general public do, you just don't understand why they do it, and you either can't ask them or you've tried to ask them and they can't tell you?

Write it here and maybe someone else that also does it can tell you why, or has an idea as to why.

Here are mine:

Why do my neighbours across the street bring their bins outside a full 24hrs early? They are retired, home most of the day, go in and out of their house five or six times during that 24hr period, but bring their bins out early Monday morning when they don't get picked up until Tuesday morning?

Why do people talk on their phones on speakerphone in public, what is the purpose?

No need to. No one in our area has had a break in in the 20 years I've lived here. Everyone sees who comes and goes, so anyone trying it would be seen. And if they were really determined they'd cause less trouble opening the door than breaking a window/forcing the locks.
My family live in the street and might want to come round for something when I'm not in and handing out keys is a hassle. As is remembering to take a key all the time.

Parents unloading their beloved darlings straight out into the road. Busy ones too.
I always remember my parents parking so they unloaded us curb side.

Why do (most) people spend their lives staring at their phones full stop.

Do you never put anything in your outside bin thats not in a black bag?
If you're outside and you have some rubbish do you go inside and put it in a a bin that you then take outside at a later date?

My wheelie bin lives at the front of my house and everyone drops things in it as and when they're passing

Please tell me you waved and shouted "Morning Gregg!"? 😂

I would really like to know why people don't flush the toilet (specifically in public/workplace).
And on the same topic, why people don't wash their hands after using the toilet (even if you don't touch the flush, surely you touch the door handles and lock?).

Being friends with people you don't even like... I'm all for the social norm of just smiling and saying hi, but actively spending time with someone who you talk negatively about all the times is just mental to me.

It's a bit more than sociable and neighbourly to hog people's time repeatedly just to talk at them, though, which is how pp described these people.

I’m baffled by people who put a house on the market that has clearly not been cleaned in years. Another viewer as well as me commented to the agent that we needed to wipe our feet as we left.
maybe some people aren’t put off by it but I couldn’t wait to get out of there.
I don’t think agents ever tell the vendors and have actually considered putting a note through the door

Because I like people to be able to walk in with a cheery "hello! anyone at home?"

Delivery men who ring the doorbell twice and then also hammer the door with their fist. Baffling and unnecessary.

OMG this. Drives me crackers. Ditto when they knock on windows.

Making comments about the physical appearance of someone who you hardly know. Why? What on earth could go right here?

The bloke who does my dry cleaning told me the other day that I looked really ill. (I was fine and I felt fine).

Did he really think I was going to go to the GP on the basis that a random who doesn’t know me from Adam has seen me without foundation?

Also commenting on people’s pregnancy bumps. Why?

Ah this one I can answer too. My teeth are decent - never had a filling at least - but I hate going to the dentist and put it off for ages just because going there basically means paying money to get told off (and told off when my teeth are probably better than 90% of the teeth they see AND when they’re my teeth and the only one they really effect is me?*)
*see also being made to feel guilty at the hairdressers for not going every 6-8 weeks when I’m surely, as a paying adult, allowed to make my own decisions about my own hair or being guilt tripped into buying the special conditioner for £25 etc etc.

I have finally found a dentist that is still partly NHS (although I’m not on their NHS list) and in a fairly socially deprived.. which means I get none of the “and how many times a week do you floss? And surely you have bought the water gun flosser machine thing?” etc and just get “your teeth are great! Book another appointment when it suits!” and that’s that.

People are probably just saying sure yes, I floss regularly to stop the conversation in its tracks.

DH is that bin guy. He’s known as the street ‘binfluencer’. I’ve never asked him, I think he just likes to be organised!

I don’t get why some people are so disgusted by everything! The competitive cleanliness and hygiene threads on MN are amazing to me and I can’t really imagine what it feels like to find your world so gross.

Good grief. You're happy for people to walk into your home without knocking?

Presume you're just talking about close relatives and friends here? Even then, I'd always prefer some notice, and that's not about 'appointments' as some MNers like to put it 🙄- it's about wanting to know they're coming so I can hopefully make some time to enjoy their company.

Why do rich parents not help their adult children who are struggling?

Why do people take a morning walk at 7am, and talk LOUDLY waking people in the street up?

Why do people step off an escalator and not move away?

Why do men with lovely wives, risk it all, for a quick shag with an OW who means nothing to them?

Why do people commit crimes that see them put away in prison?

Why do people swim in open water, when they can't see what creatures lurk beneath?

Why do people do dangerous things, like sky diving and bungee jumping?

Why do people with money stay at home, when they could be globe trotting?

Why does my friend in her 50's keep sleeping with men in their 20's, and then get upset when they don't hang around?

Why do old people with money fall for romance scams, especially when the other person is 30 years younger & broke? How can't they see what's happening?

They shouldn't be driving if they're that incompetent.

To read about people complaining on mumsnet

I think it can also help to judge you’ve got into the space correctly, more so then just lines on the floor. Unsuccessfully in this case 😂

Couples who walk along a narrow pavement hand in hand and can't possibly let go to let me through in the other direction so I end up walking in the road. It's not going to damage your relationship if you let go for 2 seconds!

Anyone who's on their phone rather than looking where they're going. Walking, driving, cycling - surely they must know how daft they're being??

Disagree. Driving and parking require different skills.

Yes our council are quite strict. We have a collection every three weeks and are allowed three black bags in the wheelie bin. We're not supposed to put anything in not in a bag.

(We usually only have two, sometimes one. I think we've only got to three when having a clear out - family of 4.)

Vote Reform

I’d love it if someone dared to answer this. Equally someone who doesn’t pick up dog poo on a path.

I can understand that on occasion I’ve been on a dog walk that I know there won’t be a poo bin for miles, so I stash it somewhere to come back to on my way back. Could this be what people are doing in trees and then losing where it was? But I think I’m being hopeful as I see it in parks with plenty of bins…

Sometimes in heavily seasonal areas like the Austrian Alps there's barely any part of the summer that has decent weather, isn't in the school holidays, and when everything's open. Especially when you take into account the various school holiday dates around Europe.