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Original poster

Abuse outside walking

71 replies

PlantHerd · 23/03/2020 15:15

I took the children out for a walk today very local to us (prior to the pandemic we used to go daily) found a very quiet spot and didn't see anyone for about 40 minutes and a small family gave us a wide berth.

About 10 minutes later a man with his two dogs starts approaching us quickly with his phone in his hand (it appeared he was taking photos of our DC) screaming at me that I'm a fucking idiot and should not be outside the house socialising..

I asked him to stop taking photos of the children and he screamed for me to phone the police because they won't do anything about it.

Sat at home v upset. Cried and shaken up.

OP posts:
Smithtylater · 23/03/2020 15:17

You are following government protocol. You have done nothing wrong. Sorry this happened to you.

cactus2020 · 23/03/2020 15:18

He's a knob. Sorry it upset you. You're allowed to go outside with your household provided you keep away from others. Taking photos is completely outrageous. Try to remember this is him being a total arse, not you.

BrokenBrit · 23/03/2020 15:19

He sounds unhinged. So he is allowed to be there but you are not?! Put him out of your mind now.

Wheresthebiffer2 · 23/03/2020 15:19

do you have a lot of children? perhaps he thought you were a school group or something, rather than a family unit.

SapphireSalute · 23/03/2020 15:19

Well we’re you all close together or 2 metres apart??

BrokenAmp · 23/03/2020 15:21

You don’t have to be 2 metres apart from your own family group I thought

Reginabambina · 23/03/2020 15:21

You should done as he asked and phoned to police so that they could deal with him. What an arsehole.

BrokenAmp · 23/03/2020 15:22

Anyway he’s an arse and you weren’t doing anything wrong

PicsInRed · 23/03/2020 15:22

You don't have to be 2m from your own children ffs.

I think people are going to use this as an excuse to abuse the vulnerable. In this case, a woman out alone with her young children.

Original poster
PlantHerd · 23/03/2020 15:22

I have three young children. We all live together in the same house.

Just really unsettling having photos taken of us

OP posts:
Original poster
PlantHerd · 23/03/2020 15:26

I thought it was allowed to go out somewhere quiet and wouldn't have continued if it seemed busy.

The older two were very upset and we headed straight back home.

OP posts:
PlomBear · 23/03/2020 15:29

What was he doing walking then? It’s like people wanting lockdowns and curfews but thinking it won’t apply to them.

Stuckforthefourthtime · 23/03/2020 15:29

People are idiots. We had the same thing happen to me, DH and our 4dcs on the weekend - we assumed because of the number of kids and as we are a mixed race couple and people often assume we aren't together, but looks like it can happen to anyone!

Our local FB group is half filled with lovely people offering to help others, and half full of grumpy people angry because when they went to get shopping for tins there were lots of other people shopping for tins too (but of course they were just stocking up, the others were evil panic buyers).

Ignore them! You were following all the guidelines currently in place.

Smithtylater · 23/03/2020 15:39

Sadly i can see things like this happening more at the moment. People taking things into their own hands and jumping to conclusions.

ChardonnaysPetDragon · 23/03/2020 15:41

I think a big part of the problem is that we don't have enough parks and green spaces.

We are building far too much and the density of living is high.

We can't keep our distance because there are not enough spaces for us.

Windyatthebeach · 23/03/2020 15:46

My dh walked the dogs last night. Heard a bit of a commotion. A man was berating the fish +chip shop for being open - whilst ordering his fish supper....
*the man not my dh!!

Stuckforthefourthtime · 23/03/2020 15:55

We are building far too much and the density of living is high. /We can't keep our distance because there are not enough spaces for us

If the density of living was higher, there would be far more green space for us. It's sprawling suburbs that cover green spaces...

Blondiney · 23/03/2020 16:02

He's a dick for taking photographs but as someone also used to very quiet dog walking routes, the sudden influx of family outings is irritating. I encountered many many more people than I usually would, ironic really given the circumstances.

ChardonnaysPetDragon · 23/03/2020 16:03

There is far too many of us stuffed with the same green spaces we had before the building boom.

There are no new parks, but there are many new developments. There is no space for distancing when you go out to the park, and it's getting worse by the day.

I think the local planners and the GLA are also responsible for the spread of the virus.

Isadora2007 · 23/03/2020 16:06

the sudden influx of family outings is irritating
Not as irritating as being expected to be stuck at home with kids all day when the weather is nice and there is no school and nothing else to do. You don’t own rights to nice areas to walk daily you know 🙄

ChardonnaysPetDragon · 23/03/2020 16:08

He's a dick for taking photographs but as someone also used to very quiet dog walking routes, the sudden influx of family outings is irritating. I encountered many many more people than I usually would, ironic really given the circumstances.

Yes, because we all desperately need more parks.

EstuaryBird · 23/03/2020 16:14

Some people are not coping well and are taking it out on others...these people scare me more than the virus to be honest. That must have been very scary for you and your children OP Flowers

I admin a Facebook group and after several member requests to ban CV posts I put out a message requesting that.......one member has gone batshit crazy because of this, totally off the planet.

Sad to say it’ll get worse before it gets better Sad

KatherineJaneway · 23/03/2020 16:14

You did nothing wrong and he was an arse. You can be outside as long as you socially distance yourself, which is what you did.

CheekyMango · 23/03/2020 16:14

There are oddballs out there and this is the perfect time for them to rear their fucking hideous heads, all you can do is report him. I'd be terribly upset to. Pack a small supersoaker in your coat to drench him if he appears again! 😉

inuinnit · 23/03/2020 16:17

Upset dogwalkers need to get a grip.

You need to walk your dog, I need to walk my child. Your needs are not greater than mine - at the very least they are equal. You don't own the countryside just because it's part of your usual routine - we're all a million miles away from our usual routine.

As long we're all walking in secluded areas, keeping distance and only doing it with our household, that is ok.

It's different when you see groups of parents who have clearly met up for an outdoor playdate (that is not the rule), but I've also seen dogwalkers meeting up (that is also not the rule).