D’oh! In all of my rightous indignation I forgot how to spell
:rolleyes:
Well I thought you were on a roll, yes I did.
I am assuming that sometime in the near future, you will be taking a bit of your own advice, and we will be seeing no further posts from you:wally
In that same situation, someone calls me an “asshole” or anything similar, and I pull back into the space, get out, and stand there.
Once he drives off, I get back in etc. The next guy can have my space. Rotten? Petty? Go tell the Spartans.
Where did that come from? Have I offended you? If so, when? how?
Unfortunately, lezlers, it’s not always the case that the car park is full. Where I shop, there’s a mindset common to a sizeable minority of shoppers which precludes them from even contemplating finding spaces further away from the store. They simply pull into the aisle closest to the store and wait for one of the ‘best’ spaces to become available. No obvious thought about which park might get them into the store quicker. Coupled with the crowd who pull up right outside the store entrance to ‘drop off’ and ‘pick up’ passengers’ (read: park there for twenty minutes while their spouse or partner does the shopping), it makes for a frustrating situation, unless of course you simply pick a parking spot two or three aisles down!
On plenty of occasions, I’ve noticed that the car in front of me when I pull into the car park is still waiting for a space in the ‘convenient front aisle’ once I’ve gone past them, parked further away and walked past their car into the store.
I’m familiar with the scenerio you describe Ferris, which is why I mentioned the lot being full. When people do what you described, I agree they’re being silly, but I hardly feel like they deserve the scorn being heaped on them by some of the posters in this thread. Waiting for a space, even in a half empty lot, stupid as it may seem, doesn’t really deserve some of the passive agressive behavior described here. You don’t know what the person’s situation is. There could be a number of reasons why they want a closer space. Or they could just be fucking lazy. Either way, how is it causing you any harm? Why do you have to act like a jerk about it?
Now, if they call you an asshole or anything like that, then they deserve what’s coming to 'em. But if they’re just paitently waiting for your space, I don’t really see how they’re akin to the antichrist.
I wouldn’t intentionally stay longer than I needed to, unless someone were harrassing me already, which hasn’t happened to me personally yet. I don’t think people should be expected to exit their space as soon as their bottom hits the car seat, any more than they should be expected to shop extra quickly so their space would be available again sooner. If I have to reorganize my things before leaving the parking space, sorry, I’m not done with my space yet. You can circle the parking lot some more if you can’t wait, just like I did to first get this parking space.
At the school I attend, parking is nightmarish. I usually arrive at school 30 minutes before class or more to be able to get a parking space (I mean any parking space, not a good one.) Most people are very civil about waiting for a space, but I have seen people pulling around other cars waiting to grab a space or screaming at other people to hurry. That’s just ridiculous. If you might be late for class, maybe you should have arrived early too.
I’m morally opposed to random asshole-dom on both sides, how’s that? 
I don’t think most people here are angry about someone waiting, it’s just the guy who yells because he wants you to hurry, or the guy who stays there even after he has people lining up behind him, or the guy who acts threatening to scare you out of your space. Keep a respectable distance, don’t block other people from getting past, and don’t act hostile, and I’ll be happy to move along as soon as I can.
The in the OP wasn’t causing Siege any harm, but he was holding up four other cars behind him. I’d say that’s pretty assholish.
Thing is, what consitutes “acting threatening to scare you out of your space?” Depending on how paranoid someone is, that could be anything. If someone yells, that’s fucked up. But a lot of posters have talked about taking purposely longer than necessary or deliberately walking away just because they don’t like the idea of someone waiting, period. It’s the waiting itself that pisses them off.
THAT, is what I don’t get.
I don’t have a problem with Siege, Mishell. I’ve got a problem with people like Diognes the Cynic and plain_jane (who is somewhat excused because she was only 13, but is still kind of jerkish in the retelling, she couldn’t tell him they weren’t leaving?) who act like jerks when the person waiting is doing absolutely nothing more than that, waiting.
To me, scaring would be yelling, or shaking fists/implements of destruction, or otherwise implying anger at the fact that my parking space has not become his parking space just yet. None of the posts I’ve read seem to be implying that waiting alone is assholish, just people who wait after seeing traffic is blocked behind them or people who threaten or whatever. Could you specify which posts in particular upset you, lezlers? I’ve gotten a completely different vibe from the thread.
reads lezlers 2nd post above Ah, well, that explains that.
Anybody who sits waiting for 10 minutes has nobody to blame but themselves, in my opinion. After a certain point you just shrug it off and move on. And what else could she have done? Gotten out of the car to talk to a stranger and explain that she was too young to move the vehicle?
And I didn’t see Diogenes the Cynic as doing anything wrong. If I go back to my car to drop something off, I’m not obliged to exit the space and find another. My impression was that the guy was blocking traffic in that case, so DtC considered this asshole behavior and ‘punished’ him. Maybe not helpful, but also not a strike against an innocent guy.
“What makes these idiots think that I have some obligation to move my car.” is exactly my view. You might wait if nobody’s behind you, in the hope that the space will be vacated, but nobody’s obliged to vacate because you sit there. You only have a right to the space if you’re parked there pulling into it.
[quote]
I’ve got a problem with … ** plain_jane ** (who is somewhat excused because she was only 13, but is still kind of jerkish in the retelling, she couldn’t tell him they weren’t leaving?)
Oh, look! There appears to be a complete stranger in my general vicinity. I’d better go tell him exactly what my current and future plans are! Otherwise I might be an asshole.
I often go shopping with a friend (who doesn’t drive) and we usually agree to meet back at my car at a given time.
On a couple of occasions when I got back to the car ‘early’ I’ve had people pull up and wait for me to move – I can see they’re annoyed, but what am I supposed to do, drive away and look for another slot, leaving my friend to search the entire lot for me?
Yes, I suppose I could get out and tell the waiting person what is going on, but I really don’t like the idea of approaching strangers, especially in parking lots after dark. 
People, there can be valid reasons for that car to not move away the instant the driver gets back to the car.
Jesus Christ on a monkey powered unicycle - the single time I neglect to preview before posting, I bollocks the coding up. Fantastic.
Oh for cryin’ out loud. Did you all miss the part where I said you can give a head shake or mouth “I’m not leaving” to let people know?
It’s not like it requires telekefuckingnesis.
Shit.
I find a wave equally effective.
However, I do not like to reward assholish behavior. I will typically hurry to move my car if I see someone’s waiting, but if they exhibit assholish behavior (pulling so close to my car that I literally have no room to back out, or honking to speed me up, it’s a new ballgame. It is not your space till I vacate it, asshole, and honking at me to show your indignation at being denied immediate access to your apparently god-given right to my parking space, is not going to encourage me to vacate it any sooner.
In fact, after reading this, I think that rather than just move at my own damn pace when they honk, I’ll wave them off as if I’m not moving, and move after they’ve lost the spot.
Oh, did I mention I’m a bitch when properly inspired?
This goes for tailgating too - if I see you close, but not on my tail, I will recognize that I’m going too slow and move over at the first opportunity. If you zoom up on my tail and all but ride my back bumper and/or flash your lights and/or honk at me without allowing me time to notice that I ought to move over, I will remain in my current lane, but remove my foot from the gas pedal. I will also floor it the moment you change lanes. Perhaps you’ll remember me the next time you endanger someone by driving less than 10 feet from the car in front of you - especially when that car is already exceeding the speed limit. It is perfectly reasonable for me to adjust my speed according to your following distance - if you’re going to ride 5 feet from my bumper, I’d rather be rear-ended at 45 than at 75.
Then again, when I’m stealthing spots, I have the good sense to pull as far over as possible to one side in hopes of allowing cars to pass me.
When following, I have the good sense to ask the person (if they’re w/in earshot) whether they intend to leave.
I also do NOT honk at people taking too long. I may yell a few choice expletives within the confines of my car, but I do not vent my frustration on them - it’s their damn spot, after all. I can either wait, or follow the next guy.
In crowded lots, I make a quick pass at the choicest stuff, then immediately head to the far sides. I’d rather spend my time walking than wasting it going up and down ever aisle.
Damn, you are fucking scary.