Today I offered to have my friends baby for the afternoon, she is lovely, smurf loves her to pieces and as he was losing his daddy this afternoon (his best friend in the whole world!!!!!), I thought it would be good for him to see his baby friend to take his mind of it, also BFF has been feeling under the weather so thought she might appreciate the afternoon off.
So we pick baby friend up fix her baby carrier in the car, and head off for the airport, smurf chatting away to her, she babbling happily back, all goes well at the airport drop off , daddy gets away OK without to much fuss from smurf as he feels very important looking after baby friend.
On the way home I decide to brave the local Asda and pick up somethings for a cuppa with BFF and some other bits I needed, I mean how hard can it be, I'll park in a parent and child space, put them both in a trolley and off we will go.
And there is where the problem starts, with the coveted parent & child space, now I do not automatically expect to get a parent and child space, if other mums or dads with children were there before me..so be it, but what does totally P*** me off is the people that park there when they have no children with them, just because it is closer to the shop....It was pouring rain when we got there and I did manage to get a parent and child space, but as I sat in the car with the children waiting for the rain to abate a little, I watched no less than 3 other spaces fill up with people with no kids...I mean one of them was a bloody transit van!!!!!!!!!!!!
The spaces have a great big yellow picture of a parent and child in them, there are notices everywhere telling you they are for the use of parents with children ONLY!!! Our local Asda even has notices and signs stating that you will be fined £60 if you park in it without children, does this make one blind bit of difference, does it heck as like.
Now I hate conflict, but I wanted to go up and ask where the kids were...I didn't of course, but I really really wanted to....I think its only a matter of time.
Would love to know if anyone else has things like this that make them want to have a good rant, mine was that bad I had to buy chocolate cake, and its all the fault of those people parking in the wrong spaces.
I have ranted at an old couple who took my parent and child space, they swung in and got out childless, I put the window down and asked them where their child was. They had no answer and i said i have 3children and was pregnant so i think you should move, now.
ReplyDeleteThey snuck back into their fancy convertable and drove off with me feeling very pleased with myself. You are right to rant it really annoys me how lazy poeple can be. Enjoy the cake xxx
I once missed out on a parking spot at Tesco to a couple in a sports car. No kids.
ReplyDeleteI drove alongside, opened the car window and politely said: "I'm not sure you noticed but you're in a parking space for people with young children?"
The woman gave me a filthy look and said: "Yeah, we know." They walked into the store. When we walked in a few minutes later, I have them a bit of a dirty look and the woman shouted at me: “Looks like you could do with some exercise, love, just as well you parked further away, wasn’t it?”
Well, I was SO furious, I went over and said VERY loudly and clearly. “Those spaces are so people can get babies in and out of cars safely. Do you even HAVE children?”
She nodded and I said: “Well, what a LOVELY example you’re setting for them. I just hope for their sakes they don’t grow up to be as rude and selfish as the pair of you.” Then I said, “Come on Flea, let’s leave this silly people to it.” And stalked off.
People actually applauded. And the couple left without doing their shopping, either. Felt REALLY good.
Excellent post.
ReplyDeleteThis is one of my pet hates too. Funnily enough I was half-way through this post:
http://sandycalico.blogspot.com/2009/08/supermarket-grass.html
when I read yours.
I wasn't brave enough to confront the three massive lads who stole my space, so I told tales!
Really makes me cross too although I'd never be brave enough to say anything to the offenders.
ReplyDeleteI hope the chocolate cake was good. :0)
Oooh that really gets me cross too!! I love Sally's story! x
ReplyDeleteI've reported them in Ikea and had them named and shamed over the tannoy....muahahahaa! I've also been known to make really loud comments, much to the embarrassment of my husband ;).
ReplyDeleteI do sometimes think twice though as it could be someone coming to pick up their children.
:)
I was just putting my son in the car as we were leaving a parent and child space when an old man parked in the space next to us - right in front of the £60 sign. I said to him that the space was only for parents with children and he said "well then I'd better get my disabled badge out then". There were 3 disabled spaces empty right opposite us, so I asked why he didn't park in one of those and his reply was that he wanted this space. Three other old men then started shouting at me; apparently, wanting shoppers with shildren to be able to use their allocated spaces means that I "want it all ways". By the way, the offending shopper with the disabled badge fairly ran into the shop, leaving his windows open and doors unlocked.
ReplyDeleteI get really annoyed as well, My OH works for a supermarket so we tell the carpark guys to give them a ticket!! Though I have done the loud "I thought these spaces were for people with children"
ReplyDeleteWow I really hit a nerve, I thought it was just me!
ReplyDeleteAmy..really admire that you managed to get them to move, I have never had the nerve!
Whosthemummy - I bet it did feel good, and the applause, must annoy lots of peeps.
Sandy - great minds think alike, loved the pic to go with your post!!
Chicmamma - Love your blog, and yes the chocolate cake was guilt ridden but yummy.
Clareybabble - I loved Sally's story too, people make me so cross sometimes.
Insomniac Mummy - Good for you, I always look for baby seats then I give them the benefit of the doubt. When my hubby is there he always says something, he has no shame...lol
Nicola - Yes this really gets on my nerves, they seem to think it gives them the right to park wherever they like...so annoying!
New Mummy - I have done that too, not that anyone listens to me, but it makes me feel better..lol
ReplyDeleteI don't drive, so this one doesn't affect me, though I can see how very annoying it must be. The one that gets me, is people parking on (or partially on) pavements, so that you can't get through with a buggy and have to push the buggy out into the road to get past them. (I am not looking forward to this element of pushing a baby around in a buggy, I have to say, as it can really put me in a bad mood.) I tend to talk very loudly to Rosemary about how people really shouldn't park on the pavement. I have confronted people a few times, but they tend to just get angry and horrible, which isn't something I especially want my children to witness. I did go around taking photos of bad parking for a while, but never did anything with them. And once I left an angry note. I contemplated printing out some postcards to stick under windscreens and might actually print some out in advance this time. I think a lot of the time, people just don't realise that they're causing such problems and might change their attitude if they only knew. Then again, plenty of them know full well and just don't care - like the people parking in the mum and children's spots.
ReplyDeleteMy husband gets very embarrassed when we visit a supermarket and this happens. He's the kind of person who sits there and moans under his breath but I'm a kinda girl who speaks her mind (must be the redhair!)
ReplyDeleteAnyway one lovely Friday afternoon (always the best time to do shopping with kids in tow I think !!) we headed over to our local supermarket and went to pull into the bay when got beaten to it by a middle aged lady. Well I (having had a bad day in work as well) opened my window and asked her as she got out did she know that it was a parent and child bay and she said yes but she was disabled and therefore could park there. I pointed out to her that she had no disabled badge and that there were plenty of empty disabled bays. She then ran towards the supermarket (in a not very disabled way)!!
It so annoys me when this happens especially when there are 3 times as many disabled bays as there are mother and child bays!!!
BNM, don't get me started on the difference in the amount of disabled spaces and parent and child spaces...I could rant all day about it.
ReplyDeleteTasha...parking on the pavement is also one of my peeves people just don't think about how their actions impact on others.
I love Tasha's idea of leaving a card on the windscreen of people who park on the pavement. Funnily enough my Mum came up with the perfect words, just last week, "Sorry I scratched your car, but I had trouble getting the pushchair through the tiny gap you left on the pavement"! Hehe :-)
ReplyDeleteSandy I love that idea too, they should issue you with them as you leave the maternity ward..sometimes think pregnant mummy spaces might be a good idea too!!
ReplyDeleteYou've certainly started something here Lorraine. And we should all do something to keep the ball rolling, like 'telling tales' as Sandy did or leaving cards on the windscreens... oh, the possibilities are endless. This could be the next big movement!
ReplyDeleteDotterel....lol, we can have wardens going round car parks, ticket to anyone with no kids ...I love it. Seriously though the supermarkets put up signs threatening fines...never heard of anyone getting one..anyone else hard of it?
ReplyDeleteOoooohhhhhh!! Makes me sooooo mad and why so few spaces for parents and children? I pulled up at a supermarket a few weeks ago and there was a guy sat in a lorry and it was parked ACROSS three parent and child spaces. I gave him 'evils' and he just looked at me as if to say 'What you looking at?'
ReplyDeleteHmm yeah I have seen that happen to only it was a minibus parked,some of the supermarket staff were standing around smoking near the space and he actually asked them if it was ok, their reply, its only the parent and child spaces should it will be fine!!!!! WTF!!!
ReplyDelete