As he was driving to his hair appointment, Tom noticed an empty parking space on the side of the road. He pulled over, but he didn’t realize that a woman in a car behind him was also looking to park there.
Move Quicker
The woman had driven past the space to reverse back into it, but she hadn’t started reversing yet when Tom drove into it. When the woman started backing into the space, Tom realized his mistake. “I genuinely didn’t realize,” he said. The woman had made no indication that she wanted to park there, Tom didn’t know how he was supposed to read the situation. He had waited to see what she was doing next.
Are You Going To Move?
The woman got out of her car and told Tom that she was parking there because she had a child in the car and needed to go into the supermarket. Tom didn’t know what to do at the moment, so he told her that he was already in the space when she started reversing. The situation quickly became awkward when the woman just stood there, looking at Tom. “Well, are you going to move your car?” she asked.
No Thanks Lady
Tom told her no and went to get his bag to get out of the car. But the woman still didn’t move. She stood at his window and repeated that she had a kid in the car and was in a rush and that he should move to another spot. Tom felt the woman was being really unreasonable and she should just go and find another parking spot.
He’s in a Rush
“I just told her I was also in a rush and had to go, got out of the car, and left her there,” Tom said. Tom was left wondering if he was wrong in some way. He felt like the woman was being unreasonable and aggressive. “If she’d asked politely, I might have moved,” he said. “But it was pouring down, and I was already late.”
Friends Don’t Agree
Tom’s friend, Sarah, had a different take on the situation. “I think the woman was justified in her reaction,” she said. “She had a child in the car and needed to park close to the supermarket. Maybe if Tom had been more understanding, he could have avoided the confrontation.”
His Friend Said
Another friend, Alex, had a similar opinion. “I think Tom should have been more considerate of the woman’s situation,” he said. “He could have parked in another spot and avoided the whole thing.”
Avoiding Conflict
Despite the differing opinions, Tom realized that he could have handled the situation better. He learned that it’s important to be considerate of other people’s situations and to try to avoid confrontations whenever possible. He’s going to always try and avoid conflict where possible.
He Made It
In the end, Tom made it to his hair appointment on time, but the incident stayed with him. Tom was annoyed for most of the day but started to feel guilty. He realized that he could have been more understanding and that he could have avoided the awkward confrontation
The Internet Responded
This commenter wrote, “If someone in front of you slows down and stops just ahead of a free parking space, they’re backing up into it. For OP to say that they didn’t get that is disingenuous. OP knew the car was backing into the space but decided to apply the “letter of the law” and take the space when they didn’t see a turn signal because they were late and it was raining. Is OP technically right? Yes. Was OP an entitled jerk who was late for an appointment and used the loophole that the other driver’s turn signal wasn’t on? Also yes. The driver with no turn signal could have made an innocent mistake. OP, however, made no mistake: Instead of being kind, they chose to punish the driver vindictively. I really wouldn’t retell this story to too many people OP, it makes you look like a complete jerk.”
Another Internet Response
Another person posted this opinion, “Absolutely not, the indicator is necessary, and you can’t be like 4 car lengths away either. I suspect she just stopped in a random spot waiting for someone to come back to their car so she could take their spot (rather than driving around) but then was on her phone or zoned out and didn’t notice the person leave until after OP parked there and tried her luck.”
A Final Comment
This last person commented and said, “How far off did she drive to back into the spot? I’m confused here, I usually park that way (backing into the spot), but there’s no way you could have squeezed yourself into that spot without hitting my car. I’m gonna say not the jerk; it seems like she drove way past the spot and then noticed there weren’t any spots and started backing up. The physics here don’t make sense.”