Parents Leave 'Rude And Mannerless' Note Reserving Park Bench For 4-Year-Old's Birthday Party

May 31, 2023

The Reddit forum MildlyInfuriating is usually stocked with various petty actions and evidence of everyday inconveniences that just make your brain itch. From sinks full of dishes to unopenable packing to strangers' selfish behavior, it's a back catalog of bad days. Occasionally, posters will call out the particularly nonsensical actions of those around them, not just comment on how they wished a stretch of fencing was more symmetrical. The choice cuts are often those that fall on public holidays when sometimes it seems everyone's on their worst behavior. 

One such post featured a photo showing some of the truly unneighborly behavior that surfaced over the first holiday weekend of September 2022. Like all long weekends, the holiday Labor Day is seen as a treasured time when one can actually relax after the week. Instead of having to speed through laundry, cleaning and socializing, there's enough time for family and friends to gather, maybe grill, or plan an activity together. However, it's not always hot dogs and union rights for everybody. Especially in cities, the battle for pool chairs and grassy patches ideal for picnic blankets rages.

There are unspoken rules of how and when it's fair game to stake claim to a public grill pit or bench, or other public access feature. Generally, if you don't take up too much space or too much time, you're fine. Don't be too disruptive to others. Douse your fires. Pick up your litter. It's an easy list to remember. However, Reddit user @AV16mm discovered a reserved sign on an unoccupied table in the park, which suggested that some of us need to go back to study the basics. 

The original poster (OP) snapped a picture of the sign and uploaded it to Reddit's MildlyInfuriating forum. Written in black marker on white paper, the note read: "Reserved for a birthday party. Please respect the space we've set aside & do not use our tables. This is a 4 year olds party. Don't be the one to mess it up. Thank you." The tone of the message struck a chord with Redditors, who all unanimously agreed that it was entirely out of line. 

Before the comments started rolling in, OP reminded their readers of how packed the area was at the time: "Busy public park on a hot saturday/labor day weekend. Seems super entitled. Park has been open for 4 hours and no sign of them. All the other tables are full." This context only makes the assertiveness of the note all the more annoying. In a short update, OP commented that the partygoers eventually showed up after 6 hours with a boombox and had to be reprimanded by park rangers.

OP, who was also hosting a similar party for a bunch of kids, asserted that the note was "rude and mannerless," and the comment section agreed. Many compared the behavior to "reserving pool chairs at 7am and not showing up to the pool until 3!" Others questioned whether or not there was a nicer way to re-phrase their plea. One suggested, "we know this is a public park but we're showing up with 20 4-year-olds at 1 PM so please let us use these tables for a few hours."

Another sympathized with the 4-year-old who was about to have an awkward party with frustrated families passive-aggressively gathered on blankets around their celebration. 

What would you have done in OP's position? Let us know — and be sure to pass this article on to friends, family and any fellow Redditors!