Man left his newspaper on a coffee table and thought it reserved the table?
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Anonymous
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DW and I went to WFH at a semi-crowded coffee shop. We saw a table with a copy of the NYT on it. We figured someone left it there and moved the newspaper to a nearby ledge and thought nothing of it.
A few minutes later a man came over and told us this was his table and it was rude that we moved his newspaper. We said sorry we didn't realize and asked if he wanted us to move so he could have the table. He muttered to himself, shook his head, and walked away. He then came BACK and told us we should know how rude we were. He kept arguing with us so I just raised my voice and told him you can't indefinitely reserve a table in a crowded coffee shop with a newspaper, and to please leave us alone. He kept going on about how he doesn't agree and we just needed to know how rude we were. DW said I shouldn't have raised my voice but I think this guy clearly doesn't have all his marbles. |
Anonymous
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But you think it's ok to work from "home" at a semi-crowded coffee shop, hogging the table for hours while sipping a coffee? Probably one of those clueless people that also takes calls there.
People like you are the worst. |
Anonymous
Yup. |
Anonymous
| You weren’t working from home if you were at a coffee shop. Go home. |
Anonymous
We ordered food and several drinks. We were just there for ~2 hours while the cleaning people are at our house. |
Anonymous
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A newspaper definitely doesn't save a table because it is something that is often left behind. Its not like you moved his sweater or phone. I don't think you did anything wrong and he shouldn't have harassed you.
If he was going to sit for a few minutes and read the paper and you were going to sit there for hours working, you committed another coffee house sin. But, that doesn't negate his poor behavior. |
Anonymous
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He should've put the newspaper on the seat to save it.
A newspaper on a coffee table in a coffee shop means that newspaper is up for grabs for other people to read! |
Anonymous
| He saved the table. Instead of asking him if he wanted you to move, you and your husband should have immediately stood up and moved to give him the table back. Why would you ask him, since he told you he was saving the table and was planning to sit there? You and your husband were wrong, but this guy was wrong because he didn’t tell you he wanted the table and instead left and came back to harass you. |
Anonymous
2 hours?! That's fine if it's not crowded but you don't need to be there for more than 1. I went to Tatte last week, there were only 2 tables open outside, and there were multiple people working on computers with no coffee or food in front of them, taking up multiple tables. |
Anonymous
Next time go to a library. |
Anonymous
| A newspaper is the kind of thing people leave behind all the time. so I wouldn't have understood it to mean that the table was reserved. You gotta leave something of value--a sweater, a book (open face-down so it's clear you're in the middle of reading it), even a baseball cap. But a disposable item like a newspaper? No. |
Anonymous
| You were right. |
Anonymous
| It is always a man. |
Anonymous
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Your husband does not understand that women sometimes need to show a lot more force than men when they're harassed, otherwise the men who harass them don't get the message. You made a mistake anyone would have made, you apologized and you went above and beyond by offering him his table back. So don't worry on that front. |
Anonymous
+1 and they never apologize just dig in to try a justify their position |