Don’t You Love Being Trapped In A Flying Metal Tube With These Folks?

A few weeks ago, I was flying back to Denver from Atlanta. I use a cheap airline, and on the flight to Atlanta, I was stuck in the middle seat and got a little claustrophobic. No problem; I got exactly what I’d paid for. To avoid this, I paid extra to choose my seat on the way back, and I chose the window.

I got on the plane, walked to my seat, and noticed a lady and her three- or four-year-old child in my aisle. The lady was in the middle and the child was in my seat. I didn’t board late — I was in one of the early groups — so she just preemptively took the window. You have to pay extra for that.

I walked up and spoke to her. I never, not once, raised my voice or lost my temper.

Me: *Politely* “That’s my seat.”

The woman’s tone when she responded was very incredulous — like she couldn’t BELIEVE I had the nerve to make her move.

Woman: “Are you serious?“

Me: “Yes, completely.”

Woman: “You don’t have to be such a b****!“

I was thinking, “This escalated quickly.”

Me: “Ma’am, I haven’t been a b**** at all. Not yet.”

Woman: “I’m not sitting next to you if you’re a b****.”

Umm, okay?

Me: “Then, if there are empty seats, I suggest you move if you don’t want to sit next to me. That’s my seat.”

She then stood up and yelled for the flight attendant.

Woman: “I’m not sitting next to a stupid b****!”

The poor flight attendant came over, gave me an embarrassed look, and spoke to the woman.

Flight Attendant: “Ma’am, you need to sit down in the correct seat and wait to see if there are no-shows.”

The woman then proceeded to tell everyone around what a b**** I was, etc., earning me more embarrassed looks from other passengers.

At the end of the day, I got my seat and wasn’t claustrophobic, and she looked like an a**, but what is the deal with parents like that? I have three boys and I would never, ever expect people to give up seats for us — and certainly not ones they paid extra for.