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justagrrl
01-08-2002, 06:41 AM
We recently got our annual passes (for the first time) and have gone pretty much every single day since. (Okay, so it's only been a week and the hubby was on vacation so yeah, I was loving it.)

I just had a little pet peeve of mine that I thought I'd share. What's up the "close-standers"? You know, those people behind you that must be so close to you in line that they are touching you. You scoot forward 2 inches to get away from them and then they do the same thing. I'm not asking for a lot of space but I'd rather not be getting it from behind, from the person behind me, if you know what I mean. ;)

ae's mom
01-08-2002, 07:56 AM
That is so funny because that has to be one of my biggest pet peeves!! I know what you mean.....I don't need alot of space, but, my goodness, when I can hear you breathing behind me or I can smell the churro on your breath.....back off!! hee hee

Ghoulish Delight
01-08-2002, 08:15 AM
What gets me are little kids. Now, it's not like if a kid bumps into me once, I turn around and smack 'em one. You can't blame them really, they are kids, and they are at Disneyland. They're bound to get excited and bump people from time to time. It's the parents that I want to smack. The ones who are oblivious to what their kids are doing. The ones whose kids are all but crawling up my butt for an entire line. The worst is when I turn around and the parent just kind of looks at me and smiles! Oooh I hate that!

MammaSilva
01-08-2002, 08:31 AM
my solution to those people who feel the need to getthisclose....I start coughing and hacking... all of a sudden I have plenty of space LOL

Iceman
01-08-2002, 08:49 AM
It seems to me that a lot of the "close standers" are foreigners who aren't used to the same personal space requirements that we Americans are. They also sometimes don't have the same personal hygiene standards we do... yuck!

If you don't like being cramped in line, don't go to Tokyo Disney! ;)

JTEMM66
01-08-2002, 09:10 AM
This is right up there with the parents not watching the kids...Me and my family were at DCA on Friday....and twice I got to watch these idiot parents in action. The first time was for the Electrical Parade.....We purposely got there early to get a good view....and I sat my 3 kids down.....in a spot...with a good view....low and behold...just prior to the parade beginning...here comes a brain dead parent....who procedes to place their children right in betwen my children.....I guess they viewed a three inch space between my children as a place to get a better view for their children....the same thing happened at the Luminaria show....So much for getting there early to get a good view...when others just step in and make themselves comfortable......Now I know why some people should not reproduce......Sorry about my rant...but it is annoying like the ones crawling up your back in line!!!!!!!!

mad4mky
01-08-2002, 09:38 AM
As I am reading these "rants"...(which drive me batty also)...I keep reminding myself that Europeans...especially the French don't use the "personal space" that we do. Pushing and shoving is their norm....and to be expected.

I'm gearing myself up for Disneyland Paris...

I'm learning to keep control now...and to be prepared for the shoves that are going to keep happening to me while in line....

Tink
01-08-2002, 09:42 AM
I have also noticed that it seems to be foreigners who squeeze in so close you have to peel 'em off to get on the ride.

My little thing to curtail this is that when I stand I leave one foot propped up on toes behind me and bounce it up and down and wobble it back and forth - 9 times out of 10 this works.

P.S. I do my best to keep my kids off of other people because I know how much that irritates me. Sometimes it's just more difficult when they are so excited - short of strapping them to your leg. My daughter is a natural entertainer and when we've been in line too long she will initiate a group song like the Gilligan's Island theme song - she did this at Universal Studios this weekend.

socabch
01-08-2002, 10:13 AM
My 14 year old has to talk with her hands & arms moving (so dramatic) so if anyone is getting touchy feely with my back side I usually put her behind me. She usually gets them to back up a step or two so she doesn't accidently smack them or elbow them. Now if people are being considerant and give a little space I put her in between her sister & I so she doesn't hurt anyone.

tabacco
01-08-2002, 03:13 PM
I once had a total stranger hop in my doom buggy with me. Talk about an awkward moment :)

Iceman
01-08-2002, 03:32 PM
Well, Doug, that all depends on how good-looking she was! :D

Gemini Cricket
01-08-2002, 03:36 PM
Originally posted by mammasilva
my solution to those people who feel the need to getthisclose....I start coughing and hacking... all of a sudden I have plenty of space LOL

You crack me up!:D LOL

Lani
01-08-2002, 04:23 PM
As others have noted, Americans are accustomed to personal space -- culturally we have a two-foot bubble. Not the same in other countries, including Europe and Japan.

If you are bothered by their crowding in to you, you can either redefine your space by sticking out your leg, moving out your elbow, or simply asking: hold out your hand and say "Excuse me" in a pushing-away motion. If you do it politely, and then thank them when they move back, they will be appreciate and will probably not crowd you again (however if they do, again, be patient and do the same).

Just remember that they are not being rude; they just come from a different culture that has a different sense of space. Dirty glances their way or appearing as if to talk about them will not really provide a solution for you (other than causing them to think you are being an ugly American!).

innerSpaceman
01-08-2002, 04:29 PM
If foreigners (sorry, but it's mostly foreigners) get so close behind me in line that they are touching my back, I simply start to lean back against them, until they are completely supporting my entire body weight if necessary.

If our personal space requirments are too strange for them, well they'd best learn a little bit of 'When-in-Rome" while traveling abroad.

Morrigoon
01-08-2002, 04:37 PM
On days that I bother waiting in line for something, I'm usually wearing a backpack. There's nothing more annoying than having someone bump your backpack, because it jars your whole back. So what I do is swing side to side a little when I feel them up against my backpack. That in turn is an irritating enough feeling that they back off for their own benefit. The one foot behind you thing works well too, most of the time. Other times I turn sideways in line (usually do this anyway to talk to whoever I'm in line with). People will rarely come that close to your face... too intimate even for most non-Americans.

melinda1955
01-08-2002, 04:49 PM
I also dislike when people get so close to you in line that they are literally pushing into your backside. I had these kids at DCA this Sunday who totally did that the whole time and their parents are waiting outside the line not saying anything and then when it was time to board the ride pushed right pass myself and my six year old daughter like they wouldn't get their turn or something. Makes you so mad you can't even enjoy the ride.
Another event that same day which was uncomfortable , not for us , but the Sun Wheel ride at DCA, the cm put two totally separate families, one with two little ones and the other with one child. So there were seven people in that basket!!! I was worried that he would do that to us as there are three of us but luckily he didn't. But you could totally tell the people felt weird.

MammaSilva
01-08-2002, 04:54 PM
the CM's tend to do that at Mickeys House as well, when you finally get to the "photo op/meet Mickey" area.. I always talk to the CM and explain about Brandy needing a little extra time and we are always willing to wait a few extra minutes to get to go in and see Mickey with just our group. I have found that a pleasant request to a CM is almost always accomodated

EandCDad
01-08-2002, 05:01 PM
I'm generally assuming that being in a public place like DL with people standing in lines and passing each other in tight spaces that I have to give up a little of my personal space. It bothers the crap out of me, which is why I try to restrict my visits to days and times when crowds are lower.

I actually feel a little sorry for the parents of the kids who are the big line pushers or parade space stealers. These kids have not be taught to obey so when/if the parent actually does say "wait your turn" or "come stand by me" or "don't go over there," the kids ignore them and the parent doesn't really know what to do. They are used to the kids ignoring them at home and have done nothing to change it. That kid is only going to bother me for a few minutes, the parent has them for the next 10-20 years.

If someone invades my space in line I turn around and say calmly say "If you stay two feet away from me until we get up to the front, I'll give you $20." When we get up to the front I tell them I was lying, get on the ride, and laugh my head off. The look on the people's faces is worth the price of admission.

Seriously, we were at DL with our oldest when she was about 1 or 2 (I think). We were standing in line at the Jungle Cruise and we were right behind a group of 6 Asian tourists (3 men, 3 women, all in mid 20's). We were carrying "E" and the ladies in front were looking at her, smiling and talking to each other. Finally one of them held her arms out in the universal "gimme" sign. It was a little suprising but we looked at each other and her and said "why not" (she literally could not have gone anywhere). We handed "E" to her and she held her for a while. It was actually a nice break. I for the life of me could not imagine asking someone at Tokyo Disneyland if I could hold their child even if I wanted to. Different strokes.

HBTiggerFan
01-08-2002, 05:02 PM
I do the stick one foot out behind me thing. Works good.

As for the sun wheel, I have been on it with just my party and with other parties. The multiple parties (on the swinging car) is so much fun! Everyone freaks out! And talks.

Morrigoon
01-08-2002, 05:05 PM
I'm perhaps over-aggressive when it comes to not allowing myself to be cut past. If I sense someone attempting to push their way to one side of me, I usually extend my hand out to the side of me, placing it on the handrail, basically blocking as much space as I possibly can.

There was one time at DLP when the parents were clearly trying to send their kid up ahead to help them cut. I did the take-up-as-much-space-as-possible thing, and yet they persisted. One time the kid was trying to come past one side of me and I was wearing my usual backpack (a really heavy one, since I was in Europe, it had cameras and all kinds of stuff in it). I swung to one side and Whap! my backpack caught the side of the kid's head good (before you feel too bad... this kid was small but old enough to know the difference between right and wrong). Did this discourage him? No, oddly enough. He tried later to just make his way past one side of me... got about a foot ahead of me... I grabbed him by the shoulder and literally pushed him back behind me.

There were no more serious attempts at cutting in front of me after that :D

mad4mky
01-08-2002, 06:01 PM
Some kids are just bouncy kids...and their is not much you can do about it.

But, when parents don't tell their children to stop, or make them stop...it does bother me. Sometimes I can get a little bit snippy...and I want to say something, but I ususally don't. Call me a coward.
But, I find it terrible that my kid...who is mentally disabled has better manners than most "normal" kids. Is it because of her personality?...No...it's because we taught her to behave, just like any parent should teach a child. She waits her turn, she dosn't touch and bounce around...and she will say "thank you" or "excuse me" as appropriate. She's not the perfect kid...but in public...she'd better act appropriate, or she knows she has consequences...

coronamouseman
01-08-2002, 06:15 PM
A few comments:

(1) the issue of personal space and the differences between cultures regarding this situation have been very well documented over the years - Americans have the "bubble" mentioned earlier in the thread and many other cultures do not - so accept crowding and violation of your personal space by unknowing foreigners or by over-anxious kids (some older ones too!)

(2) I personally find DL much more tolerable in this area than WDW - it seems like many of the European cultures have a much smaller "bubble" and on top of that, "queing up" is not something that some nationalities are very good at and these people seem to be more abundant at WDW than DL

So if you like your space, DL is probably a better choice for you than WDW or TDL/TDS ...........

Morrigoon
01-08-2002, 06:17 PM
DLP wasn't bad, other than the family that kept trying to get their kid to cut, and some teens on my most recent trip who DID cut (in one of those wider areas of the mansion queue)

HBTiggerFan
01-08-2002, 07:14 PM
I also do the arm thing...lean on the guardrails put a foot up...anyting to keep people from cutting.

DZNEENUT
01-08-2002, 07:23 PM
Well there is a really effective remedy for kids that works as a last resort. Yes I have been known to break wind like Pumba. Clears those pesky butt smackers away in a hurry. Keeps their parents away too. My wife is appalled while I'm amused. I know I know. But, sometimes enough is enough. Works for skunks you know.:eek: