I was sitting in 14A on WestJet’s 7:40am, March 26th Hfx-Cgy flight and you had a toddler on your lap. How much indication did I have to give to make you understand I wasn’t enjoying the thumping of my seatback while you let said toddler kick away for the five hours we were in the air.
You could have easily pulled him/her up your lap a bit and away from the seat but that would have been too easy. And next time bring a soother cause when it wasn’t kicking it was screaming. I know a baby will cry but your solution of saying “it’s OK” in a “baby-talk voice” over and over just added to the headache endured by many on board. —will look for annoying people in 15A before sitting down
This article appears in Mar 25-31, 2010.
I don’t know. What indications did you giver her? Did you actually tell her her child was kicking the seat? Was the plane full? If not, did you aske the flight attendant to either move her or you? Was the woman psychic to know what you were thinking?
I tend to like kids and all, but I think that any child under the age of 12 should be put on a plane as checked-in luggage. It might even be fun for the little brats… I mean, little angels.
Yes, I was once a little shit kid too! If I were to go back in time and see five year-old me, I would definitely smack my smart-assed mouth.
Bro Tim – I think turning around and stating twice that I’d appreciate if she’d pull the kid back from kicking reach was more than sufficient, and I did it politely.
There were at least a half-dozen other kids under 5 years on this flight and their parents understood they weren’t the only people on the flight.
And why would I ask the flight attendant to deal with it? The bitch was sober and apparently a parent so I’d expect her to understand when her kid was causing a disturbance and to correct it as a parent. I wouldn’t expect the flight attendant to get involved. However I did take the matter up with WestJet and I’m getting a 75% refund. They know who the troublemaker was and hopfully her name is red-flagged on their system for the next time.
Hopefully the mother shoves a soother up her twat so she can’t get pregnant again. I think 2 spoiled brats in her care will be sufficient.
On a bright note – TPB’s Jim Lahey was on the flight 🙂
Some parents should be stowed in the luggage compartments along with their kids. I hate this too. Friggin’ self-entitled parents.
you just get no fucking respect on a plane. that’s why i drive to where ever i have to go, if possible. i hate flying for that reason.
Another spineless wonder – what the fuck is wrong with you? Couldn’t you turn around and ask this woman to have her kid stop kicking your seat? But noooooooooooo, you had to sit and stew about it for 5 hours. You deserved what you got.
TTFN can’t read. Love me some TTFN, but maybe she needs to put down the liquid eyeliner….
Smoochie-smoochie to you too, DD.
Isn’t there a ban on having animals in the cabin with passengers. Children are animals. They should be placing children in cargo!
Even if the OP didn’t say anything to the mom, if you had a kid on your lap and it was kicking the seat in front of you, would you not feel, hear, and see that? They’re right the fuck there on you! Stupid “mom”s. I can’t wait to grow up and not have children, it’s going to be great.
If the flight is longer then 2ish hours, I fly Adavan. Pop it with a double at the terminal bar immediatly before boarding and it doesnt matter how fucked up your day is; you wont care.
I wonder if parents ever think of, oh, I dunno, giving their kids some gravol just before the flight? Flying isn’t really a picnic for kids, especially the toddlers who like to get up and move around. Also, a lot of kids have problems with their ears and problems with airsickness. And it’s hard enough for some adults to sit in a small sardine can that is small airplane travel for 5 hours, let alone a toddler (frig, I get antsy by the time I land when I fly from hfx to toronto). Gravol would knock the little buggers out and save everyone on board (including the kid itself) a world of annoyance.
Then again, some parents are just entitled douches who think their “miracle” is everyone else’s “miracle.” Once when I was at a restaurant with a friend this 4 year old was banging on the back of the booth with his boots, much like this kid in the bitch, and my friend wouldn’t say anything (even though it was annoying the shit out of her and me) so I politely said “could you please get your child to stop banging on the back of the booth?” and I shit you not, her response was (word for word — you wouldn’t forget a response like this): “well, I’ll ask him, but I can’t guarantee that he’ll actually stop.” I was too shocked to say anything, and the kid did stop, but if he hadn’t, I would’ve had NO problem being not-so-polite the second time around. One way to get the kid to stop is scare them — yell at the parent and the kid will get scared and stop on its own. My dad did that once when this little brat was screaming his head off in the bank and the mother was all “it’s ok, sweetie, mommy’s just putting some money into the machine” and my dad was nice and asked her to quiet her kid and she just laughed at him, so when he started screaming again my dad yelled at the mother “COULD YOU CONTROL YOUR FUCKING ANIMAL?” and the kid stfu and was perfectly behaved for the rest of the time in there. Though, the mother did tell my father off and got REALLY mad when he just laughed at her. It was a sight, but also great to see one of “those” parents who think their kid can do no wrong get shot down. Best of all, it got the kid to STFU (though, I must admit, my dad’s a tall guy with a deep voice and a REALLY loud yelling voice so he’d probably have more success than if my short ass attempted the same thing).
*sigh* it’s parents like this wonder why their kids end up in juvenile detention centres when they’re 15 fucking years old.
I say make parents pay for an actual seat for their toddler/infant and make them sit in said seat (maybe design the seats so they can be fitted with a car seat for infants. Or make them ride in the overhead baggage compartment. Either or 😛
As a terrible two owner who flies a lot and flew a lot as a child, I apologize but most of us do restrain our children quite admirably. There are always a few that give the rest a bad name. No matter how well things are going we get dirty looks as soon as we arrive at the terminal and throughout the flight. Ours has never kicked a seat back, as we restrain her practically continuously but someday might. I refuse to lower my seat back unless it’s a really long flight and then only as needed but find it inconsiderate when those in front lower them onto our laps/child as soon as the fasten-seat belt light turns off. I don’t enjoy airlines who don’t board those with infants first, instead allowing the rush of those with too much carry-on to fill the aisles. I’d much rather be in a row with a small well behaved child than a loud/obese/sweaty/smelly person as frequently happens. Ours will cry/scream/howl prior to falling asleep on planes, it just amazes me that people in adjacent aisles will continue to shout loudly at the person in the seat next to them once ours is asleep. The howling doesn’t bother me but waking her up does noone any favours. Also the gravol doesn’t work on many children, in a lot it causes a paradoxical excitatory response which is even worse.
Putting our child in an extra paid for seat will accomplish nothing as they wouldn’t stay seated unless adding a car seat was an option -which it currently isn’t. And being slight of build we can actually sit three to two seats. I’d be happy to be put in the back or front of the plane with other families to not bother other passengers but the airlines are too busy collecting money for luggage/food/seat selections/air to organize something so useful. I’ll even hazard to say we add something positive to flights as when our infant is in a good mood she’s very personable and when the opportunity arises will enjoy walking down the aisle smiling and greeting those along the way on an otherwise bland flight.
I’m not sure I agree with drugging children as a means of controlling their behaviour while travelling.
you’re not ‘sure’… or you’re not?
you sound like you’re on a fence…
me, if there were studies to show it didn’t harm, I’d be all for it.
they aren’t going to want to remember the boring 5 hours looking at the back of someone’s head anyways.
luckily, I was always a sleepy kid and slept through it all anyways.
Gravol for the kiddies . . . Atavan and the “beverage” cart for the adults . . . a VERY pleasant flight for everyone concerned!
Turn around and scream “HEY KID! STOP KICKING THE BACK OF MY MOTHER FUCKING SEAT YOU LITTLE WANG WOLFER!!!”
See what happens.
I would have summoned a flight attendant and spoken up with, “Excuse me, I’m having troubles with my seat. I paid several hundred for it and was hoping not to have to endure several hours of being kicked in the back. Is there something that could be done about it please?”
If that didn’t work then I’d turn and give the kid an Undertaker stare. If the mother got angry I’d get up, go to the washroom and kick the back of her seat along the way.
What about “christmas lemonade” for the rugrats? Aka neocitron?
You can fit a kid inside an airline table if you fold him in eighths. Shuts them right up.
Gravol is generally pretty harmless. Doctors even recommend it to those who can’t sleep over sleeping pills. It’s not like I’m suggesting giving your kids ambien or a tranq…although, some could probably benefit from some.
gravol is great…it kept my brother from barfing out the car window and hitting me
Part of a flight attendant’s duties is to ensure that the passengers have a comfortable pleasant flight so asking them to intervene is quite correct.
asking them to strap the kid on with a bungee and tie it to the wing however….
not so much.
why don’t air planes have panic rooms? they would be great kids rooms if you pad them with rubber…
How much of an idiot are you? You’re too much of a pussy to speak your mind so you waste space on this website “getting something off your chest.” Can’t imagine that’s very satisfying. Next time, just turn around and say something, and after, when you realize it wasn’t her that was really bugging you, but instead how disappointed you are with your own life, then my child you will be free…. Turn down the hate, turn up the love…. dummy…