Calchas

My parents often sit separately on public transport ... my dad has built himself a private painting studio at the bottom of the garden ... my mother has her own study/reading room in the house ... whenever I ask why they spend so much time doing their own hobbies in private despite living together I am assured "it is the secret of a happy marriage"

sethb

On UA, you should check daily, they'll probably split you up and you'll find your original seats taken by somebody else, with the agent telling you they can't be moved (unable to explain why you could be moved).

On other airlines you're probably safer.

theddo

I would agree, he handled it great. My point was that most of the time bullies take the path of least resistance and simply not engaging them or enabling them to do what they want is easier.

crabbing

don't expect the airline to respect your initial selection, even if there is no equipment change. check at least once a week, daily as your trip gets closer.

i became convinced that delta has an algorithm, where if it determines that you are traveling with a child under 6, it will automatically change your seats, so you are not sitting next to your kids.

Tchiowa

^ When my wife and I fly together we always sit together because her English is weak so she needs my help ordering meals, etc. But I have to give a thumbs up for the comment about the happy marriage. I have a man cave at home and my wife has a woman cave. We wave at each other from time to time as one of us walks by the other's "domain".

sunnyjl

Because the big guy didn't do anything to me, it wasn't his fault, so why embarrass him???

msiamsia

So true. Man cave and Woman cave. I love it the way you phrased it.

celle

On long flights, I prefer to sit with my husband - I'd rather lean towards him when I sleep than try to sit upright next to a stranger. On short flights, it doesn't worry us if we are seated apart.

We've been married for 44 years, we use separate parts of the house for our work areas and hobbies, and we take separate holidays about once a year. We enjoy each other's company, but we believe in the need to give each other space.

Osmo

Down here, we call it a Shelia Shed.


Im not sure where this fits but recently on a 1-2 seat config Delta F flight, we were bumped to an earlier flight on arrival at LAX and hubby got 1A and I got 1C and I had a stranger sitting in 1D.

Mr 1D offered repeatedly to swap with my hubby so we can sit together so he can get the single seat.

Me: No thanks, its fine.
Him: Don't you want to sit next to your husband?
Me: Mate. We just spent 14+ hours sitting next to each other on a plane, trust me, we both appreciate the alone time.


We're OK sitting separately, just as long as I can get half my meal to him.

Tchiowa

Forgot that part. Very important for us. My wife is half my size but I don't care for airline food, even in business or first, but she's happy to eat her meal and all of mine.

FlyForFun

Last night my 81 year old mother and I flew from KOA to LAX. I had a seat in the emergency exit row and my mother had an aisle seat a few rows back. We are both Executive Platinum on AA and were flying on award tickets. Not sitting together on the plane does not concern either of us; we are more concerned with being comfortable.

When my mother boarded the flight, a man was sitting in her seat. His female companion was sitting in the window seat. She had specifically selected the seat because she prefers an aisle seat and it was designated as a preferred seat by AA. She told the man that she was assigned the seat he was sitting in and asked him to move. He and his companion started whining, griping, and complaining that they had arrived at the Kona airport early so that they could change their seats so that he could have an aisle seat and refused to move. She showed him her boarding pass and he argued with her that he was not moving. He was assigned the middle seat and his boarding pass documented his seat assignment. The flight attendant tried to resolve the situation but the couple would not stop arguing. Finally the FA pointed out that the row across the aisle only had one passenger who was sitting in the window seat. The man eventually moved after being rude, stubborn, and unreasonable. My mother quietly sat in her seat, sipped her complimentary wine, munched on her complimentary snack box, and went to sleep.

Rhetorical question: What kind of a jerk refuses to let an 81 year-old Executive Platinum woman, with a cane, sit in her assigned seat while he behaves like an inconsiderate, rude, obnoxious creep?

Calchas

I think you answered your own question

BadgerBoi

But why would any other passenger care that she's Executive Platinum?

Glad that the FA stood up to the nasty creep.

Calchas

Well no one would care about that, and I wouldn't be bothered whether she was a lady or a gentleman. In fact my line of enquiry would probably end at discovering she was entitled to sit in my seat. But I didn't want to get into it

BadgerBoi

One look at the stick and he should have been out of there like a shot. Ever seen the way those old girls wield those things when they're out doing their supermarket shopping?