Do you mind if I borrow your pen?
Sep 10, 2018, 4:24 am
#121
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: London & Sonoma CA
Programs: UA 1K, MM *G for life, BAEC Gold
Posts: 10,220
I suppose this is social media, so one should expect ridiculous statements, but calling anyone an idiot who doesn't have a pen on their body when stuck in a window or middle seat in economy is absurd. I have no doubt that the great majority of people have a pen in their carry on bag but the pen is not accessible. It seems perfectly reasonable to ask to borrow a pen from the person in the row who has one to hand. But it's also reasonable to accept that a fountain pen, or a very valuable pen, is not for lending.
Sep 10, 2018, 6:48 am
#122
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: SJO - MAN - LAX
Programs: MileagePlus Gold, Avis PP, National EE, Lifemiles Silver, ConnectMiles Gold
Posts: 532
Well I carry a Costa Rican passport, so I'm not eligible for it, but that would've been awesome.
Sep 10, 2018, 9:08 am
#123
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Colorado
Programs: UA Gold (.85 MM), HH Diamond, SPG Platinum (LT Gold), Hertz PC, National EE
Posts: 5,648
I tend to carry not only my fancier ones, but also the throwaway pens from the previous nights hotel. Couldn't care less if lend/give the hotel pen away.
Sep 11, 2018, 12:06 pm
#124
Join Date: Sep 2008
Posts: 7,875
Are you sure you aren't getting confused? Some places like Puerto Rico may be "international" to certain Americans who work the highly skilled positions on airplanes and in airports.
Sep 11, 2018, 12:10 pm
#125
Join Date: Sep 2008
Posts: 7,875
Most people. Why would you carry a pen? Everything is done on your phone. They also have e-signatures and most purchases nowadays don't need signing (and at restaurants in the US where they refuse to use chip and pin they provide you a pen).
Sep 11, 2018, 12:19 pm
#127
Join Date: Sep 2008
Posts: 7,875
I suspect you can't remember because crossing state lines (or even within a state) doesn't require an arrivals form.
"Do you mind if I…"? Such verbiage doesn't sound like a sincere request for assistance but an arrogant or condescending order.
QED
Your very communication with the man next to you says otherwise.
"Do you mind if I…"? Such verbiage doesn't sound like a sincere request for assistance but an arrogant or condescending order.
QED
Your very communication with the man next to you says otherwise.
I found people are more helpful if you start with "can you help me?"
Or, for agents you speak to on the phone, "I'm not sure if you can do this ..." (I think it makes them more eager to prove they can)
Sep 11, 2018, 3:32 pm
#128
Suspended
Join Date: Nov 2015
Posts: 1,808
If this were the actually case, this thread would not exist.
Sep 11, 2018, 3:48 pm
#129
Join Date: Apr 2015
Location: Southern California
Programs: AA EXPlat, 2.4MM; HHonors Diamond
Posts: 580
And I would have replied with "Does this guy think I am an office supply store?"
When people ask to borrow a pen, they are basically saying "I am far too lazy to get my pen from the overhead / take time to prepare for this flight". I've lost so many pen's by lending them out, often having to pick up another for a connecting flight. I just can't do it anymore.
When people ask to borrow a pen, they are basically saying "I am far too lazy to get my pen from the overhead / take time to prepare for this flight". I've lost so many pen's by lending them out, often having to pick up another for a connecting flight. I just can't do it anymore.
Sep 12, 2018, 9:31 am
#130
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Join Date: Nov 2015
Posts: 1,808
I am going to start carrying a pen without ink around, just to teach these fools a lesson in how to travel.
Sep 12, 2018, 10:20 am
#131
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Toronto
Programs: SPG LT Plat, Hilton G,Priorty Club G, AC E
Posts: 2,979
My god what a bunch of uptight folks we have here.
As a habitual aisle seat inhabitant, I happily offer my pen to my seat mates even if they have one in the overhead so they don't have to get up to get it.
As a habitual aisle seat inhabitant, I happily offer my pen to my seat mates even if they have one in the overhead so they don't have to get up to get it.
Sep 12, 2018, 12:18 pm
#132
Join Date: Apr 2015
Location: Southern California
Programs: AA EXPlat, 2.4MM; HHonors Diamond
Posts: 580
Sep 12, 2018, 1:14 pm
#133
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Join Date: Nov 2015
Posts: 1,808
I don't suffer fools, and there are plenty of them in the air. It comes down to people not knowing how to travel and being ill prepared for it. Bags so heavy they have to impose on other passengers to lift them, ignorance of how to reserve seats or that seats are differentially priced so they end up demanding swaps or poaching, people trying to swim upstream after landing to get their bags from 9 rows back (and then trying to make their way back to their row for some bizarre reason) , people who don't prepare properly for TSA checks, and traveling without the common sense basics like a pen or a means to tell time.
It may not be a big deal for occasional fliers, but for those of us up there several times a week, it begins to grate on the nerves because it happens so incredibly often. I get tired of being a nanny to Kettles or worse to frequent fliers who should know better.
So yeah, the line in the sand is drawn.
It may not be a big deal for occasional fliers, but for those of us up there several times a week, it begins to grate on the nerves because it happens so incredibly often. I get tired of being a nanny to Kettles or worse to frequent fliers who should know better.
So yeah, the line in the sand is drawn.
Sep 12, 2018, 1:22 pm
#134
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: United Kingdom
Programs: Bonvoy LTTitanium, BAEC Silver
Posts: 590
It's also amazing how many men don't lift the toilet seat when they pee. I once walked into a toilet with the seat down and covered in urine, presumably from a guy who was in before me. I refused to clean it up but used tissue to lift the seat up. As I come out there's a super hot girl waiting to get in and so I had to apologise on the culprit's behalf making it clear that it wasn't me.
Sep 12, 2018, 1:33 pm
#135
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jun 2013
Posts: 17,410
I don't suffer fools, and there are plenty of them in the air. It comes down to people not knowing how to travel and being ill prepared for it. Bags so heavy they have to impose on other passengers to lift them, ignorance of how to reserve seats or that seats are differentially priced so they end up demanding swaps or poaching, people trying to swim upstream after landing to get their bags from 9 rows back (and then trying to make their way back to their row for some bizarre reason) , people who don't prepare properly for TSA checks, and traveling without the common sense basics like a pen or a means to tell time.
It may not be a big deal for occasional fliers, but for those of us up there several times a week, it begins to grate on the nerves because it happens so incredibly often. I get tired of being a nanny to Kettles or worse to frequent fliers who should know better.
So yeah, the line in the sand is drawn.
It may not be a big deal for occasional fliers, but for those of us up there several times a week, it begins to grate on the nerves because it happens so incredibly often. I get tired of being a nanny to Kettles or worse to frequent fliers who should know better.
So yeah, the line in the sand is drawn.
All this - let's call it what it is - self absorption - really makes traveling so much less pleasant for everyone. But maybe even less pleasant for you since you take their behavior as a personal imposition.
It's like going to Costco and complaining about the check out lines. It's like complaining about the weather. Costco delivers, you can stay indoors, and there's private aviation.