First...RickinNYC...I haven't seen posts from you in awhile...maybe I am hanging out on the wrong boards!! But...nice to see you!!!!
Second...I have an almost 3yr old dd...I can't imagine standing in a moving bus carrying her! And, as far as pregnant women go...they really do need to be sitting on a moving vehicle. Some pg women might not even realize this, but as Relaxin enters your bloodstream to allow your ligaments to soften enough for bones to move, and a baby to come out (TMI, I know), the ligaments all over your body "loosen". That is why pg women become very clumsy. Add the "new weight and balance" issues...it's just not safe. I HATED feeling helpless when I was pg. I lifted things, and moved things right up until I started bleeding at 18 weeks because of "excessive activity"...then I sobbed and prayed the whole time I thought I was losing my dd...I just couldn't believe I was that "fragile". Many pg women would never ask or expect you to give up your seat...I do it for the baby, not for them. If they were like me...many don't know their own limitations.
People with mobility issues...the same thing...be nice, and help them out. And people carrying kids...that's just scary all the way around. But, with healthy people who don't give up their seat...I think it is funny. When I was a flight attendant, I once heard a crew member ask the hotel van driver how far the workout room was from her room. She said she wouldn't go work out if it was "too far from my room...I just HATE walking great distances to get there." I asked what she did in the workout room, and she said, "Oh, I just walk on the treadmill."
People stand in line all day, walk all day...and then complain about standing in a bus? Too funny!!
Maybe I am just a total optimist, but, I think that people are basically good, and maybe some of this perceived rudeness is really people just into themselves and their vacation, and not noticing those around them. Or, maybe its just people "not thinking". Even noticing or talking to a pg woman doesn't mean that, if you are tired or distracted that you will think, "I should give up my seat to her." I think the bus driver that asked about "how many gentlemen are on board" probably had the right idea. If I was on the bus and was not holding my dd, I would've stood if I perceived the need...and, I am certainly no gentleman.
But, here's the bottom line....courtesy is something that, by it's very nature can only be offered. It cannot be demanded. By requesting or demanding...one changes the nature of the "gift". To get upset over it is silly, and frankly a waste of time. Some people get it, others do not. We do not have to be chivalrous or kind to live in this country (or WDW), but we certainly enjoy the "ride" much more when we are surrounded by those who are.
There are many, many bothersome things at WDW. There are also many wonderful things as well. I remember a story told to me when I was a little girl. An elderly man ran a gas station on a highway. People often stopped to ask directions, or advice. One day a man stopped and said, "I am headed east. What kind of people will I find in the next town?" The elderly man said, "Well, what kind of people were in the town you came from?". The man replied, "They were nasty, mean back-stabbers." The owner said, "Ohh, well I am sorry to say they are just like that in the next town also."
Later in the day, another car going in the same direction pulled up. The driver got out and asked the same question. When the owner asked about the people living in the town that the driver just left, the man replied, "Oh, they were wonderful, kind, hard-working people." To which the elderly man replied, "Well, I am happy to tell you that the people in the next town are exactly like those in the town that you left. You're gonna love it there!"
Sometimes...it's just what you see.
I hope everyone has wonderful trips to WDW!!!!
Beca