20 things you should never do in public places

- 20 things you should never do in public places
  
  Spitting on the sidewalk. Eating a stinky meal on a crowded bus. Screaming your lungs out at your kid. Urinating wherever the mood strikes you… There are plenty of things you can do in public to irritate or outright disgust other people.
  
  Making sure you aren’t guilty of any of these things isn’t a matter of conforming to dictates from Miss Manners, it’s about respecting others and trying to preserve social harmony. So here’s a list of don’ts for you to consider.
- Chew with your mouth open
  
  Chewing food with your mouth open is not something that people want to see or hear. The Etiquette Scholar advises: “People that chew food with their mouth open are not aware they are doing it. The next time you eat, pay attention to whether you are chewing with your mouth open. If you are, please stop.”
  
  As for smacking and crunching, “Eat as quietly as possible. For many, other people’s smacking noises are cringe-making.”
- Urinate anywhere
  
  This seems to be largely, but not exclusively, a male problem. Some guys solve their full bladder issues by shamelessly relieving themselves in public. It’s just plain gross and should be avoided by planning ahead, e.g., visiting the washroom at the bar or restaurant before you head home.
  
  More socially minded people suggest that rather than penalizing public urination, cities should concentrate on making more public washrooms available.
- Talk loudly on phones
  
  Mobile phones have created a personal communications revolution, but they’ve also turned many of us into boors, conducting loud conversations in public places, such as buses and restaurants. No matter how witty and interesting you think you are, nobody wants to hear your loud chatter, especially on speakerphone.
  
  Psychology Today points out: “Clearly, people feel that talking on the cell phone somehow isolates them from the people in their immediate vicinity… Unfortunately for them, and for their unwilling listeners, they are anything but isolated.”

- Talk to yourself
  
  Yes, you may have a lot on your mind and find yourself talking in public, thinking about what you should have said to that annoying co-worker who didn’t make a fresh pot of coffee after finishing the last cup.
  
  When people talk to themselves, they may be trying to work problems out in their minds by speaking them out loud. This is also known as self-explaining. But talking to yourself can also make you look crazy and cause people to avoid you or shoot withering looks.

Change your kid’s diapers

Parents with babies have a hard time when it comes to traveling, feeding and changing diapers. Fortunately, things have changed so it’s now easier to care for babies in public, including breastfeeding.

However, changing baby diapers in public places is a line not to be crossed, unless there is no alternative. It’s unsanitary in restaurants, and downright unsightly for other people who don’t like the messy view. Most restaurants, airports, train stations, and public spaces have washrooms with change tables that can be used by either parent.

- Stare at people
  
  No matter what your intent or facial expression, staring at somebody else is usually considered rude. It makes the object of your gaze feel uncomfortable and self-conscious. As civilized people, we should try to make the others around us feel comfortable and accepted.
  
  That said, sometimes our brains trigger us to look longer at something that is unusual or unexpected, like an exotic tattoo or birthmark. But despite the visual curiosity, we must always keep in mind how our gaze affects the other person.
- Sing like no one is listening
  
  Yes, it makes you sound like a free spirit if you dance or sing like no one is watching or listening. The trouble is, your theatrics are noticed by other people and probably annoying them, especially if you’re singing along to a favourite song with earphones on and have no idea how loud you are.
  
  On the other hand, singing, including in public, provides great health benefits, such as relieving stress, improving lung function, and boosting the immune system.
- Groom yourself
  
  Cleaning your ears, cutting your fingernails, and brushing your hair and teeth are important, but should never be done in public where you can hit others with stray toenails or hair strands. You can also make people uncomfortable with your personal ablutions. Wait until you get home or can find a washroom for a bit of privacy.
- Pass foul gas
  
  Whether you are a lout who breaks wind unabashedly, or a silent-but-deadly sneak, you need to know that nobody likes smelling your stink, and public farting is about as low as you can go. If you really must let it out, go home, or find a bathroom or somewhere with no one else around.
  
  Of course, controlling gas can be difficult if you have a digestive disorder, such as irritable bowel syndrome, lactose intolerance, or gastroesophageal reflux disease.
- Make everywhere fight club
  
  Some people have no boundaries when it comes to fighting over their personal problems in public. They might be willing to have a shouting match with their partner in a quiet restaurant, or harangue somebody over the phone on a crowded bus for a perceived slight. The anger may or may not be justified, but there’s a time and place for everything, and a crowded public place is neither. Find somewhere private to work out your anger.
- Spit on the sidewalk
  
  Spitting in public is frowned upon in most countries, and even illegal in some. In the late 19th century, the Ladies’ Health Protective Association (LHPA), playing on fears of spit filled with tuberculosis bacterium, managed to get expectorating outlawed in Brooklyn, New York. This ban led to another in the early 20th century, which helped stop the spread of influenza during a pandemic.

Pick your teeth

Walking out of a restaurant cleaning your teeth with a toothpick, or using your tongue to noisily dislodge food from between your teeth is a no-no. Nobody wants to see or hear that. Even if the waiter offers you a toothpick at your seat, think twice about accepting. Even if you cover your mouth, using it at the table can leave chewed food behind, which is never appetizing.

Pick your nose

You need to pick your battles, and you need to accept that you will never win public approval by picking your nose where everyone can see your gross habit. People may do the pick because their nose is too wet or dry, because of allergies or sinus infections. Nevertheless, just wait until you’re alone before dealing with your nasal distress

Flout Covid-19 protections

Acceptable practices for staying safe during the pandemic are changing all the time and vary from place to place. That said, if, say, a store has a mask policy, then respect it, and don’t be that anti-vax, anti-mask person who insists on flouting the rule. When hand sanitizer is offered, use it. Give people their space, including wide berths when walking down a sidewalk. Get double vaccinated. And if you start to feel sick, stay at home until you feel better.

Eat food on public transit

Eating a full meal in an enclosed public area like a bus, or even in a movie theatre, can be disgusting to others if its odour permeates the space (especially when it’s accompanied by lip smacking and open-mouth mawing). It’s one thing to eat in a movie theatre that serves drinks and meals. But if you do, be sure to buy the meals on their menu and not bring your own.

Make out anywhere

Romance is beautiful. It’s nice to see couples hand-in-hand, head on shoulder, perhaps giving each other a little peck now and then. But when romance turns to long, searching kisses it’s time to head to the bedroom and avoid public displays that leave parents fielding awkward questions from their young kids.

Handholding, on the other hand, offers health benefits to both parties. One expert says: “[H]and-holding ultimately brings comfort, warmth, pain relief and friendship to those who feel equally empathetic or compassionate.”

Throw garbage on the ground

It’s just plain laziness and lack of respect for others when people drop cigarettes or garbage out of moving cars, or throw away wrappers on the street even though garbage cans are in plain view. While the garbage thrower doesn’t care, other people don’t like having their shared spaces littered and unsightly.

One environmental site points out: “Litter adversely affects the environment. [When] littering along the road, on the streets or by the litter bins, [the] toxic materials or chemicals in litter can be blown or washed into rivers, forests, lakes and oceans, and eventually can pollute waterways, soil or aquatic environments.”

Yell at your kids unnecessarily

Kids, especially young kids, can be a handful. They cry and whine and deliberately don’t do what they are told. It takes super parenting skills to keep emotions in check and not have a meltdown of your own, yelling at your kids in public or private. Onlookers may be stressed by the yelling, wondering if they should ignore the fuss or step in and say something.

Research shows that yelling and over-the-top verbal discipline can be just as bad for kids as corporal punishment. Kids who are yelled at all the time are more likely to have behavioural issues, anxiety, depression, stress, and other emotional issues.

Adjust your clothes

Sometimes clothes just do what they want. Underwear can ride up. Shirt tails can slip out. Bra straps can be uncomfortable. Zippers can be left open…the list of possible wardrobe malfunctions is long.

Now there isn’t a hard and fast rule here. Minor adjustments are okay, as are necessary ones, such as unintentionally exposing yourself. But if you have to work your underwear around a lot to get comfortable, best to do that when you are alone rather than in front of an amused audience.

20 things you should never do in public places

These are called Bad Habits