The asian dude and 2 emotional support animals

The asian dude and 2 emotional support animals
Let me go ahead and offend everyone with that title ;)

I was working first class and the agent comes down and asks if we can pre-board a lady and her TWO emotional support dogs. Welp, I love doggies and so did one of the other flight attendants so we gave the thumbs up.  #PuppyLove

So this young 22-ish girl gets on with her SMU shirt and yoga pants oh and two shih tzu type (sp?) dogs. They aren’t big dogs but they aren’t teeny tiny either. I give the pup-pups some love and ask SMU girl politely to put her bags up when she has an opportunity since she is sitting in the bulkhead row. She ignores me and says, “Can you tell me if this seat is empty so I can have some more room? There’s not enough room.”
Hmmmm
what I wanted to say: you are always able to purchase an additional seat if needed and talk about no room, you should try the coach and then a spirit of thankful would come upon you haha but instead I kept it simple.
“I’ll check but first class will likely be full.”
“Oh. Great.” SMU girls said sarcastically.
Oh lawd. It’s going to be a long flight to LA. She opens her suitcase and puts it in the currently open seat next to her.
I wasn’t sure if she missed the “first class will likely be full” or that she needed to put her 3 bags UP not to mention her “emotional support” animals crawling everywhere :) I’d let it ride for a minute. Maybe the seat would be open. I love ESA’s and they are so valuable but I think these might have been Entitled SMUGirl Animals ;)

I forgot about her and her problems. I started working on setting up my galley and getting pre-departure drink stuff ready when she slams the bathroom door open next to me with a flurry of expletives under her breath with one dog under her arm and then “This purse is probably ruined.”
I say commiseratively, “It’s hard traveling with little ones. Probably like traveling with kids.”
“It’s not the dogs. That dumbA#$ spilled my starbucks tea all over my $1000 Louis Vuitton.”
What Dumba#$? Wait. Where was her other dog?

I peeked around the corner to her seat: . I cannot paint this picture for you with words. An asian business man with Harry Potter glasses sitting in the seat next to hers. His knees tight. HER suitcase in front of his knees. His briefcase in his lap. with hands clutched on the top handle. Eyes straight forward. Already sweating and HER other dog on the arm rest sniffing at and licking the guy’s ear. 

Okay - so THIS guy spilled YOUR starbucks? I doubt it. Entitled much? She could care less how she was affecting those around her. 

The other flight attendant put her bag up.
I asked her seat mate: “Would you like me to put your briefcase up. He nodded but didn’t let go. I shooed the dog out of his ear but he’d already bonded with the guy through scent and considered him a new friend ;-/ The guy reluctantly released the briefcase that he was holding on to like a life preserver.

SMU girl huffs around the corner, “Where’s my suitcase?”
“We had to put it up to make room for the other passengers.”
“Well, I needed something out of it!”
“Can it wait until after we take off? And if you could please keep the doggies close to you.”
“I guess.”
She was a hot mess the whole flight while the guy next to her..obviously was traumatized. I’m not sure if she yelled at him about her tea (not his fault) The guys sat there the ENTIRE 3 hr flight and refused said no to water, nuts, meal, dessert. He had now pressed himself to the very opposite edge of his seat away from her and he looked like he might need some emotional support after this ride too.

I tell this story for two reasons - first because it is HILARIOUS and just when you think you've seen it all something like this happens.... but I also saw a little life's lesson it. 

I feel like this is the dynamic for a lot of life. We work around high maintenance drama people who are entitled/very self focused or we are them :)

If I could learn anything from this situation it would be this:

We don’t have to allow other’s to covertly put their drama or problems and sense of entitlement on us. Their drama spills over into our realm without a please, thank you, would you consider helping me with this and we either rush in to help or we sit silently sweating and shut down until we blow up and cut off the relationship. We have every right to say kindly, “Hey, can we have a dividing line that represents your seat area...your chaos and mine?”
When my freedom encroaches and affects you then it’s okay for you to say so. Otherwise we perpetuate this fallacy about relationships: that only one person matters.