Listen to your Flight Attendant

So I promised my fellow tweeters that I would blog about this...

The other day I was sitting Ready Reserve at JFK and got called out an hour in to work a Pittsburgh turn. The way there was very un-eventful besides a few bumps and shakes enroute. We arrived 30 early, had a chance to relax and were all ready to rock out of there when we heard there was a 2 hour ground delay heading back to New York. (It however, was a Sunday night and gave all the Pittsburgh passengers the chance to watch their Steelers loose to my Bengals... sure made for a good group of passengers. haha.)

We finally board up and get into the air on our way to JFK. The captain chimes me to let me know that we have reached 10,000 ft, I can get ready to start service and the all the passengers can use their electronic devices. No sooner do I start my PA asking everyone to remain seated until the crew turns off the seatbelt sign does the lady sitting in 1B- directly in front of me- get up, walks all the way to the back of the aircraft and into the bathroom like I haven't said a single word. I have a few passengers who actually are listening to me, who give me "the look" (the good one), throw their hands in the air and roll their eyes at the lady walking past them.

Despite being put in a hold for half an hour, the rest of the flight goes by pretty easily. I finish my service, collect trash, get everyone ready for landing, strap into my seat and then the lady in 1B leans towards me and says I'm going to go to the bathroom.
My response is "No, actually mam, you are not. You have to stay seated. We are landing."
Her response "We have been landing for the last hour."
MY reponse s "No, we've been circling for the last hour, we are landing now."

I have 1 thing to add to this conversation at this point...
1. If you really HAVE to go, are sick or just not feeling well (and I have been there) you do not ask permission to use the restroom, you run. No matter what the Flight attendant or pilot says, you just go and ask for forgiveness later.

So back to the lady. she rolls her eyes at me, sits back for a minute. No lie, another minute passes and she leans back forward towards me and says a bit louder...
"I AM going to the bathroom."
So, I lean forward and says "No, you are not. I am just doing my job and we are landing... do NOT make me yell at you."

Seriously, what do people think we are. Just because I am a flight attendant and have to enforce the rules doesn't mean that I don't understand where you are coming from. If it is a true emergency, there is no stopping the person heading to the back... but do not think that I will just allow someone to get up when landing to go the restroom. These rules are set in place to make sure that you, the passengers on the planes, arrive safely to their destination. I don't find joy in telling you no, especially when you are sitting within feet of me during all of this. I however have to to do my job to keep each person safe, so please do not act shocked when I tell you for the 3rd time that you can not get up right now.

Once we reach the ground, my passenger in 1B now tells me how long the taxi to the gate is going to be which leads me to believe that she has flown before... flown in and out of JFK and should already know the rules and how to follow them. Again, she shows no remorse. Nor do her and her husband stop to get their gate checked bag from the stairs (that I explained to them where it would be when we parked the plane... no surprise there) but instead make some over worked gate agent bring it upstairs for them.

Please, I am begging you, the next time your Flight Attendant makes an announcement- listen. We really don't like to talk just to talk... it is always useful information, whether you want it or not. And- for the love of god... please stay seated when the freaking seatbelt sign is on!!!