"Common" Courtesy?
Let's get some data and see how common this courtesy is!
I recently put an ask to my Bluesky followers:
Is it normal for you to push a chair in when you’re done sitting at a table?
Before you tell yourself your answer, I’m going to collect responses in a minute. Let’s create some scenarios:
You’re sitting at a table, maybe have a cup of your favorite beverage, a notebook, your computer. You are in public. When you leave, you gather your personal things and then?
You’re sitting at a table, you’ve just finished your meal in your home. You push away from the table, and then?
You’re sitting at a table, you’ve just finished your meal in a restaurant. You push away from the table, and then?
You’re sitting at a table in your home, working. You call it quits for a spell, or maybe the day (is this a different answer if so?) and push away from the table. What, if anything, comes next?
Several responses on Bluesky had me thinking more deeply about this chair question.
What is your gender?
Are you disabled?
Is a loved one disabled?
Do you live alone or in a family/group?
Are you a librarian? (Librarians universally had the same response because they’re the best.)
Did reading through this short list change your response? Why, if so?
Now the fun part! Feel free to share this far and wide - there’s an actual purpose to this dataset.
Thank you for playing along!
In public I always do as I'm aware how difficult it already is to navigate places with chairs if you have mobility issues or use mobility devices. If I'm physically unable to do it, I ask someone to do it for me.
In public, yes I'm pretty sure I would push in my chair except for some weird circumstance. At home, I might or might not. My usual places to sit (at the table, or my computer desk) the chair is not in anyone's way whether it's out or pushed under. And if it's out, the cats can more easily sleep on the cushion.