Woman refuses to move from ‘no parking’ zone, so construction workers get even

We can all have a bad day once in a while, and simply lose our patience where we really shouldn’t. But most of us will know where the line is between losing our patience and breaking the law. Well, not this California mom.

Innocent construction workers trying to do their job had an interesting encounter with a very rude woman, and things quickly got out of hand. Luckily one of the workers quickly realized what needed to be done. He thought of a brilliant way to peacefully (sort of) solve the situation while also teaching the woman a well-deserved lesson.

When a California mom went to pick up her kid as usual after school, she had no idea how different this day would be. This school happens to be located near a construction area, so there is a lot going on at all times. Clearly you have to be extra careful and pay attention to where you are, whether you are a child, a parent or a construction worker.

Heavy machinery and children is a pretty bad combination, but construction workers are used to their potentially dangerous work environment. They know how to keep everyone safe, so it’s a good idea to listen to what they have to say. But some people are not good listeners, and cannot accept being wrong. They are simply too caught up in their own reality to really care about the world around them. This woman exemplifies this perfectly. But this kind of behavior tends to catch up with you eventually, just like it did for her.

There are plenty of procedures and laws in place for construction workers. These cover everything from clothing to tools used on the job to what you are allowed to do – and where you’re allowed to do it. It’s the last part that’s particularly relevant to this story.

You might not always notice when you drive by constructions sites, but there are special parking zones for the workers only. This is due to the constant arrival of trucks and large machinery that need to be parked as close as possible to the construction site. Needless to say, if you are not a construction worker or a truck driver with a delivery, these spots are not for you. Parking in a no parking zone is strictly against the law.

Legal or not, the woman in this story did not care where she parked on that particular day – which she came to bitterly regret. Luckily, one of the construction workers involved in this story tweeted the whole ordeal so we got to learn about the rather amusing encounter he had.

This construction worker, who goes by the username BBQLunch, was having just a regular work day. Like so many days before he was waiting for a delivery of lumber. This guy was already used to the complications that might come with working next to an elementary school. Rushed parents parking in the no parking zone happened all the time, but usually that didn’t cause any real problems.

Unfortunately for BBQLunch, this time a parent parking in the no parking zone caused more than a problem. At first, when he saw the mom sitting in the car he figured this situation wouldn’t be different from all the previous ones. He calmly walked over to inform the woman she was in a no parking space, and that he needed the spot for the truck that would soon be arriving.

Expecting the woman to understand and immediately move her car, he was shocked to hear what instead came out of her mouth. Immediately dismissing him, she rudely said she would just be a few minutes and that there was no truck there anyway. She even told the construction worker to chill.

The construction worker was taken aback, to say the least. This was not a question of a regular parking spot where who’s right and who’s wrong is often up for debate. This was his parking spot, no doubt about it. Never before had a parent reacted like this to his very reasonable request.

This guy knew already when walking up to the woman the matter was urgent. The massive truck was minutes away and without a proper parking spot he would block the entire street and they would be unable to unload the lumber. And what do you know, the rude words had barely come out of the woman’s mouth before the truck showed up. Now the real predicament started.

Throughout his exchange with the woman, the construction worker remained calm. He decided to give the her one last chance, thinking there was still a way to solve this situation very easily for everyone involved. The truck was right next to the car at this point but the woman seemed to ignore this completely.

Using a slightly firmer voice this time, the worker again tried to get through to her, explaining she was illegally parked and needed to move for the truck that had just arrived. But this mom, again all logic and common sense, disagreed.

Instead of acting like a rational person and taking the fifteen seconds to move her car, this mom had a better idea. Basically rolling her eyes at the worker, she snapped at him and said they could just unload the lumber around her.

She added that it really isn’t that hard, basically insinuating she had a better understanding of how unloading lumber works than, say, the professionals. At this point the man had (understandably) had it and decided it was time to get creative.

The truck driver had clearly realized something was out of the ordinary already when he showed up. So when the worker approached him with a clever little idea he was immediately onboard.

Instead of continuing the argument with someone who clearly couldn’t be reasoned with, the men were simply going to continue working as if she wasn’t there. Little did she know, but the man asking her to move her car had really had her best interest in mind, but not so much anymore.

Construction worker BBQLunch then instructed the truck driver to park as closely to the woman as possible. What she probably hadn’t noticed when she parked was that a porta potty was placed behind her car, and another car was parked in front.

So when this massive truck pulled up right next to her, she was completely closed in. Even if she wanted to, there was no way she could get out of this parking spot now. And that, in point of fact, was precisely the idea.

The men started unloading the truck, as professionals refusing to let this rude lady get in the way of their work. But the clever guy who shared this story online had not forgotten about her. Fully realizing the law was on his side, and also realizing the woman clearly had no intention of listening to him, he decided to call for backup.

If he couldn’t get through to her, he needed the police to come help or he and the company would get in trouble for their truck being parked illegally on the street.

As for the stubborn woman in question, she clearly still saw this as an annoying ordeal – for her! Why couldn’t the stupid construction workers simply leave her alone, she wondered? Well, she hadn’t seen anything yet.

Little did she know, but the police was on their way and her attitude was not looking to lighten up anytime soon. In the middle of this situation, her child finally arrived. Imagine, had this kid just hurried a little more his mom might not have ended up in the mess that was about to unfold.

This was the first time the woman might have realized she was in trouble. But that didn’t mean she was apologetic or kinder to the construction workers. Trying to get out the door to meet her child, she quickly realized she could no longer get out that way.

Having a massive truck right next to you tends to make opening the car door pretty impossible. Instead of realizing her part in the situation, she opened the door on the other side while staring daggers at the workers. As if it was somehow their fault.

Once the kid was in the car, then and only then did this woman somehow fully realized what had happened. A car in front, a monster truck to her left, a porta potty in the back and the curb to her right.

It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that’s a bad spot to get out of. But somehow the woman only then really got the memo. You might think she would be mortified by her own silly mistake. But no, instead she was furious.

The woman stormed out of her car and ran straight up to the driver and construction worker. It seemed like she had already forgotten these two fairly patient men had tried to ask her to leave just a few minutes earlier.

So instead she started yelling at them about how she’s in a hurry and how they have to move their truck. This time, however, it was the trucker’s time. With an innocent smile he explained company policy prevented him from moving an unsecured loaded truck. That was not what the woman wanted to hear.

By this time the woman crossed a red line. Rather than discussing the matter like a mature adult, she started yelling profanities at the two men. That’s the last thing anyone deserves for simply doing their job properly.

Luckily, our construction worker had just the answer. Rather than sinking to her level and swearing right back at her, BBQLunch decided to use his wits. Throwing her own words right back at her, he calmly said she could simply go around them. After all, “it really isn’t that hard.” That’s not what she had expected to hear.

The woman was both livid and also clearly lacked a sense of humor, as she did not laugh at the construction worker using her own words. And she made the crucial mistake of getting so caught up in her anger that she failed to notice something very important.

While she continued to yell curse words at the men, the police had arrived. Just as they pulled up to the drama unfolding, the mom stormed back to her car, intent on getting the last word.

The police officer who arrived  at the scene probably had the best of intentions. She tried to approach the woman to understand what was going on, but she might as well have been invisible.

As the enraged mom rushed to her car, she didn’t even notice the policewoman trying to talk to her. Instead, she slammed the car door and turned on the engine. This woman was clearly not letting reason and logic stop her from making a run for it.

The mom apparently thought the porta potty was no match for her car. She hit reverse at full speed and jammed into it, knocking it over completely. She then tried to drive up on the curb to continue her escape on the sidewalk.

Had she taken a moment to think about what she was about to do, and who was watching, she probably wouldn’t have. But as she quite expectedly got stuck on the curb, cursing loudly, the police officer decided it was time to step in.

The woman was more than a little shocked when suddenly the officer opened the door, and that’s when she realized her little road rage incident had been observed not only by the construction workers. She was unsurprisingly immediately cuffed, but that didn’t do anything to dissipate her rage.

Noticing her less than pleasant behavior, the policewoman even called for backup. Meanwhile, the construction worker and truck driver just stared in disbelief at the ridiculous situation that they had somehow found themselves in.

Both the truck driver and the construction worker who later shared the story online had to give their statements. It’s easy to laugh at this story, but what started as a silly parking mishap had actually turned very serious.

Let’s not forget that during this entire ordeal, the woman’s child was sitting in the backseat. That might not seem like a very noteworthy detail, but it’s a big part of the reason the police officer took the matter so seriously.

Because her child was in the car, the woman actually got slapped with a child endangerment charge. On top of putting her child in danger, she was also accused of reckless driving and destruction of property.

As if this wasn’t already enough, it turned out her license was already suspended. Clearly this lady has a bit of a road rage problem and had been involved in some car related incidents before. Needless to say, this did not help her situation.

The good news is the child was not injured and was picked up by their grandmother. The mother, on the other hand, got to spend some time behind bars. She might not get a new license again anytime soon, and once she does she has hopefully learned her lesson.

Thanks to the construction worker sharing the whole ordeal online, many have shared their views on the situation. For once everyone is in agreement – this woman was out of line, and the construction worker handled the situation perfectly.

Many people empathized with the construction worker who had to suffer through this ordeal, just because he tried to do his job. He did his best to be respectful and professional, but just like many people working in public spaces, did not get much respect back.

Some people online even went so far as saying the guy performed a public service by putting his foot down and clearly showing the woman she would not get away with acting the way that she did.

The construction worker stuck in this tricky situation also proved another very important point – you don’t need to use violence to be the strongest person in a given situation. Clearly this man was both bigger and stronger than the obnoxious mother.

He could easily have yelled back at her when she first started cursing at him. Or even lifted her out of the car to remove her from the scene. Instead, though, this guy chose the high road, and opted for calm resolve and creativity to turn the crisis around.

The woman in this story might seem like a very extreme case and she clearly stepped way out of line, but it turns out she is not alone in suffering from parking rage. Road rage is a category in and of itself, but there seems to be a particular kind of stress involved when it comes to parking.

Rushed parents in particular, looking for parking in crowded cities, can easily start acting slightly irrationally when it comes to defending a perfect parking spot.

An infamous parking incident in China made news in 2017, for example, when two moms got into an argument over parking on the first day of the new semester. Their kids were probably less than thrilled when their fighting moms put them in the spotlight in front of all their classmates, on the first day of school.

It was unclear which one of the two moms had showed up first at the already crowded parking lot, but it was obvious to shocked onlookers these women were out of line.

Luckily, once again there was someone who managed to keep their head cool. A third mom stepped in and quickly dispelled the tension between the two fighting women.

Just like the construction worker, rather than being pulled in by the drama this woman realized what the right thing to do was and simply acted responsibly. Stressed parent or not, there really is no excuse to let a simple parking problem escalate and ruin the day for everyone.