The Ethics of Queue Jumping

I really should go to bed...but if I do, we'll lose our readers.  Not good.  Here's a little something to tide you over until I have time to write stuff.

A few days after I arrived in the UK, I went to the help desk with a friend to ask a question about the internet access in our dorm.  Unlike the previous times I had been there, there was not a crowd around the desk, so we just stood behind the last person who was being helped and patiently waited our turn.  Just as the person in front of us was finishing, a lady behind me tapped me on the shoulder and politely asked, "Are you in the queue?" Then, after seeing my shocked expression, she added, "well, because I am."  Just then, my friend, who was oblivious to my discourse with the lady behind us, stepped up to the desk and quickly solved our internet problem.  As we left, I could not help but feel we had just done something awkward.

This, my friends, is known as jumping the queue.  It is FROWNED upon. Severely.  Which is why I include my next little tale:

Another time I went out to a shop to buy a cell phone and stood in what I thought was the queue.  Suddenly, one of the other registers opened.  Since I thought I was next in line, I moved over to the new register, but then was quickly informed that, no, I was not in line and that two girls who were standing behind me were next.

After these two incidents I felt confused.  In the first situation, I clearly made a blunder.  I should have realized that there was a clear queue designated by ropes.  It is very understandable why the lady behind me was upset.  She had probably been patiently waiting for her turn to get her question answered.  In the second situation, I felt frustrated that I did not understand what was going on.  I thought I was obeying their rules by paying attention to the queue. The situation seemed similar to other incidents I had experienced.  I guess I felt that I was right and the natives were wrong.  But as we all know

"When in Rome, do as the Romans do."

Right. I knew that.  In America, we only frown upon cutting in line if the line is a very clear one, which explains why I felt frustrated and confused in the second incident.  The British seem to have a very good memory about who is first in line and they all adhere to it.

The Moral of this tale is: Look before you leap. 

Couldn't resist that one :0)

Cheers!

--Mary