Woman Demanded Community TV Remote During Super Bowl Drama
The Original Post
I (25f) live at an apartment complex with a community clubhouse. I work from home so I visit the clubhouse often. With that, I’ve found it convenient to keep one streaming account logged in on the TV, and purposefully created a separate profile FOR the residents to use if they’d like.
ICYMI – the Super Bowl was this past weekend, so I figured a few residents would end up watching the game on the large clubhouse TV. Before the game started, I decided to walk over to see what was going on. Surprisingly there was not a SOUL in the building. I didn’t really care about watching the game but I assumed someone else would, so I pulled up my handy dandy streaming service and put it on
I sat down with the intention of just watching the first half and keeping the game on after I left. Halfway through the second quarter, a woman (40sf) walked in with her young son (3?) and sat in the chairs next to mine. She chose the closest possible seat to me so I assumed she came to watch the game, but to my surprise she sighed and asked “are you watching this?”
Before I could even respond she started searching around the tables for the remote and stated: “we don’t have a smart TV at home, so we’d like to use the YouTube on this TV”
Now, let me be clear: I really don’t care about the Super Bowl. I never intended to even watch the full game. I don’t care who wins. I have a perfectly working TV in my home that I could easily watch the game on. But Reddit, I swear there was just something in this woman’s tone that instantly transformed me into the greatest Seahawks fan of all time. A lifelong NFL season ticket holder with their life savings riding on this game. It is in this moment, I fear I may have become TA.
Me: “yes, I am watching this. It’s the Super Bowl tonight!”
Lady: “Right… but we can’t get what we need on TV at home, and the Super Bowl is on everywhere. So do you mind?”
Me: “I get it, but I was kinda here first and am enjoying my time.”
Lady: “This is a COMMUNITY center which means as a COMMUNITY we need to respect each other in the COMMUNAL areas. It’s not respectful to hoard a space meant for all.”
Me: “If you planned to use a COMMUNAL space tonight, you should have been sure you were first to arrive. You are more than welcome to join me – The halftime show will be on soon!”
Lady scoffed and relocated to another table. She sat in the corner on her phone while her son asked to watch his show (this made me feel horrible). This went on for 30 mins and it felt like this lady was just trying to ice me out. Then she muttered something under her breath and left.
Here’s why I may be TA: I may have picked a hill to die on that wasn’t worth the principle. Lady is correct that I can watch the Super Bowl at home. It is also true that I do not actually care about the Super Bowl, but her son really cared about his show. I am afraid I should have just swallowed my pride and gave in to keep the peace – or at least let little buddy enjoy some YouTube 🙁
So, AITA?
ETA: thank you all for your insights and judgements! Although it seems like opinions are mixed, I am concluding that I was, in fact, the asshole for dying on a hill I didn’t even care about at the expense of a 3 y/o. Just to clear some things up while I’m here:
\-I only mentioned keeping my streaming service on the TV because the clubhouse TV doesn’t have cable. The only way to watch the Super Bowl on that TV was through Peacock (the streaming service I am logged into). I definitely do not consider myself more entitled to the television simply because I am logged into Peacock
\-I did NOT stay longer than I originally planned or intended to. I left after the halftime show, which was always my plan. Some seemed to interpret it as I was about to leave, but CHOSE to stay just because of this interaction
\-Commenters are correct in pointing out that before the lady showed up, I was the only person there. Some residents came in and out, but nobody else was actively watching the game with me. Hindsight is 20/20: it is this sentiment that made me realize I was truly TA. There was literally nobody else in the room who cared about this… not even me!
In the end, I appreciate your judgements! I am hopeful I run into her sometime in the near future to apologize for my poor behavior
What Reddit Said
Reddit was largely unsympathetic to OP’s stubborn stance. Most commenters called out her petty behavior, pointing out she was gatekeeping a community space over a game she didn’t care about. However, some noted the other woman’s demanding approach was also problematic.
The top comment summed up the frustration perfectly: OP was being mean simply because the woman wasn’t polite enough. Moreover, Redditors were particularly critical that OP denied a 3-year-old his show out of spite. In fact, many felt OP’s streaming service login made her feel more entitled to control the TV.
The Verdict
The overwhelming consensus was YTA (You’re the Asshole). While the woman who demanded the community TV remote could have been more polite, OP admitted she picked a meaningless hill to die on. This is a classic case of community conflicts where pride trumped common sense. Reddit agreed: being technically right doesn’t justify petty behavior toward a child.
Original post from r/AmItheAsshole (2,464 upvotes, 1,630 comments)