Popping Etiquette?

[Common Loon]

@Yanzuh's story about the party store clerk revived an old question for me. What is the etiquette for popping balloons in a public place?

There's so much context that goes into this question in my mind. On one end of the spectrum there are times and places where it's 100% obvious that popping balloons is OK, like during a balloon drop at a crowded dance party. On the other end it can be 100% obvious that popping a balloon would be frowned upon at best, or would get you in trouble with the people around you. Like at an orchestra concert or on a crowded train.

In between though is a LOT of gray. How do people think about those gray areas? When do you feel comfortable popping in public situations?

[Guest]

Re: Popping Etiquette?

The gray areas are something that does get me quite a bit. Like part of me just wanna say that balloons should never be popped in public, But I know that is ridiculous, there shouldn't be a ban on balloon popping just because there are people like me that are phobic. I think you should probably be somewhat in the clear if there are ample of room and ways for people who are phobic to exit the area without having to panic or trample people. I'm not really the smartest when it comes to these things and it's mostly because I don't really know what people would consider gray areas.

[Common Loon]

Re: Popping Etiquette?

Yeah it kind of defies usual categories of social behavior.

Like, there are a lot of loud noises that also are created by dangerous activities (firing a gun, lighting off a firecracker) and these things are very carefully socially policed because of the actual dangers they pose to people around them -- not because of the noise. But balloons make the loudest noise that people can *safely* make in everyday situations, so whatever social pressures exist in this category are related to sound and startle only, and not to actual physical danger.

Most people, in my experience, are completely unaware that balloon pop phobia exists. Or if they are, they don't believe phobias are a big deal. "Most" people generally don't consider a balloon pop noise to be a very significant thing worthy of their attention... and yet, I do think there is a hidden social code here that I'd love to unravel.

[wildheart]

Re: Popping Etiquette?

I'd say don't do it in an enclosed quiet place with lots of people around. Also make sure anyone that might not like it can see you and get away easily. At a park for example might be okay. It should be quite clear what you're trying to do and people will be able to avoid you if they are scared of pops. Of course a lot of people won't think twice about this sort of thing, that's just what I'd say, having a phobia. Of course there's party cleanups and the like where there's obviously going to be popping, but people who are phobic will avoid it. Restaurants and trains are the worst possible places you could do it. Please don't any of you do that. Keep that to fantasy and stories.

[Guest]

Re: Popping Etiquette?

Restaurants and Trains I have to agree are the worst places. I was on a train going home in the afternoon and I was just sitting there minding my own business and a family with a little kid stepped on the train. The mom had this uninflated balloon that she kept blowing up and then making the annoying noise where you pull at the valve while letting the air out. And she just kept blowing it up bigger and bigger. Meanwhile I'm panicking but not wanting to show it so I just turn up the music on my headphones over and over. Thankfully it didn't end up popping but I am pretty sure it came close a few times.

Restaurants on the other hand I don't have many experiences with, besides McDonalds of course. I always always always hated going to McD's because in Sweden they used to hand out balloons. And while the McD's balloons are some of the prints I love the most seeing kids running around with them made me physically ill. And like sometimes it was just innocent things like a balloon would fall off the table when the kid is eating or such, but there were also those kids that like squeezed the balloons or just waved them around violently when they were on the sticks and the thing that made me the most nervous was when the kids would be leaving or walking somewhere while holding the balloon, they would never think about how they are holding it so they would hold the stick pointing downward so that the balloon would sometimes scrape against the ground. But all of that is nothing against the older kids and teenagers that would walk into a McD's just to take a balloon and instantly go outside and jump on them. That happened every time I went into Stockholm with my class in school. We would often eat at the McD's and my class mates would take pretty much all the balloons that were in the balloon stand and just pop them because they found it really funny.

[Meililoon]

Re: Popping Etiquette?

As others have said, tight places where people can't easily get away is a big no. Personally I try to keep my distance if I see balloons in public places, unless they're clearly for decorations and are more or less out of reach from people.
If it's a big open location with lots of noise and people already, then I guess popping one or two is fine.

[b0f0s0f]

Re: Popping Etiquette?

It gets down into the nitty-gritty of what constitutes an acceptable amount to scare strangers in public, I think. Obviously it's not ok to scare people by e.g. faking a punch or swerving your car at them, where there's risk of actual or perceived danger. On the other hand, if you're doing something ordinary and someone gets randomly surprised (turns around and didn't know you were there) that's obviously not an issue. The question is when you get to the region between "mild startle at the noise followed by immediate recovery" and "thought they were being shot at or something else very dangerous was occurring." Frankly I would argue that you really ought not to be scaring people at all if possible, so you shouldn't be popping balloons anywhere within earshot of a place with a lot of people unless balloons are present and popping is expected. Especially something like a blow-to-pop which has an awfully high energy "crack" that might scare the daylights out of people nearby. It's a pretty serious shock to send to someone's nervous system, especially if they're sensitive, so out of courtesy I wouldn't do it unless people either expect it or it's far away enough to not scare anyone.

[AJK64]

Re: Popping Etiquette?

I think most looners, by virtue of balloons already being more significant to us than to most people, are already more conscious of public balloon play. We think more about balloons and would be more mindful of the way others might view balloons.

Most non looners dont give much thought to how another person might be affected by a balloon. To an average, non phobic, balloons might seem like a weird thing to be afraid of.

[Guest]

Re: Popping Etiquette?

Well that has been proven over and over again, tell a non looner and non phobic person that you are scared of balloons and a lot of the time you will get laughed out of the room. It's the reason I have never told any of my friends that I used to hang around with, because it would just result in them popping balloons to make me uncomfortable.

[wildheart]

Re: Popping Etiquette?

Sounds like you need better friends. If you explained its a phobia and yet they still do it, are you sure they're the type of people you want to hang around with?

[Guest]

Re: Popping Etiquette?

Sounds like you need better friends. If you explained its a phobia and yet they still do it, are you sure they're the type of people you want to hang around with?

Oh I don't hang around with them anymore. They broke contact with me like 6+ years ago. I don't really hang around with people IRL anymore, I do have friends online and such that I completely trust with my phobia because they understand, even though some of them tease me about it sometimes, not maliciously of course just like playful teasing.

[SusieDK]

Re: Popping Etiquette?

Hi,

I think it is all about what could be called decent behaviour. There are times where it is simply not appropriate to pop balloons. Those are situations where it would not be appropriate to draw attention away from the context so to speak. Also if there are phobic people around (that you know of or spot during the 'process') it would not be approate to pop a balloon. It is much more a matter of the situation - or context - whether or not it will be 'ok' - not really due to the physical place.
Why should it be a problem during a concert? Well, if it was at a classic concert in the Royal Opera it would not be a good idea, but at a rock concert where people are batting around balloons anyway I see no problem in making a balloon go bang. In a crowded train? That depends on what is meant by a crowded train. If people are packed like sardines in a can it would not really be such agreat idea, but in a train where all seats are occupied and not much more I think it would not be so bad. I have actually done it myself together with a freind of mine - and actually not just one balloon, - it was several. We were simply two silly girls who got the idea to blow up some balloons to see how big they would get before they popped. I must say that we enjoyed the attention and also making people cringe. Quite some people laughed btw - and some even cheered us on. You might say that such things would be cruel in case a phobic happened to be around, but this is something I have also experienced myself - with me being the phobic one. Two girls on the seat opposite where I was sitting (with my mother) had an airship balloon that they blew up and then let the air out - then blew it up again. At some point one of them kept blowing until the balloon popped. At the time it was not in any way a pleasant experience as you can well imaibine, but today it is a treasured memory that I definitely would not have been without.
Of course there are places where most people would say it would be completely out of the question to pop a balloon, but I still claim that it is up to the context. What about in a church? If it was during a church event I certainly agree it would be highly inappropriate (as would any other act drawing attention away like talking to others during the blessing or preech - not to mention a funeral!). The context requires respect for what is going on, and one should not disturb. However going into an empty church to test the 'echo' - well, maybe that would not be quite as inappropriate. The same can be said about a public library - it very much depends on the context.
In a shopping mall? If it might draw the attention of the police? Again it is up to the situation. If there are balloons around anyway for decorations and such I don't think it would be so bad. Afterall a balloon from the decoration might pop by itself and also draw attention. It is of course a problem that some crazy people in the USA have started shooting random people. I would never pop a balloon in an American shopping mall or actually most other public places, because people might think that a shooting was going on, but in Denmark where I live - and especially away from the capital it would not be a problem at all.

I see it a bit like this. Whereever it is ok to draw attention away from what is going on it is also not such a big problem to pop a balloon. It is just one of many things that draw such attention.

About showing off and making people cringe I think it deserves a thread of its own.

Well, I guess I just put my hands into a hornets nest, but anyway thank you for reading my posting.

Sincerely
Susie

[Guest]

Re: Popping Etiquette?

I feel like this is the kind of thing that you can discuss until your blue in the face but I don't think that most people will never come to an agreement, mostly because I don't think there is an actual answer to this topic that leaves not all but most people happy. I don't wanna deprive people from having fun with their balloons and such and personally the idea itself of popping in public I find really fun. on the other hand I don't wanna feel like I should have to walk around with my guard up at all times because at any minute someone can decide to just let lose and pop balloons if they are around, because the fact is that while my brain does work interestingly when balloons are being popped it reacts very differently at different times. If I'm feeling overwhelmed and scared I might just walk/jog away or I will full on run away and lock myself in the nearest bathroom and cry because I can't handle it. It can actually be so bad that it leaves me physically incapable of doing things for the next few hours. The truth of the matter is that while we who are on here might stop if we see that someone is reacting negatively the majority of the public wont notice or if they notice they really wont care because it's not something that is leaving a negative impact on their day and like it or not at the core a lot of people don't really care as long as their day isn't being ruined.

but yeah it's a difficult question for me personally but that is only because my pop phobia can inhibit me really really badly. Would I love to be comfortable with balloons popping? heck yeah! I hate feeling like this at times. Will I ever be comfortable with them popping most likely not.

[wildheart]

Re: Popping Etiquette?

I think if you are a looner and are aware about phobics, you'd have to read the room. If anyone looks really stressed, stop. Most people wouldn't care much. Some may find it annoying and a small few might hate it. I have an autistic friend that although doesn't have a phobia (as far am I'm aware) they hate sudden loud noises. I can tell from the way they react. I know the signs from personal experience. If you can't physically get away, it's like a nightmare you can't escape from. You could literally be torturing someone without knowing it. (And no, that's not an exaggeration. I would personally prefer physical pain over the mental torture of someone doing that on a train)

[Guest]

Re: Popping Etiquette?

I think if you are a looner and are aware about phobics, you'd have to read the room. If anyone looks really stressed, stop. Most people wouldn't care much. Some may find it annoying and a small few might hate it. I have an autistic friend that although doesn't have a phobia (as far am I'm aware) they hate sudden loud noises. I can tell from the way they react. I know the signs from personal experience. If you can't physically get away, it's like a nightmare you can't escape from. You could literally be torturing someone without knowing it. (And no, that's not an exaggeration. I would personally prefer physical pain over the mental torture of someone doing that on a train)

Oh absolutely, Physical pain I can handle pretty well, the mental anguish I feel from balloons popping most of the time I just can't handle