Paulina, 32, was mortified after a stranger handed her a handwritten note in a café
Paulina, 32, was mortified after a stranger handed her a handwritten note in a café
A teacher felt utterly embarrassed after a complete stranger handed her a handwritten note in a café, claiming she was speaking so loudly they’d had to leave. Paulina, who preferred not to disclose her full name, was sipping an Americano in Hammersmith, West London, when the awkward encounter took place.
The 32 year-old explained she was chatting with a work colleague when an elderly woman approached their table and placed the note down, stating it was “for you”. The message, scrawled in green ink across both sides of a torn piece of paper, stated: “Hi, I don’t know if you are aware; your voice, volume of, has been overwhelming to us.
“We have been unable to have a conversation as we cannot hear each other. However, we have heard every word of your conversation – we now know the names of your cats.
“This is a space for more than yourself and unfortunately we have had to leave. Something to think about.”
Paulina admitted: “I was, of course, mortified, as everyone would be, I think. It’s like a nightmare situation.”
Despite the initial shock, she acknowledged there was a humorous element to the incident.
She added: “It’s really funny, some people said it sounds like a threat – ‘I know the name of your cats’.
“It was a small café, very small – the size of the average living room in a semi-detached house.
“There were people in the corner. Some people said: ‘were they not giving you death stares?’ No, I believe they weren’t talking when I came in.
“I was meeting a co-worker, we were just chatting. I think that was the only part of the conversation I was loud for.
“I’m actually a teacher, so my theory is I was still in teacher mode with my voice not being quite an indoor voice, I do reflect on myself as well.
“It’s OK to let someone know if they’re being disruptive – for example, parents letting children play really loud sounds on their tablets, and I know for them it’s probably white noise.
“Maybe they were afraid to approach me, but I don’t think I’m a threatening person.
“The content of our conversation was about cats and then we were just chatting about work, it wasn’t like a gossip session or anything like that.”
When describing the individual who delivered the note, Paulina remarked: “I think they looked like the type of person you’d expect to have this kind of handwriting – an older British lady.
“Some people said the cursive looked American, but I think the content is more British.”
The south-east London resident, originally from Poland, explained the café owner – whose establishment she prefers not to identify – was left bewildered by what happened.
She recalled: “The owner came up to our table asking ‘do you know those people?'”.
“I did want to ask him ‘was I really loud’, but that puts him in a really awkward situation, he wouldn’t want to say it.
“But he volunteered that information – he seemed really shocked. He was working on his laptop and he said he didn’t even hear us.
“It was very strange.”
Despite her ordeal, Paulina, who once resided in Liverpool with her spouse, recounts numerous positive encounters with Londoners.
She shared: “Even on the day when I got the note, I was looking at the Tube map and a lady approached me asking ‘hey, do you know where you’re going?'”.
“I’ve had so much positivity from this city, so I really don’t want it to sound like I just moved to London and hate it.
“I really don’t subscribe to the ‘rude Londoner’ experience, I think people are really, really lovely and we do feel welcome in the city.”
