It's no secret that the English are often far too polite and struggle to say no to an act of kindness.
But it's this inability to say no that has left one mum feeling rather frustrated, as she is frequently being asked by her next-door neighbour if she can take her daughter to school.
As first reported by Wales Online, the anonymous mum took to an online parenting forum to ask for some advice, telling how she likes the young girl, but that it is a bit awkward on the school run as she's not friends with her own two children.
Moreover, the woman says the daughter is often not ready when she goes to pick her up and she's confused as to why she has to keep taking the girl to schoo l when the neighbour's husband works from home.
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Writing on Mumsnet, the mum-of-two branded her neighbour a "CF", which means "cheeky f***er".
She said: "Am I being unreasonable to say no to my CF neighbour?
"I'm unsure if I'm being petty here. Context: Next-door neighbour has two children, let's call them Jenny (7) and Davy (4). Jenny is delightful. I don't really see Davy.
"My children are nine and six. They don't see Jenny and Davy socially but go to the same school as them.
"Their mum is always pleasant to me, but only ever WhatsApps me if she wants something - 'Hi, how are you, can I borrow some eggs?' would be a standard message from her."
She goes on to say that there have been a few occasions when the neighbour has had an "emergency" and asked her to take Jenny to school.
The mum has never been bothered about helping out - until she recently asked the neighbour to return the favour while she was sick with Covid and the other woman "made a bit of a fuss" about doing it.
Since then the neighbour has asked her to do the school run when it clearly wasn't an "emergency", with Jenny not even being dressed and ready to go when she agreed to come and collect her.
All of this has left the mum feeling torn over whether to keep agreeing to the neighbour's requests.
She adds: "Then she texted me again this morning asking if I would take Jenny. I did. Jenny is no problem at all - a really lovely girl, but my girls don't know her well and sort of clam up. This is a shame because I really enjoy the school run as a bit of time I get to spend talking to my girls away from the distractions of screens/homework/getting food ready etc.
"The reason given for this morning's request was that her younger child was still asleep. Although, when I called, it was clear CF neighbour wasn't dressed again.
"She also has a husband who WFH every day, but I literally never see him with the children, so I don't think she gets any support from him.
"Would I be unreasonable to say no to any future (non-emergency) requests, and how do I do this whilst maintaining a decent enough relationship that we can ask each other for actual emergencies?"
More than 140 people responded to the woman's post, sharing their thoughts on her situation, with many agreeing she shouldn't always say yes.
One person commented: "You are not being unreasonable, I would be honest with her and say that whilst you would be fine to help in a real emergency, you can’t do it regularly."
Another posted: "I would just say no it doesn’t suit today. I wouldn’t even use her for an actual emergency because people like her never keep it to emergencies."
A third added: "I'd think of the little girl tbh. She has s**t parents who can't be bothered to get her to school sometimes. If it's no skin off your nose, apart from the principle of CFery, do it for her. You could reply one time, I'll do it but would like you to repay the favour next time I ask. But I'm not sure it would make any difference. Don't give her any more eggs though. Ignore the message."
What do you think? Let us know in the comments below.
