[Closed] When is trusting too trusting?

Saw a 'suspicious character' on the commute home tonight. He was riding crazily in front of me and was, in Liverpool parlance, a right hard knock (to look at), tough, strapping and bald ,

Sounds like me.

We chatted. He admired my ride, I admired his. We compared lengths. Before I knew it I'd told him about my family (not names, though

Did you get a date then, no wonder the 16 year old wife is annoyed

nah bollox you did the right thing, i would rather get stitched now and then than live in fear of everyone.

Not that. That's just having a chat with a fella.

The problem is that people have stopped having a chat with other people. So much misunderstanding, fear and resentment would be nipped in the bud if more people had a bit of a chat.

. We compared lengths

whilst riding? - impressive

she's paranoid but he does love you 😉
FFS you talked to a stranger.... dont go all southern now and think they must be mad or you did something wrong

It's not like I gave him my bank account number, or told him where I live... He'd have to be pretty smart to work out enough about me to be a problem... or follow me home. I'm pretty sure I wasn't followed.

No date, project. We've agreed to keep things platonic for now. 8)

His was longer. 😳

So much misunderstanding, fear and resentment would be nipped in the bud if more people had a bit of a chat

yes I often think of the chat forum and random folk exchanging views as a place of chilled out harmony and brotherly [ and sisterly] love

That's all I've encountered here - peace, love, goodwill and excellent advice.

Strangely i always talk to peeps on bikes,only ever met 2 nutters, one tried to nick my bike when i helped to fix his puncture, and the other, best not to go there.

Mrs 16

Your wife is 16 😯

his username is camo16, hence Mrs 16!

yes I often think of the chat forum and random folk exchanging views as a place of chilled out harmony and brotherly [ and sisterly] love

I guess here is not really the best example. Faceless chat seems to end up as posturing rather than pleasantries for some reason.

Strangely i always talk to peeps on bikes,only ever met 2 nutters, one tried to nick my bike when i helped to fix his puncture, and the other, best not to go there.

I guess the trouble is spotting the nutters whilst checking out your escape route. Most people I chat to, though, seem nice. Mrs 16 - who's not 16 - is less optimistic about human nature.

At what point did nuttiness manifest?

Mrs 16's point is that apparently nice folks can turn on you without warning... or that they can cagily work you over conversation wise and learn everything there is to know. Days later, Glenn Close turns up with a saucepan and a flask of hot water and you know, right there and then, that your bunny's had it.

Mrs 16 - who's not 16 - is less optimistic about human nature

southerner then.

southerner then.

Scouser. I'm the southerner. Are Liverpool ladies normally optimists about strangers?

I find on my commute if I see other cyclists I usually say hi, wave/nod or try to engage in conversation but nine times out of ten they ignore me or start to ride faster. Im not mad i've got a piece of paper says so. I think nowadays people see trying to strike up a conversation with a stranger odd.

project - Member

Strangely i always talk to peeps on bikes,only ever met 2 nutters, one tried to nick my bike when i helped to fix his puncture, and the other, best not to go there.

Thanks guys!

Thing is, Mrs 16 kind of has a point. He was a BIG guy. Speeding up to catch me on the almost deserted riverfront. Not the perfect ambush scenario, but not too far off. I guess I could have sped up and avoided the potential nutter. In the event, I'm glad I was able to help. But it COULD have gone way, way wrong.

Don't be paranoid, but don't be naive either.

Just as I thought! Cheers, guys.

Thought it might have been about this.

[img] [/img]

Thought it might have been about this.

Now you mention it, those are some seriously shifty eyes. We really should have known... we should have seen the signs... What WERE we thinking?

Bloody hell just read in yesterdays telegraph and argus a guy I pass coming to and from work on the towpath has just been been found guilty of strangling a girl walking her dog. For at least the past 6 years I have said hi, let him know the time asked if he is ok. I just thought he was homeless/tramp and possibly a bit slow as he used to be just stood staring at the water most of the time, unkempt and sometimes asleep at the side of the tow path on a summers morning.

[i]I offered to take him to a place in the city he knew[/i]

and where his mates were waiting for you?

tricky one, I might err on the side of caution, personally, and offer directions rather than guiding myself.

Way too trusting. I don't even discuss things with those closest to me let alone strangers.

He said kneel down, shut your eyes and open your mouth.

I won't trust him again!

I read "strangling a girl and walking her dog" 😳 that's tragic, anyone can develop mental health issues and become a nutter. That sort of thing just doesn't rationally compute.

With regards to the topic, it doesn't sound like you mentioned anything that would make you vulnerable. I also think if you're going to be f*cked over by a stranger, it's going to happen so don't try and expect it from all people.

Fear breeds fear, better to give people the benefit of the doubt but follow your instinct.

Also, attacks towards women are far more common so from Mrs 16 perspective it would have potentially been a risky situation for her. I think she was imagining herself in your shoes.

He may well have been both a weirdo and a thief, but perhaps he was taking a break to unwind on his bike?

Reading this story of innocence has reminded me of something. I have heard several stories of motorcyclists being nice & offering someone a lift only to be groped by their new passenger once travelling at speed.

Never happens to me 🙁 😉

I have one simple rule - don't trust anyone in lycra. Especially Mr Motivator, on a cool November morning, in Slough, in 1997.

I have one simple rule - don't trust anyone in lycra. Especially Mr Motivator, on a cool November morning, in Slough, in 1997.

This fascinates me. More details?

All I can say is...it still hurts. 🙁

Did he at least offer you a smoke and a cuddle afterwards? 😀

No, we compared lengths though.

Mrs camo16 clearly reads the daily mail. All men a rapists or paedophiles OR BOTH.

You are very trusting , I assume every one is a potential threat to they show other wise, wouldn't go out on my bike with out some means to defend my self. Try to take my bike one of us is going to die.

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send out free maps of the liverpool, wirral, sefton ,knowsley, st helens, areas of merseysideshire all for free.

You're always too trusting. It doesn't have to be "god, is he following, I daren't look over my shoulder" panic, but I rarely trust anyone, especially not strangers. If he was lost why didn't he call out as you passed and ask for help? Why did he wait for you to stop? Leading you to a place he knew, with his mates...

I had an incident recently where I was lost, discussing a route with a friend. A chap on a BSO stopped and offered to lead us to the beginning of where we wanted to go, then proceded to lead us down a dark overgrown alley into a mildly dodgy area. It didn't send us where we wanted to go but it did leave us a bit lost again, but in a worse area lol. Fortunately he was apparently genuine and we were not ambushed on the way but both of us were silently wary of it and considering escape routes 🙂 It was kind of fun to be honest.