sitting down and waiting for BB

[Meatmaw]

Newbie question. I went to cache creek this weekend, and when I went to get my chips and go sit down, I was planning on waiting for the BB. If I were to join immediately, I would have been UTG so I figured I'd simply wait the hand instead of pay the charge, but as I sat, the dealer dealt me in right away. I did not think I could simply say "no thanks" since there were cards in front of me, so could someone clarify for me:

A) Would it have been proper to just say 'I'll wait for BB', or do people never 'wait for the blind' like they do in online.

B) The $3 charge I paid (3/6 table) was, I assumed, like the charge you pay when you sit down at a non-BB seat to play online. Was it, instead, just some table charge that people pay regardless, i.e. if I sat down at BB I would be asked to give $6 ($3 to house and $3 to the BB)?

Thanks for the clarifications.