Pet Peeves: Aka Things That Make You Go "Gah!"

[topanga]

17 minutes ago, bilgistic said:

My grandmother worked in the factory at Hanes for most of her working years, so we got socks, underwear, pantyhose and slips for Christmas. At least you knew what you were getting. I never ran out of those necessities (well, pantyhose and slips are questionably necessary, but growing up Baptist in the South, I was forced to wear my Sunday best).

Nice. I love the modern tradition of not wearing stockings. I went to a funeral recently where I didn't wear stockings with my black suit. The next day I had to go to another funeral, but this one was held in a traditional Baptist church, so I took one for the team and pulled out my scratchy panty hose. 

15 minutes ago, Maharincess said:

@Angeltoes, the only reason I'm able to get so creative with my wrapping and bows is because I have nothing else going on in my life. I can spend a whole day wrapping one gift if I wanted to because I have no life whatsoever.   I've heard so much about Pinterest but I didn't really care for it too much. 

Wow. Can you wrap my presents for me? No matter how much time and effort I devote to wrapping presents, they always end up looking like a five-year-old did the work. 

[Bastet]

I do not remember the last time I wore stockings (not pantyhose; those are even worse, so I stuck with thigh-highs) .  Probably in federal court, but it has been quite a while since I felt - and succumbed to - the pressure to do that, so I really don't know when it was.  I find them completely unnecessary.

[bilgistic]

I lost what is left of my mind today on the steaming pile of garbage that is CVS Caremark.

CVS Caremark is a fly-by-night prescription medication management operation, and for some reason, my company uses them instead of, oh, I don't know, the health insurance company...? I assume CVS Caremark is paid in gold teeth and nightmares, because their service level is ass.

Here's the issue: when I fill certain prescriptions (but not all prescriptions), I am charged $200-$300. Others are, like, $1.33. I'll get vaguely threatening letters saying that if I used the Miracle of Mail Order, my $300 prescription would be...less. So, I gamely thought, OK, CVS Caremark, I'll play along.

On 12/7, I used their shiteous app to snap and send pictures of the paper script. A human called me the next day and verified my shipping address. I have an order confirmation email. (Are y'all getting a sense of where this is heading?)

I thought to myself last night, "Bilgistic, it's been a while since you ordered that med and you're going to be out of it tomorrow. Wonder where that order is?" I log onto the app. Hmm...there's no order. I can't press any of the other buttons in the app. Just dead buttons. I look online. No order. No number to call other than tech support or plan information. I can email about my order and expect a response within 48 hours. WTF?!

Today at work I decided to hell with it and called the non-tech-support number. After several very aggravating minutes of voice-activated prompts (seriously, NO ONE WANTS THOSE), I finally get a human.

"We needed to get a new prescription from your doctor. We tried to contact you." NO NO NO NO NO NO NO!!! It was in date (1.5 months old--90-day RX) and valid. I got only the ONE call verifying my address. No other calls--not to cell or work. No emails, no letters, no texts.

So a hearty "fuck you!" to CVS Caremark for their shitty service. From start to finish, you SUCK!

Funny enough, my parents manage to get their meds through the mail just fine, but I'm sure it isn't with CVS "Care"mark.

[backformore]

my pet peeve - winter has not officially begun - it starts next week.   so why was it 2 degrees when I drove home from work Tuesday?  And why is there a blizzard predicted for the weekend (we had one last weekend already).  autumn blizzards? 

[NutMeg]

14 hours ago, JTMacc99 said:

Ha!  

Speaking of socks, I made it tradition for Dad (Me) to always get socks from Santa.  When my kids hit about seven or eight, I expanded the tradition so that not just dad would get a gift of socks under the tree, but somewhere in all of their booty was hidden a nicely wrapped package of socks for them.  They've come to appreciate it as tradition, possibly because they feed off of my energy, and I'm always VERY enthusiastic when they open the socks.  OOOH! NEW SOCKS!  Heh.

Besides, they need freaking socks. They constantly take them off and just leave them wherever they were at the time until I find them buried in the couch or under the computer desk, or in the back seat of my car.  I point that out later Christmas day as why it's a good thing Santa brought socks, since they keep losing them.  (I'm a pain in the ass sometimes. I hope they appreciate that as well.)

Awwwww, you've just reminded me of one of my former boyfriend and his cute family, each time someone grabbed a present to open, the present-gifter would start joking that in this present there were probably home slippers. It was silly because whatever the size and shape of the wrapped present, the whole family would go, yeah, slippers, for sure :) I'm probably not explaining right, but it so worked in the moment :)

Weirdly enough, there was a year when I gave socks as gift to many people. Kenzo had amazing socks out that year, so Kenzo socks it was for my dad who was always a "brand' person. Then when I got invited to a new year's eve party, I decided to bring Kenzo socks for my hosts as well. Truth be told?  They loved them, they were unusual enough and also totally them :)  

[Angeltoes]

Quote

my pet peeve - winter has not officially begun - it starts next week.   so why was it 2 degrees when I drove home from work Tuesday?  And why is there a blizzard predicted for the weekend (we had one last weekend already).  autumn blizzards? 

My pet peeve is the reverse - I have lived in Florida all of my life where we have no seasons.  It's supposed to be in the 80's on Christmas.  The magic of the holiday isn't quite the same when you're debating whether or not to throw on the air-conditioner and Santa is sweating at the mall.  

It is on my bucket list to live up north, somewhere in New England, for an entire year just to experience all the seasons in their glory.  Being snowed in sounds like a blast to me - sitting all cozy in your house with a fire and a good book, watching the snow fall.  Although that probably gets old, too, and I hear that heating bills can be a worse nightmare than our air-conditioning bills.

[Qoass]

Yeah, being snowed in can be delightful.  Unfortunately, most of us have to get up and drive to work no matter how cold and snowy it is out there.  Not fun.

The diamond for Christmas ads do get me down but I'm also repelled by the other jewelry ads that seem to target hapless guys with no imagination.  Those Jane Seymour "open heart" necklaces and one diamond for your wife plus another for your best friend rings look so cheesy to me and if you were to get one, you'd have to wear it and everyone would know exactly how much your SO spent on you and how inarticulate he is.

I swear I'm not bitter.  I have an excellent heirloom diamond, thank you.  I just hate the emotional blackmail of these ads.

[DeLurker]

18 hours ago, JTMacc99 said:

If I started saving all of the socks I pick up with the idea of giving them back for Christmas, my children would be barefoot by Valentines Day.

Get those rounded up socks and give them back as a Groundhog's Day gift - problem solved.

All my socks that I wear on a daily basis are the same - same brand, same style, same date of purchase - so when one of them goes missing, I can just match up the other with my remaining pile of identical socks.

I was doing this for my son too, but this approach of logic clearly rubs my mom the wrong way since she gets him a variety of socks and brands (but since he's a he, the only real difference is the length or color on the heel).

She got to my daughter at a young age so she just has a random selection of socks/footies.

[JTMacc99]

11 hours ago, Maharincess said:

Your kids are VERY lucky to have a dad like you.  Your posts about your kids and family life always make my day. Can I ask a personal question?  Do you have full custody of them?  Feel free to tell me to mind my own beeswax.  

Either way, you're a fantastic daddy.  

Thank you! It's a complicated question to answer, and I will come back to elaborate when I have some more time. Basically I am the primary caregiver. 

[Moose135]

10 hours ago, bilgistic said:

CVS Caremark is a fly-by-night prescription medication management operation, and for some reason, my company uses them instead of, oh, I don't know, the health insurance company...?

My company used to use them, but after HR got so many complaints from employees, they switched a couple of years ago.

[backformore]

2 hours ago, Angeltoes said:

It is on my bucket list to live up north, somewhere in New England, for an entire year just to experience all the seasons in their glory.  Being snowed in sounds like a blast to me - sitting all cozy in your house with a fire and a good book, watching the snow fall.  Although that probably gets old, too, and I hear that heating bills can be a worse nightmare than our air-conditioning bills.

Being snowed in is wonderful.  I don't have a fireplace, but being cozy at home with a drink and a book, or watching a movie, is great.  BUT -  driving in a blizzard is the worst. snow melting on the driveway and then freezing to a solid bump of ice that you have to drive over, having to allow extra time to get anywhere, having to go out AGAIN to the grocery to pick up something you forgot. 

The coziness of being snowed in lasts until you look out the window and say  "Shit - how am I going to get to work tomorrow?"  

I am grateful for the remote starter on my car.  I don't know how I lived so long without one.

Edited December 16, 2016 by backformore

[ZaldamoWilder]

10 hours ago, bilgistic said:

I lost what is left of my mind today on the steaming pile of garbage that is CVS Caremark.

CVS Caremark is a fly-by-night prescription medication management operation, and for some reason, my company uses them instead of, oh, I don't know, the health insurance company...? I assume CVS Caremark is paid in gold teeth and nightmares, because their service level is ass.

Here's the issue: when I fill certain prescriptions (but not all prescriptions), I am charged $200-$300. Others are, like, $1.33. I'll get vaguely threatening letters saying that if I used the Miracle of Mail Order, my $300 prescription would be...less. So, I gamely thought, OK, CVS Caremark, I'll play along.

On 12/7, I used their shiteous app to snap and send pictures of the paper script. A human called me the next day and verified my shipping address. I have an order confirmation email. (Are y'all getting a sense of where this is heading?)

I thought to myself last night, "Bilgistic, it's been a while since you ordered that med and you're going to be out of it tomorrow. Wonder where that order is?" I log onto the app. Hmm...there's no order. I can't press any of the other buttons in the app. Just dead buttons. I look online. No order. No number to call other than tech support or plan information. I can email about my order and expect a response within 48 hours. WTF?!

Today at work I decided to hell with it and called the non-tech-support number. After several very aggravating minutes of voice-activated prompts (seriously, NO ONE WANTS THOSE), I finally get a human.

"We needed to get a new prescription from your doctor. We tried to contact you." NO NO NO NO NO NO NO!!! It was in date (1.5 months old--90-day RX) and valid. I got only the ONE call verifying my address. No other calls--not to cell or work. No emails, no letters, no texts.

So a hearty "fuck you!" to CVS Caremark for their shitty service. From start to finish, you SUCK!

Funny enough, my parents manage to get their meds through the mail just fine, but I'm sure it isn't with CVS "Care"mark.

Wait a minute...so, what's their solution to your issue?  Valid prescription/proof and confirmation of their only phone call.   What, so you're supposed to hang out until Tuesday with no medicine?   Can your doc make a limited number of meds call to your pharmacy as an emergency, like 5 to get you through the weekend or something? 

I laughed heartily at ass as a service level.  lol!!

2 hours ago, Angeltoes said:

My pet peeve is the reverse - I have lived in Florida all of my life where we have no seasons.  It's supposed to be in the 80's on Christmas.  The magic of the holiday isn't quite the same when you're debating whether or not to throw on the air-conditioner and Santa is sweating at the mall.  

It is on my bucket list to live up north, somewhere in New England, for an entire year just to experience all the seasons in their glory.  Being snowed in sounds like a blast to me - sitting all cozy in your house with a fire and a good book, watching the snow fall.  Although that probably gets old, too, and I hear that heating bills can be a worse nightmare than our air-conditioning bills.

Your description legit makes me winsome......about a bucolic little street lamp village someplace where ploughs don't come along and block you into the driveway you've spent the last 90 minutes clearing, pipes don't freeze on the only day that pse&g can't get to you and storms happen on a Friday because your boss' philosophy is if I can get to work.... 

Sorry if I shat all over your Norman Rockwell, it actually does sound beautiful.   You triggered my inner Jerseygirl lol.

Edited December 16, 2016 by ZaldamoWilder

[Moose135]

22 minutes ago, backformore said:

The coziness of being snowed in lasts until you look out the window and say  "Shit - how am I going to get to work tomorrow?"  

Been there, done that, glad for the mild winters of Charlotte, where 2 inches of snow scares everyone off the roads, and 50 degree temperatures the next day clears the snow.

[partofme]

My pet peeve for today is the nyc mta and the money grubbing thieves who run it.  So my monthly unlimited metrocard expired yesterday and today is my last day in the office for the year so I'm not buying a new unlimited metrocard until January.    I found an old pay-per-ride metrocard that I had and found that it had $1.70 on it but had expired as of 12/2014, so I wanted to exchange it for a new card and add money to it, I tried doing it in the machine where I've been able to exchange expired cards before but it told me that the card wasn't valid for exchange, so I found a station that had a person working at it and tried exchanging it there, but he told me since it was 2 years old it was too old to be exchanged.  So not only do I lose $1.70, but I had to pay a $1 surcharge this morning to purchase a new metrocard, so in total I'm out $2.70.

[backformore]

Anyone who longs for snow - acquaint yourself with the term "wind-chill factor".  It means that though the actual temperature might be 5 degrees, with the wind whipping at you, the effect  is that of a temperature of MINUS 20.   Yeah, 20 degrees below zero.

The Chicago Bears are playing the Packers (arch-enemy teams) Sunday.  The forecast is for a temp of -7, and a windchill  of -25.   

SANE people are not going to the game, but my son scored some tickets (from someone with enough common sense to unload them) and he will be there.   Crazy kid.  

[Qoass]

And while we're killing everyone's fantasies about winter, those crisp autumn days with brilliant foliage and a nip in the air last for maybe a week and then give way to rainstorms that strip all those leaves off the trees rendering the landscape brown and grey and miserable.

Boy, does the polar vortex kill my mood!  I'm more than ready for endless summer.

[JTMacc99]

1 hour ago, ZaldamoWilder said:

Your description legit makes me winsome......about a bucolic little street lamp village someplace where ploughs don't come along and block you into the driveway you've spent the last 90 minutes clearing, pipes don't freeze on the only day that pse&g can't get to you and storms happen on a Friday because your boss' philosophy is if I can get to work.... 

Sorry if I shat all over your Norman Rockwell, it actually does sound beautiful.   You triggered my inner Jerseygirl lol.

Hee! My inner Jersey boy as well. And since I've moved to the area the NYC weather people call "North and West of the city", I have developed a new relationship with snow. Some days, let's call them work days, I can live without it.  Other days I do kind of like watching the birds at the feeder, the dogs and kids romping around in it, and having a fire going sipping a hot drink.

It's going to snow tonight and into mid-day tomorrow. I have no problem with this, because Saturday. Also because after the winter of 2014-2015 when we got almost 8 freaking feet of snow, I finally caved in and bought the proper sized snowblower for my driveway. Naturally we got like 5 inches of snow last winter, so everybody owes me one for the mild winter around here.  My new snowblower has like a car engine on it. [Insert Tim the Tool Man Taylor grunting sound here.] I'm getting too old to screw around with -10 wind chill, and Mr. Plow dumping 18 inches of heavy wet snow at the end of my driveway.  

So bring it on.

Edited December 16, 2016 by JTMacc99

[Blergh]

Weather pet peeve: Can all those folks in my community who openly say 'I wish it would SNOW' at least stop for a minute to consider that we live in a city where it's guaranteed bumper-to-bumper gridlocks if a single flake falls (and my job doesn't stop just because of bad weather) . Go buy a postcard and stick your hand in a freezer if you want that feeling! GRR!

 

 Main pet peeve for this time: Why is that for the last decade, despite the galloping increased incidents and scales of mass hacking, there's been nothing but stronger pushes for EVERYONE to have every single imaginable aspect of our lives online yet,AFAIK,  nothing has been done to prevent said hacking aside from clucking about it after the fact? How about urging the populace to use the 'Net as little as possible UNTIL we can minimize the probability of hacking great and small?  It's like urging kids to play with matches  in an oil field when  the fire department's in the next county with nothing but hand-cranked hoses to combat any blazes.

[ari333]

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Sorry about the quote boxes.

Pet peeve. Being told that I'm too sensitive. I want to say, "Maybe you're not sensitive enough." Here's one. My best friend died suddenly of a massive stroke. Later,  I was on the phone with a relative who asked why I sounded so down. I told him that my best friend died. He said, "Well, you can get another one."  Can you people here tell me if I AM TOO SENSITIVE?  There are many many things to say.... "Sorry to hear that.."  -"it hurts to lose someone" the list goes on..... but that response was hurtful and stunning.

[ABay]

@Blergh, you've reminded me that it's time to send my annual donation to the EFF.

Edited December 16, 2016 by ABay

[ZaldamoWilder]

1 hour ago, JTMacc99 said:

Hee! My inner Jersey boy as well. And since I've moved to the area the NYC weather people call "North and West of the city", I have developed a new relationship with snow. Some days, let's call them work days, I can live without it.  Other days I do kind of like watching the birds at the feeder, the dogs and kids romping around in it, and having a fire going sipping a hot drink.

It's going to snow tonight and into mid-day tomorrow. I have no problem with this, because Saturday. Also because after the winter of 2014-2015 when we got almost 8 freaking feet of snow, I finally caved in and bought the proper sized snowblower for my driveway. Naturally we got like 5 inches of snow last winter, so everybody owes me one for the mild winter around here.  My new snowblower has like a car engine on it. [Insert Tim the Tool Man Taylor grunting sound here.] I'm getting too old to screw around with -10 wind chill, and Mr. Plow dumping 18 inches of heavy wet snow at the end of my driveway.  

So bring it on.

bwahaaaaaaa!!!  

My best friend bought a house this summer.  She texted:  first things to do list? change the locks, get a washer dryer, what else?  I texted back: run, run like the wind to walmart, now in july while nobody's thinking about it and get a cordless snow joe 2000.   jtmacc I didn't get to use mine last year, I'm ready too! 

 

35 minutes ago, Blergh said:

Weather pet peeve: Can all those folks in my community who openly say 'I wish it would SNOW' at least stop for a minute to consider that we live in a city where it's guaranteed bumper-to-bumper gridlocks if a single flake falls (and my job doesn't stop just because of bad weather) . Go buy a postcard and stick your hand in a freezer if you want that feeling! GRR!

 

 Main pet peeve for this time: Why is that for the last decade, despite the galloping increased incidents and scales of mass hacking, there's been nothing but stronger pushes for EVERYONE to have every single imaginable aspect of our lives online yet,AFAIK,  nothing has been done to prevent said hacking aside from clucking about it after the fact? How about urging the populace to use the 'Net as little as possible UNTIL we can minimize the probability of hacking great and small?  It's like urging kids to play with matches  in an oil field when  the fire department's in the next county with nothing but hand-cranked hoses to combat any blazes.

Chile please.   Good luck and good day sir!  I couldn't find my phone charger last night and was bereft with grief.   Are you kidding? lol if something happens here and the PTV forum is unavailable it's as though my kid has just left for college.

5 minutes ago, ari333 said:

Sorry about the quote boxes.

Pet peeve. Being told that I'm too sensitive. I want to say, "Maybe you're not sensitive enough." Here's one. My best friend died suddenly of a massive stroke. Later,  I was on the phone with a relative who asked why I sounded so down. I told him that my best friend died. He said, "Well, you can get another one."  Can you people here tell me if I AM TOO SENSITIVE?  There are many many things to say.... "Sorry to hear that.."  -"it hurts to lose someone" the list goes on..... but that response was hurtful and stunning.

Please tell me that was a failed and badly timed attempt at levity.   If not, whomever you were talking to is kind of an asshole.  

[AuntieL]

Ok that's horrible and you're not being too sensitive. Best friends aren't like guppies - you don't just go out and get new ones. I gave a few close friends and would be devastated if one of them died. My condolences to you and your friends family and friends. 

As for snow, being from Pittsburgh and now living in South Jersey near the shore, I don't mind snow as long as they take it off the roads. My county has like 1 snow plow. They assume the snow will just melt. It's flat as a pancake here and I have an easier time driving in the hills when I go to Pgh to visit family.

[DeLurker]

4 minutes ago, ari333 said:

My best friend died suddenly of a massive stroke. Later,  I was on the phone with a relative who asked why I sounded so down. I told him that my best friend died. He said, "Well, you can get another one."  Can you people here tell me if I AM TOO SENSITIVE?  There are many many things to say.... "Sorry to hear that.."  -"it hurts to lose someone" the list goes on..... but that response was hurtful and stunning.

I'm sorry for your loss and sorry your relative is an idiot*.  And you actually have other relatives, so ditch this one.

*  Almost all of us have that relative

[backformore]

20 minutes ago, ari333 said:

Sorry about the quote boxes.

Pet peeve. Being told that I'm too sensitive. I want to say, "Maybe you're not sensitive enough." Here's one. My best friend died suddenly of a massive stroke. Later,  I was on the phone with a relative who asked why I sounded so down. I told him that my best friend died. He said, "Well, you can get another one."  Can you people here tell me if I AM TOO SENSITIVE?  There are many many things to say.... "Sorry to hear that.."  -"it hurts to lose someone" the list goes on..... but that response was hurtful and stunning.

I am sorry for your loss.  And sensitivity is a strength, not a weakness.  Embrace it.

Anyone who tells you that you are too sensitive, well, they might have the opposite problem - not being sensitive ENOUGH.

[Bastet]

Quote

I told him that my best friend died. He said, "Well, you can get another one."

I may not have any words, for once.  Short of "Good riddance," I cannot think of a more rude and hurtful response to hearing that someone's best friend has died!

(I have a friend who I think is too sensitive, and while it can be trying at times, I'll take that any day over glaringly insensitive!  And I never tell her I think that; she feels what she feels.) 

Edited December 16, 2016 by Bastet

[Wiendish Fitch]

1 hour ago, DeLurker said:

I'm sorry for your loss and sorry your relative is an idiot*.  And you actually have other relatives, so ditch this one.

*  Almost all of us have that relative

What DeLurker said.

[zxy556575]

I moved to North Dakota from California in my mid-thirties and one of my surprises was that so few apartments had garages. They're for namby pambies, you betcha. It was bad enough that I had to have a block heater installed on my car, run it for 20 minutes of my lunch hour so it wouldn't die, and scrape windshield ice after a workday or running errands -- I wasn't about to do that first thing in the morning! So I paid a premium for a complex that had garages. I did leave a case of soda in my car once after a grocery visit and a couple of the cans exploded, so lesson learned there. Also tires that were perfectly fine in CA were definitely not in ND.

Here's a winter-related peeve from years ago, but I hold a grudge. I worked an overnight shift at a hospital and my car was dead when I got off in the morning at 6am. There was a snowstorm going on. I found a tow company in the Yellow Pages that advertised 24-hour service. The man who answered obviously had been sleeping, and grouchily told me to call back during "work hours." I called a different company and they came out, storm or not.

Anyway, I was pissed and sent a letter of complaint to I-forget-which-State-agency to complain about the false advertising. They followed up with the tow owner whose excuse was that it was a snowstorm, for crying out loud. That wasn't my point -- I didn't think he should be allowed to advertise as providing 24-hour service when obviously he did not. And the other tow company did come get my car, and handily, so it's not like the roads were impassable.

In the end, the Whatever Agency sided with the tow company and I still think that was very wrong.

[StatisticalOutlier]

On 12/15/2016 at 0:45 PM, topanga said:

Long story short, it turns out that this family friend and I lived in the same apartment building. I was also away from family at the time, so my co-worker invited me to the party. I had a ball. And I wasn't expecting a gift, but this family friend was one of those people with extra Christmas presents lying around her house.  I got your basic glove and hat set, but I was still very moved. I felt like Lucy in "While You Were Sleeping."

But I assume there was never any pretense that that gift had been bought for you, which I don't think is generally the case. 

 

15 hours ago, Bastet said:

I do not remember the last time I wore stockings (not pantyhose; those are even worse, so I stuck with thigh-highs) .  Probably in federal court, but it has been quite a while since I felt - and succumbed to - the pressure to do that, so I really don't know when it was.  I find them completely unnecessary.

I don't like wearing skirts because I don't like the way my thighs rub together, and pantyhose prevented that.  Actually, my thighs are skinny, but flare out at the top, and they kind of catch on each other up there when I'm walking.  Shorts or pants put something in between there.

 

6 hours ago, Qoass said:

I swear I'm not bitter.  I have an excellent heirloom diamond, thank you.  I just hate the emotional blackmail of these ads.

I have my mother's diamond ring--also excellent.  But I'm so conflicted about it--the whole marketing thing of engagement rings in the first place (also why I don't like the retail industrial complex's takeover of Christmas), plus diamond mining and the untold suffering that has caused.  I just can't enjoy wearing the ring.  It is pretty, but I think there's just too much baggage.

[Qoass]

Oh, I don't wear mine either.  I don't want to be the one who lost grandma's ring so it stays in a safe deposit box where I visit about once a year.

[Maharincess]

8 hours ago, Angeltoes said:

My pet peeve is the reverse - I have lived in Florida all of my life where we have no seasons.  It's supposed to be in the 80's on Christmas.  The magic of the holiday isn't quite the same when you're debating whether or not to throw on the air-conditioner and Santa is sweating at the mall.  

It is on my bucket list to live up north, somewhere in New England, for an entire year just to experience all the seasons in their glory.  Being snowed in sounds like a blast to me - sitting all cozy in your house with a fire and a good book, watching the snow fall.  Although that probably gets old, too, and I hear that heating bills can be a worse nightmare than our air-conditioning bills.

As a life long California resident I agree completely.  My peeve is that it's almost winter and its warm and sunny outside. 

[Maharincess]

6 hours ago, JTMacc99 said:

Thank you! It's a complicated question to answer, and I will come back to elaborate when I have some more time. Basically I am the primary caregiver. 

No need to come back and elaborate. It's none of my business, I was just curious. 

And you're very welcome. 

[PradaKitty]

Well, we do get rain in California. And fog - that's our winter gift.

[Popples]

6 hours ago, backformore said:

Anyone who longs for snow - acquaint yourself with the term "wind-chill factor".  It means that though the actual temperature might be 5 degrees, with the wind whipping at you, the effect  is that of a temperature of MINUS 20.   Yeah, 20 degrees below zero.

The Chicago Bears are playing the Packers (arch-enemy teams) Sunday.  The forecast is for a temp of -7, and a windchill  of -25.   

SANE people are not going to the game, but my son scored some tickets (from someone with enough common sense to unload them) and he will be there.   Crazy kid.  

Hopefully he's not one of those guys who go to games in that weather shirtless. I don't understand how those nutters don't catch pneumonia.

[backformore]

12 minutes ago, Popples said:

Hopefully he's not one of those guys who go to games in that weather shirtless. I don't understand how those nutters don't catch pneumonia.

No, he's not like that.  He's never even been to a Bears game before, and isn't a superfan or anything.   I don't like football, I can't stand seeing people slam into each other, and the incidence of traumatic brain injuries makes it even worse.   My husband and sons generally would watch on TV, where its warm and comfortable (and the beer is cheaper). 

[bilgistic]

7 hours ago, JTMacc99 said:

I'm getting too old to screw around with -10 wind chill, and Mr. Plow dumping 18 inches of heavy wet snow at the end of my driveway.  

So bring it on.

"Mr. Plow is a loser, and I think he is a boozer!"

[JTMacc99]

Just now, bilgistic said:

"Mr. Plow is a loser, and I think he is a boozer!"

I so very much sing that to myself as the town plows dump snow in my driveway. And if course I sing the next line as well. "Do yourself a favor and call the Plow King!"   

[Spunkygal]

Current pet peeve: people who don't RSVP to gatherings when the invitation clearly notes RSVP contact info. Am I just too old fashioned in thinking it's rude to ignore an invitation? We have a great immediate neighborhood (not referring to the entire HOA) and have annual block parties which are fun and well attended. We look out for each other's deliveries on the porches and there's not a "dud" neighbor that I can think of. So I'm having a small ladies happy hour this Tuesday and as of tonight, half of the ladies have not responded. I am having appetizers, good stuff like little tenderloin sandwiches, shrimp, etc..... Is it unreasonable that my panties are starting to get in a wad? A few of the ladies have small children and may need to see if hubby will be home in time to watch the kids, but at least an acknowledgment of the invitation and saying "I hope to make it" would be ok. 

[Angeltoes]

*arm waving enthusiastically*  I can come.   You had me at tenderloin sandwiches.

Edited December 17, 2016 by Angeltoes

[Sandman87]

4 hours ago, PradaKitty said:

Well, we do get rain in California. And fog - that's our winter gift.

We get all kinds of weather in California, depending on where one lives. It's a big damn state (larger than 69% of the world's nations) with every kind of terrain (from subarctic to subtropical) at every elevation imaginable (both the highest and lowest points in the U.S. are here). We get tornadoes. We get snowstorms. We get pretty much everything.

 

8 hours ago, Blergh said:

Main pet peeve for this time: Why is that for the last decade, despite the galloping increased incidents and scales of mass hacking, there's been nothing but stronger pushes for EVERYONE to have every single imaginable aspect of our lives online yet,AFAIK,  nothing has been done to prevent said hacking aside from clucking about it after the fact? How about urging the populace to use the 'Net as little as possible UNTIL we can minimize the probability of hacking great and small?  It's like urging kids to play with matches  in an oil field when  the fire department's in the next county with nothing but hand-cranked hoses to combat any blazes.

Yes! And to make matters worse, new versions of ordinary products keep coming out with internet connectivity as an added feature. Kitchen appliances (with built-in cameras, no less), central HVAC, home lighting, burglar alarms, cars, medical devices, the locks on doors of houses or businesses; all of them can potentially be hacked. And that's in addition to all the new and exciting ways we make ourselves subject to vulnerabilities in computers, cell phones, tablets, and the communications that they have with the networked world.

[backformore]

2 hours ago, Sandman87 said:

Yes! And to make matters worse, new versions of ordinary products keep coming out with internet connectivity as an added feature. Kitchen appliances (with built-in cameras, no less), central HVAC, home lighting, burglar alarms, cars, medical devices, the locks on doors of houses or businesses;

That reminds me of something -   I bought an electric toothbrush. I bought one that had different settings, for clean, for sensitive teeth, etc.  The toothbrush is fine.  BUT -  it's got a BLUETOOTH option.  there's a timer, to tell you when you've brushed for two minutes, and a signal every 30 seconds. you're supposed to sync it to your phone, so you can get a summary of how long you brushed each day and at what setting. WHAT?  I don't need an app to tell me I brushed my teeth twice a day, every day this month.  who does that?   I just thought it was the most idiotic example of connectivity I had ever heard of.

Now, the good kind - my dad has had heart surgery, he has a pacemaker.  he has a modem in his bedroom, and each day, his doctor gets data from him on pulse, blood pressure, weight, I don't know what else.  he hooks up to it in the evening.  if anything is off, he gets a call from the doctor's office in the morning, they ask some questions and determine if he needs to see the doctor that day.  THAT is a good example of internet connectivity.

[theredhead77]

10 hours ago, lordonia said:

I moved to North Dakota from California

Why would you do something like that?!

My pet-peeve right now is the feeling of cold is relative. Yes, it is utterly miserably cold in the mid-west but that doesn't negate how fucking freezing it feels here (In CA, outside of LA). It's going to be 40 tonight. My apartment was built in 1939. No insulation, drafty windows. I bought Duct window treatments and it's been so windy they billow out from the drafts. One heater in the living room. I run a space heater in my bedroom. So yes, I sleep with flannel sheets and a down comforter. When it's in the mid-50s I'm wearing a heavy coat, gloves and a hat.

Unrelated to that, my cat snores which is adorable during the day but annoying at night.

[ganesh]

17 minutes ago, theredhead77 said:

One heater in the living room. I run a space heater in my bedroom. No insulation, drafty windows.

I totally hear that. I froze in my San Francisco apartment because of exactly this. I had *5* blankets on my bed and my dog burrowed under them every night. I don't even want to get into us huddling under a comforter in Tokyo for warmth. Right now, in our well insulated *house* in the Rockies, there's 8 inches of snow, it's 15, and we are totally comfortable, with a mortgage that is 40% of my rent. I was out snowblowing for an hour and I am totally fine. 

[theredhead77]

20 minutes ago, ganesh said:

I totally hear that. I froze in my San Francisco apartment because of exactly this. I had *5* blankets on my bed and my dog burrowed under them every night. I don't even want to get into us huddling under a comforter in Tokyo for warmth. Right now, in our well insulated *house* in the Rockies, there's 8 inches of snow, it's 15, and we are totally comfortable, with a mortgage that is 40% of my rent. I was out snowblowing for an hour and I am totally fine. 

I sealed my bedroom windows and it totally helped. I just have one more window above my bed that I can't reach without moving my bed and a ladder and my friends who said they'd help have all flaked. 

[ABay]

Caulking around the window frames might help cut down on the drafts billowing out the plastic covers, and rolling up dish towels or hand towels and putting them on top of the sash might also help. I'm not sure if sash is the right word...the part where the lower window and upper window meet, usually that's where the lock is. Tucking cardboard into door frames is a pretty good temporary measure although it's a pain having to put it back every time you come back in. If you have floor vents for heat, directional covers get the heat into the center of the room where you're sitting--my house feels a lot warmer since I put those over the vents a couple of years ago. The other good thing about them is that you can move furniture over the vent and not block the heat. 

This PSA brought to you from the northeast corner. The more you know...

Edited December 17, 2016 by ABay

[TattleTeeny]

Quote

"I'm sorry, my cat died last summer". I don't have any answer for that. I'm at the age when parents start to decline in health and pass away. Please don't compare that to your pet.

I feel like I might be guilty of similar, and I think that the people who know me well (because I keep it to just "I'm so sorry" to those with whom I'm only on an "acquaintance" level) understand that I am not comparing anything--I'm just identifying with the feeling of great (not greater) loss. I know a pet is not a mom or dad, but they know that the mention of the pet is not a comparison but an example of grief, for instance, "When I felt this way [due to a pet's passing], it helped me to do [whatever]," but not "I know exactly how you feel."

Again, not making a comparison, just offering an explanation--and that explanation is for my close friends who understand me and my life with my pets (and, admittedly, lack of much of one with my parents). That said, I would not say that to anyone to whom I'm not sure would get my meaning--and certainly not at a service; that is not the place for my story, it is for comforting the people whose loss it is, and making the day easier for them! Your friend should have left that kind of remark for another time and setting, or not ever said it at all. 

Quote

I can agree with your thoughts. It was my knee jerk reaction to her telling everyone to go home and hug their dogs, you don't know how much time you have left with them. 

Oh, yes--the knee-jerk reaction! We all do it, I think--you can't help an immediate gut feeling or even sometimes a "shut up!" response. I had a really bad one once when a pet died and my family keep calling me...to ask why I was not helping my sister through a breakup with a guy she barely knew! Oy, I was not nice, to put it mildly.

Edited December 17, 2016 by TattleTeeny

[TattleTeeny]

Quote

 

I've worked at places with multiple Johns (now that sounds illicit), so they became John 1, John 2, John 3...or a pair of women with the same name, there was a big size different so it became Big Michelle* and Little Michelle.

*Big Michelle wasn't overweight and took it well.  Once a common former co-worker described her as "big hair, big boobs and short skirts" when clarifying which one he meant.  That was an accurate description.

 

Oh my goodness, in college, there were two of us (Nicoles) in our group, and "Big Nicole" was overweight. While I don't think anyone meant any harm with the designations, I was mortified at first but she didn't care (for all I know, she came up with it!) so whatever.

What I don't like (and I mean no offense to anyone with this name!) is "Nikki." First of all, I just don't like the sound of it (not that anyone should be able to determine that when I can't even explain why, exactly). I also don't feel like it fits me. But also, it's the same amount of syllables so why bother? And, those Ks--why are there Ks?! I don't mind "Nik," but again, what is with the K? My mother started that one, which is crazy to me; she gave me the name Nicole and knows perfectly well that there's a C in it that would make the same sound while making more sense! Come on, Mom!

[AgentRXS]

My name is Beth. I once worked a job with  an Elizabeth and Bethany. Even though none of us looked alike, they call each of us by all 3 names interchangeably. It was annoying.

When calling for food delivery/pickup, I learned I  have to spell out my name, especially when a younger person is answering the phone.  If I don't, I get shocked reactions and people asking if my name is actually starts with a "D" and why would my mother name me that LOL. Even when I spell out my name for them, I still have seen Bet, Bef, Baf, Bath written on the ticket. Other names I've been called are Bethie, Betty, and Becky (when Roseanne was airing....my mom's personality was very similar Roseanne Barr's and since there were 2 girls and a boy in the fam, neighbors used to call my mom Rosie, and me and my sis Becky and Darlene--all of hated those nicknames).

I used to really hate my name until my mom told me that she had planned on naming me "Sunshine" until she heard the Kiss song "Beth" on the radio and fell in love with it.  Since I'm a pretty moody and introverted person, I'm glad I was spared the irony of being given that name. Funny enough, my high school best friend told me her mother had planned on naming her "Rayne" but her father was decidedly against that name so she was given a "normal" name instead (Jennifer). Can you imagine the teasing we would have gotten being best friends named Sunshine and Rayne? LOL

Edited December 17, 2016 by AgentRXS

[theredhead77]

1 hour ago, stewedsquash said:

@theredhead77  @ganesh  No snark here but is there a reason why there is no heat in the house? If it gets cold each year wouldn't it make sense to have some type of good heating source? I don't understand. We have old houses here in NC and it gets cold, some years mild, some years bitter cold (like right now!)  so people prepare, even with older houses. 

In my case, the building is ancient and I rent. A lot of older buildings (even as new as the 80s) just have a singe forced air heater and no A/C. I was in the mid-west last winter and quite shocked about how poorly insulated my friends apartment is but he has central heat.

[theredhead77]

13 hours ago, Spunkygal said:

Current pet peeve: people who don't RSVP to gatherings when the invitation clearly notes RSVP contact info. Am I just too old fashioned in thinking it's rude to ignore an invitation? 

Not RSVPing is rude but I assume no RSVP means no. RSVPing "maybe" when you have no intention of going and RSVPing yes but being a no-show (baring emergencies, obviously) is also rude.

Not sure why my double posts didn't merge?

Edited December 17, 2016 by theredhead77

[magicdog]

My niece is nick named "Pooh Bear" (I'm the only one in the family who uses it though).  It began when my sister was preparing the nursery and went gaga for all things Pooh.  Of course, my sister couldn't make it easy for any of us - all items with the Pooh motif had to be from the "Classic Pooh" line.  That is, items that had Pooh images based on the original illustrations in the Milne books.  She was adamant about not having the Disney version of the character.  

Despite this, the name stuck and I've called her that ever since.   She's 20 now.

She has a nickname for me - which originated from her being unable to pronounce "Aunt [Magicdog]" when she was little.  She said it once and it stuck to me like glue!!  My Mom called me that nickname till she died - and even told me she wished she'd used that nickname when I was growing up.   I never had a nickname before - but I love it .