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

[fairffaxx]

Elopement sounds better & better.....

[bilgistic]

Or just never getting married at all, says me, the very single woman in her 40s with a lap full of cats.

[Bastet]

She and her fiancé are both pretty lazy, they'd been engaged for a couple of years and bought a house and moved in together without making a single move towards planning a wedding, they're in their 40s and 50s, he's divorced with grown kids -- add it all up, and I really thought I was never going to have to actually do this thing.  I figured they'd either decide there was no need to get married at all, or at least decide not to fuss with a wedding and we'd just go to City Hall and then I'd take them out for a nice dinner to celebrate.

But at some point he started making "we need to plan a wedding" noises, and finally they went out and looked at a venue, decided it would work, and picked a date.

[walnutqueen]

53 minutes ago, Bastet said:

She and her fiancé are both pretty lazy, they'd been engaged for a couple of years and bought a house and moved in together without making a single move towards planning a wedding, they're in their 40s and 50s, he's divorced with grown kids -- add it all up, and I really thought I was never going to have to actually do this thing.  I figured they'd either decide there was no need to get married at all, or at least decide not to fuss with a wedding and we'd just go to City Hall and then I'd take them out for a nice dinner to celebrate.

But at some point he started making "we need to plan a wedding" noises, and finally they went out and looked at a venue, decided it would work, and picked a date.

Recipe for disaster, if you were to ask me.  ;-)

[annzeepark914]

I must be a certified curmudgeon cause my feeling is that people who live together and then decide to get married, need to do the decent thing and either just go to a marriage celebrant (justice of the peace) or, host a small reception for close friends and relatives and just stay adult & sane about the whole thing.  My husband and I lived together for 9 years and then went to a marriage celebrant and then out to a lovely restaurant for dinner (of course my sister was ticked that she didn't get to attend my wedding but she got over it).  I've got a big problem with women who live with their future husband and then wear a white gown and veil and have daddy escort them down the aisle.  But that's just me, the curmudgeon (who really gets ticked when kids are involved with the premarriage living together stuff).  Harrumphf!

[Blergh]

For the record, my own mother wore her fave blue formal dress  over sixty years ago when she wed my father  and they were quietly wed in her mother's apartment with roughly a dozen of their closest family and friends because she didn't want to have the same kind of trainwreck deal that had totally frazzled her sister.. Ironically, my mother was actually retroactively recreating OLDER wedding traditions of brides wearing their fave formal dress and not getting into a one-time-only elaborate white gown carried by dozens! Yep, my mother's way had been done by brides for ages until Queen Victoria went for the big all-white wedding (and would ALSO insist on an all-white funeral after decades of wearing nothing but black).

[emma675]

I'm in my 40's and if I ever decide to get married it's going to be one of three ways: 1) eloping, 2) justice of the peace, or 3) a very tiny ceremony at home. I feel like #3 is the only one my mom will be happy with, but it's getting so far down the road that she may be totally thrilled with #1 or #2 as long as I still wind up married, lol!

[SuprSuprElevated]

I was 31 - first marriage, marrying a man who was married before.  We had an intimate, immediate family only ceremony, with a liberal officiant who agreed to only whisper/mumble about God, held at an old home-turned-event venue, followed by dinner, followed by a cocktail/hors d'oeuvres reception for about 50 folks.  I wore an otr, print dress, he a blue suit.  We were all-in for $1,000 bucks (Mom & Dad paid for dinner), and were/are just as married as if we had spent $50k.  26 years and counting...

ETA - Yes, I did specify 'no gifts please' on the invitation, because I think to ask (it is a custom to bring a wedding gift to you know, a wedding) someone to assist in setting up a household for grown folks who have already set up a household is tacky.

Edited March 12, 2018 by SuprSuprElevated

[backformore]

10 hours ago, Bastet said:

So, it's not bad, but I do find the tradition of bridesmaids paying for their own dresses weird; even with the latitude we have in choosing, I'm still being put in a costume rather than just showing up in a nice dress from Macy's that I can also wear to cocktail parties.  The whole wedding industry is one big crock to me, really.

I had some long dresses - not bridesmaid dresses, but from a time when women would wear long evening gowns to weddings - I had one shortened to a knee-length dress and I loved it.  

I haven't worn a strapless dress since I was in my teens, and I'm very wary of them, after seeing videos of women at weddings popping out of them.  One was a bridesmaid who reached up to catch the bouquet, and her boobs lifted right up with her.   So if you go strapless, use some double-sided tape to secure the dress.  

I agree with you about bridesmaid dresses though.  the most practical option is to have all the women choose dresses within a certain color scheme, then have them all carry matching bouquets which complement the color scheme.  I think having all the women match, while it's been the style for decades, is a dated look.  It's really hard to find a style and color that's going to look good on everyone.  

[Bastet]

Oh, definitely no strapless.  Two have tank straps (which is what I was looking for, so I can wear a regular bra), and the third has spaghetti straps.  So does the bridal gown, so she has to wear a strapless bra, too, but she's only a B-cup, so it's a lot easier for her.

And, yeah, beyond the cloying matchy-matchy thing I don't like about everyone in the same exact dress, it's pretty rare for one dress to look good on multiple people (in our case, I'm tall and curvy and her sister is short and flat; I'm amazed we even had one dress in common on our list of possibilities), so I think it sucks to make one or more people in the bridal party - women who are your family/friends, no less - buy a dress that is not only overpriced for something they'll wear once, but is something they're not even going to be happy with themselves in. 

One of the three dresses would never work being hemmed into a knee-length dress, one would but would still very obviously be a bridesmaid dress, and the third might be passable as a cocktail dress if shortened like that, but I doubt it.  When I try them on again to make my final decision, I'm going to take a good, hard look at that last possibility.

I don't subscribe to any of the rules about who can and can't wear white (especially since the white gown tradition got perverted into some virginal nonsense for quite some time, which I find as offensive as it is ridiculous), or who can and can't have a big wedding.  "You do you."  I just reserve the right to roll my eyes at all of it in private, and I'm truly surprised more people don't do something simpler -- just get married, and then have a regular party, without paying an "it's a wedding, so we can gouge you and get away with it" surcharge on everything.

But, hey, at least they're specifying no gifts - he mentioned the idea of registering somewhere, and she was appalled; they have a house full of two of everything already.  And, since they're both atheists, too, I don't have to listen to some guy go into a random sermon in the middle of the vows.  Because that's another peeve - weddings and funerals that sound like church services into which the people supposedly being celebrated/remembered are nominally inserted.

[Quof]

Quote

at least they're specifying no gifts 

One can give a gift, or not give a gift, any time one chooses.  Telling people "Hey, you don't need to get us a present (aren't we magnanimous for relieving you of that obligation?)" is hardly a point of honour. 

[biakbiak]

41 minutes ago, Quof said:

One can give a gift, or not give a gift, any time one chooses.  Telling people "Hey, you don't need to get us a present (aren't we magnanimous for relieving you of that obligation?)" is hardly a point of honour. 

I don't know anyone who accepts an invitation to a wedding, shower, or a birthday party who doesn't think a gift is necessary, so to many peopke it probably is something nice to proclaim.

[Quof]

I've never been to an adult birthday party that involved gifts.  At most, the birthday boy/girl will invite people to their house "Hey, it's my birthday, come for dinner" and I will bring a bottle of wine, just as I would for any other dinner party.

Showers are by their very nature gift giving occasions. Fortunately, my peers are past that stage of life, so I haven't been to one in as long as I can remember.

As for wedding gifts, after decades of giving gifts for which I have never been thanked, I'm happy that my peers who do get married tend to opt for very small events with few or no guests : )  

And, no, a wedding gift is not "necessary."   It's an invitation, not an invoice.

Edited March 12, 2018 by Quof

[KittyMom4]

11 hours ago, annzeepark914 said:

I must be a certified curmudgeon cause my feeling is that people who live together and then decide to get married, need to do the decent thing and either just go to a marriage celebrant (justice of the peace) or, host a small reception for close friends and relatives and just stay adult & sane about the whole thing.  My husband and I lived together for 9 years and then went to a marriage celebrant and then out to a lovely restaurant for dinner

My daughter and her boyfriend have been living together for 5 years, dating for 7, they called me 2 weeks ago to say they are getting married June 2nd, at a park with a JOP and a BBQ immediately after with ladder ball and horsehoes to play. They are very laid back people and hate all the formalities that come with weddings, I am over the moon excited! My Catholic as-all-get-out parents are a tad less enthused but I don't care, don't come if you don't like it, I'll be in a sundress and sandals sipping some champagne with a tear in my eye watching my daughter's wonderful day!

[TattleTeeny]

I've been with my BF for almost nine years, and we've lived together for about five. And while I don't really care about being officially married, if we did decide to go for it, I'd definitely want a big, fun reception--and I assure you, I am decent, sane, and an adult! 

Edited March 12, 2018 by TattleTeeny

[emma675]

GoodieGirl, that sounds like a fun wedding! Congrats to them and you.

[Bastet]

10 hours ago, Quof said:

Telling people "Hey, you don't need to get us a present (aren't we magnanimous for relieving you of that obligation?)" is hardly a point of honour. 

I disagree; I find asking guests not to bring/send a gift to an event where 99.9% of those attending would otherwise plan to do so is polite.  Unlike simply leaving off the ubiquitous "we're registered at [store]" notation, this makes clear that despite whatever ideas float about this society around wedding gift obligations, they want nothing more than the gift of their guests sharing the evening with them. 

(Pervasive as those ideas are, there will probably be some who say - either to them or their families - they really want to do something, so they will be advised to make a donation in the cats' names to the animal shelter whence they came.)

[DeLurker]

19 hours ago, annzeepark914 said:

I must be a certified curmudgeon cause my feeling is that people who live together and then decide to get married, need to do the decent thing and either just go to a marriage celebrant (justice of the peace) or, host a small reception for close friends and relatives and just stay adult & sane about the whole thing.  My husband and I lived together for 9 years and then went to a marriage celebrant and then out to a lovely restaurant for dinner (of course my sister was ticked that she didn't get to attend my wedding but she got over it).  I've got a big problem with women who live with their future husband and then wear a white gown and veil and have daddy escort them down the aisle.  But that's just me, the curmudgeon (who really gets ticked when kids are involved with the premarriage living together stuff).  Harrumphf!

It may be a bit much imo, but if it is what the couple want, I say go for it providing you can afford it.  

[Katy M]

When you disagree with someone's glowing book, movie, TV review. And they say that you just don't get it.  Now, there are times if you are specifically getting into details, where that may be warranted, but no, sometimes people just have different tastes and opinions and someone not loving what you love does not necessarily mean they "don't get it."

[ebk57]

We got married after living together for 11 years because when he suggested my name go on the deed to the house, I said how about we get married.  So we did. I took one day off of work at we went to the courthouse. I wore black. We had a joint dinner with my brother and his bride a couple of months after (they married after many years for the insurance - romance runs deep in our family!).  I wanted the dinner to be at the local wing/beer place - they have dart boards and pool tables.  My SIL wanted a nice place with grass, so ... it was fine.  I did ask that no one bring gifts - we had everything we needed.  And most importantly, I hate writing thank-you notes!!  So I was really annoyed with the dozen or so folks who brought gifts.  They are still upstairs ...somewhere.  And I had to write thank-you notes.  So really people, if the invitations asks for no gifts, please don't bring one. 

A fine time was had by all!

[Sandman87]

5 hours ago, Katy M said:

Now, there are times if you are specifically getting into details, where that may be warranted, but no, sometimes people just have different tastes and opinions and someone not loving what you love does not necessarily mean they "don't get it."

"You don't get it" doesn't work well with me, because I will demand that they explain exactly what it is that I'm not getting.

[StatisticalOutlier]

5 hours ago, ebk57 said:

So really people, if the invitations asks for no gifts, please don't bring one.

I had a friend who specified "no gifts" on her wedding invitation, and added the warning:  "If you bring a gift, we'll make you take a pallet of our junk home with you."

In Texas, you can file a Declaration of Informal Marriage, which establishes the marriage and doesn't require a ceremony.  If you go the marriage license route, there's a waiting period, and you have to have a ceremony performed by an authorized person, and the fee is higher than the Declaration--although you can get a $60 discount and the waiting period waived if you take a state-approved marriage pre-marital training course, which just rubs me all kinds of wrong ways.

[Mannahatta]

On 3/11/2018 at 11:32 PM, SuprSuprElevated said:

I was 31 - first marriage, marrying a man who was married before.  We had an intimate, immediate family only ceremony, with a liberal officiant who agreed to only whisper/mumble about God, held at an old home-turned-event venue, followed by dinner, followed by a cocktail/hors d'oeuvres reception for about 50 folks.  I wore an otr, print dress, he a blue suit.  We were all-in for $1,000 bucks (Mom & Dad paid for dinner), and were/are just as married as if we had spent $50k.  26 years and counting...

ETA - Yes, I did specify 'no gifts please' on the invitation, because I think to ask (it is a custom to bring a wedding gift to you know, a wedding) someone to assist in setting up a household for grown folks who have already set up a household is tacky.

Congratulations on 26 years and counting, Suprsuprelevated! Your wedding sounds like it was a wonderful, stress-free way to start a marriage.

I get peeved by people who set up gift registries without much thought. Then complain about all the stuff they're stuck with. Or they select things like extremely expensive china sets for twelve. They probably won't get a complete set of it, and they probably won't be able to afford and/or want to complete the set themselves. Plus if they have kids they're not going to be using it anyway.

I knew a bride who sold off items received from the gift registry at a yard sale - for pennies on the dollar. Soon after the wedding they realized they didn't really need or want these items but neither felt like returning the stuff to the stores. (They were loaded anyway so the idea of having a yard sale was to her just a fun way to spend an afternoon slumming it.)

In fact, years ago I bought a really nice Wedgwood crystal decanter at a yard sale for a few bucks and was told that it had been a wedding gift. I couldn't help but feel bad for the person who went to the trouble of selecting and paying for this gift only to have it sold off to a stranger like it was no different than a used tee shirt. And the woman who sold it to me was young so it wasn't like it had been hanging around her home for years gathering dust. Great deal for a bargain hunter such as myself but a waste for the original parties involved.

Maybe gift giving for weddings will eventually become obsolete. People tend to have enough stuff. If they need anything it's cash.

[Mindthinkr]

1 hour ago, Mannahatta said:

years ago I bought a really nice Wedgwood crystal decanter at a yard sale for a few bucks

I got a Waterford Vase that way and will appreciate and use it for years to come. I guess the vase had good karma ending up with me. 

[annzeepark914]

11 hours ago, ebk57 said:

We got married after living together for 11 years because when he suggested my name go on the deed to the house, I said how about we get married.  So we did. I took one day off of work at we went to the courthouse. I wore black.

This is so funny--I wore black as well! (but I did put on a raspberry short jacket for a bit of color).  It's been fun reading about these different, unique weddings.  

[JTMacc99]

18 hours ago, Katy M said:

When you disagree with someone's glowing book, movie, TV review. And they say that you just don't get it.  Now, there are times if you are specifically getting into details, where that may be warranted, but no, sometimes people just have different tastes and opinions and someone not loving what you love does not necessarily mean they "don't get it."

When it comes to art, taste is 100% subjective. There is all sorts of art that is extremely popular that does nothing for me. I have no problem with somebody saying I don't get it. Because, yep, I don't get it. Or more specifically, whatever it is that makes the impact on other people doesn't make the same impact on me.  My classic example is that I could listen to the Rolling Stones all day. I feel their music. The Beatles on the other hand, meh. Nothing. As I later figured out, pretty much any music that is from the tree that started with the American blues speaks to me. 

What I do have a problem with is somebody telling me I'm wrong to not like whatever it is they like. If that's what somebody is trying to say when they use the phrase "You don't get it", then I've got an issue with them. If it's somebody I like, I might go so far as to have the discussion of what it is they like about it, and then explain why that doesn't do it for me. If it's some nitwit on the internet, I move on.

Edited March 13, 2018 by JTMacc99

[MargeGunderson]

14 minutes ago, JTMacc99 said:

My classic example is that I could listen to the Rolling Stones all day. I feel their music. The Beatles on the other hand, meh. Nothing.

I see your "meh" and raise to "makes me want to stick sharp objects in my ears." The millions of people who love the Beatles aren't wrong, but neither am I.  Related pet peeve - people who tell me I have to like one Beatles song, like it is as necessary as breathing air. No, I really don't. 

[JTMacc99]

8 minutes ago, MargeGunderson said:

Related pet peeve - people who tell me I have to like one Beatles song,

It's the "HAVE TO" part where I object. People who do that have not had the Ah Ha! moment that I did 25 years ago when my good friend and I were listening to Smells Like Teen Spirit for the 30th time on the radio that week. He said, "I don't get why these guys got this big break and all this radio play and [unknown band he LOVED] can't get the same break."

I mean, the answer was pretty simple. One band was amazing and was about to transform rock and roll and the other was kind of nice in an unexciting way. But the lesson was: He thinks his band is amazing. And to him, it was. And I viewed that opinion and the opinion of everybody else differently after that day. 

[KittyMom4]

My pet peeve today, and every day, is the salad bar lookie loos who can't make a decision about what they want to put on their salad at my work cafeteria! Carrots or red peppers? Onions or chi-chi beans? Cukes or tomatoes? THE CHOICES! Not really, it's a small salad bar with pretty much the same items every day with a few items that change during the week. Good grief, I get 30 minutes for lunch, if you want stand and mull it over at least move a step back so I can get by to get what I want since making a salad for me is not an all-day project. And please do not glare at me when I dare to go around you because you are attempting to perfectly place that grape tomato at exactly the perfect spot on your pile of greens or pick out the precise broccoli floret that will make your salad picture perfect for FB. GAH!!

[JTMacc99]

25 minutes ago, GoodieGirl said:

My pet peeve today, and every day, is the salad bar lookie loos who can't make a decision about what they want to put on their salad at my work cafeteria!

[Sandman87]

Whis week my nature peeve is wasps. I'm not really all that bothered about getting stung, which I know how to avoid. No, what I hate is that the little bastards that inhabit this region build their nests on the walls and undersides of everything. I had to move a bunch of things from the barn storage room to the house this week, and there were wasp nests inside suitcases, on the undersides of box lids, on the drawers and inner walls of a dresser...everywhere!

And the nests are made of mud & wasp spit, which means that it leaves a big irregular ring of dirt when you remove them. Requires lots of cleaning, especially on cloth surfaces.

[Mindthinkr]

6 minutes ago, Sandman87 said:

Whis week my nature peeve is wasps. I'm not really all that bothered about getting stung, which I know how to avoid. No, what I hate is that the little bastards that inhabit this region build their nests on the walls and undersides of everything. I had to move a bunch of things from the barn storage room to the house this week, and there were wasp nests inside suitcases, on the undersides of box lids, on the drawers and inner walls of a dresser...everywhere!

And the nests are made of mud & wasp spit, which means that it leaves a big irregular ring of dirt when you remove them. Requires lots of cleaning, especially on cloth surfaces.

I’ve dealt with them. I even have a video of my putting my bare hand into a nest and asking them to climb on to it and then when I tell them to go back they do. When you remove a nest get some cigarette ashes from someone (most smokers don’t mind collecting their ashes in a coffee can for this purpose) and spread them on the area. They have an aversion to them and won’t rebuild there. Also use the ashes in areas where you suspect that they be entering from. It really works. Paint the underside ceilings of porches etc with a sky blue paint. Then they won’t build a nest under it. Oh yes, they can be pesky. Good luck with them. 

[Moose135]

12 hours ago, JTMacc99 said:

I hadn't seen that bit before, but I know how he feels - I'm in the line at McDonald's while someone is trying to figure out what to get, and I want to yell "It's McDonald's! Just pick a number and get on with it!"

Edited March 14, 2018 by Moose135

[JTMacc99]

6 hours ago, Moose135 said:

I hadn't seen that bit before, but I know how he feels - I'm in the line at McDonald's while someone is trying to figure out what to get, and I want to yell "It's McDonald's! Just pick a number and get on with it!"

I wanted to find his bit about skinny people on line at buffets, so funny.

[Mindthinkr]

11 minutes ago, JTMacc99 said:

I wanted to find his bit about skinny people on line at buffets, so funny.

Ooh please keep looking. I’d like to see that. 

[MargeGunderson]

If  you tell me that something is not urgent, do not email me every day to tell me it has not been resolved. It is in no way affecting your ability to do your job. Also, since you are the person who caused the problem in the first place, you can just take a seat.  

Edited March 14, 2018 by MargeGunderson
Affect and effect are not the same

[JTMacc99]

2 hours ago, Mindthinkr said:

Ooh please keep looking. I’d like to see that. 

Hee! Found it. It's just audio, but totally worth the 2+ minutes.

[backformore]

I am opening up a new office next month.   I happened to be at the mall returning something I bought online, and passed by an art store.  I walked in, interested in a Chicago skyline picture.  I asked the price.  (there was no tag on anything) The salesperson says it's $130, but just for today, she'll mark it down to $110.  OK, I'm not really all that interested in it, I just kind of wandered in.  I keep looking, and she tells me that I can have her discount, that she only gives to friends, and have the painting for $90.   I repeated that I was browsing, not really ready to buy right now.  She says she can forgo her commission and sell it to me for $78!   Today only! 

This all happened in less than  ten minutes.  It bothered me, because this is a major shopping mall, not a street fair.  Are all prices negotiable now?  I want price tags on items, I want to do comparison shopping by knowing what stuff costs. And this lady was SO insistent, I got the feeling that there hadn't been a customer in all day. 

I walked out, just feeling pressured and unhappy.  

[GHScorpiosRule]

6 minutes ago, backformore said:

keep looking, and she tells me that I can have her discount, that she only gives to friends, and have the painting for $90.   I repeated that I was browsing, not really ready to buy right now.  She says she can forgo her commission and sell it to me for $78!   Today only! 

This all happened in less than  ten minutes.  It bothered me, because this is a major shopping mall, not a street fair.  Are all prices negotiable now?  I want price tags on items, I want to do comparison shopping by knowing what stuff costs. And this lady was SO insistent, I got the feeling that there hadn't been a customer in all day. 

I walked out, just feeling pressured and unhappy.  

I'm so sorry! And please forgive me, but while I empathized as I read this, I also laughed, because this is SO what happens in India! Whether you're browsing on the streets or even in the shops in the malls they have now.

[annzeepark914]

On 3/13/2018 at 11:04 AM, JTMacc99 said:

When it comes to art, taste is 100% subjective. There is all sorts of art that is extremely popular that does nothing for me. I have no problem with somebody saying I don't get it. Because, yep, I don't get it. Or more specifically, whatever it is that makes the impact on other people doesn't make the same impact on me.  My classic example is that I could listen to the Rolling Stones all day. I feel their music. The Beatles on the other hand, meh. Nothing. As I later figured out, pretty much any music that is from the tree that started with the American blues speaks to me. 

 

 

@JTMACC99:  As a Beatles fan, I've never understood the adoration of the Stones.  But, there is one Stones song, and one song only, that I really like (not the lyrics--just the music!): Under My Thumb. Maybe I like the music cause it's kinda R&B and not their usual type of R&R numbers.  Of course, it doesn't get played these days (and back in the day I don't remember it getting much airplay either).

OMG - thanks so much for the John Pinette. video.  I could not stop laughing.  Sorry to admit that I'm one of those people who stare up at the menu a little cause I don't go inside very often. But I always order the same thing: that original burger, small fries and small Coke.  This guy is hilarious.  Is he still around?

Edited March 14, 2018 by annzeepark914

[Sun-Bun]

On 3/13/2018 at 11:56 AM, GoodieGirl said:

My pet peeve today, and every day, is the salad bar lookie loos who can't make a decision about what they want to put on their salad at my work cafeteria! Good grief, I get 30 minutes for lunch, if you want stand and mull it over at least move a step back so I can get by to get what I want since making a salad for me is not an all-day project. And please do not glare at me when I dare to go around you because you are attempting to perfectly place that grape tomato at exactly the perfect spot on your pile of greens or pick out the precise broccoli floret that will make your salad picture perfect for FB. GAH!!

Preach it, sister!!!! Nothing worse than the folks who are pretty much making a labored art project about what should be simple stop at the salad bar. 

I think this should be the general rule at *any* salad bar/buffet area: 1-2 quick scoops per item and then MOVE ON. I've irked many a buffet slowpoke by cutting past their slow-yet-rude asses, but there's no excuse to take more than 10 seconds to service yourself at a buffet area. And if you can't move that quickly, ask for help or wave people past you.

Half the people I pass are literally just gawking around at the food as if they're taking in the goddamned Grand Canyon for the first time anyway. Reminds me of how I actually had to quit escorting my mom to her senior citizen cooking classes because the insanely slow-moving folks backing up the insanely long food lines at the end were practically giving me brain aneurisms.

And most people at buffets/salad bars/self-service party tables *always* overserve themselves too much; as someone who absolutely loathes wasting food, it pains me to see how many people don't know how to serve themselves wisely. 

One big or small scoop---you don't need 3-4 scoops of anything at a damned buffet. Then move on. Really not that difficult, folks.

[JTMacc99]

19 minutes ago, annzeepark914 said:

OMG - thanks so much for the John Pinette. video.  I could not stop laughing.  Sorry to admit that I'm one of those people who stare up at the menu a little cause I don't go inside very often. But I always order the same thing: that original burger, small fries and small Coke.  This guy is hilarious.  Is he still around?

He was fantastic. It looks like a couple of his full hour specials are available on youtube. They are worth checking out.  He sadly died about four years ago from liver and heart disease. 

13 minutes ago, Sun-Bun said:

I think this should be the general rule at *any* salad bar/buffet area: 1-2 quick scoops per item and then MOVE ON

This is exactly the theme of the second John Pinette video I just posted. Grab and Go!

[Sun-Bun]

12 minutes ago, JTMacc99 said:

This is exactly the theme of the second John Pinette video I just posted. Grab and Go!

Accidentally scrolled past this the first time, @JTMacc99: thank you! Oh how he truly speaks the truth!!

[peacheslatour]

15 hours ago, Sandman87 said:

Whis week my nature peeve is wasps. I'm not really all that bothered about getting stung, which I know how to avoid. No, what I hate is that the little bastards that inhabit this region build their nests on the walls and undersides of everything. I had to move a bunch of things from the barn storage room to the house this week, and there were wasp nests inside suitcases, on the undersides of box lids, on the drawers and inner walls of a dresser...everywhere!

And the nests are made of mud & wasp spit, which means that it leaves a big irregular ring of dirt when you remove them. Requires lots of cleaning, especially on cloth surfaces.

My dad killed a nest of paper wasps that had built their nest around a pine tree branch. He then cut the branch off the tree still with the pine foliage still attached. He gave it to me and I hot glued a few dried roses and some silk ivy to it and hung it in the window of my flower shop. It looked really cool.

[backformore]

2 hours ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

I'm so sorry! And please forgive me, but while I empathized as I read this, I also laughed, because this is SO what happens in India! Whether you're browsing on the streets or even in the shops in the malls they have now.

Yes, and the bargaining is what I expect at a flea market.  But at a major shopping mall?  It's not like I can go into Macy's and say "this sweater is marked $49, I"ll give you $37.50."  I'm not a person who enjoys shopping, I like it to be straight forward.  

[GHScorpiosRule]

1 minute ago, backformore said:

Yes, and the bargaining is what I expect at a flea market.  But at a major shopping mall?  It's not like I can go into Macy's and say "this sweater is marked $49, I"ll give you $37.50."  I'm not a person who enjoys shopping, I like it to be straight forward.  

I'm the same. I HATE shopping. Ever since the Internets, I do most of it from online catalogs. I really miss the Newport News one. It had some really nice mock turtleneck one piece outfits. Yeah, that sounds uncomfortable, but I liked them. 

[backformore]

John Pinette - I'm not sure which bit you linked to,(can't listen here at work)  but his take on going to Disney world in August is hilarious.  

Though I always feel conflicted laughing at his comedy that focuses on over-eating, when he might have been around longer had he taken better care of himself.  there is a video of him on youtube after he lost a lot of weight, where he looks dramatically different. he died within weeks of that interview, which makes it all the more tragic.  

[Bastet]

If I'm with my mom and we so much as drive past a restaurant with a buffet, we burst into a John Pinette routine.  And if it's a Chinese food buffet, forget it. 

[DeLurker]

21 minutes ago, backformore said:

Yes, and the bargaining is what I expect at a flea market.  But at a major shopping mall?  It's not like I can go into Macy's and say "this sweater is marked $49, I"ll give you $37.50."  I'm not a person who enjoys shopping, I like it to be straight forward.  

I've actually done it at Macy's for a sofa and loveseat that was on clearance.  I offered them a few hundred less than what they were asking, salesperson said I have to ask manager, manager said yes, but we won't deliver.  I'm not sure what got into me that day, but the pieces still get used on a daily basis in my house.

[JTMacc99]

43 minutes ago, backformore said:

John Pinette - I'm not sure which bit you linked to,(can't listen here at work)  but his take on going to Disney world in August is hilarious.  

Though I always feel conflicted laughing at his comedy that focuses on over-eating, when he might have been around longer had he taken better care of himself.  there is a video of him on youtube after he lost a lot of weight, where he looks dramatically different. he died within weeks of that interview, which makes it all the more tragic.  

I linked just some of his stuff about buffets and waiting on lines. I did not link up any of his stories about Disney or Skiing or the Waterpark (It was a medium size tube at best...)  Heh.

He did one great bit about how he had lost a hundred pounds: People said to me, wow! I can really see it in your face.  How big was my head before I started this journey? Apparently I was the Kool Aid man and nobody ever said anything to me.  That's John, his head's the size of a manhole cover. We don't talk about it."