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

[KittyMom4]

51 minutes ago, peacheslatour said:

I think it's mostly kids on summer break who don't have to get up for school the day after and they just don't care.

I wish that were true, because then I could have a conversation with the parents to say "Hey, Jimmy was setting off fireworks kinda late last night, could you make sure he's done by 10:00pm?" Instead I had to attempt to reason with an adult, well into his 50's, that fireworks after that time in a neighborhood, on a Tuesday night, were rude and inconsiderate. His response was that 1:00am wasn't late because it was a holiday. I told him that not everyone was off on July 5th, namely me, so 1:00am on a work night was late. 

This was the same family that allowed their middle school age child to ride around the neighborhood on one of those small motorbikes, with no helmet, barefoot, in the road, during the time when most folks were coming home from work so there was a lot of traffic. I was so glad when I saw the for sale sign go up in front of their house. 

Edited June 27, 2019 by GoodieGirl
missing word

[theredhead77]

18 hours ago, Bastet said:

Ha - I spent my 21st birthday at the Manhattan Beach one (or maybe the Hermosa one - one of those), drinking out of a bucket with my best friend.  Shit-show is right; GrubHub called Sharkeez "Southern California’s sports bar bastion for drunk twenty-somethings on the make" and that's spot on.  Needless to say, I have not been to one in quite a long time.

My friends and I used to run the Saturday afternoon [shit]show at one of their locations. It's extra bad when you're so regular they let you in already plastered because they know you're going to be warm bodies telling your friends to show up while drinking water and eating chips.

Or when you run past the chick collecting cover money at 9pm because you aren't paying a cover to go to Sharkees, ever and no one bothers to stop you.

[peacheslatour]

2 minutes ago, annzeepark914 said:

Unfortunately, it's also a lot of adults who should know better. I worry about something landing on someone's (mine!) roof.  Thankfully, it doesn't bother our cat but I feel sorry for all the dogs who can't handle loud noises like this or thunder.

That happened to my SIL's next door neighbor. The neighbors were out of town at the time and came back to find their house burned to the ground

[emma675]

Quote

I think it's mostly kids on summer break who don't have to get up for school the day after and they just don't care.

I'm officially old, because my first thought was "where are their parents??", lol. We have several jackasses in our neighborhood who set off fireworks late into the night every year, even though it's against the law to do so within city limits. I'm particularly worried this year because most of my neighborhood is still filled with piles of dead branches and cut up trees waiting for bulk pick up. There is a lot of dried timber just waiting to go up in flames by one careless idiot.

[theredhead77]

On 6/24/2019 at 4:49 PM, theredhead77 said:

A FB friend of mine posts memes that are factually wrong and never removes them. I've taken to posting the correct information which is ignored or argued with. Most recently I posted a link to bill directly from the senate.gov website and she said that was wrong and her meme was correct. Uh, no. We can disagree all we want but the information showing your meme is wrong is clearly in the executive summary of the damn law. 

Who has two thumbs and was unfriended? This gal! I guess she got tired of having facts dropped on her. It's all good. It seems we have a difference of morality anyway.

[shapeshifter]

5 hours ago, GoodieGirl said:

I don't understand why people can be so inconsiderate to think making very loud explosive noises in a neighborhood where people are sleeping is ok to do. I have no problem with town/city sponsored fireworks shows, they can be spectacular and people can choose to attend them. But the idiot next door who buys $400 of explosives and sets them off outside my window at 1:00am BECAUSE IT'S THE FOURTH OF JULY is just being an ass. 

4 HOURS AGO, PEACHESLATOUR SAID:

I think it's mostly kids on summer break who don't have to get up for school the day after and they just don't care.

Although I assume most of those setting off fireworks in residential neighborhoods are actually adult men with families trying to act cool or virile, there may be some young adults, and some of them will eventually realize the error of their ways.
When I was 19 renting a house with a couple of other students, I remember blasting my Janis Joplin album on my stereo in the wee hours, wanting to share my emo-pain with the world, and sure that everyone within earshot was as enamored with Janis as I was — or would be if they could hear her — at 3 a.m.
Within a year or two I had learned to appreciate quiet, and only listened to live, acoustic music, but I have been recalling my youthful rudeness for several decades everytime I am disturbed by a neighbor's noise.
So, although most of those setting off fireworks in neighborhoods are idiots, a few are just almost-adults who think the neighbors are going to come flocking out to their lawns to enjoy the show. At F'in' 3 a.m.
—idiots with potential for character growth.

[Nordly Beaumont]

I'm lucky, I live a mile from a veteran's hospital so they publicize how hard it can be on veterans with PTSD to hear explosions, pops, bangs etc. My neighbors are pretty sensitive to this. I rarely hear fireworks and it's great - not only for the quiet - but also to know my neighbors are good people! I just wish people would think about that - do you know that there's no one in your neighborhood with PTSD that may be traumatized by these noises? I have a friend who takes her dog to a remote cabin over the fourth to keep the dog from being traumatized. But these veterans, these people who have been through enough already, don't often have the means to re-locate for a few days. Unless you know every one of your neighbors and their circumstances - leave town and blow your fireworks away from people and animals that can't take it. Or don't blow them at all, because they are completely unnecessary. 

Can someone help me off my soapbox? I'm old and need to check on those teenagers on my lawn...

[PRgal]

At the close of Pride Month, I just wanted to say this:  I have older relatives who refuse to believe that I'd be okay if my son, say, marries a guy.  One said "you're just SAYING you'll be fine with it, but in reality, you want him in a 'traditional' marriage."  I guess you can't teach an old dog new tricks?

Note:  my son is only eight months.  He could come out as a she or a they, right?  We just don't know right now.  

ETA:  On another note, the above older person criticized me for wanting to be addressed as "Mrs." or "Ms." by kids of peers, rather than "Auntie" (which is common in Cantonese speaking cultures).  I only know a small handful of non-relatives where I'd be okay with being called "Auntie" by their kids.  This does NOT include my parents' BFF's grandchildren.  

Edited June 29, 2019 by PRgal

[annzeepark914]

3 hours ago, PRgal said:

ETA:  On another note, the above older person criticized me for wanting to be addressed as "Mrs." or "Ms." by kids of peers, rather than "Auntie" (which is common in Cantonese speaking cultures).  I only know a small handful of non-relatives where I'd be okay with being called "Auntie" by their kids.  This does NOT include my parents' BFF's grandchildren.  

When I lived in NC, I was delighted to learn that children were taught to call the *close* friends of their parents, Miss or Mr (first name). It sounded so sweet, as well as respectful. All other adults were addressed by Mr/Mrs/Miss Last Name. 

[JTMacc99]

People who drive 45 on the 55 mph two lane roads around me, I’m fine with you. I don’t know your deal. 

People who drive 45 on the 55 mph two lane roads around me, who then speed up to 65 when I start passing them in a legal passing zone?  You should be sprayed down with cherry soda and rolled in fire ants.  

[Mindthinkr]

17 minutes ago, JTMacc99 said:

People who drive 45 on the 55 mph two lane roads around me, I’m fine with you. I don’t know your deal. 

People who drive 45 on the 55 mph two lane roads around me, who then speed up to 65 when I start passing them in a legal passing zone?  You should be sprayed down with cherry soda and rolled in fire ants.  

I am only laughing because I have lived in the Hudson Valley and it’s amazing how many people will do that. It’s even worse now that people are trying to talk or text while driving. 

[shapeshifter]

47 minutes ago, JTMacc99 said:

People who drive 45 on the 55 mph two lane roads around me, I’m fine with you. I don’t know your deal. 

People who drive 45 on the 55 mph two lane roads around me, who then speed up to 65 when I start passing them in a legal passing zone?  You should be sprayed down with cherry soda and rolled in fire ants.  

Sounds fair to me.

[annzeepark914]

I grew up in Dutchess County and am familiar with the frustrations of driving winding, two lane roads. You have to wait until you reach those few straight sections to pass. So, yeah...if a slow driver speeds up just as you're trying to pass? Let the fire ants have a feast, I say!

[Annber03]

9 hours ago, PRgal said:

At the close of Pride Month, I just wanted to say this:  I have older relatives who refuse to believe that I'd be okay if my son, say, marries a guy.  One said "you're just SAYING you'll be fine with it, but in reality, you want him in a 'traditional' marriage."  I guess you can't teach an old dog new tricks?

Note:  my son is only eight months.  He could come out as a she or a they, right?  We just don't know right now.  

Those relatives clearly need to meet the many parents out there who are very supportive of their kids being LGBTQ, it seems. My parents have told my sister and me that they'd support and love us no matter our sexual orientation, too. I honestly can't understand how a parent could not support and love their child because of that. 

Quote

ETA:  On another note, the above older person criticized me for wanting to be addressed as "Mrs." or "Ms." by kids of peers, rather than "Auntie" (which is common in Cantonese speaking cultures).  I only know a small handful of non-relatives where I'd be okay with being called "Auntie" by their kids.  This does NOT include my parents' BFF's grandchildren.  

I've always been raised to address people not related to me as Mr/Mrs/Ms/Sir. If the person in question tells me it's okay to address them by their first name or some other term or something, of course, then I'll do so, but until then, I'll keep things formal. I don't want to presume or make them feel awkward or anything. 

[Petunia13]

People who take pictures of strangers. Someone literally stuck their hand out a car and took a pic of me and / or my dog without consent. 

This isn’t the first time and is weird AF. 

I have a lot of other shit that perturbs me. Like people who use use an entire aisle at stores standing sup far or w cart in center. I move freight that is 1000lbs on palettes I’m baffled why even in a desolate store a person w a single cart finds a way place cart to stand smack damn center while standing oblivious at the side of the cart all flimsy. I could be in a supermarket or dept store w 15 ft aisle someone will 100% leave or walk the cart in center lackadaisically strutting by it. 

[RealHousewife]

Crybabies

[shapeshifter]

8 hours ago, Petunia13 said:

People who take pictures of strangers. Someone literally stuck their hand out a car and took a pic of me and / or my dog without consent. 

This isn’t the first time and is weird AF. 

There are times when strangers are beautiful in their environments, and if I had the superpower of invisibility, I would take pictures to perhaps incorporate later into a drawing or painting. 
But unless I can do it without being noticed, I don't.
That said, I'm guessing if this happens frequently to you, you and your pup must be very picturesque. 
Since it is not likely that any laws are likely to be passed to fine such thoughtlessness, maybe there will be one photographer with whom you feel you can strike up a conversation and a) ask them to send you a copy of the pictures, but also b) let them know how it makes you feel (creeped out).
  
  

  

18 hours ago, PRgal said:

ETA:  On another note, the above older person criticized me for wanting to be addressed as "Mrs." or "Ms." by kids of peers, rather than "Auntie" (which is common in Cantonese speaking cultures).  I only know a small handful of non-relatives where I'd be okay with being called "Auntie" by their kids.  This does NOT include my parents' BFF's grandchildren.  

"Auntie" sounds sweet to me, but when some students addressed me as "Miss" followed by my first name, it didn't feel sweet because I associated it with a required honorific from times of American slavery. 
--What I'm trying to say is that these titles are really tricky to navigate in our times of blended cultures and generations. It seems doomed to be awkward no matter what. 
When I've requested that college students call me (a gray haired woman) by just my first name, it  seemed to make them feel uncomfortable. Some probably got over it, but some might not have, and I'm sorry for that.

[Katy M]

3 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Since it is not likely that any laws are likely to be passed to fine such thoughtlessness,

I would actually hope not, simply because then people could be fined if they're taking a picture of a tourist thing, or their friends, or scenery and someone happens to walk in the frame.  Plus, you're being filmed almost constantly when you're out in public anyway. Big Brother is always watching.

[BooksRule]

Pet peeve:  Having to call a professional repair person to come fix something.  I'm not a good repair person myself, but I can sometimes troubleshoot things by googling it (I got my washing machine to quit stopping on the final rinse cycle instead of going on to final spin by googling the problem and finding a video on how to reset the system.  So far, so good).  But, there are some things you can't fix yourself.  I noticed that my house seemed hot yesterday and checked the thermostat.  It said it was 80 in the house when I had it set for 78 (I know that 78 seems hot to some, but I actually get too cool sometimes, since almost every place in the house where I sit or lie down is under a vent so I stay cool).  The first thing I did was to check the filters and noticed that they were filthy.  I changed them out and the house almost immediately got cooler and the thermostat said 78 in the house.  But, it doesn't seem to want to shut off when the correct temperature is reached.  I know that when it's hot outside, the system will have to work hard to keep the house cool, but it should shut off sometimes (or maybe during the day it won't.  I haven't noticed it).  If I set it one degree up, it will shut off until that temperature is reached, but seems to keep running afterwards.  I did set it for 79 last night after the sun went down and it had cooled off a little outside and it cycled off.  I moved the temp setting to 78 and I don't think it constantly ran during the night.  It seemed to cycle on and off a few times this morning, but I've heard it constantly running all afternoon.  Maybe the outside coils (??) need cleaning or maybe it's a bad thermostat.  Or, maybe there's nothing wrong at all.  At any rate, I need to call someone out to check it out, since I know it's been a couple of years since I've had it checked and regular maintenance done on it (yes, I know I should have it done once a year).  It's a pain, especially since my house is messy right now and I hate having strangers in the house when it's not as neat as I would like.

[walnutqueen]

I have had a STRONG aversion to having my picture taken since I was a very young child.  I HATE people who dismiss my feelings, almost as much as I hate people who think they have the right to snap a "candid" shot of me.  You are stealing my soul, cocksucker, and have no rights.

Cut rate hair "salons" who insist on taking your name, address and phone # for their "profile".  I'm using your $9.99 coupon for a shampoo and a basic long hair trim that happens once every year or three.  You do not need to profile me, especially when you admit it isn't used to send me any freebies or coupon offers.  My name is Jane Doe.  My address is 1 Nowheresville Avenue, Bumfuck, Idaho. And my phone number is (999)GOFUCKYOURSELF.

Why, yes, I DO have an issue with privacy.  Why do you ask?   ;~)

Edited July 1, 2019 by walnutqueen

[hoosier80]

I don't like having my picture taken.  One time eons ago, I'm at the local mall with my brother (I'd gotten my driver's license earlier that year, so one of our big excursions out without mom).  We were doing Christmas shopping, mall jam packed with people.  I didn't see it but local tv was there doing background shots.  My brother about ran over me, and I was thinking WTH?  I don't remember him saying a word.  Yeah on the 5, 6, and 11 news (and the next day), there I am trudging along with a grimace in the mall.  Brother had so wanted to be on tv!  He groused about it for a while.  I said I'd rather you'd been the one on camera.  Ugh.

Pet peeve from this weekend.  I go into a Meijer (huge grocery and everything else under the sun store in the Midwest).  I only go if they have deals on stuff I want, and they had quite a few.  Sadly, it's the closest to my house, but I don't go there often due to the piss poor customer service.  This time, I'm going along fairly well, just rude assed customers who camp in front of the entire selection of whatever - the lettuce section was one.  The woman would not move even a smidge.  I patiently waited as the rest of the trip was going ok up to that point.  

I get to the checkout, which I've waited 30 to 45 minutes (yes that long), but this time was a mere 15 to 20 minutes.  I am roasting in the front of the store - it was 96 degrees outside.  So the lady ahead of me gets a drink cup for their drink station across the way.  I see she gets an Icee and the machine is working.  Yahoo.  I spring for the $1.49 and get my own cup.  Yeah, as soon as I turn the spout, it's soup.  No ice at all in any of the flavors.  I am very pissed.  I start to walk out and right around the little wall by the drinks, a gaggle of employees are standing.  One had been walking around the front of the store checking on stuff, so she was a team lead or supervisor.  I said excuse me - she stared, looking at me like are you talking to me?  Yes, you.  This freaking drink machine isn't working.  She walks over and stares at the machine.  I'd poured out the non ice liquid into the drain of the machine.  I said it's soup, not ice.  There's no ice.  Use the cup - because I'd sat it down as it was a sticky mess - no napkins at the drink station (containers empty) barely any straws or lids, too.  She kept standing there.  I said well it'll be a long time before I come here again - as she just stood there looking at the machine.  I expected her to say go to the customer service desk for a refund, sorry, kiss my ass - something.  Nope just kept staring at the machine.  I walked out.    When I managed retail stores, we had to ass kiss the customers, whatever they wanted we did (within reason).  Even an I'm sorry would've been better.  Then the kicker.  I bought some cut up melon.  The other store (a Meijer) a few weeks ago, stuffed the plastic packages so much that they burst in the bag.  I had juice dripping on my kitchen floor.  This time, the juice dripped on my foot/leg/garage floor, as the checker put the containers in sideways and upside down.  Seems to be common sense that you put the containers right side up, but maybe I'm expecting too much?

[BooksRule]

30 minutes ago, hoosier80 said:

I don't like having my picture taken.

I don't like having my photo taken either or being on TV.  I've been interviewed once or twice for the local news (work-related stories) and I hated every minute (and have never watched myself on TV.  Others have commented that I 'did just fine' in the interview, but I refuse to watch it myself). I always look grumpy or unhappy when I have my photo taken.  A friend told me once that the way they get a good photo taken is to smile much wider than you want to--until it feels unnatural.  When they do that, the photo actually comes out with a good smile.  I tried that when I had to have a photo taken for the directory at work and it actually worked.  I grinned until my cheeks hurt, but the photo looks decent. (I still hate having my photo taken, though!)

I do have a friend who loves being interviewed on TV.  She is president of our local historical society, so she's always wanting to promote it. She's a natural, but i would hate it.  Kind of a funny story:  I remember going to an art exhibit a few years ago and the local news was there covering it.  There was a cameraman going around videotaping the exhibits and the people.  However, most people were trying hard not to be on camera, so there was a crowd of people maneuvering to stay behind him--they looked like a herd.  Funny!

Well, my A/C cycled off for a few minutes after running for hours (keeping the temperature at a steady 77).  I still need to call someone to check it (I don't want to damage the system and rack up more of a huge summer electric bill than I already do here in the hot, humid south), but if I have to have an A/C problem, at least it's one where the system keeps cooling instead of not running at all and I'm (and my two furbabies) are sweating to death.

[theredhead77]

@BooksRule something similar happened with my thermostat and it had to be replaced. Thankfully I'm in an apartment but it's worth a call vs insane electric bills 

[BooksRule]

22 minutes ago, theredhead77 said:

@BooksRule something similar happened with my thermostat and it had to be replaced. Thankfully I'm in an apartment but it's worth a call vs insane electric bills 

I'm hoping that it's just the thermostat.  That would be much less expensive than major work on the outside unit.  (The system has been cycling on and off just like clockwork for the last several hours.  I guess because it's gotten cooler outside.  I don't know.)

[PRgal]

On 6/30/2019 at 9:40 AM, shapeshifter said:

There are times when strangers are beautiful in their environments, and if I had the superpower of invisibility, I would take pictures to perhaps incorporate later into a drawing or painting. 
But unless I can do it without being noticed, I don't.
That said, I'm guessing if this happens frequently to you, you and your pup must be very picturesque. 
Since it is not likely that any laws are likely to be passed to fine such thoughtlessness, maybe there will be one photographer with whom you feel you can strike up a conversation and a) ask them to send you a copy of the pictures, but also b) let them know how it makes you feel (creeped out).
  
  

  

"Auntie" sounds sweet to me, but when some students addressed me as "Miss" followed by my first name, it didn't feel sweet because I associated it with a required honorific from times of American slavery. 
--What I'm trying to say is that these titles are really tricky to navigate in our times of blended cultures and generations. It seems doomed to be awkward no matter what. 
When I've requested that college students call me (a gray haired woman) by just my first name, it  seemed to make them feel uncomfortable. Some probably got over it, but some might not have, and I'm sorry for that.

The problem is, the whole "Auntie" thing is "supposed" to be "my culture" - my parents are from Hong Kong and many of my peers whose parents are ALSO from HK assume that I'd be okay with Auntie.  I'm just not.  Not if they're people I didn't go to school with or weren't close friends with since childhood/teenhood.  All of my cousins' kids call me auntie and vice versa, because in Cantonese, a cousin one generation removed (and his/her spouse) are some version of Cousin Aunt or Cousin Uncle (and you have a different title depending on which side of the family you are, your age relative to the child's parent and your gender.  Oh, and whether you're a spouse or direct relative).

[BookWoman56]

57 minutes ago, PRgal said:

The problem is, the whole "Auntie" thing is "supposed" to be "my culture" - my parents are from Hong Kong and many of my peers whose parents are ALSO from HK assume that I'd be okay with Auntie.  I'm just not. 

If you're uncomfortable with being called by a particular title, then just ask them to call you by whatever title/name you do feel comfortable with. It's not the end of the world if you decide that you're not comfortable with some aspect of your parents/extended family's cultural norms and instead implement  your own custom. My paternal grandmother, for example, decided when my oldest sister was born that she didn't want to be addressed as "grandmother" or anything similar, so all of my siblings and I grew up addressing my grandmother and grandfather by their first names, because that was their preference. My great-grandparents (that grandmother's parents) preferred to be addressed by a combination of their role and surname, so it was "Grandma ABC" and so forth, but if they had any issues with us addressing my grandmother by her first name, they got over it.

My daughter's friends are all college age, and so for the past few years, I've asked them to address me by my first name. Prior to that, there was sometimes a bit of awkwardness as they might address me as "Ms. ABC," and I would have to explain that my daughter and I don't share the same surname, so it was actually "Ms. DEF." But frankly, I'd say 95% of the time, they didn't address me directly by name/title, and would refer to me in the third person (when needed) as "XYZ's mom" rather than my own name. I'm currently trying to get my grandson, whose mother is from Hong Kong, to call me by my first name. Right now he doesn't call me "grandmother" either, although he does call my mother "grandmother." 

[PRgal]

1 hour ago, BookWoman56 said:

If you're uncomfortable with being called by a particular title, then just ask them to call you by whatever title/name you do feel comfortable with. It's not the end of the world if you decide that you're not comfortable with some aspect of your parents/extended family's cultural norms and instead implement  your own custom. My paternal grandmother, for example, decided when my oldest sister was born that she didn't want to be addressed as "grandmother" or anything similar, so all of my siblings and I grew up addressing my grandmother and grandfather by their first names, because that was their preference. My great-grandparents (that grandmother's parents) preferred to be addressed by a combination of their role and surname, so it was "Grandma ABC" and so forth, but if they had any issues with us addressing my grandmother by her first name, they got over it.

My daughter's friends are all college age, and so for the past few years, I've asked them to address me by my first name. Prior to that, there was sometimes a bit of awkwardness as they might address me as "Ms. ABC," and I would have to explain that my daughter and I don't share the same surname, so it was actually "Ms. DEF." But frankly, I'd say 95% of the time, they didn't address me directly by name/title, and would refer to me in the third person (when needed) as "XYZ's mom" rather than my own name. I'm currently trying to get my grandson, whose mother is from Hong Kong, to call me by my first name. Right now he doesn't call me "grandmother" either, although he does call my mother "grandmother." 

My parents are more or less forcing me to accept the "auntie" thing - they said that I'd offend my peers.  I don't think my peers really care, but in front of them - that's when I often see these people (I'm not talking about my personal friends, but people I see at huge gatherings like weddings, anniversaries, 100 Day celebrations or baptisms) - but when everyone, including my parents are there.  They told me that these people would be offended since it isn't "standard" in Cantonese culture.  They said that it makes them feel like they're not "friends."  Well, they just aren't.  One guy, despite being my parents' BFF's son, is someone I see, like, once every few years.  Of course, I'd be Mrs. or Ms. 

[bilgistic]

I'm off today. I sleep very late when I'm off because I don't get off work until after 10pm, and don't actually fall asleep until 2am-ish. Of course, the landscapers are working today and one of them has been painstakingly power-Edward Scissorhandsing the bushes under my window since dawn. I guess I need to put in earplugs when I'm going to sleep late.

[ginger90]

9 minutes ago, bilgistic said:

I'm off today. I sleep very late when I'm off because I don't get off work until after 10pm, and don't actually fall asleep until 2am-ish. Of course, the landscapers are working today and one of them has been painstakingly power-Edward Scissorhandsing the bushes under my window since dawn. I guess I need to put in earplugs when I'm going to sleep late.

They must be some pretty big bushes!!

[shapeshifter]

Due to medical/insurance issues, I can't really let unfamiliar numbers go to voicemail (calling back means long holds, etc.).
So I answered one of those "reduce your credit payments" calls today, intending to tell the caller that they were going straight to hell.
But I began with telling her that since I have no credit card debt, it seems she should take my number off of her calling list, and asked her if that made sense to her. 
She actually replied that it did make sense (rather than continuing to read from the script) but then asked if I had car or house payments. 
I replied that no, I have no debts, so there are no interest payments to be lowered, therefore, can she please take me off the calling list?
She replied that yes, she could do that.
I said, "Really? You aren't just saying that? Can you really take my number off of the calling list?"
She replied that yes, she really could.
I then told her that if she could remove my number from the calling list that there would be a special place in heaven for her. 
She giggled and said she liked that and that I should have a nice day.
We ended the call.

Those calls are high on my Pet Peeve list, but I did not get stressed and none of my physical reactions were triggered. 
I don't know about heaven, but she probably had a tiny bit of a better day.

[bilgistic]

8 minutes ago, ginger90 said:

They must be some pretty big bushes!!

So many bushes.

[shapeshifter]

4 minutes ago, bilgistic said:

13 minutes ago, ginger90 said:

They must be some pretty big bushes!!

So many bushes.

And after they trim them, they run the leaf blower. 
And if the guy running the equipment is high on uppers, he'll keep at it for hours.
Maybe you could secretly manage a controlled burn to eliminate the bushes (like if you're in the rainy Pacific Northwest)?
So sorry.
Ear plugs and a white noise fan, and maybe a pod cast. 😢 😭

[BookWoman56]

1 hour ago, PRgal said:

My parents are more or less forcing me to accept the "auntie" thing - they said that I'd offend my peers. 

You're a grown-ass woman; your parents can't "force" you to do anything without you allowing them to do so. Sorry if that comes across as harsh, but you seem to be at an age where I've seen a lot of younger adults have issues about making their own decisions. From someone who's been through other instances where my choices/preferences didn't align with those of my parents, I'll say this: You need to decide what matters more to you, being comfortable with how various people address you or catering to the expectations of people that you interact with F2F only on special occasions. As long as your parents feel they can pressure you to behave in certain ways and you cave in to that pressure, they will continue to foist their decisions on your life. That unfortunate aspect of parenting seems to be present across all cultures, albeit not true of all parents. 

[bilgistic]

2 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

And after they trim them, they run the leaf blower. 
And if the guy running the equipment is high on uppers, he'll keep at it for hours.
Maybe you could secretly manage a controlled burn to eliminate the bushes (like if you're in the rainy Pacific Northwest)?
So sorry.
Ear plugs and a white noise fan, and maybe a pod cast. 😢 😭

I actually quite like the greenery here in my complex. It's 50 years old and there are lots of beautiful mature trees. That said, 6:00am is awfully early to start landscaping!

Of course, now that the owner is going to be renovating the complex, I'll be moving at some point (HOW???😩😩😩😩😩), so it won't matter anymore.

I'd put up with bi-weekly landscaping at dawn to not have to move.

I don't envy the landscapers. It must be miserable work. It's 90-plus degrees here and they have to wear long sleeves and pants and lug around heavy equipment all day.

Meanwhile, I'm complaining at my job because it's probably 80 degrees with no air circulation at the front end/my register and I'm sweating my ass off trying to speed-scan and -bag and lift 24-packs of beer all day. I have lost weight, though, so yay?

[ParadoxLost]

Storage is just an opportunity for junk drawers to breed more junk drawers.

I'm going to get my floors redone so I'm forcing myself to clean everything out so what needs to go doesn't need to get moved multiple times.

I think I'm in a hell dimension where putting all this crap I need to keep away is requiring building junk mountain so there is somewhere organized to put it away.

I feel like tossing everything and starting over.  I don't understand where all these plugs and cords came from.

[shapeshifter]

31 minutes ago, ParadoxLost said:

I feel like tossing everything and starting over.  I don't understand where all these plugs and cords came from.

OMG, I know! I'm likely going to be moving across country in the next year, and I think the cables and cords and computer speakers are breeding in the basement laundry room. I plan to take them to the electronics recycling center, but if I wait too long, that won't happen.  😞

And then there's the clothes. I've gotten rid of so many things in the past that I wish I'd kept, that now I have a lot of stuff I haven't used in up to 10 years. 😵

I moved across town in 2014 and again in 2016, so I've already gotten rid of a lot, but still . . . overwhelming! 

[bilgistic]

I washed my pillows today, as I do every few months because clean, fresh pillows = good sleep. I was going to wash and use a second, much older (like, 30 years old) set I have because my neck and shoulders hurt from how I sleep. My pillows aren't very supportive, I guess.

I thought set #2 was in my closet. They are not. They are nowhere to be found. I guess I threw them out when I was cleaning my closet out of clothes that no longer fit. I can't imagine why I would do that, when they were perfectly washable (cotton cover/fiber fill). Damn it.

[ratgirlagogo]

6 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

I've gotten rid of so many things in the past that I wish I'd kept, that now I have a lot of stuff I haven't used in up to 10 years

Oh how I wish I could honestly say that this was not equally  true for Mr Rat and myself. 😟

Edited July 2, 2019 by ratgirlagogo

[emma675]

I slipped on wet concrete this morning and broke my right wrist (I am right handed). This is on top of my broken big toe from two weeks ago. I now have an orthopedic shoe and a cast, three weeks before I leave on vacation.

Wtf, universe?!?

[JTMacc99]

Oh man, that sucks. Get better quickly, and for heavens sake be careful for the next few weeks. 

[2727]

That sucks and I hope you feel better soon, but also? Slip and fall lawsuit!!

Plenty of TV ad lawyers would take that for you. :-)

[emma675]

I would actually be suing myself, since I fell at my own house. I'm just a clumsy idiot.

[shapeshifter]

37 minutes ago, emma675 said:

I would actually be suing myself, since I fell at my own house. I'm just a clumsy idiot.

Aw, there was probably some extenuating circumstance.

But those TV lawyers are so slick that they'd probably try to convince you to sue yourself — or maybe sue the relative who you'd be inheriting from if there was anything left after the lawyer got his share.*

*This is only in reference to greedy lawyers, not those who care.

[emma675]

I am now the proud owner of a cast that goes from above my elbow to the end of my palm. I would normally be wearing this monstrosity for a month but because I leave for vacation in 2.5 weeks, the doc agreed to take it off the day I leave and put on a smaller forearm cast. I'm livid at my own clumsiness. 

[ParadoxLost]

On 7/5/2019 at 5:37 PM, emma675 said:

I am now the proud owner of a cast that goes from above my elbow to the end of my palm. I would normally be wearing this monstrosity for a month but because I leave for vacation in 2.5 weeks, the doc agreed to take it off the day I leave and put on a smaller forearm cast. I'm livid at my own clumsiness. 

At least you tripped on something trip worthy.  When I broke my wrist, I had to explain that I tripped on my mail (China and jetlag were involved).  I generally found that after a week it wasn't so bad.  There was a week of my body having some kind of exhaustion revenge on me for breaking it bad enough to need surgery and then it was just that the cast had the wrist immobilized and didn't hurt and it was just a matter of grabbing stuff differently.  

You finger nails are going to be fabulous by the end of this. 

[GHScorpiosRule]

Let me preface this by saying I love kids. While I wasn’t fortunate to have my own, I adore them.

HOWEVER.

It annoys the everlovin’ crap out of me when parents let their toddlers run amok or engage in “baby talk” in loud volume. 

I was at Shenandoah Caverns today, and this family let their kid, who was around 3 or 4, act this way. It caused a disruptive and annoying distraction from what the guide was telling us- the history behind each “cave” which I found fascinating.

I had a great time despite his brattiness.

[KittyMom4]

@GHScorpiosRule, I feel your pain and would like to add to it "parents who think their comfort trumps their kids safety"! This past holiday weekend we were in a highly visited vacation area in northern NY, my husband and I were seated at an outdoor bar with patio area, which is separate from the outdoor restaurant area. The bar area has all high-top tables with tall chairs accompanying them. The dining area has regular tables and chairs. A couple came in with their two small children and instead of choosing a seat in the dining area, they chose a table in the bar area (you can get food in both areas). I watched as both children almost fell off the high chairs (no armrests) a few times until both parents ended up with a child in their lap while they ate and drank. 

Edited July 8, 2019 by GoodieGirl

[ABay]

Bugs! Fricking bugs! Something bit me on the leg while I was out cleaning the bird feeders. Probably a mosquito. I put neosporin and a bandaid on it mostly to keep me from scratching it.

Summer. Hate it.

[shapeshifter]

15 minutes ago, ABay said:

Bugs! Fricking bugs! Something bit me on the leg while I was out cleaning the bird feeders. Probably a mosquito. I put neosporin and a bandaid on it mostly to keep me from scratching it.

Summer. Hate it.

Generic hydro-cortisone cream is my friend: Mosquitos, biting flies, tiny yellow spiders that bite.

[bilgistic]

38 minutes ago, ABay said:

Bugs! Fricking bugs! Something bit me on the leg while I was out cleaning the bird feeders. Probably a mosquito. I put neosporin and a bandaid on it mostly to keep me from scratching it.

Summer. Hate it.

I'm already tired of the heat. I've lived in NC all my life and I've never gotten used to it. It was 94° yesterday evening when I went to the pharmacy. It's now 90°, but "feels like" 99°. The air conditioning barely works at my store, so I sweat my ass off all day. Can't wait to do that for eight hours later today.

I'm ready for October.