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

[TattleTeeny]

Does anyone know of something immediate and fast that may repel bees (or yellow jackets or whatever) from a small balcony? I have been stung 3 times in 2 days (once on my face). We can't see a nest, but maybe it's somewhere not visible to on the patio of the empty unit below us. The building manager has been notified (by others before me), but I won't hold my breath -- I'm sure he'll take care of it eventually. At least I learned that I don't appear to be allergic!

I am doubtful such a solution exists; if they have gone through the trouble of building a nest, I am sure they want to stay in it. I feel bad and I assume that the building manager is going to probably kill them. I don't like that at all. 

Edited July 2 by TattleTeeny

[Browncoat]

1 hour ago, TattleTeeny said:

Does anyone know of something immediate and fast that may repel bees (or yellow jackets or whatever) from a small balcony? I have been stung 3 times in 2 days (once on my face). We can't see a nest, but maybe it's somewhere not visible to on the patio of the empty unit below us. The building manager has been notified (by others before me), but I won't hold my breath -- I'm sure he'll take care of it eventually. At least I learned that I don't appear to be allergic!

I am doubtful such a solution exists; if they have gone through the trouble of building a nest, I am sure they want to stay in it. I feel bad and I assume that the building manager is going to probably kill them. I don't like that at all. 

Can you screen them off your balcony? 

[TattleTeeny]

I was hoping for something immediate (like a product you've had success with or some DIY thing). I also don't even know of that's allowed here, but most of all, I don't know how to do that, hahahhaa!

Edited July 2 by TattleTeeny

[Browncoat]

1 hour ago, TattleTeeny said:

I was hoping for something immediate (like a product you've had success with or some DIY thing). I also don't even know of that's allowed here, but most of all, I don't know how to do that, hahahhaa!

Sorry -- all I know about is sprays that will kill them.  🙂

[TattleTeeny]

Yeah, I'm guessing that too. Man!

[Mondrianyone]

Can you put up a sign saying "FREE WI-FI" with arrows pointing at the complex down the road?

I'm kidding.

The summer before last, we had wasps and stink bugs (I cannot express how much I hate those) nesting in our patio umbrella when it was closed, and then when we'd open it to sit at the table, they'd crawl all over the umbrella fabric. Disgusting. We tried a bunch of things, and nothing really worked. Then I had the idea of getting a dog flea collar and fastening it around the pole at the top of the umbrella. It was amazingly effective.

I can't say for sure it didn't kill them, although I never saw any bug carcasses. Maybe it just made them want to be somewhere else. But if you tried hanging a couple of them around your balcony railing, that might be helpful.

[Bastet]

5 hours ago, TattleTeeny said:

I feel bad and I assume that the building manager is going to probably kill them.

We need bees!  If there's a swarm, they'll move on quickly (within a few days).  If there's a hive, they're here to stay, and that should be removed by a beekeeper.  Do you have time to search for any local to you?  If you gave the building manager some brief information on how bees are critical to our food supply but their numbers are declining, and contact info for beekeepers rather than exterminators, do you think he would do the right thing?

[TattleTeeny]

I know we do, but I assume he will do the fastest, cheapest thing by the contracted person. I can say what I want to him, I suppose, but I don't have the authority to actually do anything myself. And because it's the exterior of the condos, the cost is included in the monthly fees paid by everyone. That's why I am looking for repellents to use. I don't even know where exactly this nest is; I just read that it can be hanging or in the bushes or in crevices or even in the ground.

I just want to use my balcony, man. And, unrelated, we have no water again; a main broke. 

 

Edited July 2 by TattleTeeny

[Mondrianyone]

I thought you didn't know whether they were bees or yellow jackets/wasps? I don't think bumblebees or honeybees normally sting unless threatened, so it doesn't seem likely you're even dealing with bees.

[TattleTeeny]

Yellow jackets, seemingly. Sorry -- I didn't think to update my original post with that info. 

Edited July 2 by TattleTeeny

[emma675]

If they are those nasty wasps that build those little mud hives, check around the inside and outside of your window frames or around the doorframe. I had dirt daubers build a little mud hut in the metal channel of my window frame and when I went to open the window they freaked out because I hit their nest.

[TattleTeeny]

They (yellow jackets) are coming from somewhere below me -- one of the downstairs units' patio or closet, or maybe in the bushes/landscaping. I guess as one of the few people here who actually hang out on the balcony, I made them feel threatened. I have seen them before now, but not nearly as many and not as mad.

Edited July 2 by TattleTeeny

[Anela]

16 minutes ago, TattleTeeny said:

They (yellow jackets) are coming from somewhere below me -- one of the downstairs units' patio or closet, or maybe in the bushes/landscaping. I guess as one of the few people here who actually hang out on the balcony, I made them feel threatened. I have seen them before now, but not nearly as many and not as mad.

Dad told me to keep the bathroom window shut, because we have them somewhere around the window.  I haven’t been bothered when I’ve been outside, but I did see some in the garage, a few months ago. 

[meep.meep]

Yellowjackets nest in the ground.  If it's bugging you that much, can you put screens around the balcony area? 

[Mod-Tigerkatze]

Hi everyone,

in response to recent posts, please remember that this topic is for pet peeves and as mundane as pet peeves might seem, they’re extremely personal. They’re our little quirks, things that drive us up the proverbial wall for an inexplicable reason. They can be part of who we are as a person, so when we comment, anything that goes beyond stating that one isn’t bothered by it, can be perceived as criticism of someone’s traits, quirks, choices, feelings, the person who we are.

That doesn’t mean that all discussion should cease. However, out of consideration for your fellow posters and to have the best chance of avoiding misunderstandings and unintentional offending, I’d like to encourage you to move discussions that arise from pet peeves to the Chit-Chat topic.

I know that moving conversations isn’t the easiest undertaking with this forum’s software. (Creating something like a drop down menu that would give members a choice of where to post their reply has already been brought up but it’s not going to happen any time soon). But if you use the multi-quote function you can carry quotes to other topics; instead of reply, hit multi-quote and head over to the topic you want to go to. The multi-quote notification in the bottom right-hand corner will disappear as you leave the topic but it should reappear as soon as you’re in the new topic.
I’ll leave you with the link to the Chit Chat topic above so that it’s accessible from every page. (If you have further suggestions of how switching topics can be made easier/more convenient, please let me know or post your suggestion here).

When you do comment in this topic, I’d kindly like to ask you to remember to avoid generalizations, statements that are based on assumptions and using pet peeves to state what one wishes/hopes others should or shouldn’t do.

Thank you and pet-peeve away.

[Calvada]

On 6/30/2024 at 7:45 PM, EtheltoTillie said:

You are reminding me of the good news that I am free of the toxic office manager from my old office.  Some months ago I posted about how this loon tried throwing out my box of tea bags because they had expired.  She accused me of trying to poison her.

She accused you of trying to poison HER with YOUR tea bags?  That's like calling the cops to accuse you of attempted murder because she was allergic to the something in your lunch that she ate out of the office refrigerator.  

I've learned to deal with small print on expiration labels, but my peeve is finding expiration labels on items.  Top?  Bottom?  Side?  Just where is it??  

[nokat]

11 hours ago, Bastet said:

We need bees!  If there's a swarm, they'll move on quickly (within a few days).  If there's a hive, they're here to stay, and that should be removed by a beekeeper.  Do you have time to search for any local to you?  If you gave the building manager some brief information on how bees are critical to our food supply but their numbers are declining, and contact info for beekeepers rather than exterminators, do you think he would do the right thing?

I want to up vote this a lot. A swarm is trying to find a new home, and will likely move on. A new young queen means they have to start a new hive.  Bees are also not usually aggressive. I used to walk through ground bees with no problem.  If you disturb a hive, that changes.

We contacted a beekeeper who was so happy to get the swarm in our tree.

@Bastet was so right about the importance of bees.

[EtheltoTillie]

4 hours ago, Calvada said:

She accused you of trying to poison HER with YOUR tea bags?  That's like calling the cops to accuse you of attempted murder because she was allergic to the something in your lunch that she ate out of the office refrigerator.  

I've learned to deal with small print on expiration labels, but my peeve is finding expiration labels on items.  Top?  Bottom?  Side?  Just where is it??  

The tea bags were in the communal kitchen for anyone to use or to serve to clients. 

[TattleTeeny]

12 hours ago, meep.meep said:

Yellowjackets nest in the ground.  If it's bugging you that much, can you put screens around the balcony area? 

Again, I don’t think I can, that’s not immediate, and I don’t want to, partly because I wouldn’t be able to have hummingbird feeders (which I have had for years, without yellow jacket entanglements).

6 hours ago, nokat said:

I want to up vote this a lot. A swarm is trying to find a new home, and will likely move on. A new young queen means they have to start a new hive.  Bees are also not usually aggressive. I used to walk through ground bees with no problem.  If you disturb a hive, that changes.

We contacted a beekeeper who was so happy to get the swarm in our tree.

@Bastet was so right about the importance of bees.

I have not disturbed anything, at least that I know of. I walked onto my balcony, and again, there is no hive or nest there. 

What I originally asked was if anyone knew of something that could repel them (again, “them” being yellow jackets). I don’t want to kill anything.* I do want to be able to use my balcony. 

I’m not taking it to Chit Chat only because it’s in the hands of the condo manager now (as I am not the only person who has contacted him and, again, he will likely use the usual contracted person). I have no more to say about it -- unless anyone knows of an effective repellent. I hope that whatever he has done is as humane as it can be. 

*The irony: last week I was blasted for eating non-animal burgers, haha!

Edited July 3 by TattleTeeny

[BlueSkies]

It kinda stinks when people don’t understand or appreciate your sense of humor.  

[Quof]

I bought towels yesterday.  The original price was crazy, and even on deep discount they were pricy.  

I washed them, on gentle, in my brand new washing machine.

The hems are fraying and there are picked threads all over each towel.  

Back to the store I go. But I'm not bothering to fold them and bundle them up in the pretty ribbon in which they came.  

[TattleTeeny]

Seemingly nice new towels have betrayed my trust on more than one occasion. Ugh, I recall the black-lint/second-shower incident of 2012!

[SoMuchTV]

2 hours ago, TattleTeeny said:

Again, I don’t think I can, that’s not immediate, and I don’t want to, partly because I wouldn’t be able to have hummingbird feeders (which I have had for years, without yellow jacket entanglements).

I have not disturbed anything, at least that I know of. I walked onto my balcony, and again, there is no hive or nest there. 

What I originally asked was if anyone knew of something that could repel them (again, “them” being yellow jackets). I don’t want to kill anything.* I do want to be able to use my balcony. 

I’m not taking it to Chit Chat only because it’s in the hands of the condo manager now (as I am not the only person who has contacted him and, again, he will likely use the usual contracted person). I have no more to say about it -- unless anyone knows of an effective repellent. I hope that whatever he has done is as humane as it can be. 

*The irony: last week I was blasted for eating non-animal burgers, haha!

Okay, sorry, but now I'm picturing you sipping tea on your balcony in full beekeeper regalia. (Which doesn't even make sense, because how would you sip tea through that mask?)

[TattleTeeny]

Oh, I would invent something really cool! let me think...

That reminds me of something I saw at the fabric store back in early-to-mid 2020 (you all remember that era of fun and excitement, I assume): a woman there was wearing a homemade mask...

OF TULLE!

[TattleTeeny]

4 hours ago, SoMuchTV said:

Okay, sorry, but now I'm picturing you sipping tea on your balcony in full beekeeper regalia. (Which doesn't even make sense, because how would you sip tea through that mask?)

Oh my goodness, this reminds me of something else too! I have a friend who is an eccentric sort. For Halloween one year, he dressed as the Invisible Man. I asked him how he intended to drink beer at the party we were headed to. Turns out, the answer was "right through the face bandages." He did not even care!

Ugh, it's really nice out today. I REALLY wish I could go out onto my balcony!

Edited July 3 by TattleTeeny

[oliviabenson]

11 hours ago, EtheltoTillie said:

The tea bags were in the communal kitchen for anyone to use or to serve to clients. 

I use plenty of expired food: spices, coffee, tea bags, canned food etc. 

Edited July 3 by oliviabenson

[EtheltoTillie]

1 hour ago, oliviabenson said:

I use plenty of expired food: spices, coffee, tea bags, canned food etc. 

Of course, we all do.  Anyone with common sense--unlike our former office manager--knows that such items will not become harmful.  At worst they may lose flavor.

[GHScorpiosRule]

4 minutes ago, EtheltoTillie said:

Of course, we all do.  Anyone with common sense--unlike our former office manager--knows that such items will not become harmful.  At worst they may lose flavor.

I keep my extra spices and coffee refrigerated. Actually, coffee beans in the freezer, along with my masalas. None have lost flavor.

[emma675]

Effing squirrels. I started the day with three small lemons on my container tree and ended it with zero. They took them off the tree, took one bite, and tossed it on the ground. I hope their tiny squirrel mouths are puckered all summer from the sourness. Jerks.

[Anela]

I want to do a deep clean of this house, but I don't know where to start, beyond the dishes (which I've just done). I usually write a list for things, but that's going to be overwhelming. 

I have my headphones on, and I'm listening to a streamer talk about pop culture things, so it's not something I need to focus on beyond listening when I want to. I'll figure it out, but I'm not good at doing all of this by myself. 

[EtheltoTillie]

8 hours ago, Anela said:

I want to do a deep clean of this house, but I don't know where to start, beyond the dishes (which I've just done). I usually write a list for things, but that's going to be overwhelming. 

I have my headphones on, and I'm listening to a streamer talk about pop culture things, so it's not something I need to focus on beyond listening when I want to. I'll figure it out, but I'm not good at doing all of this by myself. 

I feel your pain.  I don't know if this helps, but I sometimes follow some cleaning and decluttering channels, and people say set a timer for 10 minutes and just do something for 10 minutes to start. 

[Anela]

3 hours ago, EtheltoTillie said:

I feel your pain.  I don't know if this helps, but I sometimes follow some cleaning and decluttering channels, and people say set a timer for 10 minutes and just do something for 10 minutes to start. 

That’s what I started to do. I’m off to do more now. 
my dad gets into major cleaning mode, and pulls things together, but he has no time, and I’ve been trying to make less work for him. Instead of feeling like a useless lump. 
 

Edited July 4 by Anela

[annzeepark914]

1 hour ago, Absolom said:

My pet peeve of the month is whiners and attention seekers on the internet (usually the same people).  They have some terrible woe is me problem - to them.  They ask for help or advice.  They get said advice and then ignore it or come back with something like you people just don't understand me and my pain/problem.  

Just skim past the neverending whines. Life's too unpredictable to get caught up in them. 

[Mondrianyone]

55 minutes ago, Anela said:

The whole thing is a vent thread.  Who are you talking about?

I think the difference is between just wanting to vent and venting and then asking for advice. If somebody just vents, I keep my mouth shut. If they ask for advice and I have an answer I believe could be helpful, I give it. But I'm on the verge of not doing that anymore, because I suspect most of them don't really want it. And even if they do, saying thanks seems to be thing of the past.

[oliviabenson]

7 hours ago, emma675 said:

I do think the heat makes people crankier. I know I'm quicker to get annoyed when it's 100 plus degrees outside (as it has been here all week, damn Texas summers).

I’m with you! Heat makes me cranky and mean!

[Browncoat]

My annual fireworks peeve!  The idiot neighbors started with what looked and sounded like professional grade fireworks at about 6pm.  They took a break for the actual professional fireworks shortly after 9, but then resumed, with more piling on when the pros were finished.  Remarkably, and probably just because they ran out, they stopped at around midnight.  

My other fireworks-related peeve is that the pros moved their location, and now I can't see them from my house.  I don't mind the pro fireworks.  I know that they're coming, and I know when and for how long.  It's the local yahoos with their randomness that bother me.

[nokat]

10 minutes ago, Browncoat said:

 It's the local yahoos with their randomness that bother me.

I was sitting outside with a few neighbors to watch the official fireworks, but there were quite a few booms very near us.  If you are a yahoo, you shouldn't be setting them off. Also, it upsets pets.

[Cloud9Shopper]

38 minutes ago, Browncoat said:

My annual fireworks peeve!  The idiot neighbors started with what looked and sounded like professional grade fireworks at about 6pm.  They took a break for the actual professional fireworks shortly after 9, but then resumed, with more piling on when the pros were finished.  Remarkably, and probably just because they ran out, they stopped at around midnight.  

My other fireworks-related peeve is that the pros moved their location, and now I can't see them from my house.  I don't mind the pro fireworks.  I know that they're coming, and I know when and for how long.  It's the local yahoos with their randomness that bother me.

Came here to vent about this. In my neighborhood, people were still shooting them off past 11 pm and naturally the cops don’t care because it’s the 4th and people think being rude to their neighbors is their God given right on this “holiday.” Then again, I’d imagine these people are assholes the other 364 days of the year too. My dogs were so terrified they wouldn’t even go outside and I had to keep getting up at midnight, 1 am, 2 am, 4 am, to finally go out when it was quiet. I’m so mad I’m going to tell them “good dog!” instead of “keep it down!” if they bark outside early this morning and wake up all the offenders.

The use of fireworks at 11:30 pm and midnight is just another way people say “I have no respect or care for others” or “I have to have what I want right now because my rights. I’m entitled.” I wish consumer firework distributions were shut down entirely, only available to professionals or those with special permits. Instead of your average asshole neighbor who doesn’t respect people who finally want some sleep. 

[Absolom]

Worst night since I've lived in this house.  Someone was setting off things at 1:30 AM this morning.  Usually they quit by 10:30 or 11.  On the other hand no one had a party or cookout so our actual street was blessedly quiet.  

[Jaded]

On 6/30/2024 at 4:02 PM, Anela said:

Something is taking up space on my C drive, and I don’t know what it is.  Unless there was a massive update for something. I’ve scanned for malware, deleted photos that didn’t need to be there, and it’s still happening.  
 

I’ll have to figure it out later.  I need to get out of here.  

Did you ever find out what was taking up space on your C drive? If not I was going to suggest looking up shadow copies. I had to delete all but the most current on my computer to free up some space.

On 7/3/2024 at 6:44 AM, BlueSkies said:

It kinda stinks when people don’t understand or appreciate your sense of humor.  

I deal with that more than I'd like. I use humor as a defense mechanism so between that and being sarcastic at times I've confused my share of people...😸

Edited July 5 by Jaded

[Anela]

15 minutes ago, Jaded said:

Did you ever find out what was taking up space on your C drive? If not I was going to suggest looking up shadow copies. I had to delete all but the most current on my computer to free up some space.

I deal with that more then I'd like. I use humor as a defense mechanism so between that and being sarcastic at times I've confused my share of people...😸

No, but it resolved itself, and then another problem came back. 😄 it’s had memory issues for years, and when this happened - it went to only showing 20gb of available space, and then 16 - the memory was better.  It wasn’t perfect, but it wasn’t freezing up.  As soon as it resolved itself, the memory issues were back.  
 

I did download a couple of programs to scan with, but I wasn’t sure what to do. 

[PRgal]

I should also add that the Ancestry test only goes back about 200 years of genetic history.  All I know is that many/most of the men on my paternal line worked for the Imperial government (meaning that they were educated and took imperial exams).  The kinship book definitely says that somewhere way back, one guy "came from the north."  However, it didn't say exactly where for some reason.  And since most of my genetic roots are in the southeastern region, "north" could mean Shanghai, it could mean Beijing.  And of course, I know zilch about the women.

[BlueSkies]

4 hours ago, Jaded said:

I deal with that more than I'd like. I use humor as a defense mechanism so between that and being sarcastic at times I've confused my share of people...😸

Oh yes.  Like this video for instance.

 

Absolutely hysterical 😅

 

 

[TattleTeeny]

On 7/4/2024 at 12:00 AM, Anela said:

I want to do a deep clean of this house, but I don't know where to start, beyond the dishes (which I've just done). I usually write a list for things, but that's going to be overwhelming. 

I have my headphones on, and I'm listening to a streamer talk about pop culture things, so it's not something I need to focus on beyond listening when I want to. I'll figure it out, but I'm not good at doing all of this by myself. 

Sometimes when my to-do list is too big or too ambitious, I’ll do the smaller/faster and/or least annoying ones first. Then the satisfaction of those achievements inspires momentum — especially if you have a checklist that you can cross things off of! (That said, keep track of your momentum or you’ll end up with an entire walk-in closet’s worth of clothing piled on your bed at 2 am!)

Edited July 6 by TattleTeeny

[Anela]

41 minutes ago, TattleTeeny said:

Sometimes when my to-do list is too big or too ambitious, I’ll do the smaller/faster and/or least annoying ones first. Then the satisfaction of those achievements inspires momentum — especially if you have a checklist that you can cross things off of! (That said, keep track of your momentum or you’ll end up with an entire walk-in closet’s worth of clothing piled on your bed at 2 am!)

I already have things covering my bed. 😄  but it’s things like books.  
I got more cleaning stuff tonight. I’m back in the bathroom with my dog, so I’m going to start here.  the Nextdoor neighbours are setting off more fireworks. 

[Jaded]

16 hours ago, BlueSkies said:

Oh yes.  Like this video for instance.

 

Absolutely hysterical 😅

 

 

I think these days he'd be describing a narcissist. I've never really been a fan of his music. I do like to watch his standup, spoken word and interviews. I'm glad he's aware enough to know that romantic relationships aren't for him. 

I'm getting better at recognizing narcissists.

My pet peeve is I hate the way they're so good at pulling people in.

Edited July 6 by Jaded

[Mod-Tigerkatze]

Hi everyone, 

in reference to the now removed posts about "whiners and attention seekers on the internet", I'm dropping in with a friendly reminder that the Pet Peeves topic shouldn't be an excuse to criticize and/or attack other individuals.
If someone’s pet peeves are the actions of a group of people, please say so without mocking, attacking, admonishing or name-calling anyone.

If someone else feels the same way, please say so and leave it at that; don’t use it as grounds to criticize. One never knows who’s reading the posts we make and as level of comfort and outspokenness differ, we also don’t know what impact they have on guests and members who read as well as fellow posters.

Thank you and carry on. 

[StatisticalOutlier]

I never know what these moderator admonitions mean. 

[Dimity]

An incredibly trivial pet peeve, but on my FB feed I get tons of unsolicited stuff right now (as I'm sure most FB users are experiencing) and what I am noticing often are fan pages wishing some celebrity or another a happy birthday.  Even when they've been dead for 50 years!  For some reason that just rubs me the wrong way.  There are ways to word a tribute to someone that marks the occasion of their birth without making it seem like they're still with us and blowing out candles on their birthday cake!

[PRgal]

1 hour ago, Dimity said:

An incredibly trivial pet peeve, but on my FB feed I get tons of unsolicited stuff right now (as I'm sure most FB users are experiencing) and what I am noticing often are fan pages wishing some celebrity or another a happy birthday.  Even when they've been dead for 50 years!  For some reason that just rubs me the wrong way.  There are ways to word a tribute to someone that marks the occasion of their birth without making it seem like they're still with us and blowing out candles on their birthday cake!

Sometimes, it's the child of the dead celeb wishing their parent a happy (heavenly) birthday.  Jamie Lee Curtis posted about her mom today (July 6).  I don't find it weird at all.  If she wants to honour her mom, it's her right (or whoever handles her official Instagram page) to do so.