Pet Peeves

j$ · Post by j$ » Wed Nov 17, 2004 6:02 am

More peeves

People who use 'your' when they mean 'you're' and people who use 'its' when they mean 'it's'.

People who don't see any difference between the written language and the spoken language.

People who write 'Haikus' that aren't actually Haikus.

People who dismiss syllabic verse as the retarded younger sibling of metred verse.

People who read over my shoulder.

People who push onto the Tube in the morning when there's another one along in a minute. And another in a minute after that. People who say 'can you move along?' to people already squashed on the tube.

People who apparently have no control over the volume of their voice, especially in relation to mobile phones and public places.

People who treat shop staff as simpletons / an extension of the shop itself; especially those who are incredibly rude to people they perceive as beneath them then become immediately sycophantic when they think they are speaking to a manager/ 'person in position of power'.

Cotton wool.

Fare-dodgers. Or rather people who get 'political' when they are caught dodging the fare. You took a risk, you lost. Better luck next time.

People who think vertigo/claustrophobia are not proper illnesses and therefore those who suffer from it should just 'snap out of it'.

When after an major accident, the search for someone 'responsible'.

Eric Y. · Post by **Eric Y.** » Wed Nov 17, 2004 9:59 pm

j$ wrote:vertigo/claustrophobia

i most definitely suffer from claustrophobia. there have been many occasions in my life when i've nearly lost control to a panic attack in places where i am actually, or just perceptually, closed in. this is the reason i don't go into caves or haunted houses (not real haunted houses, mind you, but the ones they set up for hallowe'en). one time i was driving my car on a cold night and the windows and windshield were very fogged up and the de-froster was not working properly. i had cleared a small spot on the glass in front of me through which i could see, and kept having to clear it; at that moment i started feeling very panicky and had to stop driving for a bit until it passed. soo.... yeah it's a very real thing to me.

by vertigo, i'm wondering whether you mean simply the fear of being in a high place, or the strange dizzy sensation that can accompany it? i've never had a problem with tall buildings or trees or anything, but i've recently discovered that feeling dizzy like that can be somewhat invigorating. times when i get out of bed later in the afternoon and have to rush to get to work on time, and just barely make it there, i find i cannot have a cigarette before going in (which is a bit of a problem considering i neither smoke in my house nor my car). so i have to wait until two hours in when i can take a break and go outside. anyway, after that first cigarette of the day, and after walking down the ten flights of stairs to get outside to have it, i usually take the elevator back up. and if i am the only person in there, after i press the button i like to lean against the wall, and lean my head back against the wall as well, and close my eyes, before it starts moving. the sensation that results is rather indescribible, but it's similar to being on an amusement park ride on which you experience "free-fall" and you seem weightless and all your internal organs are floating about inside you.

c hack · Post by **c hack** » Wed Nov 17, 2004 11:05 pm

j$ wrote:People who write 'Haikus' that aren't actually Haikus.

haha, yes. And by that I mean people who think anything in 5-7-5 is a haiku.

Also, people who write haiku but don't know who Issa is.

fluffy · Post by **fluffy** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 11:21 am

Pseudo-haiku crap
Pisses me off too; it's just
counting syllables

other pet peeves:

- people who insist that the only valid way to form an opinion on something is to experience it yourself

- people who blow moral relativism arguments WAY out of proportion

- letterbox DVDs encoded at 4:3 aspect

- audiophiles who insist they can hear the difference between, say, $1000/foot monofilament speaker wire and $.14/foot zipcord, or (even worse) the ones who insist they can hear the difference between two different optical cables

- people who defend that sort of behavior by making arguments about how it's all subjective and psychological and so if they think they can hear a difference they really can, even though there's no perceptible difference

- solipsists

- solipsists who just finished an Introduction to Philosophy course

- people loudly pointing out other peoples' "bad grammer" (sic)

- video game reviewers who don't understand that there is a difference in budget, resources, and intended audience between games like Sprung and, say, Prince of Persia

- non-discussion threads which invite everyone to add their own disconnected sets of bullet points

Henrietta · Post by **Henrietta** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 11:48 am

People who step onto a city bus just to ask the driver how to get someplace.

Again cell phones: I almost crashed when some girl talking on her phone cut me off... only we weren't driving, WE WERE SKIING!!! Seriously people, if you're really busy you are allowed to turn off your phone.

thehipcola · Post by **thehipcola** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 2:39 pm

- people who insist that the only valid way to form an opinion on something is to experience it yourself

-ouch.

*fingers poised*

...nah.

roymond · Post by **roymond** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 3:32 pm

Pedestrians who stand off the curb on the pavement while waiting for the light to change.

Pedestrians who curse out the drivers who nearly ran them over because they were standing on the pavement while waiting for the light to change.

Eric Y. · Post by **Eric Y.** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 3:35 pm

fluffy wrote:- audiophiles who insist they can hear the difference ...

i just read a really stupid article in guitar world wherein they reviewed a couple different brands of really expensive cables. (ranging from $33 to $115 for a 20-foot length).

"... produced notes imbued with sparkling clarity, an essentially flat EQ and a barbarian level of signal strength. In turn, touch sensitivity was greatly enhanced, and previously inaudible tone details were illuminated."

"... uses high-end audio technology to maintain a powerful signal without the treble loss associated with high-capacitance coils. ... also use gold-plated brass plugs and have a slick outer skin like that of vintage coiled cables. the 25-foot ... hit hard in the mids, displayed excellent bass weight and caressed high notes without squashing them. Plus, it looks badass."

"While these plug choices alter the nuances of tone, the cable's basic sound remains the same -- an upper-mid accent that matches the guitar's natural voice, with rattlesnake-quick transients that place no limit on speed or articulation. What more could you want?"

Justincombustion · Post by **Justincombustion** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 3:50 pm

For some reason, here in Spo-Compton people won't use sidewalks!!! Even though there is one right there, they walk right down the middle of the street. No, walking is the wrong word, it's more like meandering or moseying. Usually teenage fuckheads who I'd like to punch. Get on the damn sidewalk!!!

Caravan Ray · Post by **Caravan Ray** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 4:15 pm

Justincombustion wrote:For some reason, here in Spo-Compton people won't use sidewalks!!! Even though there is one right there, they walk right down the middle of the street. No, walking is the wrong word, it's more like meandering or moseying. Usually teenage fuckheads who I'd like to punch. Get on the damn sidewalk!!!

I'd like to live in a town where people 'mosey'. That sounds cool.

fodroy · Post by **fodroy** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 5:51 pm

drivers who wave you to cross the street (when you're the pedestrian) and they act pissed off at you for wasting their time.

Gazelles · Post by **Gazelles** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 7:47 pm

People reading whats on my shirt out loud. Drives me friggin nuts.

Edit: Haha, I'm a Blue Baiter again.

john m · Post by **john m** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 7:52 pm

People who spell it "judgement."

Bjam · Post by **Bjam** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 8:00 pm

the human cello wrote:People reading whats on my shirt out loud. Drives me friggin nuts.

Add to that "Especially if you're a female" to name one of my biggest pet peeves.

erik · Post by **erik** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 8:08 pm

yeah, chicks who read, they BUG

Caravan Ray · Post by **Caravan Ray** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 8:16 pm

john m wrote:People who spell it "judgement."

Why are you peeved by the correct spelling?

I could be peeved by people who spell it 'color'

I'm now curious. How do Canadians spell things? Do you use the Oxford dictionary spelling or Webster dictionary? (probably best if Leaf doesn't answer this - I've seen how he spells things and the answer would be 'none of the above')

Anctually there is one thing about American Engish that annoys me for some reason - why do you always put an "s" on the end of 'sport'? I like to watch sport - Americans seem to watch 'sports'. (Conversely though, when I was at school, I studied 'maths' - you guys seem to study 'math'. Weird)

thehipcola · Post by **thehipcola** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 8:32 pm

Oxford.

Leaf knows how to spell, just not with his typing fingers.

which reminds of a post in another thread...Leaf made reference to "powering out" his documents for work when I asked how he does it (SF postathon AND work)....

*shudders*

JonPorobil · Post by **JonPorobil** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 8:33 pm

People who think that there's only one way to spell words like "color" and "colour."

j$ · Post by j$ » Fri Nov 19, 2004 3:23 am

tviyh wrote:
j$ wrote:vertigo/claustrophobia
by vertigo, i'm wondering whether you mean simply the fear of being in a high place, or the strange dizzy sensation that can accompany it? :

Hmmm, well I'll give you an example. When I first visited the Leaning Tower of Pizza - if you've seen pictures of it/visited it you'll know that parts of the climb take you outside (or at least you could- haven't been for a while).

OK, so I walked into the piazza and from a distance of about 100 metres from the tower itself, saw little figures shinnying round the outside of the tower, immediately felt sweaty and nauseous and had to turn round and leave the piazza. Sometimes when i get it, I actually just want to lie down on the ground and curl up (i don't though because I would look stupid)

So it's both, I guess. Yes, an irrational fear of falling that comes and goes without any real logic. Some places I am fine others not. I read an article that suggested claustrophobia & vertigo are both related to a low centre of gravity in the body that was quite interesting.

Kamakura · Post by **Kamakura** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 3:58 am

It sounds more like mild agoraphobia than vertigo.

My pet peeve is/are neighbours, especially those whose lifestyle is your polar opposite.

Mogosagatai · Post by **Mogosagatai** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 4:02 am

I think (and this may be completely untrue) that agoraphobia mixed with being somewhere high up can cause vertigo, in a sort of psychosomatic way. Addict, insane.