# April Annoyances (mini-rants) **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [April 1, 2015, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516 "2015-04-01T16:57:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 13
**Author:** ![slumtrimpet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@slumtrimpet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slumtrimpet)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516/241 "2015-04-14T12:41:29Z")
> [@Cognoscant](#): > > My apartment has been invaded by teeny tiny ants that congregate around the sink. I poured myself a refreshing beverage tonight only to find teeny tiny ants floating in it–they must have been in the glass. Yuk. Try cloves. Seriously. Buy a jar of whole cloves and tuck them here and there. They do look like you haven`t cleaned in a while but I`ve had some on my counter for over a year and no more ants. ---
**Author:** ![Avarie537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/48db29/32.png) [@Avarie537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Avarie537)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516/242 "2015-04-14T13:07:19Z")
Stupid drop off line lady. I was about to crap my pants and she wouldn’t let me leave my van OFF TO THE SIDE of the drop off line to run into the school and use the toilet. She told me I had to drive around and park in the regular lot, which was impossible since the buses were leaving and there’s a cop that stops traffic from getting into the lot during that process. Thank goodness for gas station bathrooms. But seriously. I thought I was going to shit myself. ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516/243 "2015-04-14T14:50:58Z")
5 hours out of my day to go to one hospital appointment. Seriously. I left the house at 10am, for an 11am appointment, the trains were all cancelled and delayed because of problems with signals on the line, I eventually gave up and joined the taxi queue at the station at 10.50, and luckily ended up sharing with a nice man who was also going to the hospital. We got there for 11.20 but since the clinic was already running late, wasn’t seen till nearly 1pm. No, I hadn’t remembered to bring a book. Yes, the walls were so thick I had no service on my phone. Yes, the waiting room was full of fed up toddlers who’d also sat there for over an hour and were loudly losing patience. Once I was seen, the nurses then wanted to confer with a doctor. So I waited in the consult room for another 20 mins while they failed to find one. Eventually, they told me to make another appointment for a fortnight’s time, which involved waiting in another long queue at another desk. By 2pm I had escaped the hospital and was on my way back into the city centre, to get the train home. Which, of course, was delayed. 3pm I finally got home, very hungry and thirsty. And very grateful for my local friends for picking my daughter up from nursery and keeping her for me, because it took me FIVE HOURS to do a round trip for what should have been a 10 min routine appointment. And this will no doubt happen every fortnight for the next 30 weeks… ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516/244 "2015-04-14T15:02:51Z")
I’ve been in Sweden since last June. Turns out that you can’t enter any kind of contract without a “personalnummer”, which I filed for in September. After many absurd questions which made it pretty clear time and again that the agent in charge hadn’t read the paperwork submitted (no, I’m not a refugee; no, I’m not asking for unemployment subsidy; no, I’m not trying to start a business in Sweden), it’s been denied. The agent said I was not eligible (didn’t explain why) and that I should apply for a residence permit instead. I’ve already got a residence permit, it’s called a “Spanish passport” 😛 I’m supposed to be able to vote in Swedish local elections but I can’t sign up to take Swedish lessons… ---
**Author:** ![purple\_cow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b487fb/32.png) [@purple\_cow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purple_cow)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516/245 "2015-04-14T16:26:09Z")
So i was in the grocery store and was going to get some eggs. Woman gets there just before me (blocking the entire display with her cart) and opens a carton to check them. So far fine. She goes through them all then opens another carton. I think, “oh she found a broken one”. So far still fine. But then she continues opening new cartons. Huh? I watched her open 14 cartons of eggs. She was picking out the biggest ones she could find from each. There are worse things in the world. But blocking an entire display for 5 minutes and grabbing all the largest eggs (for what a grand total of maybe 2 ounces more egg?) pushes all of my buttons for selfishness, greed, and not taking others into account at all. All for very little gain. I could have found a way in at any point i’m sure, but i was so amazed at the hubris i just stood and gaped. ---
**Author:** ![Dunkelheit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dunkelheit/32/248_2.png) [@Dunkelheit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunkelheit)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516/246 "2015-04-14T16:42:50Z")
> [@SeaDragonTattoo](#): > > Not a rant, just sharing a bit of weirdness. I’ve bought a few items (hand-knitted scarves, gloves, and now an embellished hoodie) over the last few years that were hand-made in Nepal. As I was examining the hoodie I received today, I found a beautiful, long, shiny, wavy black hair woven in with some of the stitching. A couple years ago, I found a similar hair woven into a wool glove. > > I just hope they’re falling out naturally as the women work, and not getting stuck in the sewing/knitting machines! When I crochet, I end up incorporating at least a few of my very long hairs into whatever I’m making. Not on purpose, just happens. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516/247 "2015-04-14T17:11:24Z")
> [@NinjaChick](#): > > I don’t know what sort of meddlesome nanny-state fuckface decided that in this country ibuprofen is some super dangerous drug that needs to be carefully regulated, but I hope the individuals responsible develop crippling arthritis. > > I really try to avoid obnoxious jingoism but I can walk into Walgreens and buy a fucking 1000-count bottle of ibuprofen for [$20](http://www.walgreens.com/search/results.jsp?Ntt=ibuprofen). I’m not spending half my goddamn paycheck on fucking blister packs of 25-counts of ibuprofen in your shitty-ass pharmacies here. Where is “here” ???😕 ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516/248 "2015-04-14T17:12:44Z")
Fuck carpenter ants! I wish they were fucking extinct! Also, go screw a rabid coyote, roofers who disappear in the middle of a job and don’t come back until nagged to do so. We had a minor water leak a couple of weeks ago. We had seen some slates that we thought had fallen off our roof. We called our roofers to come out and fix it. They showed up, said they were going back to the office to get some matching slates, and didn’t come back. We had to call them several more times before they came back. I had to get Mr. Neville to call them, because I think they were basically ignoring me. (If this was because of my gender, well, sexist pigs should go fuck their mothers, too) Meanwhile, we found carpenter ants in the house. They can come in through water-damaged wood, so I suspect these two events may not be unconnected. ---
**Author:** ![Catamount](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/catamount/32/2840_2.png) [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516/249 "2015-04-14T17:45:00Z")
> [@Dunkelheit](#): > > When I crochet, I end up incorporating at least a few of my very long hairs into whatever I’m making. Not on purpose, just happens. That’s how you personalize it. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![kayT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayt/32/3633_2.png) [@kayT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayT)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516/250 "2015-04-14T18:20:12Z")
My cats insist that if I am going to knit instead of petting them then I must personalize everything I make with cat hairs. Current project is an off-white afghan so the yellow hairs sort of disappear but the brown tabby ones certainly do stand out. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516/251 "2015-04-14T19:44:38Z")
> [@EmilyG](#): > > I have this nice friend on Facebook. University-educated. Presumably intelligent. But then the other day he goes and posts a link to a crowdfunding page for a documentary saying that homeopathy actually works. He had another one of my friends (presumably intelligent) agreeing with him! :smack::smack: And the arguments they used in favour of homeopathy were so incredibly stupid that I don’t even feel like trying to argue. **(Plus I don’t want to lose friends over something stupid like that.)** > > And what’s also sad is that this “documentary” has raised quite a lot of money for itself already. ☹ (bolding mine) That’s not “losing friends.” That’s adding some chlorine to your pool of friends. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516/252 "2015-04-14T19:53:55Z")
> [@overlyverbose](#): > > I once shaved part of my thumb off with a mandoline. Then again, I’m well known for my kitchen incidents. Sadly, I’m the only one in the house who can cook anything other than eggs. > > Incidentally, do not attempt to use a mandoline if you’ve been up all night and are bleary eyed from being vomited on by a kid for a few hours. Also, do not attempt to chop chocolate with a brand new knife if you’ve got shingles in your eye - kinda messes with your depth perception and you can lose part of a pinkie. Not that I’d know that from personal experience or anything. Honest. You don’t need to work on your hand-eye coordination skills; you need to dragoon a member of your household to act as _sous- chef_. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2015, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516/253 "2015-04-14T19:55:35Z")
> [@SeaDragonTattoo](#): > > Not a rant, just sharing a bit of weirdness. I’ve bought a few items (hand-knitted scarves, gloves, and now an embellished hoodie) over the last few years that were hand-made in Nepal. As I was examining the hoodie I received today, I found a beautiful, long, shiny, wavy black hair woven in with some of the stitching. A couple years ago, I found a similar hair woven into a wool glove. > > I just hope they’re falling out naturally as the women work, and not getting stuck in the sewing/knitting machines! Have you ruled out the possibility that they’re trying to smuggle themselves into the country? ---
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2015, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516/254 "2015-04-15T00:12:51Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > Have you ruled out the possibility that they’re trying to smuggle themselves into the country? OMG, so sloooowly. Piece by tiny piece! Hmm. Could be an interesting basis for some kind of horror movie. ---
**Author:** ![NinjaChick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/71c47a/32.png) [@NinjaChick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinjaChick)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2015, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516/255 "2015-04-15T00:33:20Z")
[quote=“DrDeth, post:247, topic:716516”] Where is “here” ???😕 [/QUOTE Sorry, should have said. New Zealand.] ---
**Author:** ![tenacious\_j](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/439d5e/32.png) [@tenacious\_j](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tenacious_j)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2015, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516/256 "2015-04-15T02:13:02Z")
> [@Anne\_Neville](#): > > Fuck carpenter ants! I wish they were fucking extinct! > > Also, go screw a rabid coyote, roofers who disappear in the middle of a job and don’t come back until nagged to do so. > > We had a minor water leak a couple of weeks ago. We had seen some slates that we thought had fallen off our roof. We called our roofers to come out and fix it. They showed up, said they were going back to the office to get some matching slates, and didn’t come back. We had to call them several more times before they came back. I had to get Mr. Neville to call them, because I think they were basically ignoring me. (If this was because of my gender, well, sexist pigs should go fuck their mothers, too) Meanwhile, we found carpenter ants in the house. They can come in through water-damaged wood, so I suspect these two events may not be unconnected. Well, if they are carpenter ants, maybe they can help fix the roof for all the trouble they put you through. (:rolleyes: sorry, couldn’t help myself.) > [@purplehorseshoe](#): > > (bolding mine) > That’s not “losing friends.” That’s adding some chlorine to your pool of friends. 🙂 😃 ---
**Author:** ![EmilyG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/emilyg/32/364_2.png) [@EmilyG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmilyG)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2015, 11:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516/257 "2015-04-15T11:29:00Z")
Ah yes, springtime. The birds are singing, the trees are getting buds… and the roads are now ice-free, so that the asshole fuckheads are at their activity again, as they do often on weeknights every single fucking year when there’s no more ice on the roads. Yes, you’ve heard me complain about them before. These asshole fuckheads get into their car at 10 PM on weeknights, just when I like to lie in bed and prepare for sleep, and prevent me from sleeping by racing around the neighbourhood really really fast in their car, endangering anyone on the road and making a fucking hell of a lot of noise. I know, people have suggested to me that I wear earplugs. Well, I do have earplugs, but I like to listen to the radio at 10 PM, and I kind of can’t do that with earplugs. I don’t have headphones for the radio (maybe I should get some?) And even if I did wear earplugs and couldn’t hear the assholes in their car outside, I’d still have anxiety knowing that they’re still out there being dangerous and idiotic. Maybe instead of whining about them all the time, I should actually do something. A friend suggested calling public security. Maybe I should try to get their license plate number in advance. Also, I need a more creative term for these people other than “asshole fuckheads.” I was thinking “joyriders,” but that’s not derogatory enough. ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2015, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516/258 "2015-04-15T11:58:31Z")
Organ donors? ---
**Author:** ![Catamount](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/catamount/32/2840_2.png) [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2015, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516/259 "2015-04-15T12:47:50Z")
> [@EmilyG](#): > > Maybe instead of whining about them all the time, I should actually do something. A friend suggested calling public security. Maybe I should try to get their license plate number in advance. One handful of caltrops would solve all your problems. It would cause a whole new set of problems, but the old ones would be gone. \*\*\*SpazCat \*_does not advocate throwing caltrops out in the road._ ---
**Author:** ![The\_Vorlon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@The\_Vorlon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Vorlon)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2015, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516/260 "2015-04-15T16:15:53Z")
> [@SpazCat](#): > > One handful of caltrops would solve all your problems. It would cause a whole new set of problems, but the old ones would be gone. > > \*\*\*SpazCat \*_does not advocate throwing caltrops out in the road._ I wonder what French is for “Stop Sticks”. 😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516.md?page=12) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/april-annoyances-mini-rants/716516.md?page=14)