Discussion thread for the "Polls only" thread (Part 3)

[silenus]

I watch all kinds of sports, but I refuse to watch soccer in any form, at any time, played by any species.

[puzzlegal]

@RollOutTheBarrel

I selected that I think it’s rude when the person ahead of me doesn’t put down the divider in the checkout lane, but my answer is a little more nuanced than that. It only bothers me when I can’t reach the divider.

That makes sense. I mostly grocery shop at two places. One doesn’t have a conveyor belt at all, so it’s moot. On the other, i can reach the divider whether I’m in front or behind, so I’m indifferent to who puts it down. If it’s not there when room opens up, i do it, i think. But honestly, it’s such a minor thing I’m not even sure who usually does that. But if i could reach, and u was standing there waiting to be able to set out my groceries, I’d care.

[thorny_locust]

@puzzlegal

i found the author condescending to his readers. He made a number of untrue assumptions about me. (Of course you wouldn’t eat a well prepared dish of insects! ) And assumed i didn’t know things that i know. I just found him annoying, despite the topic being theoretically interesting

As you’ve thanked him for the intention, I don’t think you need to say anything unless the giver asks you about it. If they do, I think I’d say I found the topic interesting but the tone unpleasant; and I’d probably ask if they’d read it.

@RollOutTheBarrel

It only bothers me when I can’t reach the divider. If the cashier places the divider next to them, the person ahead of me can reach it and I can’t. That means there will be space to place my groceries on the conveyor belt as the other person’s groceries move forward, but I can’t put them down because the divider is not in place

In that situation, I wait for some space to open up on the belt, leave some of the space open, put my shopping bags down as a divider, and start unloading behind the bags. I keep an eye out in case the cashier seems confused about whose bags they are, but that doesn’t usually happen.

[puzzlegal]

In my professional life, i often describe several numbers, and often, i describe them in millions. $3.2M of this and $1.7M if that… If one of several numbers is less than a million, it may get included as $0.3M. So describing numbers that way is something I’ve done.

But if the highest number I’m interested in is less than $1M, I’ll probably describe everything in thousands (or just in dollars, if the largest number is reasonably described that way.)

So, strange, but nothing wrong with it. And maybe fine, depending on the context.

[Dr.Drake]

My “other” for the earthquake drill was “be slightly annoyed,” because I got phone call, email, and text. Any one of the three would have been sufficient.

[ricepad]

In the first moment of the earthquake drill, my heart rate shot up and I felt a little panic. Then I realized it was announcing it was a drill, and I also remembered hearing about it a few days prior. After that, I ignored it. It took a minute or two for my heart rate to come down to normal.

[susan]

Fractions of a Smoot.

[DrDeth]

@mbh

Asking how you voted is rude. Asking if you voted is not.

I hold the door for someone because it lets me smugly congratulate myself for my moral superiority. It does not create any obligation on their part.

I always figured the divider stick was my job, not theirs.

Under the traditional rules of etiquette, a verbal thank-you is not adequate. A written note is required. I am rude far more often than I should be.

If someone does not eat a particular item, that leaves more for those of us that do like it. Not a problem.

I agree- mostly- to all of these. Except the “smugly” part. I would prefer a verbal thank you, in fact.

@RollOutTheBarrel

It only bothers me when I can’t reach the divider. If the cashier places the divider next to them, the person ahead of me can reach it and I can’t.

That is more annoying that rude, IMHO.

[Maserschmidt]

I have walked Harvard Bridge just to see the Smoot markings. Great story.