# Irrational Things That Ruin Your Day From the Get-go **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 26, 2011, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irrational-things-that-ruin-your-day-from-the-get-go/590381 "2011-07-26T14:02:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Terraplane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/74df32/32.png) [@Terraplane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terraplane)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2011, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irrational-things-that-ruin-your-day-from-the-get-go/590381/21 "2011-07-27T13:45:00Z")
> [@rachelellogram](#): > > If my roommate leaves the shower thingy on the “up” instead of the “down” setting, then my arm gets all cold and wet when I turn on the water in the morning. Makes me cranky. This is mine as well, only I have to lean into the shower a bit to turn the knob so if the shower is on I get a blast of cold water in the back of the head. Instant murderous rage. ---
**Author:** ![otternell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecc23a/32.png) [@otternell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/otternell)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2011, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irrational-things-that-ruin-your-day-from-the-get-go/590381/22 "2011-07-27T13:51:36Z")
Stepping in doggy messes first thing in the morning. One of our boys has diarrhea and can’t always make it outside before things happen on their own. We’re treating it of course, but in the meantime, sometimes shit happens and you step in it. Barefoot. And then hop to the bathroom on one foot so you can at least dry heave in the sink. you know, just in case. Yesterday sucked. ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2011, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irrational-things-that-ruin-your-day-from-the-get-go/590381/23 "2011-07-27T14:51:39Z")
There is a certain traffic light that I always try to make and 90% of the time I just can’t make that light. It’s like my omen for the morning. If I make the light I’m going to have a good day. OTOH, I pass a kind of scrap yard/auto repair place every day, and since this spring they’ve had a sign out that they’re selling dog houses. Somebody there must be doing some woodworking and making dog houses in his spare time. A couple of months ago there was one house sitting out there by the fence, and then two, and now there are six or seven sitting there about eight feet from the street, just right up against the fence. It took me quite a while to realize that there’s a dog, too. A little tan-colored spaniel-type dog. Most mornings, in one of the houses, looking out at the traffic going by. Now every day I look for my little friend. When he is not there, I worry about him. I wish he knew that there is somebody who sees him every day who thinks about him and hopes he is well taken care of. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2011, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irrational-things-that-ruin-your-day-from-the-get-go/590381/24 "2011-07-27T15:02:12Z")
This morning I saw a very small kitten that had been killed crossing the road…and then, not much further on, another one. The size of them made me think that maybe someone had dropped them off, because such small kittens aren’t really up to outdoor adventuring. Then I hated everyone for a couple of hours. ---
**Author:** ![Toucanna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3bc359/32.png) [@Toucanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toucanna)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2011, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irrational-things-that-ruin-your-day-from-the-get-go/590381/25 "2011-07-28T00:10:23Z")
If I make my first cup of coffee too strong, that’s okay because I can add a little water. If I make it too weak, I get indignant because the coffee or the water _ **dared** _ to mess up my first cup of joe. I am irked for hours if this happens. On an intellectual level I know it’s utterly ridiculous to react that way and I am embarrassed for myself when I do it, but I still do it. I welcome the opinions of armchair and real psychologists, but please be gentle. ---
**Author:** ![ianzin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ed655f/32.png) [@ianzin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ianzin)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2011, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irrational-things-that-ruin-your-day-from-the-get-go/590381/26 "2011-07-28T00:41:25Z")
> [@The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](#): > > This. The key-gnomes stealing my keys during the night and putting them someplace strange, like the pockets of the pants I was wearing yesterday, is a bad way to start the day. The small creatures that do this sort of thing are also known as [boggarts](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boggart). ---
**Author:** ![brittekland](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/aeb1de/32.png) [@brittekland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brittekland)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2011, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irrational-things-that-ruin-your-day-from-the-get-go/590381/27 "2011-07-28T01:14:53Z")
> [@ianzin](#): > > The small creatures that do this sort of thing are also known as [boggarts](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boggart). Lately I assume it’s the playful ghost of my dad who’s hiding things on me. He used to take practical jokes a wee bit too far to the point where people would get pissed off or be in tears. As he crossed the point of no return with his over the top playfulness he’d find himself lonely and bummed but little too late to be apologetic. He still can’t resist being himself I imagine. ---
**Author:** ![Toucanna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3bc359/32.png) [@Toucanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toucanna)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2011, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irrational-things-that-ruin-your-day-from-the-get-go/590381/28 "2011-07-28T01:33:27Z")
> [@The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](#): > > The key-gnomes… [hijack]AKA [Borrowers](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borrowers) and [Hobs](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hob_(folklore)).[/hijack] ---
**Author:** ![The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecc23a/32.png) [@The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_wind_of_my_soul)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2011, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irrational-things-that-ruin-your-day-from-the-get-go/590381/29 "2011-07-28T02:00:40Z")
What happened this morning: I woke up and went to the bathroom half-awake. I went to grab the toilet paper. None there. My mind then went through the steps of figuring out why there was no toilet paper: The night before, I had planned on buying toilet paper, but I didn’t have time because I had to be at the fire academy for my firefighter training, which is scary and grueling and horrible (and gets out at 11:30). So I put a box of Kleenex on the sink and figured that would do for the morning. When I got home, I was very upset at my performance in class and crying hard, so I moved the Kleenex box by the bed so I could cry myself to sleep. After re-living the previous nights events, I was now fully awake, in a very bad mood, and had to walk to the far end of my bedroom just to wipe myself. ---
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2011, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irrational-things-that-ruin-your-day-from-the-get-go/590381/30 "2011-07-28T02:05:13Z")
> [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > Waking up just before the alarm. Pffft. Waking up half an hour before the alarm. No time to go back to sleep. Actually it happens most of the time now, and I’ve resigned myself to it. ---
**Author:** ![minor7flat5](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/minor7flat5/32/258_2.png) [@minor7flat5](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/minor7flat5)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2011, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irrational-things-that-ruin-your-day-from-the-get-go/590381/31 "2011-07-28T02:49:46Z")
> [@chiroptera](#): > > Waking up and realising I forgot to pick up either coffee or half-and-half for my coffee. My nephew likes to buy goat’s milk to give to our cats, since I think it’s supposed to be better than regular milk for cats. It comes in a skinny purple quart carton that looks exactly like the skinny purple quart carton of half-and-half. Goat’s milk is nasty. It doesn’t help the coffee. ---
**Author:** ![brittekland](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/aeb1de/32.png) [@brittekland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brittekland)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2011, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irrational-things-that-ruin-your-day-from-the-get-go/590381/32 "2011-07-28T03:06:36Z")
> [@The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](#): > > So I put a box of Kleenex on the sink and figured that would do for the morning. Not that you would’ve in a single morning but I don’t think you should flush more than a couple of Kleenex down toilet; Kleenex does not break down like toilet paper and if you happened to flush a bunch they can clog your toilet or worse, plumbing somewhere under your front yard! I vividly remember my neighbor talking to himself cursing up his sister-in-law while digging up his front yard. BTW cheer up and good luck with your training! ---
**Author:** ![67java89](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/6/aeb1de/32.png) [@67java89](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/67java89)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2011, 11:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irrational-things-that-ruin-your-day-from-the-get-go/590381/33 "2011-07-28T11:48:43Z")
When the power goes out during the night. Even though my alarm isn’t dependent on electricity, seeing blinking clocks when I wake up makes me feel confused. My day is already thrown off. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2011, 12:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irrational-things-that-ruin-your-day-from-the-get-go/590381/34 "2011-07-28T12:00:02Z")
> [@otternell](#): > > Stepping in doggy messes first thing in the morning. One of our boys has diarrhea and can’t always make it outside before things happen on their own. We’re treating it of course, but in the meantime, sometimes shit happens and you step in it. Barefoot. I have longed for the appropriate occasion to share this bit of wisdom from my experience with many dogs and cats: the only thing that’s worse than stepping in dog/cat poo barefoot is stepping in it in sock feet. Eeew. At least in the former case, you can stick your foot in the sink and rinse it off. In the latter case, you have the extra step of peeling off the offending sock and dealing with it. And then you \*still \*have to stick your foot in the sink and rinse it off. Eeew. Thank you for that opportunity. 🙂 You made my day. As for what ruins my day? Waking up in a panic attack and having to take a xanax first thing. ---
**Author:** ![The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecc23a/32.png) [@The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_wind_of_my_soul)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2011, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irrational-things-that-ruin-your-day-from-the-get-go/590381/35 "2011-07-28T13:57:10Z")
> [@brittekland](#): > > Not that you would’ve in a single morning but I don’t think you should flush more than a couple of Kleenex down toilet; Kleenex does not break down like toilet paper and if you happened to flush a bunch they can clog your toilet or worse, plumbing somewhere under your front yard! I vividly remember my neighbor talking to himself cursing up his sister-in-law while digging up his front yard. > > BTW cheer up and good luck with your training! Thanks for the warning, I didn’t know that and I’ve been lazily continuing to use the Kleenex even though I bought toilet paper yesterday. I’ll do that tonight. ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2011, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irrational-things-that-ruin-your-day-from-the-get-go/590381/36 "2011-07-28T14:37:06Z")
When I get to work and realize I missed a 5:30 am call-in meeting (just part of being a multinational assigned in this region, I’ve learned). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/irrational-things-that-ruin-your-day-from-the-get-go/590381.md?page=1)