# Little things that bug you **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 21, 2015, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187 "2015-04-21T14:10:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187/141 "2015-04-29T14:52:00Z")
> [@EmilyG](#): > > I haven’t heard “doggie-dog world,” but in a similar vein, something that annoys me is “for all intensive purposes.” For all intents and purposes, that’s incorrect. That’s another one where you have to wonder what people are picturing in their heads. And “taken for granite.” “He takes me for granite”: what does that mean? he overlooks you like you’re just a big hunk of stone in the room? and “Curve your enthusiasm.” And “Planter’s wart.” Do some people really imagine that gardeners and landscapers are more prone to benign epithelial tumors on the bottoms of their feet? Yup, better avoid the weeding, 'cause you don’t want to get a planter’s wart. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187/142 "2015-04-29T15:01:06Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > … And “Planter’s wart.” Do some people really imagine that gardeners and landscapers are more prone to benign epithelial tumors on the bottoms of their feet? Yup, better avoid the weeding, 'cause you don’t want to get a planter’s wart. Though clearly wrong, this one is sort of believable … We have Bell’s Palsy, Alzheimer’s Disease, Lew Gehrig’s disease, etc. Why not Planter’s wart named for either a famous sufferer or more likely, the 1800s doctor who first wrote up the syndrome. Not to mention the plant St. John’s wort. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187/143 "2015-04-29T15:04:45Z")
> [@Martian Bigfoot](#): > > My current peeve: The apocalypse. > > The word “apocalypse” means “revelation”. It doesn’t mean “the end of the world”. The biblical apocalypse just happens to be a revelation about the end of the world. If you mean the end times, just say “end times”. > > And don’t give me semantic drift. It’s not that. It’s just someone getting something wrong because they didn’t speak Greek. > > Now that this is cleared up, I trust that everyone in the world will get this right from now on. Thank you. “End times” sounds very Biblical to me. What if I don’t want that connotation, but I’m still wanting a word for TEOTWAWKI or even species extinction events? e.g. “A major meteor strike, nuclear war, or zombie outbreak are examples of \.” ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187/144 "2015-04-29T17:39:32Z")
> [@Martian Bigfoot](#): > > My current peeve: The apocalypse. > > The word “apocalypse” means “revelation”. It doesn’t mean “the end of the world”. The biblical apocalypse just happens to be a revelation about the end of the world. If you mean the end times, just say “end times”. > > And don’t give me semantic drift. It’s not that. It’s just someone getting something wrong because they didn’t speak Greek. > > Now that this is cleared up, I trust that everyone in the world will get this right from now on. Thank you. And the prodigal son wasn’t just someone who left for a while and is coming back. You have to have squandered a bunch of money too. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187/145 "2015-04-29T20:57:03Z")
> [@gigi](#): > > And the prodigal son wasn’t just someone who left for a while and is coming back. You have to have squandered a bunch of money too. Actually, if you spend a lot of money foolishly or extravagantly, without ever going anywhere, you are still prodigal. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187/146 "2015-04-29T21:08:18Z")
Or is that profligate? Or both? ---
**Author:** ![OffByOne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/45deac/32.png) [@OffByOne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OffByOne)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187/147 "2015-04-30T17:39:40Z")
alot noone definate it’s/its there/they’re/their than/then 's denoting plural noun or singular verb ---
**Author:** ![racepug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f1d935/32.png) [@racepug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racepug)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187/148 "2015-04-30T18:23:10Z")
I have a new one: soccer goalies who make ROUTINE saves and then FALL DOWN (apparently in an attempt to waste time) when nothing else about the save suggests that they really had to. Actually, there is a LOT about soccer that’s turning me off to the sport (I’m half-Latino and I used to play it): the seemingly innumerable ways that players (and perhaps coaches) come up with to engage in time-wasting, the feigning of injuries in an attempt to get opponents in trouble with the referee, the status of the sport worldwide that seems to dictate that pretty much ALL of the world’s best players play in Europe (but even at THAT, only for a select few European clubs [Real Madrid, Bayern München, Barcelona, a few in the EPL - if you follow world soccer at all you know what I mean]). ALL these things stick in my craw. And now the latest: a ROUTINE shot saved and SECURED by a goalkeeper, maybe even just halfway through the first half, and then…DOWN HE GOES! The goalkeeper falls to the ground as if he’s protecting one of his offspring. He’s already saved it! He’s ALREADY secured the ball! But dang it! If he DOESN’T _fall on the ball_ as well then you just never know what might happen! Whatever. Just one more reason for me to NOT like a sport that I used to follow passionately. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187/149 "2015-04-30T19:22:15Z")
> [@racepug](#): > > And now the latest: a ROUTINE shot saved and SECURED by a goalkeeper, maybe even just halfway through the first half, and then…DOWN HE GOES! The goalkeeper falls to the ground as if he’s protecting one of his offspring. He’s already saved it! He’s ALREADY secured the ball! But dang it! If he DOESN’T fall on the ball as well then you just never know what might happen! It could just be that he is off-balance and is grounding himself in a controlled way. Not that I’m going to spend any time defending soccer, though. The sport is stupid as all get out. At times I’ve stood up for it around the Yanks here, out of some misguided sense of cultural pride, only to look at myself and think: “What the hell am I doing? When I’m around other Europeans, I spend all my time loathing the thing.” Yeah. Soccer: Screw it, in general. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187/150 "2015-04-30T23:31:19Z")
> [@OffByOne](#): > > alot > noone > definate > it’s/its > there/they’re/their > than/then > 's denoting plural noun or singular verb I am loosing my mind. That’s right, I had a hinge installed in the top of my skull and my brain is allowed 5 minutes every hour to run around the room. If it makes it out the door and down the street, well, you all know what’s happening then… . ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2015, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187/151 "2015-05-01T01:38:57Z")
peek/peak/pique ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2015, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187/152 "2015-05-01T01:40:38Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > I am loosing my mind. That’s right, I had a hinge installed in the top of my skull and my brain is allowed 5 minutes every hour to run around the room. If it makes it out the door and down the street, well, you all know what’s happening then… . Cool! Is that just mechanical stuff, or are drugs involved? I’m thinking of the benefits of [releasing my brain](http://application.denofgeek.com/images/m/eyeless/005_Fiend_Without_A_Face.jpg) at work. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2015, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187/153 "2015-05-01T01:44:39Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > peek/peak/pique I get so mad I could shriek! EEK! - [Spike Jones](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMjCBe3r4nI&list=PLB30BD33A81A45312) ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2015, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187/154 "2015-05-01T03:23:06Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > Actually, if you spend a lot of money foolishly or extravagantly, without ever going anywhere, you are still prodigal. Good point. I was thinking of when someone arrives who is rarely around, and folks exclaim about the prodigal son returning. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2015, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187/155 "2015-05-01T04:44:35Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Cool! > Is that just mechanical stuff, or are drugs involved? > I’m thinking of the benefits of [releasing my brain](http://application.denofgeek.com/images/m/eyeless/005_Fiend_Without_A_Face.jpg) at work. Beware ciggie butts–smoking killed the dinosaurs. Here’s a pic of me “releasing my brain.” [Look at me, I’m Davy Crockett!](http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7cNTOPkmeLc/ToPuIL6r0zI/AAAAAAAAB6Y/ujyuxDUmkMg/s1600/tohiid.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2015, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187/156 "2015-05-01T05:07:44Z")
The Brits pronounce it thusly: Al-loo-MIN-ee-um. Hear my teeth grinding? Hear 'em? ---
**Author:** ![Wallaby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/dc4da7/32.png) [@Wallaby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wallaby)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2015, 5:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187/157 "2015-05-01T05:58:40Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > The Brits pronounce it thusly: > > Al-loo-MIN-ee-um. > > Hear my teeth grinding? Hear 'em? Not _ **quite** _ right. Brits (and Aussies) say ‘Al-you-min-ee-um’. If there’s one thing I can’t stand it’s nit-pickers getting their nits wrong. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2015, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187/158 "2015-05-01T13:41:25Z")
> [@Wallaby](#): > > Not _ **quite** _ right. > > Brits (and Aussies) say ‘Al-you-min-ee-um’. > > If there’s one thing I can’t stand it’s nit-pickers getting their nits wrong. 🙂 Hardly a minor nit-pick; this is even worse. Thanks for bringing it to our attention. We must remain vigilant. ---
**Author:** ![gallows\_fodder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8c91f0/32.png) [@gallows\_fodder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gallows_fodder)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2015, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187/159 "2015-05-01T14:30:16Z")
You know what bugs me is when Brits et al. laugh at the US pronunciation of “aluminum”…as though there are no other elements that end in “-um” and not “-ium” (you know, like platinum, lanthanum, tantalum, and molybdenum) and we’re just being stupid about aluminum. Or, “HAR HAR you pronounce ‘herb’ without the H sound! HOW RIDICULOUS!” So, do you pronounce the letter H in “hour” and “honour” as well? ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2015, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187/160 "2015-05-01T14:51:45Z")
**^** Plat-IN-ee-um? Mol-yb-DEN-ee-um? AIR STRIKE!! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-things-that-bug-you/718187.md?page=9)