Aggravations

Ten Things That Truly Annoy Me

AI Everything: Suddenly Artificial Intelligence is everywhere, doing everything, and (just in case you're not worried about that) it's also going to kill us all. What can I do about it? Nothing. I have no idea what AI is really doing or could really do, but if the people in charge of it allow it to do dangerous-to-us stuff then I imagine many bad things will happen. And what can I do about that? Nothing.

Censorship Online: I just had to kill a free story as promo plan for my day job because I now have to worry about the people involved in online censorship of anything that is contrary to their personal belief systems. Did someone accidentally erase part of the Constitution?

Doomsdayers: This is like the AI everything thing, in that there is nothing I can personally do to stop Doomsday. Without my meds I likely wouldn't last long no matter what the circumstances. Yet according to some folks I still need ten years of nonperishable food and water hidden in a secret location on my property, lots of guns, and solar generators because the world is coming to an end (but if you use their special code, you'll get a five percent discount on the dried food, guns, solar generators etc. that will help you survive it) Tell you what, if Doomsday arrives, I will be prepared not to survive it. In fact I'll have a not-surviving party at my house, so please stop by. Free barbecue! Ha.

Dump-and-Go Cooking: There are women who love dump-and-go recipes cooking; as the daughter of a chef I am not one of them. Please at least call it something other than a bathroom function euphemism.

Halloween Hate: I loved Halloween when I was a youngster, especially as we were poor and didn't get a lot of treats back then. Our neighbors would often make cookies, candies and donuts for us, too (I still fondly remember one elderly lady who had a glass punch bowl of cider that she would hand out in paper cups along with the most delicious homemade cruellers.) Anyway, if you have a moral/religious objection to Halloween, shut off your porch light and keep your kids home, but please don't tell me not to decorate or hand out treats.

Hearing-Impaired Impatience: I'm sorry I'm going deaf, and I do try not to bother people with my inability to hear them. Sometimes I will ask a person to repeat something they said when I wasn't looking so I can try to read their lips (only when it's very important that I know what they said, like at the doctor's office.) But speaking for all the hearing-impaired, becoming impatient or even nasty with us for something we never asked for in the first place is really unkind.

Mannerless Young People: Someday you will be my age. When you are, I hope you remember the door you let slam in my face, the grocery cart you shoved into my hip, or the way you cut me off on the road because I was driving the speed limit.

Rude Old People: Pushy, impatient, and just downright rude elderly people embarrass me. Just because you're old doesn't mean you can forget your manners, either.

Support My Cause or Else Threats: Any statement someone makes that is a variation of "If you don't support my cause, you are actively supporting the enemy of my cause" is not going to win my support. It's going to make me avoid you and your online cause-hammering no matter what I have to do.

YouTube Quacks: Suddenly YouTube is rife with videos about homemade "cures" for everything from clogged arteries, diabetes, tinnitus and even more serious diseases. Which is basically quackery. Even if you can drink a cocktail of lemon juice, garlic, cayenne pepper and apple cider vinegar, all it's probably going to do is give you heartburn or make you puke. Please ignore the quacks, follow your physicians advice and take your meds.