So trivial, yet it really ticks you off.

[Hercule]

Annoyance du jour:

The strictures that covid has placed on us as a society have, for many of us, given rise to a greater annoyance with the petty quirks of those around us. (Yeah, that's it, its Covid's fault!) One that has risen to the top for me is how a very close friend of the family uses a knife. For most people, moving the knife while applying gentle downward pressure gets the job done. Alas our dear friend, who joins us each weekend for evening meals (he used to be responsible for the wine but, given his dire employment situation, he now only has to show up), doesn't seem to understand the role of motion to the successful function of a knife. I watched in amazement (and a bit of amusement) as he tried to cut through a grilled porkchop using only downward pressure. It was quite a sight watching him wrestle with that chop, which, I must admit, was a bit tougher than it should have been (Heaven forbid it should be anywhere near perfectly done and thus closer to being undercooked than completely charred.) And the scene repeats itself with whatever meat we serve. Heavy sigh...

 

[tonyb]

The drain-cloggingest stuff that ever clogged a drain is soda syrup, which congeals into a big sticky, rubbery glob, and resists all attempts to dislodge it once it's lodged. Even worse, a soda fountain drain, under health codes, must be physically open -- it can't have a closed connection to the main drainage system due to the risk of contaminants getting into the ice bin (which is an integral part of the carbonation chain) via the drain. So all the drains in the system have to end in open pipes that empty into an funnel-like open under-the cabinet drain without any physical connection. This means that suction is useless in trying to open syrup clogs, leaving only the use of a snake, which must be very flexible indeed to negotiate the sharp twists and bends of the system.

The manufacturers recommend flushing all drains with boiling water every night, but even this doesn't always solve the problem, and my own frustrating efforts at snaking usually end in me drenched, covered in sticky glop, exploring bold new corners of the English language, and calling a plumber.

A friend has a wife and two daughters with long, lush, thick hair. (One daughter has since left the nest and the other ain’t far behind.) I recall visiting him on a couple of occasions in years past as he snaked the bathtub drain, extracting great globs of matted hair, glued together with the residue of soap and conditioner.

 

[Tiki Tom]

A friend has a wife and two daughters with long, lush, thick hair.

+1. My wife and daughters are similarly blessed with Rapunselesque hair. On a fairly regular basis, a sink or shower will be clogged. My normal response is to unbend and then rebend a coat hanger until it resembles a fish hook. Then I probe the drain until I fish out (usually) a truly disgusting hair ball about the size of a golf ball. Problem solved. Yet, I seem to be the only one in the house who can perform this amazing feat.

 

[Hercule]

+1. My wife and daughters are similarly blessed with Rapunselesque hair. On a fairly regular basis, a sink or shower will be clogged. My normal response is to unbend and then rebend a coat hanger until it resembles a fish hook. Then I probe the drain until I fish out (usually) a truly disgusting hair ball about the size of a golf ball. Problem solved. Yet, I seem to be the only one in the house who can perform this amazing feat.

Been there. Done that. Similarly uniquely capable.

 

[Zombie_61]

Ah, the tangled mystery that is female hair in a confined space such as, say, the drain pipe of any sink or tub in the residence. I too have fashioned a "fishing" hook out of an old wire clothes hanger in order to clear the drain(s) of this knotted monster. I can only assume the various "products" they use to shellac that mess in place is responsible for the pluggage, 'cause I used to wear my curly hair rather long and I've never once plugged a drain with it.

 

[Touchofevil]

Peloton commercials

 

[tonyb]

^^^^
TD Ameritrade commercials are just the worst. That bearded twerp is insufferable.

 

[Trenchfriend]

Simple and interesting question to you all:
How often in you car driver's life did you use your "Navi", for real?

I used my Navi ca. 45 times in 10 1/2 years, from mid 2007 to end of 2017. Always loved it and still have it. Still alive .

 

[Hercule]

^^^^
TD Ameritrade commercials are just the worst. That bearded twerp is insufferable.

You must never have seen a Liberty Mutual commercial.

 

[Edward]

Simple and interesting question to you all:
How often in you car driver's life did you use your "Navi", for real?

I used my Navi ca. 45 times in 10 1/2 years, from mid 2007 to end of 2017. Always loved it and still have it. Still alive .

Eeps, while I've kept my licence up, I've not actually driven a car since the night before I moved to London: 8th Februrary, 1999. Needless to say, satnav wasn't yet a thing back then!

 

[tonyb]

Simple and interesting question to you all:
How often in you car driver's life did you use your "Navi", for real?

I used my Navi ca. 45 times in 10 1/2 years, from mid 2007 to end of 2017. Always loved it and still have it. Still alive .

If what you’re referring to is GPS, then yes, I use it whenever I’m headed into unfamiliar territory. Why wouldn’t I?

I don’t use the feature that talks to me and shows an animated facsimile of where I am on the road. I find that distracting. But then, I have decades of practice consulting paper maps, and the GPS as I use it is essentially an improved version thereof. I tap in the destination address before I’m out of the driveway, give it a quick once-over, and head on down the road. I consult it again as I approach the destination, so I don’t zig where I ought to zag.

I can’t recall the last time I asked for or gave driving directions. Everybody with a smartphone (which is just about everybody these days) has GPS.

 

[Hercule]

Sad to see it become a crutch though. It seems that few these days have any real sense of direction.

 

[LizzieMaine]

I've never owned a car with a GPS, never owned a cell phone, never used anything to find my way around but maps and notes jotted down on a piece of paper. I've ridden in GPS-equipped cars, though, and I know having one with that irritating voice would drive me absolutely insane before I got to the end of my street. It would be like having my mother sitting there next to me.

 

[Hercule]

I've never owned a car with a GPS, never owned a cell phone, never used anything to find my way around but maps and notes jotted down on a piece of paper. I've ridden in GPS-equipped cars, though, and I know having one with that irritating voice would drive me absolutely insane before I got to the end of my street. It would be like having my mother sitting there next to me.

While I would tend to agree, my issue is that I want more lead time in the directions than GPS voice gives, and often I'll take a turn when I know better that the route being given. It's funny to see the GPS give up at that point.

A GPS equipped car can indeed be a godsend when renting a car in an unfamiliar city. We flew into Boston and rented a car to go down to the cape to meet up with my family for my father's 80th birthday. The GPS's "go home" feature was VERY much appreciated in that instance.

 

[LizzieMaine]

You must never have seen a Liberty Mutual commercial.

Someday that emu is going to go on a rampage and peck Doug to a pulp, and on that day, I for one shall rejoice." "Liberty liberty liberty..."

As long as we're slagging crappy TV commercials, I submit those strictly-from-hunger spots that poor facelifty Joe Namath is doing for some shady Medicare supplemental insurance scam. What's the matter, Broadway, didn't invest well?

And then there's that "it's not a spy movie, it's a Nissan commerical" skinny smug vocal-fry gal. Keep your eyes on the road, stupid. "Tick tock!"

 

[Edward]

If what you’re referring to is GPS, then yes, I use it whenever I’m headed into unfamiliar territory. Why wouldn’t I?

I don’t use the feature that talks to me and shows an animated facsimile of where I am on the road. I find that distracting. But then, I have decades of practice consulting paper maps, and the GPS as I use it is essentially an improved version thereof. I tap in the destination address before I’m out of the driveway, give it a quick once-over, and head on down the road. I consult it again as I approach the destination, so I don’t zig where I ought to zag.

I can’t recall the last time I asked for or gave driving directions. Everybody with a smartphone (which is just about everybody these days) has GPS.

Reminds me of my London A to Z. When I first moved here, everyone had one and it was superb. I don't think I've bought an updated edition now since 2008ish, because I've had maps on my phone since. I've even found my way walking hours across Beijing with a phone, which was tremendous. I don't use it too often as a matter of course, but it's wonderful to have the confidence to know that it will generally see me ok if I do wander off the beaten.

 

[tonyb]

Sad to see it become a crutch though. It seems that few these days have any real sense of direction.

There is a certain mental discipline that’s becoming less necessary. It spills over into other aspects of our existence. It frightens me when I hear serious speculation of a post-literate humanity. It doesn’t seem nearly so far-fetched as it did just a few years ago.

 

[LizzieMaine]

I've had this discussion with people -- I know quite a few folks who would consider themselves well-read, but most of their "reading" comes from audiobooks. These certainly have their place, but my argument is that having a book read to you is not the same as reading a book. When you're listening to a reading, you're taking in the reader's own perspective on the material along with it, conveyed in the pacing and the inflection of the words. Those are as much a creative choice on the part of the reader as the selection of the original words by the writer -- and they may not be the same choices or interpretations that you yourself would make in actually reading the words off the page yourself. It's a subtle difference, but it can be a very telling one -- especially in audiobooks dealing with history or controversial subjects, or even in the way we interpret fiction.

How many layers of interpretation do we want as we "consume our content?"

 

[Turnip]

I use my Navi quite frequently when driving around in Europe. There’s no better way for me to find a hotel or B&B ...I booked in a completely unknown city I drive to for first time in life, especially in southern Europe or huge cities like Paris, Amsterdam, Copenhagen...

On the other side I never listened to an audiobook and have to confess I read a lot.

 

[Zombie_61]

...A GPS equipped car can indeed be a godsend when renting a car in an unfamiliar city...

That's the only time I've ever used one of those GPS guide systems--when my wife and I were on vacation. Otherwise I prefer to look up the directions on Google maps when I'm at home, especially if I'm trying to find a residence or business I've never before been to because that "street view" function lets me see what the building looks like.

...As long as we're slagging crappy TV commercials, I submit those strictly-from-hunger spots that poor facelifty Joe Namath is doing for some shady Medicare supplemental insurance scam. What's the matter, Broadway, didn't invest well?...

I submit slurring Joe Namath as evidence that football helmets as protection devices aren't worth the dynamite it would take to blow them up. Sure, they're fine if the wearer's head only hits the Astroturf once every 1,000 games or so, but that's rarely the case and that brain sloshing around within it's bony housing is still taking on damage each time, helmet or not.

...On the other side I never listened to an audiobook and have to confess I read a lot.

I've never listened to an audio book either. If I want someone else to tell me the story I'll watch the movie.