Oh, I have one other - cops in our town are notorious for responding to accidents, etc and blocking the roadway but then don't bother to direct traffic around the incident. It's a running joke around here. The other night, my daughter had to stay very late at school. We were driving home at 9;30. We rounded a curve and there were at least 8 police cars blocking the entrance to an apartment complex and the lane of oncoming traffic. A big pickup truck was pulled over with its doors open - I'm sure it was drug bust of some sort. Cars coming toward us could not get around the police cars safely. They were not blocking my direction so we easily just continued on, but there was a long line of cars waiting to go the other direction b/c they couldn't get around the police cars. Now really, out of all those police cars, not one single cop could direct traffic?

Accelerators and turn indicators. Pity so many cars today don't come equipped with them.

#1. Passwords. It seems every site has different requirements. Capital letters required or not, a number required or prohibited, an odd symbol required or prohibited, a password you never used before or is not similar to one you used before, and so on. Can't we just have one rule for all??

I tried to retrieve my forgotten password for my online prescription provider and they required me to enter my password to change it. WTF?? I'm doing this because I FORGOT my password.

#2. Presidential elections. Enough said.

Grocery store express lanes. 15 items or less, means you use the fingers on both hands and one set of toes. If you have more than this many items, go to another lane. Last night I just wanted beer to go with the pizza (which was done and waiting to be picked up.) A woman slid into the express lane in front of me with one of the mini buggies, loaded. After she meticulously emptied all 35 items onto the belt, she then dictated how they were to be bagged, used coupons, and then couldn't figure out how to make the new CC reader work. Meanwhile I got hotter and hotter, and the pizza got colder and colder.

I asked once why the cashier didn't suggest she go elsewhere, he said they're not allowed.

Political and religious posts, videos and memes on Facebook, that cause me to seriously re-evaluate being "friends" with the people who post them. I may need to take a vacation from FB until after the elections next year.

People who drive with their hazard lights on in rain or fog or other similar situations. I find it hazardous.

Rant over.

All sorts of traffic things drive me nuts. Today it was 62 degrees with a very light rain. An amazing number of people were driving like it was 32 degrees and they were afraid the roads would freeze.

My own mini-rant of the moment though is recipes that call for a "size" of something. Dear recipe writer: I have no idea what you consider to be 4 medium sized sweet potatoes. Would it kill you to weigh the damned potatoes so I'd have something real to work with?

Roses, my favorite vegetable recipe calls for "one handful of green beans per person". Now that kind of measuring I can get behind. Easy at the store!

Tishtosh........not sure what grade you are talking about, but when my kids were in grade school I volunteered one day a week to call parents who had not called to report their child was sick. It was a safety measure.

One morning I called a parent who said her daughter was not sick and should be at school. I went directly to the principal. The principal double checked with the teacher and we fanned out checking the bathrooms and grounds. It seems the girl had missed the bus and instead of going home she decided to walk to school. Her mother found her in her neighborhood.....fortunately!

So there is a good reason why you should call in every day. The school can't just assume that because Johnny was sick yesterday he is sick today.

bpat - A "handful" I'm okay with. Share your recipe?

So many things change over time. I've run across recipes that call for a large container of something. A "large" container then (and there) is probably a totally different animal than a large container now (and here). List a weight or volume (a handful is a volume even though that will vary a bit from person to person).

And especially now that the large containers are now smaller but still the same price as the used-to-be large containers. (and they think they're fooling us with this little trick) Oh oh - another rant!

Joanie, I understand to a degree, but for one thing, it is an automated system that calls so there is no one to talk to see if this was a mistake or not, you have to call back and it is often a crapshoot if you can get someone in the office. It also happens that if one of my kids is sick, there is a good chance I am too and the phone ringing is going to be disturbing somebody who is hopefully sleeping. I understand too that not all children have the same home situation so it is important for them but I was ranting about what it means to me personally. Coupled with that is the schools big push for attendance, which I agree is very important, but it also often means sending a kid to school before he is truly ready to be back. When that is coupled with a policy of only being able to get the make up work back in according to the number of days the child was absent, what you end up with is a kid who needs to come home and rest but really has a lot of work to do. Again though, it is mainly just a rant.

Roses, here ya go, it's Sautéed Green Beans with Nutmeg from Saving Dinner by Leeann Ely:

Wash a handful of green beans for each person. De-string the beans and snap them in half. Steam them, or boil them in a skillet half-full of water, until bright green (they will still be a little undercooked). Strain and set aside.

in a skillet, heat 2 Tablespoons of butter and a splash of olive oil over medium-high heat and add the beans. Add salt and pepper to taste and sauté for about 2-3 minutes. Add a generous dash of nutmeg and sauté another minute or two. The beans should be tender, not mushy.

(Note, this is a Thanksgiving recipe so the 2 Tblspns is for 12 handfuls of beans. When I make it for just us few I use a bit less butter. )

Now, notice there aren't a lot of measurements here! "Splash", "to taste", "dash". Those don't help you any more than "medium potatoes", but "handful" is easy, even if it is different depend ding on whose hand. And it's cooking, not baking, so precision doesn't really matter anyway (or so I figure)

dedtired, I use LastPass to solve the password problem. I HIGHLY recommend it. I use multiple computers so I can sign into it on different browsers and it keeps track of all of my passwords for me.

Getting on to an elevator with someone who just smoked. The smell is disgusting. And it's so much worse with the cold weather.

USPS. Too many fails to mention. He's 67 and ready for retirement. He NEVER puts the flag down after taking/dropping mail in the box. NEVER! Two days ago he left a box on the front step. It rained all day. We have a huge covered porch. WTH?

USPS. Our post office doesn't answer the phone because it's busy. It's busy because it's off the hook. :(

Green beans by the handful? Depends. My grandkids love green beans and each one can eat three of my handfuls. It can be their meal. :)

Thanks, Beagles. I really do need to use a password-remembering site. I have a bunch written down but sometimes I am too lazy to get up and find the paper!

"Unsubscribing" the flurry of daily junk emails I never subscribed to in the first place.

dedtired, I bought a little booklet in a stationery store that is specifically for keeping passwords.

Jlc712, I so agree! I have friends who have taken half their friends off the Facebook friends list due to the political and religious none stop posts. The ones I find particularly annoying are the people who self appoint as the "True facts" person and back it up with articles, news clips and so on that only show their personal or parties view. Then, they write about how ill informed everyone Is, except them of course. Often there are facts but it almost always does not cover the whole truth.

Getting on to an elevator with someone who just smoked. The smell is disgusting. And it's so much worse with the cold weather.

Yes, that is horrible. Holding one's breath for a 20-floor ride is not easy to do. What's even worse is getting into an empty elevator after someone who has just gotten off has farted. This has happened to me several times in the workplace, and it's just awful! Not only do you have to keep from breathing, but you also pray that the car won't stop and let someone else on, for fear they'll think you were the culprit.

Gah. Humans!

Jen, LOL! :D

I was in a store recently, and someone near me did that, then walked off. It was bad, I mean my eyes were watering and it almost made me dry heave. Before I could get away, someone else walked up to browse, and I still cringe, wondering if they thought the noxious gas cloud was my doing. :( I just wanted to yell, "It wasn't me! I'll swear it in a court of law!"

Getting on a elevator with someone who just smoked? How about with someone who smokes, period? The odor lingers forever on the smoker's hair, clothes, possessions. You can smell a smoker's car as you walk through a parking lot. Our house used to house a smoker; on humid days the odor from his study emerges, and we've been here 12 years. It must have impregnated the drywall and wood floor.

Yes! It also happened to me two weeks ago at Home Goods! I was looking at candles, and a man walked up right behind me and tooted! The smell wrapped around my throat and threatened to snuff the life out of me, so I immediately turned, shot him my best "you're a pig!" look and hurried off.

That's one way to get the whole candle aisle to yourself, buddy. Then again, he apparently was in desperate need of a more pleasant scent.

OMG! AuntJen! After reading that, I'm so glad I don't work in a high rise! ah!!

Tib, you nailed one for me, for the last two weeks my email has just been inundated with crackpot emails that they expect me to unsubscribe to...I've started reporting them as spam instead.

I too cannot stand the smell of smoke, I go in to doctors offices for work and many of them wreak of it. Seeing someone smoking outside of an oncology clinic is the worst. How idiotic is that?

Today I was at the grocery store and it was packed, so I have to say that people leaving their carts in the middle of the isle or walking down the middle of the parking lane (so cars can't get past them) is also pretty annoying.

Speaking of shopping carts, I hate it when people take the cart out to their car and then leave the cart in the parking space. Or slightly off to the side where you can get in but possibly the person collecting carts will scratch your car trying to extract it.

Ugh, back with a rant over something that just happened.

If I order pizza once a year, I'd be surprised. I'm not a big pizza eater. However, my kitchen is halfway demolished (by me), and I just didn't feel like fixing my own dinner tonight, so I ordered a pizza - figuring I'd also get a few meals out of it in the coming days when I have no kitchen at all.

I've never been to this place. They don't have delivery. You drive to get the pizza and park outside in a reserved spot and they bring the pizza out to you. You are not allowed to go in to get the to-go pizza.

So the guy comes out with my pizza, which comes to $18.06. I hand him a $20 and fish out a dime and a penny, having no nickels.

He says, Thank you, have a good night, and leaves!

I sat there dumbfounded. Where's my change? This is the new thing? YOU have to go to get your pizza, cannot go in to the restaurant to get it yourself per their rules, and you tip someone for bringing your pizza to your car??

Just charge me $20 for the darn pizza!

BTw, the pizza's pretty good, but I won't be ordering from them again. That was a big turnoff.

Tib I would call and speak to the manager; my bet is that the kid is most likely breaking house rules and needs to be told to start delivering people's change. It would be sad for them to loose your business over that and it's even a worse loss if the pizza is good. (Good pizza is not easy to find!)

My biggest rant is towards thoughtless, selfish people. This includes so many pet peeves, my hand would get tired typing.

But, for one, those who drive in the left lane and don't move over when someone is behind them. Not those who need to turn left soon, of course. But 5 miles ahead and you need to turn left? Move over.

People that park in school parking lots, ignoring the signs that say that it is only for staff parking, when picking up/dropping off their children. It as though the rules don't apply to them...or that walking a half a block from the car to school might be too much. This also applies to people who have handicapped parking stickers, so they park in the handicapped parking spots to pick up their children, who are not handicapped. I suspect the driver is, but they are not getting out of their vehicles. Grrrrr....

Clearly, special snowflakes are all around us... (love that phrase, Deee!)

Tib wrote: "So the guy comes out with my pizza, which comes to $18.06. I hand him a $20 and fish out a dime and a penny, having no nickels."

I think when you pay that way it looks like you don't want the change back. If you hadn't added the coins, he probably would have given you your change. Maybe.

Agree w/Bumbleeez re: left-lane cruisers. That lane is not for cruising. It's for passing.

I won't go back to that pizza place because I almost never buy pizza. I was just so stunned that 1) it would be deemed a tipping situation since you have to drive over to get the pizza; 2) the place doesn't let you come in to pick up the pizza; 3) someone has to open a door and bring you your pizza.

Also, that he just assumed I was tipping him was stunning to me. To me, it was part and parcel of this bizarre thing going on where people just feel entitled to your money. I have never seen what happened last night happen. You assume the person wants change unless they specifically say, "Give me $1 back, or keep the change" or whatever. There was just something so wrong with making people come drive over to get their pizza, not allow them to go inside to pick it up themselves and then expect a tip!

It was just weird and I think worthy of a mini rant!

It drives me crazy to hear dogs barking non stop while their owners do nothing. We have one dog and owner in particular that is guilty of this. Every weekday between 5:30 & 6:00 am, his owner lets her out to bark while he gets ready for work. We don't have to get up until 8:00. His neighbor is just as bad in that she lets her dog out so it can go poop in everyone else's yard; we've caught the dog in our yard several time. Both owners leave their dogs outside unattended which to me is just mind baffling. We've taught our dog to stay in the yard and not to bark insistently but we still don't leave her unattended!

Tib, while I agree with you, had you walked in and picked it up yourself, there would have been a tip jar at the counter anyway. Obviously, at that point, at least it's then your choice whether or not to tip, but tip jars are everywhere. That's a related rant...tip jars. I hate them!!!

Lukki, I'm a dog owner but I totally agree. We have someone in our neighborhood who does the same but I don't know who it is. None of my close by neighbors have dogs, so I can't figure out where it is coming from. My dog only occasionally barks when outside and I purposely do not let him out in the morning unless I walk outside with him to make sure there are no dogs or foxes around. And never that early! Sometimes during the day, he's outside alone but if I hear him bark at a passerby, I immediately go out and get him and bring him in. Yesterday, we went for a walk and I could hear this dog barking from blocks away. As we passed the house, I could see a woman standing by the fence on the opposite side of the yard, just watching him bark and bark. He continued to bark until we were several blocks beyond the house. All I could think was how rude that was for her poor neighbors, but at least it was 9:30am and not while people are still sleeping soundly.

No, 4kids, you are not allowed to go in to pick up the pizza. You HAVE to wait in the car.

I totally get tipping delivery people and waitpeople who carry heavy plates of food and drinks and are back and forth all the time taking care of a table. I do not understand creating a situation where the customer HAS to drive over (no delivery available) but also HAS to stay in their car...and then we're supposed to tip someone for bringing a pizza to our car??

It was just weird. If it was an option, for people who don't want to get out of their cars, I'd get it. But it is not an option at this place.

I also couldn't understand the kid just assuming there was a tip!

It was just a very strange experience.

4kids, I'm sorry you're in the same boat as I am; it's so unnerving. I don't mind a dog barking especially when they're playing or there is something to bark at, that's their job. Our's will bark then as well but this dog just stands there and barks non stop at nothing and the owner doesn't seem to give a hoot. We have ordinances but they have to be barking when the sheriff arrives...fat chance of that happening. Do you have fenced yards in your neighborhood? Where we are, everything is open with no physically fenced yards, so we can sit outside and watch the dog just stand there and bark. Electric fences are great but aren't fail proof which is why I said they shouldn't be left unattended. Our dog is beyond good about staying in the yard, we don't even use a collar at home but every time the battery dies on that barker, she's off visiting the neighbor's barking at them from outside of their front door! She made it to our house once too and she's actually very sweet. She just wants some attention so I don't blame the dog at all. Dogs that bark like that are typically ignored and bored, which she is. I feel badly for her.

Our next door neighbor's dog would be in the backyard, right next to our bedroom, barking at all hours of the night. I thought, wow, they get up in the middle of the night to let the dog out. At first I thought the dog was sick and had to be let out, but it went on and on. I finally had to talk to them. Turns out they had a doggie door. I didn't know you could put a doggie door in a slider, which is why I thought they were letting the dog out. They were embarrassed and apologized profusely and I never heard the dog again.

Meanwhile my neighbor across the street would tie their little yapper to a tree in the front yard and it would bark nonstop. I would think " do you not hear the constant barking? So rude and inconsiderate!" I never said anything but someone must have because it's been awhile since they've left the dog out there.

I detest the practice used in most of the club-type stores (Costco, BJs etc) as well as some general emporiums like Home Depot of having to stop at the door to give an attendant your receipt so s/he can then review the cart contents before allowing you to leave. I strongly resent being treated by default as if I'm a shoplifter. What really infuriates me is to be expected to stand and WAIT IN LINE to be treated like a shoplifter! One holiday at the end of an aggravating shopping trip I saw a long, long line of people and simply rolled my cart past them and out the door. The attendant hollered at me and I merrily answered 'no problem, if you want to check my cart you can follow me out to my car' because darn it I had already braved the jammed parking lot, crowds in the store, an eternal line to check out and I was *finished*.

I do not understand why some people get dogs. the people behind me have a sweet golden retriever and they put her outside on one of those tethers on a line for hours and hours. Pouring rain, lightning and thunder storms, threat of coyotes...I have heard that dog whimpering to be let in at 3 in the morning in a massive thunderstorm. She has NO defense should a coyote attack her. when they first moved in, I did go to speak to the owner, who of course was very defensive, but it was July, 90 degrees out, and I pointed out to him that he didn't even have a bowl of water out for her, no shelter for her (which is actually illegal), and I have heard sounds come from that dog that are unbearable to listen to, have cried over it, and as I said to my father, "listening to another living creature suffering is a form of torture."

I have called Animal Control on them four times; I've hinted around to find someone willing to steal the dog;...it's been a nightmare. Problem is, there aren't a lot of people around here, and I'm scared of these people and that they'll do something to me or my house if they think it's me calling Animal Control and the MSPCA, But i've finally got a new neighbor, a beefy guy who loves dogs, and he said he's not afraid and he'll confront them directly AND make calls to Animal Control and the MSPCA if I ask him to. My other neighbor, with whom I am friendly, I tried to enlist to make a call but she said she's scared of them too. I'm glad this guy has moved in now. Hopefully we'll eventually get the dog taken from them.

I cannot understand cruelty to animals and children.

runninginplace, don't blame the stores; blame the shoplifters who create the situation where people's carts have to be checked.

running, I'm with you. You don't treat customers like potential criminals because of the actions of the minority. Once I've paid for those items they are MINE and I don't feel that store employees have the right to detain and question me. I'm surprised they still do this.

Besides, WTH am I supposed to be stealing between the checkout register and the store exit? They may consider this a crime deterrent but this is one of the reasons I won't shop at Costco or Sam's. Well, that and the fact that I don't need to buy most things in bulk.

Well, Macy's does it too, only with tags on the clothes and "detectors" at the door. And if it goes off because the clerk didn't remove the tag you have to haul yourself back to find a salesclerk (good luck with that) to remove the tag. The public Library, too. As for Costco, well, you don't go there for the pleasant experience. You go for the $1.50 hot dog and a large soft drink.

Tibbrix, we have a place like that, there is a "reserved space" for takeout orders but you have to stay in your car because technically it is not a real parking spot (would hinder emergency vehicle access) so the car cannot be unattended or you will be ticketed and/or towed. You can "stop" there but not park there.

Or perhaps the pizza is just a front for another type of business?

The tip thing does sound very annoying.

Legally, you don't have to show your receipt unless it's a store where a membership is required. I always show my receipt because I don't think it's a big deal but DH refuses and he's never been detained or anything.

Many years ago, we bought a DVD player at Wal-Mart. DH had the box and I had the receipt. As we approached the greeter, he put the box under his arm like a football, the other arm extended to deflect a linebacker and he took off running for the door. The greeter had a freak out, screaming "Sir!" "Sir!" I came up behind her with the receipt and she said, "Does he always do stuff like that?" I said, "Unfortunately yes" and she just laughed. It could have ended much differently but it's provided us with a pretty funny story!

LOL, Magdalena! That's hilarious, I can just picture it. :D

Off on a petty tangent here, but permit me to rant about grown women who talk in a breathy, little girl baby voice. I'm watching Fixer Upper and have had my ears assaulted by two women with the worst whiiiiiiines and squeals and it's very affected and dare I say STUPID sounding.

Of course, I think my opinion is colored by having known women who spoke this way and tried to convey a meek and mild, sugary sweet manner. They would've ripped out your spleen and had it for lunch if you dared to ever disagree with them.

Fake sugar babies. Yuck.

Oh Tib!! I wanted to cry just reading your post. I'm glad that you have a new neighbor that may be able to rectify the situation. Actually, I hope he beats the crap out of them :c) What the hell is wrong with people!!! I was told when we bought our house that the guy who lived here before us treated his dogs in a similar fashion, the house smelled of urine and ropes were still tied to the trees; it really sickened me. We replaced everything that we could, appliances, doors, trim, floors, hardware, fixtures anything that could come off just to get his "negative energy" out of the house. IMO stealing a dog thats suffering like that isn't stealing, it's rescuing. And I'm just curious, if you've called animal control, why haven't they taken the animal from those people? what good are they if they don't protect animals in need of rescuing? GRRR....

Tib, I didn't express myself clearly. I know you were not allowed to go inside. What I meant was, at a typical pizza shop, if you call and order then drive there and pick up your pizza at the counter, there is still a tip jar at the counter. While it is voluntary, it's still in your face, you know? Like they are trying to make me feel guilty if I don't tip as if they put some hard effort into getting my pizza off the top of the oven and handing it to me. I'm just so tired of the expectation of a tip everywhere you go these days. But boy, to not even give you your change? That's nuts.

I've learned two new adjectives which I will need to use "special snowflake" and "fake sugar babies".