Saturday, July 15, 2006

Random things that bug me:

1.) People who think "Blade Runner" is spelled "Bladerunner." It's two words! How hard is that?

2.) "Bling" hubcaps. Infantile.

3.) Ubiquitous weight-loss clinics. The suburbs are infested with them. So why all the fat slobs?

4.) The never-ending "its"/it's" confusion.

5.) People who think coffeeshops are ideal locations for Bible study.

6.) Forget SUVs for a moment -- what about pick-ups? Every time I see one it's inches from my rear bumper. And they're never hauling anything. One would naturally assume that pick-up trucks would be used to pick things up, but they're always empty. Not even a trace of abraded paint or dried mud that would suggest they'd ever been used for anything but hauling their obese drivers down the street.

To be continued . . .

11 comments:

Old Gary said...

In regard to pickups, you have to stand at the tailgate and look into the bed to see what they're hauling. Usually they're full of empty beer cans.

Blue Skies said...

I'm with you on the pick-up trucks... My dad used to have one, but he would actually pick things up for his job. These days it seems pick-ups are reserved for those who need to draw attention away from their tiny penises, scraggly mullets, and bad tattoos. These jerks think it's OK to ride my ass because I drive a sensible vehicle (read small), so I think it's OK to tap my breaks and watch 'em freak out.

W.M. Bear said...

Forget SUVs for a moment -- what about pick-ups? Every time I see one it's inches from my rear bumper. And they're never hauling anything. One would naturally assume that pick-up trucks would be used to pick things up, but they're always empty. Not even a trace of abraded paint or dried mud that would suggest they'd ever been used for anything but hauling their obese drivers down the street.

Right on, Mac. What I call "commuter pickups" can easily be identified by the fact that the bed is not only empty but typically still buttoned securely with the spiffy canvas cover that came with the new truck. Often these are also bulgy OVERSIZE pickups as well, whose drivers seem to consider that tailgating ordinary non-gas guzzling vehicles is not only a right but an obligation. (But don't get me started!)

However, I did have excellent luck (against all expectations) with Weight Watchers and lost well over the 50 lbs that I needed to lose. If the job market for software tech writers fail, I might seriously consider becoming a W.W. facilitator (or maybe just a 'tater!)

Kyle said...

Hey Mac -

"The never-ending "its"/it's" confusion."

In my view, it's not the severity of its misuse, but rather it's the frequency of its misuse which constitutes its propensity for bugging us. It's problems like "It's/its" that lend English its derision among its neighbors, and it's going to take a minor miracle for its users to realize that it's so often misused. Toss in a proper name like cousin "It", and it gets downright indecipherable. For example,

"It's well known that It's fond of its heavy coat and it's equally true of other Its' coats as well. It's what makes It its own best friend, and that of its fellow Its. *whew* OK, I think it's run its course.

How'd I do? LOL

Maybe I need a day job...

Kyle
UFOReflections.blogspot.com

W.M. Bear said...

Kyle -- Did you ever write for Abbott and Costello?

Mac said...

Correction: I was wrong to insinuate that pick-up drivers only use their vehicles for egotistical purposes. They also use them to Support Our Troops.

Mac said...

However, I did have excellent luck (against all expectations) with Weight Watchers and lost well over the 50 lbs that I needed to lose.

I stand corrected. At least someone's benfitting. I personally shed pounds by worrying. The "angst diet"! ;-)

Kyle said...

w.m. -

No, but if they get back together, put in a good word for me. LOL

On pickups - Here in Texas...the pickup truck capital of the Milky Way galaxy...they usually drive them not only devoid of cargo, but with the tailgate either "down", or completely removed.

While this supposedly results in some reduced drag and ergo fuel savings (debunked on the wonderful "Mythbusters"), it also nearly completely negates the benefit of having a large cargo area with which to secure things for hauling.

And of course you rarely see one without a decal...on the rear window...of a child urinating on the logo of a competing truck brand.

Finally, in a fit of hormone overdose, a very popular variant is the "Crew Cab dually"...with an extended 4-door cab and 2 wheels on each side in the rear...apparently useful for carrying ever increasingly obese kids and/or co-workers (while the bed remains typically empty).

Call it the "Big Gulp" of the showroom floor...and about as useful and intelligent.

On diets...the most effective I've found was the "divorce diet". I lost 60 pounds on that one in 6 months, and it took a full 6 years to gain it all back. :(

Kyle
UFOReflections.blogspot.com

W.M. Bear said...

On pickups - Here in Texas...the pickup truck capital of the Milky Way galaxy...

Being from (slightly north = OK) that portion of the galaxy originally, I kind of expect pickups there. What really bothers me is that this mentality seems to have seeped (I choose the verb deliberately) into the Northeast, including of all places, MA where I now cower in relative seclusion. NH, just to the North, has, I guess, become kind of "the TX of the Northeast," at least where taste (if it can be called that) in pickups and Supporting the Troops is concerned. (I've seen the kid pissing stickers right next to the gun racks!)

BTW, I think I once saw a GREEN ribbon that said "Support Our Trees." If anyone knows where to get one, I want it!

Mac said...

And of course you rarely see one without a decal...on the rear window...of a child urinating on the logo of a competing truck brand.

The truly sad thing about these -- and I see 'em all the time -- is that the kid is Calvin from the late, great strip "Calvin and Hobbes." The cartoonist, Bill Watterson, famously eschewed commercialization . . . and now look what's happened.

(I also see bogus Calvins kneeling in front of crosses. No kidding.)

Blue Skies said...

However, I did have excellent luck (against all expectations) with Weight Watchers and lost well over the 50 lbs that I needed to lose.

Congrats! I've lost 65 pounds over the past 18 mos.

they usually drive them not only devoid of cargo, but with the tailgate either "down", or completely removed.

Ugh, what the hell's that all about anyways? Frickin' idiots.

And of course you rarely see one without a decal...on the rear window...of a child urinating on the logo of a competing truck brand.

God, I hate those. I once saw one where the kid was pissing on "City Boy"...

I stand corrected. At least someone's benfitting. I personally shed pounds by worrying. The "angst diet"!

I tend to go the other way when I'm really pissed off or worried. Pizza makes me feel all warm & fuzzy inside...

BTW, I think I once saw a GREEN ribbon that said "Support Our Trees." If anyone knows where to get one, I want it!

You can find a green "Support Our Environment" ribbon at www.northernsun.com - they have a whole line of ribbon spoofs. Some are kinda lame, though.