My Top 10 List--(I Have More!)

by SuzyQ
(Richmond, VA)

Fortunately, I am not a violent person, so whatever anger I feel tends to boil up inside me. One of the ways I get my anger and frustration out is writing e-mails to my more understanding friends. (I've lost a few along the way because my rage was sometimes a little too much.) Or, writing posts like this.

There are so many things that annoy and anger me. And as I get older, the lists gets longer. Am I losing my patience more? Are other people more incompetent? Has everyone forgotten the "golden rule?"

Here is my personal top 10 list of things that get me really angry (in no particular order):

- Companies that deliberately use voice mail systems to avoid letting you talk to a live, customer service representative. Banks and utilities are notorious for having inescapable telephone trees that keep you going in circles for what seems like hours on end. C'mon folks, our time is valuable, too.

- People who cut in line after you've been waiting patiently for your turn. It especially gets me riled up on highways when lanes are being reduced or as you approach toll plazas. Some clown just cruises down the lane and slips in front of everyone else. (That's when I feel like shooting out their tires.)

- People who smoke in non-smoking areas, flagrantly disregarding the rules and blowing their second-hand smoke in the face of others. Yuck.

- Finding out that your favorite products are shrinking, but no one has bothered to tell you. Sneaky packaging tricks have now reduced the contents of many food products by up to 25%, but on the surface, the container looks the same size. The price hasn't changed, so you aren't aware there is less inside until you run out days before you should. Have you noticed that your half-gallon of ice cream is now just 1.5 quarts??

- Bosses who hire you for your experience and competence but then try to sabotage you. These immature and insecure people make your life miserable the minute you start to use the skills for which you were hired.

- People who adopt or buy pets and then neglect them. This is downright wrong. I guess this could be expanded to people as well. People who can't afford or don't want kids should learn to practice birth control or should do the right thing and offer the child up for adoption.

- Bible bangers who try and convert you. There is freedom of religion in this country and it really gets me angry when some religious fanatic tries to convince me that their beliefs are better than mine. They tell me I am going to roast in hell if I don't convert immediately. Really?

- People who file trivial lawsuits and the lawyers who accept them. These cases clog up our court system and prevent bona fide litigation from getting resolved. A "quick and speedy trial" doesn't seem to be the order for anyone unless you're O.J. Simpson.

- The high cost and inability for most people to get quality medical care. Doctors have been deified and now they are more interested in how much money they can suck from you. My last physical exam cost me $194 and all the doctor did was wave a tongue depressor around. She didn't even take my temperature! 10 minutes later, she pronounced me "healthy."

- People who text message while they're talking to me, without saying "excuse me." The same goes for people who want to meet for lunch or dinner, and then spend half or the time talking to someone else on their cell phone!

- Free offers that really aren't free. Free means "no cost," but so many of these "free" offers charge a fee for "shipping and handling" or "processing," so it's not really "free." Or, they come with requirements that you accept a partner's offer which DOES cost money. I've finally learned to ignore anything that promises to be free, since there's no such thing as a "free" lunch!

These things are among my top pet peeves and things that can really set me off. I'm sure I'm not alone in feeling this way. Unfortunately, the only person that can be controlled in these situations is ME. I have the choice as to whether or not these things should affect me.

AH... I feel SO much better now!

Response from Dr. DeFoore

Thanks SuzyQ, for a great contribution! I like how you take total responsibility at the end of your story. You're right, you always have a choice in how to respond.