Crankiness

There are so many things that make me cranky. Here's just a few of them...

1. Incorrect punctuation/spelling.

To me, there is no better way to reveal your ignorance than by writing an entire paragraph without a lick of punctuation.

weve all seen those posts and stuff that dont have any capital letters no commas no periods no nothing and they run on and on theres no way to know where one sentence ends and the next begins it really makes it difficult to understand what you are trying to say i mean i can understand not having commas where theyre supposed to be who the hell can figure that out anyway i would think though that a person can figure out where to put the period.

I often wonder what Mrs. Margaris would think about texting and Facebook and the tendency to use abbreviations for words. I think it would make her perfectly shaped helmet of hair stand on end.

2. Incorrect usage of homophones (words that sound the same but are spelled differently and have different meanings).

This one almost makes me crankier than the punctuation thing. I see it all the time, everywhere. In the newspaper, in articles on the web, in Facebook posts. And some of these things are being written and edited by people with advanced degrees. Here's a list of just a few. This is a very short list and there are SO MANY MORE I couldn't begin to list them all. Here's a link if you want to know more:

http://www.homophone.com/index.php

You're - Contraction for "you are"
Your    - possessive pronoun, indicates ownership

     You're stupid.
     Your stupidity is showing again.

They're - Contraction for "they are"
Their    - possessive pronoun, indicates ownership by a group
There   - indicates placement

     They're stupid.
     Their stupidity is showing again.
     Go over there and be stupid.

Accept - to take what is offered
Except  - to exclude something

     Just accept the fact that you are stupid.
     He's cute, except for the fact that he's stupid.

3. Putting empty containers back on the shelf.

If the bag or the box or bottle or whatever container is empty, THROW THE DAMN THING AWAY!! I realize that it's a whole three extra steps to the garbage can, but you people are young. You can handle it.

4. People who drive 20 mph regardless of the posted speed limit and come to a full stop at every corner even if they don't have a stop sign.

I know it's a big scary world and lots of people drive like maniacs. But still. It really is okay to do the speed limit. Maybe even a teeny bit more than the posted speed limit.

5. Emergency Broadcast System Tests.

I completely understand the need for the EBS. But it never fails. The test always comes at some critical point in the show that I am watching. Why can't they ever happen during the commercials??

6. Drinking the last cold pop and not putting any more back in the fridge.

The box is sitting beside the fridge. Take one out of the fridge, put one back in the fridge. It's not rocket science and it won't take but a second.

7. The Weather Channel

Local information used to scroll along the bottom of the screen and it was handy to flip over there to see how warm or cold it was outside. Now, someone in their infinite wisdom, has decided to scroll information for lots of major cities around the country rather than just the town where you are watching. This wouldn't be a problem for me IF I lived in one of the major cities. But I don't. And, I recently stayed overnight in Helena and noticed that THEY still had their local weather at the bottom of the screen. What's up with that?

And this is a very SHORT list. I could write a post a day, twice a day, every day there are that many things that make me cranky these days.

And the older I get, the more things there are that make me cranky. I was just on the phone with my friend Shelli and she reminded me of another one - cars parked in front of the house that are left running with the music blaring. So not only do I have to listen to (and smell) the gigantic diesel pickup running, I also have to hear the bass thumping so hard it rattles my windows!! Yea!!

I remind me more and more of my grandma, Etta Mae. Those of you who went to Flathead High School might remember her - or at least her name. She ran the A La Carte counter in the cafeteria for like, ever - Etta's Corner.

And she was cranky. And loud. And she cussed. And smoked. And hollered at all of us grand kids all the time. (My cousin Laura even named her Harley after her). AND she was one of those 20 mph drivers - 10 if the weather was bad.

BUT - she was also one of the strongest women I have ever known. She raised 10 kids of her own and mothered probably 1000s more. So, maybe she was entitled to be a little cranky. But as much as she hollered, she laughed that much and more. I miss her every day.

So, maybe it's okay for me to be a little cranky too. As long as I keep remembering to find something to laugh about too.