Innocuous things that make you irrationally angry (a list thread)

Hey, AA. You're from Oz, right? Between which floors in the picture below does the wall change color?

http://s3.amazonaws.com/sfb111/story_xlimage_2010_12_R3878_NYC_RESCUE_MISSION_PLANS_EXPANSION12022010.jpg

was gonna start a thread about the "morning person" thing. it's totally unacceptable. it's as if you're not responsible for your own behaviour because of the time of day.

i'm not a fucking winter solstice person.

I just realized that I really hate the tendency for American cookies to be soft. Like everyone wants them to be 'just out of the oven soft' but they've been out of the oven forever and it's not natural for them to be bendy and strange.

My rage knows no bounds.

Between which floors in the picture below does the wall change color?

Atrium and mezzanine.

oh ffs.

I don't get angry, but I have no idea what button to push when I'm in an Australian elevator. The FIRST floor and the GROUND floor can be the same thing!

Weird, every building I've ever been in has separate G and 1st floors.

Not pointed at you and not about building floors but I have another list item:

- Americans who notice something done differently in another country and assume that country is a special case, when in fact the entire world does it that way and it's America that's the odd one out

A good example is when loads of Americans assume the spelling of colour with the U is 'the British spelling' when in fact it's got a U in pretty much the whole English-speaking world. Somehow they come out of it going 'oh that country is just weird, we "color" spellers are all normal'.

No, that's a good one. At least you can legally drive 100 in almost every other country but the US.

But count the windows. 1 - 2 - 3 - 4! The color changes between the third and fourth floors!

I do have to admit, having a separate ground floor is a bit mental. Appaz in France the bottom floor is 1 as well.

^ this is another thing I have to over-think since moving to the US. I think the UK style (ground - 1st- 2nd etc) makes more "sense" - you would generally call the surface at ground level 'the floor' or 'the ground' (ha) rather than the 1st floor. But I prefer the US way when I'm actually using it.

My logic leans toward real-estate descriptions. What do you call a house without multiple stories? A single-story or one-story dwelling. So, if there is another story added, you've got two stories. Hence, the top floor should be the "second story."

The UK/AU way is comparable to why people say 2000 was still part of the 20th century when in every other volume or measure of quantity, the cut-off would be between 99 and 100.

A good example is when loads of Americans assume the spelling of colour with the U is 'the British spelling' when in fact it's got a U in pretty much the whole English-speaking world.

NOT A CHANCE, HOT PANTS. The so-called British spellings were transmitted to the rest of the English-speaking world FROM BRITAIN. We just decided, for better or worse, not to keep them. So step off.

um I think you missed my point.

- When you ask for help with a tech problem and people 'help' you by demanding you do 39873924273894 things that won't make any difference. This is worst of all when you have a wireless network problem and the proposed solution is the standard 'remove all wireless devices, restart your router, check for interference' garbage.

I didn't miss the point of you making fun of Americans for tagging the "now with 100% extra U!" spellings as "British."

Then I suppose part two of that point is

- Americans who get irrationally defensive

I think AA was trying to comment on Americans missing that other countries do the same thing.

Like how disgusted I was when I learned that Canadian Peter Jennings used to say "schedule" in that mushy jelly-mouthed way the Brits say it. I thought those people were Americans like us!

The first part, which is that we think everything is like American, is fine -- it's hardly limited to Americans, but we def take part in it, so fair game.

The second part, which is that we're somehow delusional in labeling U spellings as "British," is bullshit.

- When you ask for help with a tech problem and people 'help' you by demanding you do 39873924273894 things that won't make any difference. This is worst of all when you have a wireless network problem and the proposed solution is the standard 'remove all wireless devices, restart your router, check for interference' garbage.

having known a bunch of people who worked in tech support, I can tell you that the reason they do this is because 99% of people who call tech support don't do all the basic checks before asking for help

but yeah, it is annoying

I think German does the .au/.uk thing for floors too, so it's not just a wacky British invention. Erdgeschoss (ground floor) - 1. Stock - 2. Stock.

Argh I hate the word "schedule", I can never remember which pronunciation is which, and it keeps coming up in work meetings.

PP otm. It's like, say, if Barry Bumpants (no nationality) sees a steering wheel in a Toyota and assumes steering wheels are a Toyota thing.

Laurel, calm down, yeah? Unless you're irrationally angry, in which case knock yourself out.

Peter: Yeah, I've been on that end too, but there are people who don't have a clue how to handle an issue and make demands based on guesswork. It's that very specific part that gets up my arse.

Barry Bumpants definitely a Britishes name.

Yours is a complaint that I have to listen to A LOT of. My patience for it is completely worn out.

I think German does the .au/.uk thing for floors too, so it's not just a wacky British invention.

Yeah, I was taught in high-school Spanish class that it was a Spanish thing.

I guess the way I figure it -- having just come back from Australia -- is that if you're in an elevator that has both "1" and "G," the "G" is probably your safest bet. (Unless it seems like it might be some off-limits maintenance-crew floor.)

Yeah, 1 is above G. G, 1, 2.

fwiw I've been in a load of countries (BRAGGIN 2010) and have only ever seen buildings with a G floor (unless I've just not been paying attention).

Canada seemed to have this down. No #13, but that's another issue.

American elevators have the G button too, but the next button is '2'.

Lee Harvey Oswald shot JFK from the Sixth Floor, not the fifth.

I would add computer applications which provide a choice between 'English' and 'UK English' but, again, rational anger.

xp I live on the first floor of a two-storey building (there is no second floor). I know.

Peter is right, the reason you're asked to do a load of things when troubleshooting IT issues is because the majority of people are lying fuckheads who never do these things, and lie to your face that they have, and that nothing changed.

"Oh i didnt change anything" = "well there was a lightning storm and I also havent paid my phone bill but whats that got to do with anything?"

Fuckin idiots.

- Americans who notice something done differently in another country and assume that country is a special case, when in fact the entire world does it that way and it's America that's the odd one out

― leo tldrstoy (Autumn Almanac), Monday, December 13, 2010 4:46 PM Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

A good example is when loads of Americans assume the spelling of colour with the U is 'the British spelling' when in fact it's got a U in pretty much the whole English-speaking world. Somehow they come out of it going 'oh that country is just weird, we "color" spellers are all normal'.

― leo tldrstoy (Autumn Almanac), Monday, December 13, 2010 4:49 PM Bookmark

But Americans make up like 2/3 to 3/4 of the people who speak English as a first language. Also, it's really pretty understandable to think this way while you are IN THE UNITED STATES.

Which floor was built first?

(Okay, I've hammered my point.)

But Americans make up like 2/3 to 3/4 of the people who speak English as a first language. Also, it's really pretty understandable to think this way while you are IN THE UNITED STATES.

― mandatorily joined parties (Hurting 2), Monday, December 13, 2010 5:35 PM (32 seconds ago) Bookmark

owned

Also, it's really pretty understandable to think this way while you are IN THE UNITED STATES.

― mandatorily joined parties (Hurting 2), Tuesday, 14 December 2010 09:35 (28 seconds ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

On the whole Americans are far worse at it than any English-speaking nationality I've come across. Also spelling was just an example; see my Barry Bumpants post.

On the whole Americans are far worse at it than any English-speaking nationality I've come across.

oh well that settles it, then

I've never seen "English" or "UK English", just "English" or "International English", which makes me feel like maybe it is the special option to get a voice track of someone shouting very slowly "OK - YOU NO SPEAKEE ENGLISH SO GOOD - CLICKEE HERE, CAPISCE" at me.

We get it, you hate us awful Americans, point made. Can we move on now?

Then I suppose part two of that point is

- Americans who get irrationally defensive

― leo tldrstoy (Autumn Almanac), Tuesday, 14 December 2010 09:15 (25 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

But Americans make up like 2/3 to 3/4 of the people who speak English as a first language. Also, it's really pretty understandable to think this way while you are IN THE UNITED STATES.

Seriously? Theres more Americans than Ukers + Australians + South Africans + Indians?

Adam cut it out with the American ragging, its actually a bit annoying.

ahahahaha @ indians, yes, because ALL OF THEM SPEAK ENGLISH

I consciously refer to it as British spelling to help raise awareness about imperialism.

gbx: I know they dont, but a fuck of a lot do.

plz remember that America has the 5th largest population in the world

oops, THIRD

I thought most of that was holograms and cartoon characters.

Adam cut it out with the American ragging, its actually a bit annoying.

― Sookie G Stackedgarten (Trayce), Tuesday, 14 December 2010 09:41 (33 seconds ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

OH FOR FUCK'S SAKE. I made a perfectly fucking sensible point in a thread for precisely that sort of thing, you people do not need to go off-tap.

if you think that 10% of indians speak english as their first language, then yes, i guess you'd be right

According to Wiki its about 220,000 (Indians with EFL). 4 million in Nigeria, fwiw.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cc/English_dialects1997_modified.svg/500px-English_dialects1997_modified.svg.png

usa, usa usa