Peeves in General

[fantasy]

I know there is one for Fanfiction, so I thought I'd make one for real life too... and because I need to let off some steam.

My biggest peeve (not including anything work related) is idiot drivers on the road.

Coming home from work today, I was at the traffic lights with a car in front of me. I was next to the turning lane entry. The car behind me starts beeping its horn at me, telling me to move up so a car could get past me. Thing is, I couldn't move anywhere and the car in question was behind her trying to squeeze past in the bike lane. She kept beeping her horn and making angry gestures at me that I was so tempted to respond with a rude gesture or something to show that she was being stupid. Thing is, three other cars had managed to squeeze past.

Then, it is two lanes from where I work all the way to my house. She sat on my bum the entire time. I don't know how many times she nearly hit me when I had to break suddenly due to other cars. There were so many times she could have over taken me, but no, she decides to glare at me the entire time, regardless of the fact that I was doing the speed limit. I was so tempted just to go very slow.

Right, that's my rant done and I feel a lot more relaxed.

[Kitty279]

Good idea to start such a thread

Idiot indeed! Some drivers are like that, sadly. PIty that one wasn't caught for ignoring all distance rules ... I don't know about you, but here there's a rule of 'half tachometer in meters', which means, if you are driving 100, you should have at least 50 meters distance to the car before you. Not that it is really kept, particularly in the cities, but still ... Besides, coming so dangerously close should make it his fault if something happens.

I once had such an idiot who took offense that I actually kept the speed limit outside, which was 100 km/h, and came so close that I could only see half his engine hood in my rear mirror, can you imagine that? With that speed? If I had to even take speed away, never mind brake he'd have crashed into me. It makes me so angry when people are that careless.

But the worst situation I had so far was this: I was on a four-lane road, which means two lanes in every direction, and was driving on the left one. The right lane besides me was empty, had been since the last traffic light, and far back on that right lane was one of these huge car transport trucks with a few cars on it. The road was completely straight, without any bends. Ahead of us, there was a rebuilding place where the right lane was closed and all traffic was supposed to filter in and pass in single file on the left lane.
Okay, I was nearly at that narrow place and suddenly that car transport truck came at high speed from right behind, overtook me and - with not even his own length distance from the rebuilding site - cut in before me. Only way I could avoid a crash was that I slammed the brakes in at full force - and even so, that idiot missed me by about a hand. I could have killed him, I can tell you - from his high seat, he must have seen the rebuilding site from far ahead and should have filtered in somewhere behind me, instead that idiot speed up and cut me in such a dangerous way after overtaking a number of cars - and I know he was that far behind initially. What if he had crashed into me with that stupid manoeuvre? And worse, if the cars on it had come crashing down as well? Needless to say, I was shaking for the rest of the way home. At least the cars behind had seen what the idiot was about to do and kept back enough that no one crashed into me from behind when I had to brake so suddenly ...

[fantasy]

That's one of the first things you are taught before you even start driving is to keep a safe distance away from the person in front of you (we are taught that you should be at least three seconds behind another car and to count. Once they pass a certain mark, start counting. If you get to three or higher, you're a safe distance away. If you're below three, you're too close.)

I'm always getting people cutting me off and then they look at me as though I'm in the wrong, and it then makes me think, am I in the wrong and question myself, even though I know I haven't broken any rules.

What an idiot! I don't blame you for shaking the rest of the way or wanting to kill him. I would have been swearing, and that's something I don't usually do.

I have been shaken, not by something big like that, but still shaken. The first one was a school kid, probably only in primary school or year 8/9. I was pulling out of a car park at work, but I stopped because traffic was coming my way. I was watching the traffic and as it was becoming less dense, I was about to pull out only to stopped immediately when this kid came riding down in the bike lane, in the opposite direct of the traffic. I don't know how I didn't hit him. Scared the hell out of me for I had only been on my red P's for a few months. The second one was a motor bike who decided to over take me and this other car, by driving in my lane, in between the two of us, speeding.

I have to laugh, though. When I was on my L's and I was getting my 100 hours up, I had a lot of practice with people pulling dangerously out in front of me, and when I went with my driving school, the instructor said that I should get a certificate for being able to avoid idiots on the road. Sometimes I think we should all just go back to walking everywhere. Not realistic, but somewhat safer.

[Kitty279]

Another way to keep the distance at a reasonable level, yes. Both can work, I think. Provided people do it, that is.

Drivers are the same nuts everywhere. My boss told me once that his wife was abroad with their car, then another driver overtook her from behind *despite* someone coming from the other direction, pushed her from the road, and then yelled at her as if it was her fault that he overtook her at a moment when he should not have.

Over time, there have been a few critical situations, but that was the worst one. Seeing that huge thing tower over me while he cut my way off and imagining what could happen was a nightmare, I can tell you. And funnily enough, it's while driving where I curse the most, even though I do it seldom.

Ugh, yes, bikes or kids running across the road without looking are another problem. Glad you managed to avoid to hit that biker. And that remark was funny, but certainly a compliment.

Um ... what do red P's and L's mean? I'm not familiar with the system in other countries.

[RandomPasserby]

Would definitely not recommend getting hit by a car as a pass-time. Been there, done that. Not fun. Squishy human vs car does not end well for squishy human.


UK at least
L's - Learner plates. If you're learning to drive and you have insurance you can drive a car with somebody who has at least 5 years driving experience in the car. The plates tell other drivers that you're still a learner and are legally required.
P's - Passed. If you've just passed your test you can put a P plate on your car to tell other drivers that you're still a bit new to the whole driving thing. They're not required but they're still a good idea.

[fantasy]

May 4, 2014 13:37:52 GMT -5 Kitty279 said:

Um ... what do red P's and L's mean? I'm not familiar with the system in other countries.

In Australia, the L is for Learner driver. You must have this on your car when you drive with whoever's teaching you, whether they be a parent, friend [if they are on their opens], or driving school instructor. To get off your Learners, at least when I went through, you needed to do 100 hours of driving (10 hours must be night driving) and hand in the log book of your hours for approval, before going for your driving test.

Then there are two kinds of P's. The red P informs other drivers that the driver has just come off their Learners. You are on your red P's for one year. To get off your red P, you need to past a hazards test. Then you have your green P's. Once you've done one year on your red p's without losing your license, etc. you go onto your green P's for two years. Again, it just informs drivers you are still relatively new on the road. I'm currently on my first year greens.

After your P's, you then go onto your opens. That just means you no longer need to have your P's up.

Also, it is compulsory for you to have the L, RP, or GP on your car, both front and back. If you don't, you can be fined if caught. And, if you drive with them on your car, but aren't a Learner, etc. you can be fined if caught.

[Kitty279]

Ah, thanks, that was interesting. We have a very different system here; you can only learn to drive in special driving schools and from specially licensed teachers. Learning in a private car from family members or friends would be illegal and fined. The teacher decides if you are good enough for the test. When you pass the theoretical and practical test, you get the license.
In my time, that was it, from then on I could drive freely. But due to too many accidents with young drivers, they have now invented a license on probation that is timed for two years before it turns into an unlimited one, assumed you don't do anything stupid, that would mean you either are on probation for longer or lose the license again.

[RandomPasserby]

There's no special schools here. There are driving instructors - some of whom have dual control cars (cars which have foot pedals on the passenger side) but you can learn from a parent or somebody else with 5+ years of driving experience.

Or if your parents happen to own enough private land you can just buy a car secondhand and drive it around there before you turn 17 because it's totally legal. That's what a friend of mine did (although he also accidentally drove into a tree).

[Kitty279]

Ah yes, that is the sort of car used here so the instructor can interfere if necessary. And these instructors are the only ones allowed to teach, no matter how much experience anyone else has. I think there is an exception for driving tractors on fields, that might be possible without license, but I'm not entirely sure about the details. Not something I ever needed.

Ouch, I hope your friend didn't get hurt.

[RandomPasserby]

This is going to sound petty and judgemental and possibly quite bitchy.

But why does it seem like 90% of HP-related tattoos are the Deathly Hallows symbol and/or 'All was well' (the remaining 10% being 'Always')?

I don't get it. OK so that may be my utter loathing for the seventh book talking but the DH symbol means nothing to me, 'All was well' was a fucking awful ending and 'always' is genuinely deeply creepy considering the context.

[Kitty279]

No idea, I never noticed, but then, I was never into tattoos. In any case, I don't understand it, either, as I happen to agree with you on the texts and their meaning/context.

If it is any comfort, I don't really have any HP related merchandise, contrary to LotR. But I own two hoodies - one has the text "Property of Sirius" on it, the other "Padfoot lives". Much better, if I say so myself

[RandomPasserby]

I have a couple of tattoos already and I have considered HP-related tattoos before (alone with a LOTR related one). Ten years is my benchmark. I like something for more than ten years relatively consistently, and it goes in the pile of 'things to consider getting a tattoo related to'.

Weirdly though, I have a lightning bolt scar of my own.

When I was eleven I was cycling with some friends. There was a car parked really badly and I ended up cycling into it and punching one of the tail lights out, shattering two layers of plastic and the bulb. I had to jerk and wriggle my hand a fair bit to get it out. Most of the smaller cuts healed but somewhere in my jerking and wriggling, I got a jagged cut on the side of my wrist. It looks like a lightning bolt.

So reading HP and the lightning bolt scar was kind of cool for me.


I don't know, I guess what bugs me about the DH symbol is that it shows up for one book so it doesn't feel very representative of the series as a whole (and the Hallows always felt a bit like a hail mary pass to me).

[Kitty279]

Ouch, that sounds painful, though I admit, for a HP fan the lightning bolt scar was cool.

To me the end sounded a bit as if JKR couldn't decide if to kill Voldemort because of Lily's protection, the Hallows or the Elder wand, so she used all three. So I agree with you on this. Besides, the Hallows could have had so much meaning, but canon didn't really do much of anything with them. Harry had all three Hallows, did that mean anything at all? It was a bit like an idea, picked up, used a bit and then discarded in favour of something else.

[fantasy]

At the moment my pet peeve is incompetent co-workers!

Is it really that hard to do your job probably? I understand that everyone makes mistakes, but back to back mistakes every week with things we have been doing for at least six years, I draw the line. It especially ticks me off when I have reminders everywhere and she still does it wrong every week, making my job a lot harder and stressful. Thank goodness for my lab. Can come home and cuddle off some of my stress and anger.

[Rant over and I feel better].

[RandomPasserby]

I think the stupidest thing I've ever seen co-workers do was leave an unsecured kiosk with £500+ in cash and a load of stock (which was counted and compared to our take to make sure we weren't stealing) totally alone in order to come and tell me to go back to the kioak (there were three of us, I was outside the kiosk by myself and two of them came to tell me to go back to it).

I didn't leave that kiosk even to take my lunch breaks for the rest of the time we were assigned together.

[Kitty279]

Let's just say that there's a reason why I always said there should be a sign at the entrance "Before you start work, turn your brain on!" because there were so many instances when I got all worked up about what some co-workers did. Honestly, it's amazing how someone can do a job for decades and still doesn't understand what it means and why certain mistakes are a problem in the first place.

[fantasy]

I like that "Before you start work, turn your brain on!" motto, but you'd think it'd be common sense. Obviously not.

[Kitty279]

You'd think, yes. But they never think, that's the problem. Where I see at once that there's a glaringly obvious mistake, they never notice anything.

Just one example that doesn't demand insider knowledge to understand it:

Many years ago, I stumbled accidentally about a book with a completely wrong label that I remembered cataloguing with a whole pile of other children's books in other languages. So I went to the computer, searched the numbers before and after that one and pre-ordered the book the label belonged to, thinking they just had switched the labels for these two books accidentally. When it came, it didn't have the label of the book I already had, but one of another book - in yet another language. Finally I had to catch all the books again, and it turned out some particularly bright colleague had printed all the labels and then put them completely randomly onto the books, without even looking which label belonged to which book *bangs head* Mind you, it was someone who had been doing that sort of work for years, and the boss of that department didn't notice anything amiss when the books went through the end control - though she was supposed to check if the label was correct.

[fantasy]

Do you want an obvious one from my work? Filing. No one seems to realise that you have to file in alphabetical order via clients last names. Then, when you have clients with the same last, they don't realise that you then have to file in alphabetical order by first name. I had to label the filing cabinet explaining to do this. They just shoved them in anywhere and wondered why I got annoyed when we couldn't find the clients files and why they were going missing.

[Kitty279]

Argh, that's ... that's ... I can't even think of the right word for that! To me, sorting alphabetically by last name and then inside of the same last name by first name is second nature for me. I would do it automatically!

[fantasy]

I know. I've had the excuse given to me that they weren't taught that in school and I look at them thinking, 'and what makes you think I was? It's common sense.' I'm very touchie with the filing and can be easily annoyed when done wrong as I have been doing it for nearly six years after starting it all from scratch six years ago when a past employee emptied the filling cabinet in anger or something. I've even labelled each filing cabinet with the letters of who goes in each cabinet (e.g. H-K) and designed it some we can fit the maximum amount of files in there.

[RandomPasserby]

You'd think people weren't taught their ABC's in school anymore.

I've had exactly the same problem fantasy - with regard to incompetant people misfiling stuff - and then I had to spend far more time than I would like putting everything back into the correct order.

[fantasy]

And then it puts you behind in your work. My boss gave me a new job last year giving me extra hours just to do auditing to pick up on my co-workers' mistakes. She even told me that was why she was giving me the job.

[Kitty279]

From how you set that system up, for me it would have been crystal clear how it was to be used. And if I wasn't certain, a short scan over a few files would be enough to be certain, right? Besides, sorting alphabetically is not something I learned at school, either, but we all learned the alphabet. Or at least that's what I'd think. I know we did. Even now I remember that my teacher wasn't happy with me the first time she called me for it because I couldn't say it fast enough.

You know, Fantasy, I am not sure if that's just annoying or a compliment for you that you got that job ... probably a bit of both.

At least in my job, people know how to file (or rather sort) alphabetically, but that doesn't mean that they don't make other, equally stupid mistakes. I don't know how many hours I have spent fixing the messes others left.

[fantasy]

You know what, sometimes I think we should just go back in time to when the Internet didn't exist. Is there a rule or something stating that you have to be rude to people who don't share the same opinion as you, or are different? Is that how horrible and shallow society has become that we can't even respect people? I think this is one of the few sites where people are actually respectful of one another.

[Kitty279]

It's not just the internet, Fantasy. I notice that same problem in real life, too. People are getting more rude and selfish. It may have to do with the change in society as a whole. Women aren't the good little housewives any more with the men ruling the family and everyone used to follow orders. The generation after Second World War learned to live more emancipated, women worked and earned money. Over time, the old structures weakened more and more. People get more selfish, they want to do what they please, regardless of the family. As a consequence, the kids were left to themselves and learned to do the same - only do what they want. They got more used to get everything, and think society owes them just for existing. Simple manners like holding the door for someone following are getting out of fashion; some of the younger generation can even get bitchy if you expect a 'thank you' for it. And I suspect it is even worse on the net because you can stay anonymous there and don't have to look the ones into the face you insult. (Ever noticed that the rudest flamers are usually posting as anonymous guests?)

But you are right, this site is at the moment very nice and friendly It's all the members, though. I know other sites where the majority is like that, too, but there are always some idiots who come and think they can be rude and insult everyone to their hearts content and are taking it badly if they are told to behave. Truth be told, if this board was like that, I'd have declined the honour of being admin because I don't really have the time and patience to deal with these trolls.

[fantasy]

Yeah, it's there too. I get it all the time at work because of my age. Because of how young I am, some of the elderly patients don't want to talk to me because they think I'm a child. It's the elderly that surprise me, though, with their rudeness seeing as most of them would have been brought up with the manners that are forgotten today.

That's why I like harrypotterfanfiction.net. They have a no rudeness/bullying policy kind of thing in place. They've also created an environment that is friendly for all ages over 12.

See, that's why you make a good admin. Me, I'd be the one people would hate due to strict rules in regards to trolling and out right (intentional) rudeness. I'd have them banned.

[Kitty279]

That's just stupid, because you are younger you aren't less able to do your job. And just being older isn't a guarantee for good work, either. But you are right, the old generation is sometimes rather rude, and I can't really explain that. Maybe they think otherwise they won't get anywhere any more, or they think they should be shown more respect, but I don't know.

Sounds much better than what I sometimes see on FFN. I might have to give that site a look, but I really don't have time for yet another site to waste my time on

Thank you! But honestly, the members here make it easy for me. If someone would really behave badly, I'd ban them, too, but so far, that was not necessary. Only ones I have banned so far were spammers.