This Was Great, We Should Do This Again Sometime!

So maybe I've been watching a little too much Friends on Nick at Nite....

So, there's the episode where Chandler goes on a date with a woman he ends up not being interest in (Rachel's boss).   At the end of said date, he says 'This was great, I'll give you a call, we should do this again sometime.'  And then, of course, he never calls.

Recently, I went out with a guy.  Towards the end, he brought up that he was having a great time, he would like to hang out again.  As we walked out, he mentioned a restaurant we'd both spoken about earlier in the evening - we should go there together sometime soon.  We went our separate ways (just a friendly goodbye hug - no one night stand, if your mind is going there ;-) ).

Drumroll, please.

As you might expect, he never called.

I can also think of a time I ran into a coworker with which I was acquaintances.   We chatted briefly and he brought up that we should totally get together and catch up for lunch or a happy hour.  Sure, I'd be up for it.  Then as we parted ways, he, again, said we should totally hang out.  Sure, drop me a line.  He has my phone number, email, and facebook.  This was three months ago - no word on the matter.  There had also been times when we'd worked together and we'd spoken of having lunch or going for coffee and it never happened.

One could very easily say I'm reading way too much into this - it simply slipped his mind, he got busy, he's just bad about making plans, etc.  I would even say this, however, he and I have another mutual friend who mentioned him and cited the exact same annoyance - he brings up 'we should hang out' and he doesn't follow through and is flaky when my other friend reaches out and tries to initiate.  This other mutual friend even cited the exact same Friends episode as a reference to him.

My other mutual friend said 'I don't get 'Joe's' deal - it's fine if he doesn't want to be friends with me or hang out, but why does he then bring it up?  I can't really tell if he actually likes me or not.'

Your thoughts? Why do some people talk about making plans and hanging out when they have no intention or desire?  I could see smiling and nodding and going along with it if the other person brought it up, but why suggest it when one has no intention?  Anyone else deal with these kind of people?  I can honestly say I certainly didn't mind that said guy never called me and, although I like said former coworker, it certainly isn't a big deal to me that we never got together.  However, a small part of me ends up feeling annoyed that these people are liars (or something like that).  Your thoughts?

Over-Used Buzz Word that Annoys Me

Handcrafted.

It's everywhere.  My sandwich was handcrafted.  Really?  That's so shocking.  I thought there were robots with a conveyor belt.   My mojito was handcrafted?!  And I thought there was a packet of 'instant mojito', starbucks via style.

I'll stop now.

Does something being 'handcrafted' really add appeal?  My inner germophobe feels secretly relieved to think as few individuals as possible had a 'hand' in anything I'm about to consume.  Maybe that's just me.

Nevermind me as I search for a restaurant with the robots and conveyor belt....

Another Random Grammatical Pet Peeve

When people say 'minused' instead of subtracted.

I don't know if it's necessarily wrong.

It just irritates me.

Expressions I Hate - the Series Continues

Epic Fail.

Dude, your forgetting to do your laundry is not EPIC.  Apparently, nowadays, there are like 10 'epic' events a day.  All negative, too, apparently.  There are so many 'epic fails', yet we, as a people, seem to keep bouncing on back.  It really speaks volumes about our resilience.

I predict this expression will be gone in six months.  I can only hope.  I find it of epic annoyance.

Something I Just Don't Get....

People wearing ipod headphones while driving.

I have seen this on multiple occasions.  Something about it seems very dangerous.  Despite the fact that one can listen to music over the radio, the headphones seem like a major distraction.  Especially cause they could easily come out if one turns his head quickly for some reason.

What I REALLY don't get is when someone is doing this while ALONE in the car.  I could see if this was done out of some juvenile argument that one passenger doesn't want to have to listen to another's music, but SERIOUSLY.   Does the person just not own whatever device is needed to play the ipod through the radio?  Does he not know where to buy it?  It's not like it's that expensive or hard to get - it's considerably cheaper than both an ipod and a car accident.

Also, this ESPECIALLY doesn't make sense to me when the person is driving locally - can't he suffer it out with the radio for the 10 minutes, or what have you?  I have seen several people driving through my neighborhood with the earbuds in (or maybe I keep seeing the same person.  This is possible).

Anyhow.  Anyone else notice this bizarre act?  Anyone else find it dangerous?  Anyone out there do this?  Anyone not know where to buy the device to play the ipod through the radio?!?!

Another Random Hate-Worthy Pet Peeve

The word 'verbage'.  I heard it today at work.  It really set me off.  It should never be used.  In general.  EVER.

Why?   Why not just say 'wording'.  Or 'words'.  I cannot think of any time either of these are not an acceptable choice.

This word just reeks of 'corporate speak' (see aslo: touch base).  It just sounds stuffy.  Intellectual wannabe-esque.  Every time I hear it, I want to counteract it with something highly undignified, such as 'DUDE' (which I find more socially acceptable).

Anyone else HATE the word verbage?  Anyone willing to voluntarily admit he/she uses it?

Busy Busy

Carrie Bradshaw to the random businessman who bumps her on the street:
You're so busy...you're SO busy!!!

Is it just me, or does it drive any of my readers nuts when people constantly complain on how incredibly busy they are?  What is this, an epidemic lately?  The reason it bothers me is not I don't believe these people are busy, it's that, newsflash, WE ALL ARE.  In theory, if 'busy' is an acceptable excuse for having not done something, then EVERYONE could use it for EVERYTHING.

That, and people who actually are busy don't need to say it.  You had a baby last week?  Yeah, you're probably busy.  You don't need to explain it.  And THESE people usually don't.  I hate it when you ask someone a simple, reasonable request and they give you a dissertation on everything they've been up to lately - in the amount of time he or she spent making him or herself look/sound important, he or she could have instead performed said task.  That, and some of these 'busy' folks have simply overcommitted themselves.  Not that that's a crime, but again, that was said individual's decision.  Didn't you know what you were getting into when you volunteered for 85 different projects?

That, and this reminds of an episode of Oprah (I know, blush) where they staged interventions on people who were hiding from reality in what seemed to be socially acceptable outlets.  There was a woman who worked 110 hours a week at 3 separate jobs.  She made it out that she was trying to make the extra money to support her family, but according to her husband, they didn't really need it to live comfortably. In reality, she was avoiding her home because she was unhappy in her marriage and constantly arguing with her kids.  Had she chosen to deal with this problem by say, drugs or alcohol, people would have been all over her from the get-go, however, since she was hiding from her life in a 'socially acceptable' outlet, people who knew her looked the other way.  I think this is probably the case of a couple 'constantly super busy' people I know.  Not that they're unhappy with their marriages/kids, but that they're just making themselves busy as a means of avoiding dealing with something.

Sorry for the rant.  I am not really sure where this came from.

Snow

Why does the city of Chicago freak out every time it snows? Seriously, do we have short term memory? It does this EVERY year - multiple times. It'd be one thing if we were Florida or something like that - THEN maybe a 'ooh, there's going to be six inches of snow tomorrow, what are we going to do?!' would be in order, but to my knowledge - we have resources such as plows, salt, etc. (or at least we should) in preparation for such events. Although, maybe they were cut from the budget, in which case I'm the one talking crazy and we do have reason to panic. Anyhow. Is it just me who doesn't get the reason for the 'OMG SNOW!!!'?

Did You Ever Notice....

I happened to be at a local Chicago Mexican restaurant the other day and, well, en route to the washroom, it look me a couple seconds to stop and figure out which was the ladies room. Sure, take a moment to insert some form of a joke, but it was largely due to a) the writing in said restaurant's native language b) the fancy, cursive, almost hard to read font and c) the non-standard man/woman logo (in this instance - it was a fancy, old-fashioned painting on each door - discernible, but one would have to take a moment to examine it, as opposed to with the basic graphic).

The more that I think about, quite a few restaurants I've been to have instated the same practice. Now, say what you will about Spanish being a commonplace language - Italian, Latin, etc., are not. Is this supposed to be cute/quirky/stylistic/creating an atmosphere? Granted, yes, it's a nice detail. However, I find it could cause more harm than good - these signs are confusing enough SOBER - and with many of these restaurants either being BYOB or having the alcohol flowing, well, I think you see where I'm going with this....

Actually, now that I think about this - are restaurants trying to dupe people? Is there someone sitting behind a hidden camera, laughing every time someone walks into the wrong one? Does anyone else not like this trend? Anyone get walked in on by a confused person? Your thoughts?

Misspelled Words....

Ok, I remember once seeing a trivia question about what is the most commonly misspelled everyday word...the correct answer (drumroll please):

DEFINITELY

I DEFINITELY agree with this assessment. I'll give people credit; it is a more difficult word. However. SERIOUSLY. It drives me NUTS every time I see it misspelled. Not because it's misspelled, but because of the alternative choices of spelling.

Definatly (has to be the most common). Definetly. Definately. Defiantly (different word but based on the context of the sentence, I knew what they meant...). Definitly (so close, but yet, SO far).

I am, secretly, a grammar snob, but I try not to be outward about it 1) because I find grammar snobs obnoxious and b) because then, the second I have the least of typos, I know it's going to be thrown back in my face.

A simple way to remember how to spell this word....it's DEFINITE with an LY on the end. Sounds overly simple, but I never really see definat, definet, etc. People don't seem to have trouble with the root word, so I dunno why it suddenly gets difficult when adding two letters. Anyhow.

Other grammar pet peeves out there? I DEFINITELY have a problem with the you're/your and to/too/two confusions. Any other horrible misspellings that I'm missing?

Expressions I Hate....

"Can't See the Forest for the Trees"

People don't really use this much any more. Don't get me wrong, I get what it means, generally (something to the extent of 'missing the point'), but it doesn't make sense. I really hate it. Where did it come from? Why? Why did, at some point, people use it like crazy?

I Got Mary Kay'd

So, this has happened to me a couple times recently.  I know this has happened to all of my fellow female Chicagoans at some point.  It happened again today.  I was Mary Kay'd.  

For anyone not familiar with what this might mean - the following scene plays out:

--Random woman approaches and pays your truly a compliment

--"Oh thank you."

--"Do you work around here?"  (Conversation takes an immediate turn downhill.)

--(Random brief answer that can *hopefully* segue into an exit strategy)

--"How's that working out for you?  I imagine things might be a little rough right now.  I work with women in business development.  We look for people like you who are well put together (I'm soooo flattered - cause let's be honest - this woman is going after people in sweatpants alike).  We have $100k+ opportunities at my company right now.  Can I get your information?"

Ugh.  It's not the being approached/bothered aspect of it.  It's not the waste of time.  It's not the annoying persistence.  

It's the fake compliment.  Mary Kay ALWAYS leads in with a compliment.  It's usually something generic.  However, it's a compliment from a stranger.  Those are rare.  Those are hard to get.  It's easy to compliment a friend, coworker, or someone you're about to have to speak to anyway.  Walking up to a total stranger - that takes something extra.  If a stranger is complimenting me, I must look REALLY good.  There's a certain high associated with it - which perhaps leads to a certain low after realizing it came with an ulterior motive.  The disappointment!

Come to think of it, it's the city of Chicago - if a stranger is approaching with a compliment and she is not with Mary Kay, she is probably trying to steal your wallet.  Sigh.  

American Idol is Starting Up

You know what I love?  These people who brag about not watching American Idol.  Now, don't get me wrong.  I'm sure there are plenty of people out there who do not watch, enjoy, or have any interest in the program.  Although, I'm sure amongst the group of very vocal haters, there are a couple Larry Craigs out there who have had their dvrs set for the premiere for months.  

However, I am sure there are also plenty of authentic haters.  It's not the hating, it's the pride in their voice when they proclaim it.  It's that they think they're proving themselves to have some high level of sophistication.  Yeah, I'm sure all these folks ONLY have an appetite for high art.   It's all Mozart, Tolstoy and the history channel in their lives, I'm sure.  

Facebook Pet Peeves

The first in what I am sure will turn out to be a series of rants.  Today I will focus mostly on facebook photo pet peeves.

1)  "Couples" pictures.  Ugh.  It's supposed to be a picture of YOU, the owner of the profile.   Don't get me wrong, it's not to begrudge one of his or her happy couple status - one is more than welcome to tell the world he or she is in a happy relationship in the 'relationship status' and even the 'about me' section.  But seriously.  (I guess maybe someone like me, with a unisex name, can see greater potential problems.)  Also, not to mention the 'gag me with a shovel' effect couples pictures have - which is undeniably present.

2)  Baby pictures.  Now, don't get me wrong.  You sure were cute as a kid.  Well, maybe.  At least, you may have been cuter as a kid than you are now.  I feel for you.  Really, I do.  However, what started out one person's cute little idea spread like gossip through a high school locker room - EVERYONE is suddenly doing it.  That, and let's be honest - no one is all that awed by how cute of a kid you were, sans your parents.  And they probably (hopefully) aren't looking at your facebook page.  And the general facebook community probably just looks and thinks 'hey, it's you when you were younger'.   

3)  Glamour shots.  SERIOUSLY.  It's supposed to be a reasonably accurate picture of you.  What good does it do to feature an overly photoshopped/angled/misleading picture of yourself?   Even if it's going to lead you to meeting the man/woman of your dreams, he or she is going to see you in real life (presumably) at some point.   

4)  Political jokes/sports cartoons/etc.  Not that there's anything seriously wrong with this - there are just other places for it.   The section for a photo of you is supposed to be exactly that.

To be continued....

Another Pet Peeve

Tapas Restaurants.  The WHOLE concept of them.  

Maybe it's not that they exist.  Maybe it's that I know too many people who like them and want to go to them.  In fact, I think there's a conspiracy amongst men - EVERY man I've been asked out by over the past three years has suggested "tapas".  

Yes, it's true, I DON'T like sharing food.  (Insert comment about only children here.)  Actually, it's not that I don't like sharing food - it's more that when I go out to eat, I want to pick the specific meal that I want and enjoy THAT meal (not a teeny tiny part of it).  

At tapas, you kind of have to think of what everyone wants to eat, not just yourself.  I have obscure tastes (I like spicy food, which not everyone enjoys).  Also, I like to doctor my food.   At tapas restaurants, it seems like you have to pick something generic as opposed to what you really want so it's something everyone likes.  I kind of feel like this is like when one person wants the red couch and the other wants the blue couch, so they compromise with the green couch and no one is happy.  Also, if there's something really good, you can only take a little bit of it.  

I guess I don't understand everyone else's love of these style restaurants.  I guess I don't really like 'family style' restaurants, in general.  I just want to pick what I want and have that.   Am I alone in this?

More Restaurant Annoyances

Ok, so lately I've noticed almost every time I've gone out to dinner, sometimes with small parties, sometimes with large parties, the servers no longer write down orders but rather have taken to awing us with magic of memorization.

Let me just say one thing:  I'm not.  (Awed, that is.)

Two things.  1)  I was a server for four years.  2)  I have a phenomenal memory.  I realize this line sounds somewhat conceited, but pretty much EVERYONE I know will vouch for this.  I will forget small silly things like someone telling me what he or she is doing over the weekend, but I can remember some absurd minor details for years.  

That being said....I was never comfortable with the 'memorizing the order' notion.  I do not feel confident that I could perform said skill with 100% accuracy.  There are too many customers, too many modifications (no onions, fries instead, etc.).   And although there might be some out there who, you could say, are possibly better servers with better memories - I find it hard to believe that, generally speaking, every other server could do this with a very high level of accuracy.  

Anyhow, I think this just annoys me because it's meant to be impressive, but quite frankly, for me, it has the adverse effect.  I like my food the way I order it.  When I see someone write my order down, I feel confident.  

However, seeing these servers try to show off their memory is kind of like watching someone juggling balls of fire and arm's length away - regardless of it being a 'cool trick', it makes me nervous.   The whole time period between placing my order and getting my food is twenty to thirty minutes of anxiety for me.  If tipping is performance based - this merits a deduction in my book.  

Pet Peeve Alert

So I have a lot of pet peeves. A LOT. This I know.

One of my more major pet peeves is when people make observations about me to me. I do not need my personality traits, etc., pointed out to me. "You look sick" - music to a girl's ears. "You seem annoyed" - Now I am for sure.

Well, at work, we have a rep who works out of our New York office. I only interact with him over the phone and through e-mail, for business related purposes. This past week I got the opportunity to put a face to a name.

During our *ahem* after work festivities, he decided to start to tell me that I seem to be a very guarded individual (maybe he secretly works part time with that damn handwriting analyst...). He would like to get to know the "many layers of Jaime" - maybe I'm giving him too much credit by assuming he meant this in a more appropriate context than he actually did.

Sigh. Is it that obvious? Seriously - we have a 'I'll book your flight, send me your expense report'-style interaction...how personal was/is he expecting me to get?

Something that Annoys Me....

One question that I HATE:  What kind of music do you like?

It's a staple of all first dates and random 'getting to know you' conversations.  It's the standard ice breaker for awkward silences with coworkers.  I NEVER ask people this question and I wish they would do the same for me.  I don't know why it annoys me so much, but it just does.  

Maybe it's that I can't quite classify my taste in music down to one genre like "country"; my answer to this question would be 'I like and dislike some artists and songs from every genre'.  I understand the purpose of this question is to see if one shares a specific favorite musician or song in common - but then why not just ask about specific artists or songs?!?!

That, and from my experience in group conversations - almost everyone gives the same response I do - some variation of  'a variety' and maybe names one artist or genre that he or she is partial to.  

Maybe a part of it is that I find it difficult to speak about music objectively since I have no background in it - I like the songs and artists I like because I like the way they sound, but I can't really say much more about it than that.  If someone wants to debate on the quality of an artist - I got nothin'.   

I'm sure those with training and experience in music can talk about how they hear influences of another artist in someone's work or the quality of guitar rifts - but I have nothing more than a superficial knowledge of music and I don't pretend otherwise.  

Am I alone on this?  I think I must be, because EVERYONE seems to ask this question.  Are people annoyed by the fact that everyone answers this question with some generic response?  I've taken to giving sarcastic unrealistic responses, such as "Christmas music" or "Well, I've always been a huge Barry Manilow fan".  

Guestless in Chicago

So, over the past couple years, I've gotten invited to weddings without (what I thought was) the requisite "and guest".  I've got one of said weddings coming up in two weeks.  

It's a family wedding, so I wouldn't bring a guest anyway, unless I was in a relationship - it's not like I won't know anyone there, and it'd be a bit intense to bring a casual date to sit with my parents, aunts, uncles, and cousins.  

Now, don't get me wrong - I get that weddings are uber-expensive.  I get that this is a 'cost cutting' measure.

However, I have to wave a flag here - the flag of 'singles discrimination'.  It's very rare that married couples, or people in long-term relationships, get the guest snub when getting invited to weddings.  Even if the bride and groom have both never met a friend's spouse, he or she automatically gets an invite extended - however, someone like me can't bring a 'stranger'?!

I kind of think it's crap - namely, because, in my mind, the purpose of the guest is so that the attendees will have someone to talk if he or she doesn't know many people who are going to be at the wedding.   I have some friends who purposely didn't go to a wedding because they wouldn't know anyone there.  I am not sure I'm feeling this new 'no guest' movement.

However, very recently, I was informed that I am on the a-list for a VERY a-list event.  I got mail!  Namely, I got an invite to MEG RYAN's wedding!  

Of course, someone like Meg Ryan definitely extended me a guest.  And you know what?  I am going to show her my appreciation for that by NOT bringing one.  :)  

Pet Peeves

Ok, random thing that annoys me - when people get a kick out of stealing shit from restaurants (or similar places).  I'm talking forks, knives, glasses, drink menus, etc.  

What's the point?

I've had many friends who have engaged in such activities.  In fact, almost everyone I know in my age bracket has done it at some point?  Again, I must ask.

What's the f*&$ing point?

Let me tell you, first off, this is an uber-low risk activity - I was a server for several years.  I noticed, at many points, people seeming to be doing this activity at my tables.  Did I care?  No.  I cared about my tip.  I could have gone over and said something to them and had them get pissed off and stiff me, or I could have turned a blind eye and watch their guilty consciences give me upwards of 20% for their lifting .o5 cents of company property - which do you think I chose?  (I hope my fellow chiliheads don't read this blog, although I'm sure they're agreeing with me if they do.)

Is it just for the thrill?  It HAS to be - is there really much joy in owning a TGIFridays fork?  I feel like I'm constantly throwing out chachkies much more exciting than hot restaurant utensils for the sake of space in my apartment and life.  It CAN'T be for the need to have the actual product.  

Since almost EVERYONE I know has been involved in this activity at some point - please clue me in.  What's the draw?