Minor things that bother you

[tmoore952]

not collapsing cardboard

This is a big one for me.

This is my weekly ritual after being away for a week (possibly at a hotel without a functioning pool). Nobody in my family breaks down nor cuts a box apart for recycling.

For me, it probably stems from my having worked in a warehouse for several years, and having broken down and baled zillions of cardboard boxes during that time.

That's what box crushers are for.

Perhaps someone can explain, when you collapse cardboard, are you also supposed to remove any packing tape that is on it? I generally do but for some boxes it is not trivial, and I often wonder if I am wasting my time.

[tmoore952]

I am a cyclist also, so I have been on both ends of this one.

Coming up behind a single cyclist on a two lane road, when there is a hill or curve in front of both you and the cyclist, such that you cannot see far enough to safely pass. Cyclist tends to get disturbed that you aren't passing. You're doing right by the cyclist, but (understandably) cyclist doesn't have any way of knowing your intentions, especially since the cyclist will lose if any collision happens.

[webny99]

For me, it probably stems from my having worked in a warehouse for several years, and having broken down and baled zillions of cardboard boxes during that time.

That's what box crushers are for.

Perhaps someone can explain, when you collapse cardboard, are you also supposed to remove any packing tape that is on it? I generally do but for some boxes it is not trivial, and I often wonder if I am wasting my time.

It probably depends on the crusher. With the one I used to use, it wasn't necessary to remove standard packing tape and we rarely did so.

[thenetwork]

Calling out a business on social media and/or FB page with facts to back you up, only to get ridiculed.

Customer service and support has gone the way of the Fax Machine and nobody gives a damn anymore.

[Rothman]

"Xennials."  They're just Millennials with daddy issues.  "Look at me, Boomer parent, I am not like those lazy Millennials!  Please, accept me and don't lump me in with them!  I'm a cool kid like those Gen Xers, not those Millennials!"  The only generation type split off by people not wanting to be associated with another generation due to being criticized/made fun of by an older generation...

[kphoger]

For me, it probably stems from my having worked in a warehouse for several years, and having broken down and baled zillions of cardboard boxes during that time.

That's what box crushers are for.

Perhaps someone can explain, when you collapse cardboard, are you also supposed to remove any packing tape that is on it? I generally do but for some boxes it is not trivial, and I often wonder if I am wasting my time.

It probably depends on the crusher. With the one I used to use, it wasn't necessary to remove standard packing tape and we rarely did so.

I baled boxes with a box crusher.  But I could fit a lot more boxes into a bale, and it was a lot less likely to spill cardboard everywhere, if I broke the boxes down and laid them flat in the crusher first.  My cardboard bales were the envy of the recycling plant staff... 

And no, we never removed the tape.  Didn't even know anybody did that.

[webny99]

My cardboard bales were the envy of the recycling plant staff... 

I guess so. Considering how few boxes I used relative to the amount being baled, breaking them down is one of those things the perfectionist in me would have liked to do, but the pragmatist overruled.

[kphoger]

My cardboard bales were the envy of the recycling plant staff... 

I guess so. Considering how few boxes I used relative to the amount being baled, breaking them down is one of those things the perfectionist in me would have liked to do, but the pragmatist overruled.

I worked in the returns department at a publishing company.  Each individual work station was unpacking individual boxes to scan the product back into the database.  So it's not like I was walking over to the baler with a box in my hand:  rather, the people at the work stations would break down the boxes, stack those up on a pallet, and then wheel the pallet down toward the baler once the stack started getting tippy.  Without breaking the boxes down, they would have been sending me pallets with only a couple of dozen boxes on them each, which would hardly have been efficient and would have taken up way too much floor space.  So yeah, not breaking them down probably never even crossed anyone's mind.

[webny99]

My cardboard bales were the envy of the recycling plant staff... 

I guess so. Considering how few boxes I used relative to the amount being baled, breaking them down is one of those things the perfectionist in me would have liked to do, but the pragmatist overruled.

I worked in the returns department at a publishing company.  Each individual work station was unpacking individual boxes to scan the product back into the database.  So it's not like I was walking over to the baler with a box in my hand:  rather, the people at the work stations would break down the boxes, stack those up on a pallet, and then wheel the pallet down toward the baler once the stack started getting tippy.  Without breaking the boxes down, they would have been sending me pallets with only a couple of dozen boxes on them each, which would hardly have been efficient and would have taken up way too much floor space.  So yeah, not breaking them down probably never even crossed anyone's mind.

So if I'm understanding, it was actually the people at the workstations doing the work of breaking the boxes down.

Sounds a lot more intense than what I was used to. We loaded the crusher by hand if working nearby, or tossed them into one of several large bins on wheels that could fit maybe 50-60 unbroken boxes each, which were wheeled to the crusher once full.

[hbelkins]

There are a couple of phrases in common use these days that absolutely get under my skin. "Touch grass" and "go touch grass." I guess it means "go outside" but the first several times I saw it, I thought it meant "drop dead."

[JayhawkCO]

There are a couple of phrases in common use these days that absolutely get under my skin. "Touch grass" and "go touch grass." I guess it means "go outside" but the first several times I saw it, I thought it meant "drop dead."

Never heard "touch grass" before. One of my buddies used to use "take a dirt nap" for "drop dead".

[Bruce]

"Touch grass" is a common way of telling someone to calm down and leave a heated online discussion. It's straight to the point.

[J N Winkler]

The trouble with "calm down" (and related expressions) is that, in the heat of the moment, they tend to have precisely the opposite effect unless delivered with authority.  I tend to employ different strategies for passivation.

[formulanone]

"Xennials."  They're just Millennials with daddy issues.  "Look at me, Boomer parent, I am not like those lazy Millennials!  Please, accept me and don't lump me in with them!  I'm a cool kid like those Gen Xers, not those Millennials!"  The only generation type split off by people not wanting to be associated with another generation due to being criticized/made fun of by an older generation...

My brother-in-law was born in 1981, the youngest of three children, so naturally followed in the footsteps of those straddling the two generations but experienced more attributes of the former yet a few ideals and cultural norms of the latter.

I guess there isn't really a cusp for one born in 1965-66 which might be in a similar situation. (Bumexicans?)

[Rothman]

"Xennials."  They're just Millennials with daddy issues.  "Look at me, Boomer parent, I am not like those lazy Millennials!  Please, accept me and don't lump me in with them!  I'm a cool kid like those Gen Xers, not those Millennials!"  The only generation type split off by people not wanting to be associated with another generation due to being criticized/made fun of by an older generation...

My brother-in-law was born in 1981, the youngest of three children, so naturally followed in the footsteps of those straddling the two generations but experienced more attributes of the former yet a few ideals and cultural norms of the latter.

I guess there isn't really a cusp for one born in 1965-66 which might be in a similar situation. (Bumexicans?)

Yep, the lack of other cusp generations is quite telling behind the formation of Xennials.

[tmoore952]

"Xennials."  They're just Millennials with daddy issues.  "Look at me, Boomer parent, I am not like those lazy Millennials!  Please, accept me and don't lump me in with them!  I'm a cool kid like those Gen Xers, not those Millennials!"  The only generation type split off by people not wanting to be associated with another generation due to being criticized/made fun of by an older generation...

My brother-in-law was born in 1981, the youngest of three children, so naturally followed in the footsteps of those straddling the two generations but experienced more attributes of the former yet a few ideals and cultural norms of the latter.

I guess there isn't really a cusp for one born in 1965-66 which might be in a similar situation. (Bumexicans?)

I am the youngest of 8 and born in 1967. All my siblings were born between 1952 and 1962. That leaves me as the odd one out (not a boomer). Some of my older siblings delight in telling stories about things I did in (say) 1969. It doesn't pay me to get annoyed anymore, although I did (silently) for a long time.

Tend to like boomer music because that's what I heard as a youngster. But I am pretty sure I go later than any of the my other siblings that way, especially now with a teenage son of my own.

As I write this, I'm the only one of the 8 still working, and it will be that way probably for about 5 years. I had the same experience in the early '80s when everyone had left the house to college and beyond, while I was still in high school. At least I had the house to myself (with parents) and didn't have to fight siblings over access to things.

It'd be nice to see someone other than a boomer win a national office.

My attitude for the last few years, now that I am middle aged, is that I'm glad I'm as (relatively) young as I am. The calendar will eventually do its job and I'll get to have as much fun as the others.

[Scott5114]

"Touch grass" is a common way of telling someone to calm down and leave a heated online discussion. It's straight to the point.

"Touch grass" also has the connotation that the thing that someone is heated about is only actually a problem in their own head and/or in online discussions, and is not actually relevant in the real world. Telling someone to touch grass means you think they need to go experience something that isn't online discussion, like taking a break to enjoy nature, to recalibrate their priorities and get in touch with the real world. It therefore is not a one-to-one drop-in replacement for "calm down" (and I cannot think of any other more established phrase that has the same connotation as "touch grass", thus making it qualify as a legitimate idiom).

For an example that may be familiar to this forum, if someone were extremely amped up about Limon, someone might suggest they touch grass, because while control cities are a thing that seem like they matter a lot on this forum, in reality they simply don't matter as much to highway signage engineers, much less the general public.

[Rothman]

"Xennials."  They're just Millennials with daddy issues.  "Look at me, Boomer parent, I am not like those lazy Millennials!  Please, accept me and don't lump me in with them!  I'm a cool kid like those Gen Xers, not those Millennials!"  The only generation type split off by people not wanting to be associated with another generation due to being criticized/made fun of by an older generation...

My brother-in-law was born in 1981, the youngest of three children, so naturally followed in the footsteps of those straddling the two generations but experienced more attributes of the former yet a few ideals and cultural norms of the latter.

I guess there isn't really a cusp for one born in 1965-66 which might be in a similar situation. (Bumexicans?)

I am the youngest of 8 and born in 1967. All my siblings were born between 1952 and 1962. That leaves me as the odd one out (not a boomer). Some of my older siblings delight in telling stories about things I did in (say) 1969. It doesn't pay me to get annoyed anymore, although I did (silently) for a long time.

Tend to like boomer music because that's what I heard as a youngster. But I am pretty sure I go later than any of the my other siblings that way, especially now with a teenage son of my own.

As I write this, I'm the only one of the 8 still working, and it will be that way probably for about 5 years. I had the same experience in the early '80s when everyone had left the house to college and beyond, while I was still in high school. At least I had the house to myself (with parents) and didn't have to fight siblings over access to things.

It'd be nice to see someone other than a boomer win a national office.

My attitude for the last few years, now that I am middle aged, is that I'm glad I'm as (relatively) young as I am. The calendar will eventually do its job and I'll get to have as much fun as the others.

But you were so cute when you were two!

Annoyed when people point out your terrible twos?

[kphoger]

My brother-in-law was born in 1981, the youngest of three children, so naturally followed in the footsteps of those straddling the two generations but experienced more attributes of the former yet a few ideals and cultural norms of the latter.

I was also born in 1981, and therefore could identify as Gen-X or Millennial.  I've never considered myself to be a Millennial, always Gen-X.

[hotdogPi]

Minor thing that bothers me: named generations are only 18 years, while actual generations are closer to 25. This is what makes me three named generations younger than both of my parents (me: Gen Z, both parents: tail end of baby boomers).

[Big John]

I am the youngest of 8 and born in 1967. All my siblings were born between 1952 and 1962. That leaves me as the odd one out (not a boomer). Some of my older siblings delight in telling stories about things I did in (say) 1969. It doesn't pay me to get annoyed anymore, although I did (silently) for a long time.

Hmmmm, youngest of 4, also born in 1967, next youngest also born in 1962.

[1995hoo]

Minor thing that bothers me: named generations are only 18 years, while actual generations are closer to 25. This is what makes me three named generations younger than both of my parents (me: Gen Z, both parents: tail end of baby boomers).

I think there's a significant difference between genealogical "generations" and cultural "generations." I think I have a lot more in common with my parents' generation (people born in the mid-1940s) than I do with two of my first cousins (my uncle's son and daughter) who were born in 1986 and 1989 and with other people their age. I think a large part of that has to do with the experience of growing up, which changed very significantly after I was already in my teens.

[Rothman]

My brother-in-law was born in 1981, the youngest of three children, so naturally followed in the footsteps of those straddling the two generations but experienced more attributes of the former yet a few ideals and cultural norms of the latter.

I was also born in 1981, and therefore could identify as Gen-X or Millennial.  I've never considered myself to be a Millennial, always Gen-X.

Somebody is scared of being a Millennial.

[kphoger]

I was also born in 1981, and therefore could identify as Gen-X or Millennial.  I've never considered myself to be a Millennial, always Gen-X.

I have a lot more in common with my parents' generation than I do with two of my first cousins ... and with other people their age. I think a large part of that has to do with the experience of growing up, which changed very significantly after I was already in my teens.

I wonder if my much stronger association with Gen-X than with Millennials has to do with the fact that my only sibling was born in 1974, and therefore some of how I experienced the world (music, movies, parents' age, etc) was filtered through that lens.  If I had been born to younger parents, with only a younger sibling, perhaps I would associate more with Millennials.

Somebody is scared of being a Millennial.

Actually, before this forum, I didn't even realize that the 'Millennial' range included my birth year.  Before reading it on here a few years ago, it had never even occurred to me that I could be considered a Millennial.

[tmoore952]

"Xennials."  They're just Millennials with daddy issues.  "Look at me, Boomer parent, I am not like those lazy Millennials!  Please, accept me and don't lump me in with them!  I'm a cool kid like those Gen Xers, not those Millennials!"  The only generation type split off by people not wanting to be associated with another generation due to being criticized/made fun of by an older generation...

My brother-in-law was born in 1981, the youngest of three children, so naturally followed in the footsteps of those straddling the two generations but experienced more attributes of the former yet a few ideals and cultural norms of the latter.

I guess there isn't really a cusp for one born in 1965-66 which might be in a similar situation. (Bumexicans?)

I am the youngest of 8 and born in 1967. All my siblings were born between 1952 and 1962. That leaves me as the odd one out (not a boomer). Some of my older siblings delight in telling stories about things I did in (say) 1969. It doesn't pay me to get annoyed anymore, although I did (silently) for a long time.

Tend to like boomer music because that's what I heard as a youngster. But I am pretty sure I go later than any of the my other siblings that way, especially now with a teenage son of my own.

As I write this, I'm the only one of the 8 still working, and it will be that way probably for about 5 years. I had the same experience in the early '80s when everyone had left the house to college and beyond, while I was still in high school. At least I had the house to myself (with parents) and didn't have to fight siblings over access to things.

It'd be nice to see someone other than a boomer win a national office.

My attitude for the last few years, now that I am middle aged, is that I'm glad I'm as (relatively) young as I am. The calendar will eventually do its job and I'll get to have as much fun as the others.

But you were so cute when you were two!

Annoyed when people point out your terrible twos?

Yes, when they do it for 40+ years straight.
It's my sister, I love her, I just wish she wouldn't always go there.
She is about 10 years older than me, so the things she remembers occurred when she was a tween and early teenager.