Minor things that bother you

[J N Winkler]

Another very minor one I thought of today...

When ordering Panera online or in the app, utensils are not included by default. Then when you select include utensils, there's a little pop up that asks you to reconsider to help them reduce waste and protect the planet.

Two issues with that: first, helping protect the planet is a great soundbite, but the consumer still has to get utensils from somewhere, so unless they're going home to use their own washable silverware, it's just a façade with no net waste reduction or environmental benefit at all. And second, it's annoying not to receive utensils with your order. They should be providing them by default, and then if you actively choose not to receive them, then they can issue a thank you for helping to reduce waste. That would be a much more positive user experience than making people request something as basic as utensils and then suggesting they're anti-environment for doing so.

I use my own washable (stainless-steel) silverware even on trips--I just don't like trying to eat with plastic utensils.

While I can understand the annoyance that nag dialog causes, in my experience the real problem is that restaurants include a packet of plastic utensils when bagging up takeaway orders, even if the "no silverware" box is checked.  I suspect two main reasons:  (1) force of habit and (2) unwillingness to risk the customer having an unfavorable dining experience as a result of not having utensils when he or she needs them.

[Rothman]

Eh, I don't see the big deal with what Panera does.  It's true a lot of people just snag the plasticware when they are just going to eat at home with their own silverware.

[kernals12]

People who forget to turn on their taillights. Car lights should be required to be on all the time or automatically turn on when it gets dark.

[TheHighwayMan3561]

People who forget to turn on their taillights. Car lights should be required to be on all the time or automatically turn on when it gets dark.

I blame stupid people, but I also blame car manufacturers who install running lights with the approximate apparent magnitude equivalent to the sun, so they don't realize their headlights aren't actually on because their running lights are that bright.

[kernals12]

People who forget to turn on their taillights. Car lights should be required to be on all the time or automatically turn on when it gets dark.

I blame stupid people, but I also blame car manufacturers who install running lights with the approximate apparent magnitude equivalent to the sun, so they don't realize their headlights aren't actually on because their running lights are that bright.

My old Volkswagen was completely idiot-proof. The headlights were the daytime running lights and the taillights would be on all the time. Seems like such a set-up would also be less expensive to make than having separate DRLs.

[mgk920]

People who forget to turn on their taillights. Car lights should be required to be on all the time or automatically turn on when it gets dark.

I blame stupid people, but I also blame car manufacturers who install running lights with the approximate apparent magnitude equivalent to the sun, so they don't realize their headlights aren't actually on because their running lights are that bright.

My old Volkswagen was completely idiot-proof. The headlights were the daytime running lights and the taillights would be on all the time. Seems like such a set-up would also be less expensive to make than having separate DRLs.

Some European countries also require low beam headlights to be on 24/7 when driving.

Mike

[J N Winkler]

There is also a trend internationally to require daytime running lights to be implemented by energizing light sources other than the headlamps.  That, in combination with always-on instrument panel illumination, makes it no longer safe to set out at night (or during low-light periods) without first checking for a "headlamps on" telltale.

[Molandfreak]

Why is addressing strangers like they're posh monarchs still being taught like it's normal etiquette this far into the 21st century? I'm just a normal dude going to the hardware store in flannel and overalls, not a "sir."

I respect folks who just treat me like a friend from the start far more than folks who practically roll out the red carpet and feel the need to end every sentence with an honorific, especially in everyday situations.

[Plutonic Panda]

Why is addressing strangers like they're posh monarchs still being taught like it's normal etiquette this far into the 21st century? I'm just a normal dude going to the hardware store in flannel and overalls, not a "sir."

I respect folks who just treat me like a friend from the start far more than folks who practically roll out the red carpet and feel the need to end every sentence with an honorific, especially in everyday situations.

I work in hospitality and I say "sir" or "ma'am" or "boss" out of respect no matter what position I am in. On the other end of the stick you may be a normal dude but I am just an employee and not your friend or buddy.

I will say the only thing like that which creeps me out is Chick-Fil-A(used to work there) workers who always say with a fake smile "my pleasure." They'll say it 20 times if you compliment them on anything or tell them thank you. I just refused to say it half of the time and I was employee of the month several times so I am not sure how much the company really gave a fuck although they did try to engrain it in our head and the managers did say something to me a few times to which I just ignored them.

[TheHighwayMan3561]

Why is addressing strangers like they're posh monarchs still being taught like it's normal etiquette this far into the 21st century? I'm just a normal dude going to the hardware store in flannel and overalls, not a "sir."

I respect folks who just treat me like a friend from the start far more than folks who practically roll out the red carpet and feel the need to end every sentence with an honorific, especially in everyday situations.

It's pretty much been an overnight generational shift how people interact in "authority/subordinate" type relationships like that, so a lot of people still have an expectation that a service employee is just that, a servant and not your friend or someone to tolerate any missteps from. It's kind of hand in hand that later millennials and Gen Z kids are much more on a first-name basis with adults outside of school envirnoments, which older generations find both unthinkable and unacceptable the idea of an adult not being referred to as "Mr./Mrs. _______" by a child or teen.

[Plutonic Panda]

I can't stand furniture stores where you're basically stalked by a salesperson and the second you start looking at a set or even a piece you're approached to be given information about it. Then you go to another store like Walmart or Lowes and when you really need help with something you might as be on the Moon.

[Max Rockatansky]

Example of commissioned sales versus non-commissioned sales there.  I tend to prefer the latter myself given I generally already know what I want.

[Plutonic Panda]

Example of commissioned sales versus non-commissioned sales there.  I tend to prefer the latter myself given I generally already know what I want.

Yeah that's why I stick to IKEA nowadays. That or Arhaus or Restoration Hardware type stores but they are out of my price range. Anything in between and it seems like it's probably going to be employees on commission. I can't remember if Rooms-To-Go is commission or not. I have yet to go to Living Spaces but I believe they are either hourly or salary. Mathis Brothers are the worst. You can get them to leave you alone to browse but they lurk in the shadows wherever you go.

[Max Rockatansky]

We've had some luck lately ordering furniture pieces online and having them delivered.  We tend to stick to more basic stuff since we have three dogs and my wife's nieces over frequently.

[roadman65]

Yes it would be nice if Walmart paid their employees commission as they would be richer than Nordstrom or Macys where they have to work hard as most people are intimidated by the prices.


Also what bothers me is when a driver almost comes to a complete stop at a milled piece of pavement like just now. FDOT is repaving SR 563 in Lakeland, FL and I was driving across it leaving a shopping center when I'm traveling smoothly across that roadway that has one lane milled for final asphalt layer with it being just two inches lower. Then so is the guy in front of me until he stops unexpectedly at the lower piece of road because he fears his suspension system will be damaged, when in reality two to four inch drops will not impact your alignment or give you a shake while driving.  Because this I had to apply my brakes suddenly to avoid a possible hit even though I was three car lengths away from him.

[Plutonic Panda]

They're doing that all over LA, but in the form of speed humps. People will literally slow down to 5 mph to go over them. It's especially annoying on Mulholland.

[Bruce]

People will literally slow down to 5 mph to go over them

That's the point. And they're better than older, steeper speed bumps that are uncomfortable even at the slowest possible speed.

[kkt]

I don't mind "sir".  At that particular moment, they are in the serving role to me.  When I was in a serving role to others, I used deferential language to them.

But I really hate when a salesman calls me "friend".  I'm not his friend.  I choose my friends, they don't just happen to be front when I walk in the sales room.  Calling me "friend" means he's probably ashamed of the goods or the deal he's offering and wants me to overlook it because we're old buddies.

[Plutonic Panda]

People will literally slow down to 5 mph to go over them

That's the point. And they're better than older, steeper speed bumps that are uncomfortable even at the slowest possible speed.

And it causes more exhaust and more emissions to come out of cars. Brilliant. And while it is meant to slow people down, It's not meant to come to a complete stop. You can go over these things at 15 to 20 miles an hour but some people come to a complete stop or at 5 miles an hour ant most over them. And then they speed up to double the speed limit and then slam on their brakes at the next one. So to me, they seem very ineffective.

[mgk920]

Those über-annoying speed bumps are becoming more common on suburban major roads.  I'd hate to ride over them in a transit bus or in the back of an ambulance.  To me they are the hallmark of a muni that is trying to be cheap and cynical and they should be prohibited in the MUTCD except on the most minor of low-speed, low traffic side streets.  (Suburban muni governing body member to the fire chief: "If you would keep your speed under control, we wouldn't have to install more of them".)

Mike

[epzik8]

I don't mind "sir".  At that particular moment, they are in the serving role to me.  When I was in a serving role to others, I used deferential language to them.

But I really hate when a salesman calls me "friend".  I'm not his friend.  I choose my friends, they don't just happen to be front when I walk in the sales room.  Calling me "friend" means he's probably ashamed of the goods or the deal he's offering and wants me to overlook it because we're old buddies.

I've experienced this the other way around, me the employee and the other person the customer. Just plain awkward.

[thenetwork]

Yes it would be nice if Walmart paid their employees commission as they would be richer than Nordstrom or Macys where they have to work hard as most people are intimidated by the prices.


Also what bothers me is when a driver almost comes to a complete stop at a milled piece of pavement like just now. FDOT is repaving SR 563 in Lakeland, FL and I was driving across it leaving a shopping center when I'm traveling smoothly across that roadway that has one lane milled for final asphalt layer with it being just two inches lower. Then so is the guy in front of me until he stops unexpectedly at the lower piece of road because he fears his suspension system will be damaged, when in reality two to four inch drops will not impact your alignment or give you a shake while driving.  Because this I had to apply my brakes suddenly to avoid a possible hit even though I was three car lengths away from him.

More annoying are those who drive larger pickup trucks or Jeeps that on TV are shown speeding through creeks and over washboard dirt roads. Yet they're still afwaid of dwiving over a wittle speed bump! 

[Max Rockatansky]

I fly over those things in my Impreza.  I never understood why those with high clearance vehicles (especially trucks) don't do the same.

[vdeane]

The fact that Linux requries installing separate programs to make some basic one-time configuration changes.  The examples I can think of are needing winetricks to use native DLLs (even copying a DLL from Windows doesn't work, has to be winetricks) or imwheel to change the mouse wheel scroll speed.  The later is what's frustrating me right now, as I bought a Lenova M325S mouse to replace the mouse I had for my laptop (its left clicker was going bad, to the point where I had to use the trackpad for clicking half the time), but now the mouse wheel scroll speed is WAY too fast (to the point where scrolling between tabs in Vivaldi is unusable; if I want to move by less than 5 tabs I need to put so much effort into it that it's faster to just click on the tab like a caveman, or God forbid, a Windows user of Chrome), but there's no way to do that without installing imwheel, and the solution with that is known to screw up other things.

[SSOWorld]

Example of commissioned sales versus non-commissioned sales there.  I tend to prefer the latter myself given I generally already know what I want.

Yeah that's why I stick to IKEA nowadays. That or Arhaus or Restoration Hardware type stores but they are out of my price range. Anything in between and it seems like it's probably going to be employees on commission. I can't remember if Rooms-To-Go is commission or not. I have yet to go to Living Spaces but I believe they are either hourly or salary. Mathis Brothers are the worst. You can get them to leave you alone to browse but they lurk in the shadows wherever you go.

Poor blind Al and her Kullen.

#Driveby