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Lots of people blog about one or several of their pet peeves. This is going to be a little different. It is about the pet peeves of OTHERS and how my behavior impacts them.
I have a habit,
Unfortunately, as many of my habits are wont to do, it does not fall under the “Good” habit category. No, it tends to make most people climb the walls. It is obnoxious, irritating, intrusive and just ANNOYING AS HELL to those around me.
I snap my gum.
I snap my gum a LOT.
LOUDLY.
With VIGOR.
I know. I know that I resemble a cow chewing its cud. I know that this is uncouth, tacky, unlady-like and just plain rude. Most of the time I try to constrain myself around others, but usually it’s just an unconscious thing that seems to take over my mandible.
“You’re REALLY enjoying that gum, arent’ ya?” is one of the more polite reminders I’ve had to stop my gum munching. Usually the (justifiable) comments are more along the lines of, “IF YOU DO NOT STOP SNAPPING YOUR GUM I WILL REACH IN, TAKE THAT GUM OUT AND THEN WIRE YOUR FREAKING JAW TOGETHER SO YOU WILL NEVER ASSAULT MY EARDRUMS AGAIN, YOU INCONSIDERATE PIECE OF EXCREMENT!!!!”
It’s one of the many flaws that I have that I inflict on others.
Sigh…
So? Do any of you have habits that drive the people around you NUTSO?
I’ll tell you right now that I think my husband should post a comment and say, “Why, YES! I chew a hideously large amount of sunflower seeds on road trips and then spit the shells into a cup, resulting in a totally foul looking thing that just sits and STARES AT MY WIFE THE WHOLE TRIP AND ENEVITABLY SPILLS ON HER SIDE OF THE CAR AT SOME DAMN POINT!!!!!”
I’m not counting on it, though…
Chelle says:
I correct people. Even when it doesn’t matter. Even when it would be way more polite to keep my trap shut. Even though I know, and tell my kids repeatedly, “it is better to be nice than to be right.” I’m trying, I swear. It took me forever to realize that people didn’t exactly shiver with excitement because I was telling them something they didn’t know, or maybe didn’t care that much. Anyhow, it’s something I’m always working on.
May 23rd, 2008 at 4:12 pm
Azul says:
Dang it, I was sitting here snapping my gum and enjoying myself until you brought it up.
Also, I think my husband should ditto Chelle’s comment. I’ll have to remember her “it’s better to be nice than to be right” wisdom and say that to Q next time he pulls his know-it-all routine.
Azuls last blog post..Lowered Expectations?
May 23rd, 2008 at 4:25 pm
lceel 'Uncle Lou' says:
I burp. Especially after a pop or a beer. And not quietly. Quiet burps are something I never mastered. I’ve tried. They make me cry. Or at least they make the insdie of my nose burn and my eyes tear up. So I don’t burp quietly. Annie HATES that. Little kids, however, think I’m hilarious.
Oh, and just to give expression to my feminine side, I’m a silent farter. My sons used to call me ‘Deaddy’, which is a play on ‘daddy’ and short for ‘Deadly Dad’.
lceel ‘Uncle Lou’s last blog post..Friday - the weekend cometh
May 23rd, 2008 at 4:39 pm
MacKenzie says:
Well, I don’t see Craig’s comment of “I crack my knuckles loudly when MacKenzie and I are trying to relax and watch tv” but nevertheless, I will admit to my one weird habit.
When taking a bite from someone else’s utensil or hand (always Craig, who else would be willing to share their food with me?) I stick out my tongue. Not a lot, and I don’t mean to or even notice that I am doing it, but he says I do it every time. I don’t think he finds my spit endearing.
MacKenzies last blog post..Don’t Take Their Crap
May 23rd, 2008 at 4:47 pm
Moose says:
I have an unsavory habit of letting the dishes pile up. We’re talking towering stacks of dishes crusted in last Monday’s soup. It’s not pretty.
Mooses last blog post..When Soup Becomes a Questionable Metaphor
May 23rd, 2008 at 4:53 pm
Erin Evans Taylor says:
I think my hubby would say my insatiable need to make sure all the cupboards are shut before going to bed would be his. I can’t sleep if I know a cupboard door is open. My peeve is that he opens ALL the cupboard doors, and leaves them opened! Gah!!!!!
Erin Evans Taylors last blog post..My Red Shoes- a haiku
May 23rd, 2008 at 5:22 pm
Craig says:
I tend to shake or tap my foot (not in a Larry Craig way) when I’m sitting down.
Craigs last blog post..Don’t Take Their Crap
May 23rd, 2008 at 6:25 pm
Craig says:
Also, I was expecting more from this post when I read the title.
Craigs last blog post..Don’t Take Their Crap
May 23rd, 2008 at 6:25 pm
4 says:
I used to snap my gum really loudly too. After my assault and broken jaw, I am lucky if I can even chew gum. Piss me off!
So I say keep snapping sister for all of us snappers who have lost our snap.
Oh and my new annoying habit…cleaning while mad. Now, one would think this might not be such a bad thing but, these days I have a few issues to work through and no one else can find anything after I am done my ‘venting’. Which leads me to my pet peeve about others….whining when they can’t find stuff. What the hell, can’t they read my mind to know where I put it? I mean seriously, I have to read theirs when they can’t find their cell phone, or remote, or new shirt, or dirty dishes, or…….
Damn, now I have to go clean again.
4s last blog post..Go forth and procreate…..OH SNAP!
May 23rd, 2008 at 8:19 pm
Angella says:
I chew the inside of my lip.
And according to Honey? I slap my leg a lot when telling a story.
I do not realize I am doing this. So steer clear of me in July, lest my flailing hands smack you
Angellas last blog post..It’s Not About You
May 23rd, 2008 at 8:35 pm
Backpacking Dad says:
I relentlessly blog-stalk people until they ask me to go away.
Also, I toss dwarfs.
Backpacking Dads last blog post..Backpacking Dad goes to New York
May 23rd, 2008 at 9:20 pm
hairyshoefairy says:
Loved this. I absent-mindedly play with seams or folds in mine or other peoples (typically just limited to family) clothes. It drives my husband bonkers cuz I do it to him most.
hairyshoefairys last blog post..Back In A While
May 23rd, 2008 at 9:20 pm
Connie says:
I twirl my hair. I’ve done it since I was a little girl. I can’t stop.
Connies last blog post..Yesterday….
May 23rd, 2008 at 10:12 pm
charli says:
I smack my gum as well, and I chew gum when I am out of the house a LOT. I was standing there in Chuck E. Cheese today with a friend as we were watching our kids play and I realized that I was chomping on my gum in an outrageously vigorous fashion with my big mouth wide open with a goofy grin on my face. I don’t know what it was. Maybe I was feeling bored? Nervous? Excited? I dunno.
I also do what Chelle does. I am VERY bad about it. I even got rude e-mails from my Grandpa a few months ago for it- I had sent him a couple e-mails in response to some things he had forwarded me that were incorrect ( I just wanted to reassure him that the monster alligator wasnt’ found in the lake we live by so we wouldn’t be getting eatten by it, and also that Obama was never Muslim). I am an avid snopes fan. I hate forwards.
Pet peeves:
Styrofoam- I can not touch it or hear the sound it makes as it rubs something. Even thinking about it now makes me break out in goosebumps.
People spitting or hacking up loogies. It’s gross. I understand if you’re sick and it has to be done- go to the bathroom and do it. Not on the ground!
charlis last blog post..Unintentional Blog Break is Over
May 23rd, 2008 at 11:14 pm
Doug says:
I cannot go to sleep without making sure that the door is locked (which includes running my fingers over the keyhole to make sure there’s not a key in there, just in cast I suddenly get glaucoma and the sight of the keys sticking in there is something I miss completely), touching all of the burners on the stove even though I haven’t used the stove in over a week, and checking 4 times to make sure my alarm clock is set. OCD much?
Dougs last blog post..Things Cheap People Like #3
May 24th, 2008 at 1:56 am
Aspen says:
Uhm… Let’s see…
I chew my gum loudly, can’t go to bed until I’ve checked that the door is locked (like three times at least), clean when I’m upset, always want to be the driver, worry chronically (thus the no sleep since 3am), and I laugh/giggle/smile too much. Those last two things don’t really seem like they go together, but I assure you I’m guilty of both… My worries come out at night when I’m trying to sleep.
Aspens last blog post..Amarillo…
May 24th, 2008 at 4:18 am
The Over-Thinker says:
I didn’t notice the smacking! But maybe I was also smacking? Maybe we were sychonized??
My annoying (and I totally just have one, you know…heh.) is that I make a shitload of weird faces when I talk. I can’t keep my face still. I’d be a terrible anchorwoman.
The Over-Thinkers last blog post..There are Winners, there are Losers and there are people who enter contests for Chocolate Tea, Cupcakes and Books about Ugly Food
May 24th, 2008 at 10:34 am
Amy says:
I used to get told off for popping my knuckles… but I haven’t seen the people who complained about it since I left work last October. Additionally, I haven’t been as stressed since leaving work so I don’t do it as often if at all. Plus the reason I left work was illness and one of the features of said illness is joint pain so I preferred not to touch anything.
God damn I must think of something else I can do to annoy people. Can’t have them relaxed and comfortable around me.
Amys last blog post..Hearts of all lovers
May 24th, 2008 at 10:41 am
Fluent Brittish says:
I snap my gum, too!!! Even during church. Can you imagine how everyone must hate me? because if I heard someone else snapping their gum in church, I’d totally talk crap about them.
Fluent Brittishs last blog post..Oops! I Did It Again!
May 24th, 2008 at 12:14 pm
Elizabeth says:
mwahahahaha
Elizabeths last blog post..Pullin’ up
May 24th, 2008 at 2:12 pm
Shamelessly Sassy says:
snapping by gum eases my stress. I love it.
Shamelessly Sassys last blog post..Outed in A Local Paper
May 24th, 2008 at 3:40 pm
Sra says:
Wow, you’re one of those people, eh? At least you are aware of it. I on the other hand, am not sure if I have habits that annoy other people, and I admit I haven’t thought much about it, but now that you mention it, I wonder if I do. When I was younger, I think I was an over-explainer - the type who says the obvious or else just goes into way more detail than people are interested in hearing. I want to say I’ve learned to control that, but I am kind of a long winded writer, so maybe not so much.
Sras last blog post..Time for a new scam
May 24th, 2008 at 5:21 pm
Sra says:
Oh, P.S…. I correct people and crack my knuckles too. I tend to only correct boyfriends and friends. I think correcting strangers is out of line. But it’s probably annoying no matter what. And I can’t stop cracking my knuckles. It needs to be done, and that’s that.
Sras last blog post..Time for a new scam
May 24th, 2008 at 5:31 pm
Painted Maypole says:
i pop my gum, too, but I don’t chew it very often.
Painted Maypoles last blog post..i can think of no clever title
May 25th, 2008 at 12:11 pm
HRH says:
I too am a gum chewer. I try so hard to not be annoying, but fail miserably on many occasions. Maybe we should all unite and chew gum together at a neutral location where gum chewers can be appreciated…
HRHs last blog post..Suburban white water rapids followed by tents…
May 25th, 2008 at 2:43 pm
Jennifer says:
I will refold, rewipe, reload, re-do anything someone else has done if it’s not done to my liking.
For example, if my mother-in-law is nice enough to load the dishwasher and puts the bowls in the *wrong* place, I’ll fix it. Sometimes I don’t even realize I’m doing it.
I’ve been told that it’s rude not to accept help graciously.
Jennifers last blog post..Chickity China, The Chinese Chicken, Have A Drumstick and Your Brain Starts Tickin’
May 26th, 2008 at 1:11 pm
In the Trenches of Mommyhood says:
When I’m reading a book, I unconsciously flip the back pages. Over and over again. Drives Hubby NUTSO at night when I’m reading in bed. Flick, flick, flick.
In the Trenches of Mommyhoods last blog post..Memorial Weekend Recap Part I–Our Drive to NY
May 27th, 2008 at 10:59 am
heather says:
next time we get together, I’ll bring the gum. I’m a snapper too!
heathers last blog post..Off…
May 27th, 2008 at 4:40 pm
loraleeslooneytunes.com » Whatev… says:
[…] Later that night we were over at my sisters looking at her new flooring she was having installed and James noticed that I was chewing gum. You know, because I totally snap my gum at the loud level of a jack hammer making out with a kettle drum or four. […]
June 11th, 2008 at 11:57 pm