Five on Friday - the grumpy edition

Apologies for all those of you who like the Five on Friday posts to be happy posts. I am feeling a bit grumpy this week and I feel the need to share. Today I am sharing (in no particular order) what annoyed me this week. I have added some lovely photos for you to enjoy, all bar one completely unrelated to the writing. 

this week in our garden

Internet service providers. Ours is awful. It is unreliable at best. The WiFi router is also below par. It is particularly annoying if I am working from home and can't do the things I need to do, for example uploading teaching material onto the virtual learning environment. Customer service is deplorable. Typical call centre service with scripted answers.It is difficult to explain the problem because if it is not worded as on the script, it is discarded. In any case, he will insist you switch the box off on the wall, even if you have already done so. Twice. He will then 'do some tests', in all likelihood whilst he goes to the loo. You can object but why bother? I am saying 'he' but it could of course be a woman. The big four have had really poor ratings in the latest Which magazine, ours being the top of the bad lot (we are with Virgin). Any suggestions are welcome, either for a good provider or to learn how to talk to someone who can not think outside the script.

Car drivers. When I cycle to work, I pass a T-junction. I have the right of way. Almost every time, there is a driver who thinks he/she can just about squeeze past me before our paths cross. It is infuriating. Said drivers stop as they should, look at me and then drive out onto the junction, taking the risk to knock me off the bike for the sake of a few seconds gained. Once on the junction, said driver fixes the gaze straight ahead, away from me. What is wrong with those people? Knowing the game, I pay close attention but I really think traffic should not be rule by survival of the strongest.



This one is stalking two moorhens

Urban foxes: They take my milk from the front steps at least once a week (it comes in plastic bottles). Urban foxes are only cute on Springwatch. Some people around here feed the foxes, our neighbour has a fox den in the garden. I feel guilty when the same neighbour complains about our barking dog. Most dogs barks at foxes, ours does when the fox just sits there and stares at him. Not continuously I hasten to add, nor every day, but occasionally when he manages to escape through the cat flap unnoticed (the dog, not the neighbour).


Children. Not all children and not all the time. Just mine, and just sometimes. For example when they fail to mention that they have eaten all the breakfast cereals, sausages, pasta, Nutella (the latter being particularly upsetting). Or when they boil coins in vinegar in the microwave (in the name of science), put the empty milk carton back in the fridge and don't replace the empty toilet roll.


On my way home from work

Life style blogs. I sometimes scroll through the 'all blogs' list on Bloglovin because I have nothing better to do, or because I am trying to avoid doing something more useful. What is it with life style blogs? '7 suits that will make you feel powerful' . The superhero costume for successful women? I think not. Feeling empowered comes from within, your power suit may add a professional look. '8 superfood snacks that will get you through the day'. The science behind superfoods is at best sketchy, they are hyped by the media, life style bloggers and the food babe. Moreover, superfoods cost a fortune a punnet. What about 'No-fail plan: how to spring clean your house (and keep it clean)'. Ditch the children and/or your partner? Best of all: 'The $58 shorts that promise to make your butt look amazing'I have to admit I was tempted to read this. Finally, 'How to be a morning person'. Drugs maybe?  Of course you are right  to say that nobody makes me read any of those blog posts and that they are largely harmless. But are they? I think not. They prey on the insecure and easily fooled, messages are replicated on social media, news outlets and whatnot.


I also take exception 


  • to busybodies and playground super mums 
  • when someone tells me they made a sugar free cake with maple syrup.Which is about 85% sucrose, the disaccharide that is in ordinary sugar, making the sugar free cake a cake with less sugar, which of course is good. Call me a pedant if you like; 
  • when Amazon suggests I might also like false eyelashes when I buy earphones (I don't);
  • when someone tells me childhood infections such as measles are good for them; 
  • when a bra wire wiggles its way out during a wash cycle;
  • .... 

I could add to the list but I don't want to frighten all my readers away. What makes you grumpy? Please do tell. I don't like being grumpy all alone. In the meantime, thank you for stopping by and reading this post. I hope you'll be back. Please check out other (more uplifting) Five on Friday posts here. xx







Comments

  1. I'm so sorry Christina but I had to laugh! Hopefully you feel better now. All those grumps resonate with me except the foxes. You need to come and live here we don't have foxes! The internet provider thing is top of my list along with education VLE's. The two together make a marriage made in hell. Just as well you have your lovely garden. Those photos are fab! Try not to murder the children over the weekend and have a 'chilled' one. B xx ( still chuckling)

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  2. I just about spat my drink out laughing when I got to "boiling coins in vinegar in the microwave"! dear gods I'm not ready for my kids to get to that stage I wont be able to keep a straight face telling them off!

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  3. Oh Christina!!! You haven't driven me away at all, you just made me laugh and clap my hands together and I now have a great big smile across my face!!! I so totally get all that you have said!!! Oh yes, the darned internet, yes, drivers who come at me when I am out walking as though I am some sort of target, the bra wire thing, clean houses, power suits, yes, the whole lot!!!! The only thing I don't have is urban foxes stealing the milk, but I do have squirrels stealing bulbs and pigeons eating my flowers!!! Oh and the neighbours dog who really does bark all the time, sometimes literally for two or three hours without stopping, that would really make your neighbour cross!!! I am sure that your Jack is nothing like this dog! All I can say is that I hope that things get better, they will, it is just part of this life of a woman thing at times I think. Hope your weekend is good and restful! Thank you for joining Five On Friday, I love the grumpy edition! xx p.s. yes, the empty things too, what is with that, why is there an empty shower gel bottle and an empty loo roll in the bathroom this morning....

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  4. Me too, me too! We were with Virgin and they were an absolute nightmare. I rang again and again and again, it was like banging my head against a brick wall. In the end we had to move, there was literally no other option. Now with BT, and all seems to be okay so far... But honestly, Virgin were absolutely the worst, I don't understand how they have any customers left at all. I'm intrigued by the boiling of coins in vinegar in the microwave. Almost intrigued enough to try it, but I fear it might not be the kind of thing I enjoy clearing up. I used to cycle to work and back every day in central Bristol and dodge the demon drivers, it was hell. One junction in particular was really dangerous. A friend was knocked off there once in fact. Those posts with numbers are always so junky. Nasty overwhelming piles of useless mumbo jumbo. You have set me off! Loads of supermums in the playground here. I usually hide in a corner being inadequate. My children are always the last ones out which makes it even worse. Your garden's looking good though. Maybe have a sit out there in the sun with a piece of proper cake. CJ xx

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  5. I am with you on them all, just been through months of hell with BT, when I use to cycle a lot got knock off my bike once and they didnt even stop, foxes god forbid we see one withing shooting range same goes with rats, children look forward to grandchildren then its payback time, lifestyle blogs well they need to get a life, why restrict yourself to a stupid clothes collection, a pathetic collection of food to eat, living like a miser and being made to feel guilty that you are not giving your possessions away for the good of your inner karma usually find these people are all pretty soulless and miserable, life is for living be happy that each day you wake up again, another thing that grates on my nerves is automated phone services and the stupid music they play when your on hold never mind keep smiling :-)

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  6. You haven't driven me away. In fact, I think we all go through grumpy patches and sometimes feel it is just us. Some of your comments made me laugh, especially the coins in vinegar in the microwave. My top grump is people (namely DH) who live the dishcloth sopping wet instead of wringing it out and never wipe down work surfaces! Car drivers who think you are invisible is another of my pet hates, especially when they think they can pull out of a junction or onto a roundabout right in front of you. xx

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  7. I'm so sorry that you have been annoyed :) It happens - but your garden photos are full of promise!

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  8. Oh, I hate that bra wire thing too!!!! Happened to me last week.
    Liz

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  9. Well your post certainly made me smile and then laugh and then smile again. One of my pet hates is wires coming lose in the washing machine too. I also hate hair in plugholes. The worst thing ever is trying to get a doctors appointment...Hope your week improves.

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  10. You tell 'em, Christina. I enjoyed your list and I agree with every single point. :)

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  11. All legitimate complaints in my opinion, particularly the internet provider. We're lucky to have a good one and one who responds when we have a problem, gives help and if that doesn't work they send someone out to the house. One time I went into the office for help with my router and they looked at it, said I needed a newer one and gave it to me at no charge and said that they could actually lower my bill and they did. What's not to love.

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  12. Hey, don't hold anything back there Christina!! I was going to say "what a cute fox", but obviously he's a menace to your neighbourhood. We don't have fox in my neighbourhood (that I know of), but coyotes (bigger). They steal clueless people's pets :D My clueless pet remains untouched, of course. I can relate to so much of these topics. I hope your weekend improves things!
    Wendy

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  13. Oh dear it all sounds really aggravating. You need a holiday! Somewhere calm and peaceful with lots of flowers and no irritating people. Enjoy your weekend. :-)

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  14. I cycle off-road as much as I can because of careless dangerous drivers. I always make eye contact at junctions but it's when they overtake with centimetres to spare that makes me boil. Almost every bike journey ends with me thinking I could have died or been badly injured by a car driver. Not sure if this is better or worse than parents who rely on 'herd protection' and don't have their children vaccinated. This was such a contentious issue when my children were growing up and the result was that there were several outbreaks of mumps and measles at secondary school and I often wondered how those parents felt. Loathe those bloglovin' lifestyle blogs too. Better stop now but good for you for sticking your head above the parapet and telling it as it is. Have a good weekend Christina.

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  15. Glad you could air your grumpiness here. I get the grumpiest when I'm driving about and encounter distracted and just plain bad drivers. I'm also grumpy with all the political back and forth we get to listen to in these United States. I wish our election periods were shortened. I hope you have a wonderful weekend now that you've gotten these things off your chest! :)

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  16. Oh, this post made me laugh hard! I have a 'lifestyle' blog - I label it as one as it's beneficial for my work, but really it's just a miss mash of posts - but I promise I will never write a post about the '20 ways Chia seeds will revolutionise your life', or other nonsense like that.xxx #fiveonfriday

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  17. Hey Christina,
    A post after my own heart my lovely. Things making me grumpy this week; my children, perfect life statuses on Facebook, smug mothers, my widening girth, the fact that I definitely need to buy a new pair of jeans, breakfast cereal all over the kitchen floor, Xbox 360, my hair, the weather.
    Here's to a less grumpy weekend.
    Leanne xx

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  18. Oh, this post made me laugh hard! I have a 'lifestyle' blog - I label it as one as it's beneficial for my work, but really it's just a miss mash of posts - but I promise I will never write a post about the '20 ways Chia seeds will revolutionise your life', or other nonsense like that.xxx #fiveonfriday

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  19. You are a scream, Christina. All of the above things also annoy me but fortunately at 66 I am classified as a grumpy old woman-Iwear that badge with pride!! I think your family sounds very normal and healthy and you are a great Mum. Catriona

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  20. Oh Christina, every single one of those things would make me grumpy too, the car-driver thing especially, some people's sense of entitlement really winds me up - why they think the Highway Code doesn't apply to them is a mystery to me - c'est la vie, I hope life is a little kinder this week. Have a great weekend. Jane x PS: we're with Talk Talk - don't go there either!

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  21. Greetings Christina, after reading your post today, I agree with you totally! So sorry to hear about your internet provider. Same thing happened to me with the TV cable company. Spent 45 minutes with a customer service rep who did nothing to help me. At the end, I just had to laugh. It was quite interesting to read about the foxes in your garden. We have rabbits and lately on two occasions we've found a dead gopher in the pool! Lilly (my cat) isn't doing a very good job of safeguarding the home. Haha. Enjoy your weekend. Hugs, Pat

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  22. I am feeling you on the children front. We have been at home for two weeks and some of it has been nice but I could happily forget the rest! My grump? it is small but so silly, I hate it when you have payed for a meal and they have left the green woody bit on a tomato! CUT IT OFF you lazy chef. My friend knew this about me and her husband once made a cheese and tomato sandwich on a picnic that they gave me specially which was full of everybody's green bits, which kind of made me laugh - a bit! Jo xxx

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  23. Grr to isps – any technology that doesn't work is INFURIATING. Grr to inconsiderate drivers – please take good care of yourself. Foxes I don't mind so much, other than when they're getting frisky at night and making those awful screaming-child-noises. But I'd be pretty ticked-off if one was stealing our milk! Children, well, yes... Life-style blogs – absolutely detest them. Too smug and self-satisfied by half. Glad you got all that off your chest :-) Hope you're feeling perkier today and have a lovely rest of the weekend. Sam x

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  24. I hate those drivers that think they are the only ones on the road and don't care about the rest! Have a nice weekend. Irune

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  25. Ok my pet hate and I can't quite believe there are still people who believe this but the hype re how beneficial products like flora, benecol or whatever it's called and any margarine and so called healthy spreads are compared to butter. That stuff is s... and poison for the human body. Give me some butter from an organic grass fed cow any day of the week. Either that or I will do without. I could rant on re soya products and quorn but I won't rant over lol.

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  26. Drivers, and cranky children are at the top of my list, long work weeks, being told several different things about my Dad's insurance that i just want to stop, and then 9 days later being told even more things that weren't told to b=me to begin with! No time for knitting, always having to take the dog out because everyone else forgets and my internet service is constantly going out too! I feel better, I hope you do too.
    Meredith

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  27. Haha. My children make me grumpy too ... though three have just left for boarding school with their Dad having finished school holidays, so I'm actually feeling rather low. Thanks for the giggle.

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  28. we were with virgin, they were dreadful. the only decent advice I ever got from them was instead of putting the internet cable straight into the phone socket to unscrew the wall plate and insert the cable into the other connector. We're with plusnet now. much better. I'll send you a recommendation.
    teen boy has taken to putting milk back in fridge with the tiniest bit left. just so he can say "but it's NOT empty.............."

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  29. lol - I was nodding along so I must be grumpy too!! The driver/cyclist thing I'm so with you on this. I think more drivers should be made to cycle and then they might understand how frustrating this is and how much effort it can be to keep the bike moving uphill/against the wind while all they have to do is put their foot down, which doesn't take much effort at all does it. And don't start me on urban foxes... Or virgin.... Or the noisy/shouty/shrieky kids from 4 doors down which we hear full blast. It's all ok really, but once you start, hey? have a good week :)

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  30. I totally agree, all those things are very annoying. Internet providers' customer service is a joke. Blimey, I remember the good old days. :) There were only landline phones, and if there was a problem, a jovial technician soon showed up. He fixed the problem and had time for a cup of coffee and a chat with some practical tips...
    Wishing you a less grumpy new week! Your garden looks lovely. :)

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  31. This is such a great post! I am nodding along with a lot of this and I love knowing what makes others grumpy. It's also satisfying to get it all out - a post I wrote once on first world problems made me feel SO much better the minute I pressed publish. Rudeness makes me grumpy, and bad driving, and newspapers like the Daily Fail, and the current obsession with things being sugar free.... I might write my own post. ;-) xx

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  32. I know I shouldn't be smiling at all your grumpy things but it was an entertaining post... And I am totally with you on the cycling thing.. And sugar free cakes! Me... I'm grumpy that I can't get up and do anything without help for the next six weeks and cross that I was stupid enough to fall in a ditch! I'm just off to google "shorts that make your bum look great" 😜

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  33. Well, I had to scroll back and see what grumpiness I missed... In the midst of sending you due sympathy and concern for topics such as drivers who threaten to do you harm, I have to admit that on more than one occasion I laughed out loud a lot while reading this post, Christina, but thanks to your good narrative, I can well see what prompted your grumpiness!

    Most recently I have been grumpy about trying to fill out forms in obnoxious incomprehensible tax paperwork that my BA degree in Speech Communications does not help me understand.

    I am grumpy that our internet provider [Comcast] "fixed" our phone service remotely and now every time I open my laptop I have to scroll to the top and choose my internet server even though I chose it as my primary server as I was instructed to do. Humpf.

    I am very grumpy about the media coverage of our embarrassing US presidential race.

    Advertising, especially on TV makes me grumpy. Why would I ask my Dr. to give me a medication that has such dire possible side affects?

    After swimming in our local pool for one hour my new chlorine resistant swimsuit
    turned from dark marine blue to aqua! Actually that scared me and I am wondering if I should go swim there again.

    Wishing us both a good week :) xx

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  34. Oh how I agree with your post. As a runner and a cyclist I continue to be amazed at how some car drivers think they own the road! For internet try Andrews and Arnold. They are based in the UK and, I believe, that all their calls are handled in the UK. They are a little more expensive than people like Sky (£35 vs. £28) but totally worth it! x

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Thank you for visiting and leaving a comment, I love to hear from you, I really do. I sometimes reply by email but I am not all that reliable... Christina xx

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