Old Stock: Pet Peeves Ba Kamo?

No this is not because I have PMS today. And this isn't because I switched pill brands and am now wildly hormonal. And don't try to blame it on coffee deprivation. Yes, I am drinking 3-in-1 now (shudder) but it's delivering some caffeine to the bloodstream... enabling me to be human even before my first yosi of the day. Anyway, I don't think I need an excuse to be snarky because, as my very good friends already know -- I am not always a nice person. You know those stickers that say "zero to bitch in 2.5 seconds"? They meant me.

So without further explanation (and no provocation), here are some of my top pet peeves in random order.

1. People who say MTV when they mean music video. It's like saying Xerox when you mean photocopy. Only worse. And far more annoying. MTV is a network. MTV stands for Music Television. "Did you see Britney's MTV?" Oh, she bought out the network did she? Has her own cable channel now huh? Good for Brit-Brit. Maybe from the residuals, she can finally buy underwear. Or longer skirts.

Please, for all things great and small, stop saying MTV when you mean music video. For your own good as well as mine.

2. People who try to cut in line at the elevator queue. This is especially trying for me as I work in a company where three elevators are expected to service the needs of over 1,000 employees spread out over 17 floors. Elevator space is at a premium here. I sometimes have to wait up to 15 minutes for one to stop on my floor with enough room me to squeeze in. So, when there is an orderly line at the office lobby and I see somebody trying to pull a sneaky (usually by pretending to talk to someone ahead in line), it takes all my energy not to yell "Hoy gaga, may pila!!! Pumila ka!"

3. When someone sends a private message to half their contact list. Ouch, someone out there reading this has probably done this already. Let me calmly explain why this bugs the sh*t out of me. Having half your contact list on a single private message invalidates the concept of a private message. Also, half the time these are invitations to gigs, shows, and parties. That's why there is an EVENTS option. Plus whenever someone on this incredibly not private flight path hits reply, the rest of us receive it as well. Really, I don't need to know that taborkek247 said "kewl pare, see you there!" to your invitation to watch some garage band play in a high school gymnasium. Why not just write a blog and limit its recipient list? Wouldn't that make more sense? So everyone can reply to their hearts' content.. .and I dont need to know about it. Let's keep those private messages... private. Kaya ba? Let's keep Spam where it belongs... in a frying pan with a light coating of brown sugar.

4. People who don't bother to read blog/album/thread descriptions. Exhibit A: I post a review on a wonderful Italian restaurant complete with menu prices and location of branches. And then I get a comment or reply that says "Wow, sarap! Where is this?" Um... *sigh*Exhibit B: I post a photo of a dress for sale, including price, sizes and colors available. Of course, it is only a matter of time before someone goes online types in "Super cute naman ni2! How much?" Again... *sigh* There is nothing wrong with this per se. People can not help it if they are 1. highly unobservant and/or 2. suffer short term memory loss and are unable to retain information for more than a few seconds. But still, every time this happens, it bugs me.

5. Text language. Make it go away. "Hir n me. Wer n u?" "D2 na aq s bb. Cno cno kau?" I actually once had a job applicant inquire about openings in our department using text language. Needless to say.. "Wla me wrk 4u. Xenxya n. B-by" Pagod na ako. Mamaya na yung iba. Coming soon ... whoever writes the awful copy on ETC and 2nd Avenue, bad service in the service industry and a host of other annoying things.

The truth about commercial dog food

A lot of commercial pet foods are not good for the loving non-human member of your household. Don't trust what they tell you at the pet stores either (esp if you're buying from a random stall in Cartimar... where they once told me that I didn't need to feed the green snakes they had for sale... "wisikan mo lang ng tubig ma'am"...oooh-kay). Another one told me that all our Moluccan Cockatoo needed was sunflower seeds (so not true). Anyway since most of the peeps here have dogs, basically check out the first five ingredients listed on the label. If it has corn (or corn meal) in there, then chances are you are feeding your dog low-quality junk food. Sort of like having fast food at every meal - it'll fill you up but it won't necessarily be good for you. Another thing is to aim for a dog food that has meat listed and not "meal" (chicken is different from chicken meal).

I am not a morning person. I really am not. Not even if it was 4 foot, glassy, blowing offshore with only my crew in the lineup.

So imagine how cranky and sleepy I was at the clinic today when I rocked up to 1. give them the pee I'd collected over the last 24 hours and 2. get the results from my blood test.

They only gave me one sheet of results (for blood sugar) when there should have been two (the other is for the thyroid stuff).
Me: "Miss, saan yung results nung para sa thyroid?"
Miss: "Blood chem mo lang yan."
Me: "Oo nga. Kaya ko hinahanap yung sa thyroid."
Miss: "1,200 yun." (At this point napipikon na ako, plus ano pake ko na P1,200 siya?!)
Me: "Nagbayad na ako kahapon. Nakasulat sa request ni doc yun."
Miss: "Nasaan yung request?
Me: "Nasa inyo na. Kinuha nung nag-extract ng dugo ko kahapon.
Miss: "Nakasulat doon yung isa mo pang hinahanap?"
Me: "Oo. Kaya nga umabot ng ganun yung binayad ko."
Miss: "Kung nasa request yun, gagawin yun."
Me: "So nasaan na nga yung results niya? Nakasulat doon sa request yun e." (At this point gusto ko na siya turukan ng syringe kasi parang pinapalabas pa niya na 1. slow ako and 2. possibly liar din ako)

Miss mumbles as she goes through the stack of papers on her desk... after mga 20 seconds she pulls out a piece of paper with my name misspelled.
Miss: "Ah ito pala."

HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY! Super pet peeve. And I get to go back tomorrow to get my urine test results and get a thyroid ultrasound.

Was McDonald's Being Snarky?

So.Cousin Mia, Phil and I were all hanging out with Adrian at Casa Sun. We got hungry, made a call to McDonald's and ordered 1 5-piece chicken nugget meal with bbq sauce (Mia), 1 6-piece chicken nugget with bbq sauce (Phil) and 1 6-piece chicken nugget with sweet and sour sauce (me). Adrian? Was a good boy and didn't shove fake chicken into his gullet.

Order arrives.
Mia passes around our boxes.
Philip's order has only 5 pieces instead of 6.
I do not have sweet and sour sauce.

No one is pissed but, just to find out what would happen, Adrian calls McDonald's again and tells them what happened in a very genial tone... even going so far as to say we were just curious as to what they would do with the missing nugget and sauce. The woman on the other end sounded flummoxed and said she would ask someone and ring us back. The call never came. BUT... a McDo delivery guy did come to Adrian's gate bearing a box! Inside the box? A single nugget and a packet of sweet and sour sauce!

Now comes the tricky bit -- was McDo being nice for messing up the order OR were they being snarky and thumbing their noses at us? Only comments answering the question above will be entertained.