Friday, September 28, 2007

Surly Girl

I am feeling unusually surly and impatient today, for no good reasons at all but just a host of insignificant little ones. I had a much more cheerful Friday Five topic in mind for this week, but I've been mulling it over for days, and I still have only three items for the list. A Thursday Three isn't particularly ambitious, so I guess I'll have to come up with two more and table it for a future week. Meanwhile, in its stead, here are five things currently fueling my crankiness and driving me unnecessarily batty today.


  1. Whistling. Specifically, the whistling that two of my cohorts in That Place We Do Not Blog About do seemingly unconsciously and involuntarily as they stroll through the halls. We are not the goddamned seven dwarfs. I do not subscribe to the "whistle while you work" philosophy. Ordinarily this does not bother me so much. Like I said, unexpectedly persistent surliness has set in.

  2. The fact that it is nearly October and there is still cold air shooting out of the vent directly below my feet. It is the year 2007, and I live in a geographic region that is no stranger to seasonal temperature changes. Shouldn't we have indoor climate control figured out by now?

  3. People who insist on staying in the left lane of a two-lane highway and yet refuse to drive the speed limit. And by "speed limit," I mean at least five to seven miles per hour over the posted speed on said highway. But we've already covered this. I'm well aware I may have to find serenity somehow and admit defeat on that one.

  4. The fact that the awesome gift I ordered from an Etsy seller THIRTEEN DAYS AGO still has not arrived. Yes, yes, it is a Christmas gift and thus, there's no real urgency in receiving it. But still! Thirteen days!! Pony Express is faster than that!

  5. The fact that no matter what I eat and no matter how much I exercise, my ever-expanding midsection gets no less squashy. OK, that might imply I am actually successfully reeling in what I eat or working myself to exhaustion every time I exercise, when in fact, neither of those are particularly true. Anyone have any tips on this? Noelle? NPW? How do you do it--that whole willpower thing??


All right then. At the risk of making us all cranky and unpleasant and encouraging us all to wallow in unnecessary annoyance, what's bugging you today?

18 comments:

lizgwiz said...

I'd love to have your back on being annoyed, but today is my monthly early day off (I leave at 1:00), I'm planning to stop by my favorite restaurant on the way home, I've got a party to go to tonight (at the new home of former Wiley/now Spock) and I'm going to the fair tomorrow with my fella. Nothing much is bugging me right now. Ask again soon. Hee.

3carnations said...

Liz is a real killjoy today isn't she? Ha! What's bugging me is that one of the teachers in my son's daycare was being really anal to the kids this morning. One of the kids was singing nonsense words in an average tone of voice while gently waving a piece of paper. She told him to "settle down." A girl carefully poured her cup of crayons onto the table so the little broken crayons would come out and she could actually get to them. She told the girl to put them all in the cup and take one out and use it, then return it to the cup before getting another. That keeps her from being able to get to 1/4 of them. Sigh.

Anonymous said...

I'm thinking how you're surly, Stef, and reading a manuscript at work, lamenting the fact that even *authors* will ever learn the difference between restrictive and nonrestrictive clauses. It's not that difficult, people. I know you are a kindred type and would love to add this to your list. (Hey, is that my Christmas gift that's being delivered by the Turtle Express?)

Whiskeymarie said...

1. That using the regular mail to send back a sweater and a pair of jeans that "didn't work" cost $12.50.

2. That I'm sharing your #5 problem. And, coincidentally, my verification word right now is "hogmyout". Is it trying to tell me something?

3. That my lovely job is being ruined this week by "personality conflicts" wherein the involved parties keep trying to drag me into it.

4. That a co-worker agreed to cover a few hours of my class on Tuesday, and when I reminded him of it, he said "You asked me about this? I don't remember that at all."

A.R.G.H!

Anonymous said...

1 and 2: I bitch about those things regularly!!! Are we related? I think it's a real possibility.

Jess said...

Maybe just see if you can track your package? I ordered a gift off Amazon and waited and waited for it to show, thinking it was just slow because it was a third party seller, then finally found the shipping confirmation in my junk mail, realized that FedEx claimed it had been delivered a week earlier, called FedEx, and found out that it had inadvertently been delivered to the wrong building down the street. And signed for. Just saying.

Also, I've been doing Weight Watchers for about three and a half months and I've lost 30 pounds so far. I'm not exactly an expert, but what works for me is eating healthy things in moderation but also eating regularly--small, low-calorie snacks like granola bars, fruit, etc. a few hours between meals to keep my metabolism and blood sugar steady. And also, interval training at the gym burns the most fat--so instead of jogging until you fall off the treadmill, interspersing five-minute jogging sessions with one- or two-minute brisk walking sessions.

Sorry this comment got so long.

Anonymous said...

Okay, here is what is irritating me today:
(1) Wilman has just been informed that he has to go back out of town on Tuesday of next week and stay through Friday. Hi, am I ever going to see my husband again?
(2) The director of our office. I sometimes like her, but she's been a real bitch lately. She has been speculating whether one of my co-workers is REALLY sick (um, hi, she sounds sick, and you have to have a bit of faith in people!), saying things like, "I'm sure it's just a head cold...which I had last week and still managed to work through...", and told another co-worker her outfit was inappropriate for the office, when it is perfectly fine. Ugh! and (3) How did I manage to spill soup on my dress? HOW?

Anonymous said...

Oh, and PS, I am the LAST girl you want to talk to about willpower, as I have none of it.

-R- said...

I got a tiny spot of coffee on my shirt this morning, right by my boob. I have caught several men in my office looking at it today. Except the men in my office regularly look at my boobs no matter how conservatively I dress, so the coffee probably has nothing to do with this.

I got a run in my pantyhose, so I had to take them off and my legs are now uncovered. Shocking, I know!

People outside my office have been having super loud and annoying conversations all day that I can hear clearly despite my door being shut.

But then I think about Pam and Jim (PB&J), and it makes me happy.

L Sass said...

I am annoyed that my office manager is such an idiot. I probably could put that in a more diplomatic way, but... seriously? he's really just an idiot.

Stefanie said...

Liz--I believe it was 3Carnations who suggested, a few weeks ago, that your current happiness was throwing off the balance and making me more jaded than usual. I think she has a point. ;-) That's OK. I forgive you. Year of Liz!! Whoo!

3Cs--Maybe the teacher herself was having a rotten day, and that explains the anal comments? Bad moods can be contagious, unfortunately (which is why I feel a little bad unleashing the floodgates with this post!).

Carrie--It was indeed your Christmas gift! Also, oof; I hear you on the grammar thing, obviously.

WM--Ugh; I HATE that. Your #1 is why I rarely shop for clothes by mail.

Abbers--We might be! I sometimes feel a little protective of you, after all, so maybe it's a big sister/little sister thing. :-)

Jess--The package FINALLY arrived this afternoon, and now I feel like a fool for griping about it, because it came from NEW ZEALAND, folks. Obviously I neglected to notice the seller's location when I ordered. Whoops. Anyway, so it's here. Yay! Also, I am jealous of your WW success. I tried that, but didn't manage to make myself stick to it for more than a few weeks. :-(

GG--Oh, again I wish I lived near you. We could have all sorts of fun when you're husbandless for a week!

R--Bare legs?? Scandalous!! Incidentally, I do not remember the last time I wore pantyhose. I am so very glad I'm not a lawyer.

L Sass--I could say the same thing about several people I know, so I'm not going to fault you for lack of diplomacy. Maybe the new boss will think he's an idiot, too, and you'll be rid of him?

Jarod said...

I hear you on #3 - I think it is a law that all morons must drive in the left lane. Slowly.
As far as willpower for diet, etc. I will make signs with black marker and put them up on the wall. I might write "Quit being a wimp and DO it, Jarod", or something similar. Seriously, try it!

Paisley said...

I am irritated that I have a bad BAD sore throat that keeps changing sore sections and the doctor acted like I was an idiot because it didn't look bad to him. Combined with my short breath/icky cough that I've had for THREE WEEKS I would say that is very annoying. Doubly (is that a word?) annoying is that when I went to the doctor he gave me FOUR prescriptions for things that I don't need. WTF?

Oh, I'm also annoyed that I can't find a cute shirt to wear to my daughter's birthday party on Saturday. I've searched EVERYWHERE. Alas, I must pilfer through my closet to find something and make it new again.

Poppy said...

Try my "diet". I've lost tons of weight without even meaning to!

(I kid, don't try my diet. And I have lost weight, but only like 5 lbs.)

Anonymous said...

I'm irritated at a lack of planning going on around here. I am a plan girl, what's so wrong about that? I need to know what's going on, weeks in advance. MAKE THE DAMN PLANS ALREADY!

Ahem. As to your question, I find pilates to be the best solution, in addition to regular exercise. It's great to "tighten" things up. You know, that and the whole "not eating anything remotely tasty" thing I've been doing for two weeks now.

Anonymous said...

I'm no willpower expert, but sometimes when I really want something and know I shouldn't have it, I try and remind myself I've eaten that thing before. But, please see my comments on pizza at the gym to understand my complete lack of willpower.

Stefanie said...

Jarod--Motivational posters around the house? Do you take them down when friends come over? Because I can't decide if my friends would laugh with me or at me if they saw those...

Paisley--Bummer indeed. I have seen all SORTS of cute shirts, but I have no money with which to buy them. :-(

Poppy--Your "diet" involves laying a whole lot of complicated ground work, so it's probably not the most realistic short-term plan for me, but I'm glad it's working for you!

NPW--I'm a plan girl myself. I fight it, but it's true. And there's nothing wrong with that. :-) And you're right; I do yoga for the same reason. I have been skipping it too often, lately. Must get back to that.

Noelle--That logic reminds me of something I read once about budgeting your money and not acquiring things you don't need or can't afford... The author said maybe it's enough to just enjoy looking at that shirt or those shoes in the store and just be glad that they're in this world, that you don't necessarily need to own them just because you like them. Yeah, that doesn't really work for me any better than saying I've eaten something before would. But it's a good thought, anyway! :-)

lizgwiz said...

If it makes you feel any better, I had to go to the minor emergency center yesterday with a bug bite that has apparently become infected and was shooting red streaks up my arm. Goodbye, $209. Hello, fear that it will turn out to be flesh-eating bacteria or drug-resistant staph and I'll lose my arm. So today I'm definitely feeling "bugged." Heh.