Sue wants to know what’s eating Gilbert Grape me lately – here’s the reader’s digest version of some things that have pissed me off in the last week:
1. People who assume any squatting dog is taking a crap. The Stepdog is a girl. Girl dogs squat to pee. It’s a slightly different squat than the poo squat (more of a flat back, less of a humpy hunch to the stance – I’m sure you wanted to know that) – but those who don’t know dogs don’t know that. They just assume that the dog’s taking a dump and I’m not picking up after her. And I *always* pick up after my dogs. I have no desire to give responsible dog owners in this city any worse of a reputation than our less-responsible counterparts have already given us.
2. Public displays of ignorance by people who should really know better. I was listening to a local top 40 station, and heard one of the On-Air Personalities make a gross mispronounciation when reading the entertainment news. She was mentioning something about Brad Pitt & Angelina Jolie’s time spent in “NAM-uh-BEE-ya.” It took two repetitions of the mispronounced word for me to realize she was talking about Namibia (“nam-IH-bee-ya” for anyone else who didn’t know). Now I know that radio voices aren’t paid to find the news or be educated – they’re just paid to read their scripts and push some buttons. But for fuck’s sake, if you’re only paid to READ INTO A MICROPHONE, and only as filler between music and advertising, then maybe brush up on your pronounciation before you slur onto the airwaves. (Radio DJs, I await your hate mail…)
3. People who are clearly wrong, and insist that they’re right. I was driving South on Granville St the other day, and about to turn left onto Pender. As is genearlly accepted when turning left from a one way street, I was on the far left side of the street waiting for the light to change. As I sat there, a car turned into the street head on with me, and the driver proceeded to berate me for being on the “wrong side of the street.” His evidence that I was in the wrong? A lone mail truck parked on my side of the street, pointing the wrong way.
Worst of all, I backed down. I thought the guy in the car was likely a cop (he was driving what looked like an unmarked car, complete with antenna knobs on the roof, etc. – though no flashing lights that I could see…) and that perhaps the road rules had changed yet again (not uncommon in downtown Vancouver these days what with the tearing up of everything to build the new rapid transit lines) and I was mistaken. I drove down the same street later in the day to inspect the signs and see that lo! I was correct! Vindication! And anger that I didn’t stand my ground earlier.
re #1 – i own a female dog as well and it isn’t just the people that don’t own dogs. some people with dogs still think i let my dog shit and run and i always pick up! grr. ignorance…not to mention you would think another dog owner is smart enough to NOT pet the head of a dog that doesn’t belong to you…grrr
#2 – this wouldn’t happen to be “the beat” would it? they drive me nuts…especially that nira aurora girl who you can tell just loves the sound of her own voice. blech
bitchin’ posts are the best 🙂
LOL at Nam-uh-BEE-ya. I remember my brother once telling someone that our mother is a Hispanic woman, and the person in question looked blankly before admitting she didn’t know where Hispania was.
wait, I’m confused: where is Granville a 1 way street?
Between Dunsmuir and Pender (and perhaps a few more blocks south). They’ve opened it up to traffic for the Canada Line construction, since the buses have been rerouted onto Howe and Seymour.
Mmmm kvetching. Love it. 😀