Monday, May 15, 2017

PET PEEVE


Those of you that have followed me know I am an almost annoyingly positive person. It takes a ton to rile me and I can usually find something good out of most situations as long as no one is being mistreated.

But, I too can get annoyed. This time it is not at a person, situation or condition that has my ire. My pet peeve revolves around an inanimate object. How, you say, can a person get ticked at a mindless thing that has no motive?

Easy, when it is an auto flush, touchless toilet.  Years ago when they first appeared I was delighted. It was rather luxurious and I only saw one draw back to this handy gadget. In order for the toilet to flush, originally you had to get totally off, often stand by the door and wave at the toilet for it to finally flush.

I thought this was OK except it made it impossible for your neighbor in the next stall to honor you with a courtesy flush if they happened to be aromatic that day.

Then the toilet folk upped their game with manual flush buttons in addition to the automatic magic flush. These tiny buttons were usually directly behind your back which required reaching around behind you to activate if you wished to be courteous. This motion allowed the whole reason for the courtesy flush to escape as you were no longer keeping the seat plugged with your bum.

I was coping with all this with only mild irritation when using public toilets, after all I am Positive Patti. Then came the newest development, probably instigated by those wishing for an easier courtesy flush.

The hair trigger flush was born.  Now all you have to do breathe deeply or reach for the toilet paper and gallons of water are unleashed violently. No matter how quickly one springs up, it has the same effect on your behind as a bidet without the benefit of clean water and a blow dry.

I have always looked down on those who hover over the seat, sprinkling on it for the next person's displeasure.  However, now I am thinking of working on my balance and core so I can do the same thing--thus bypassing the auto flush.  I will be considerate though and raise the seat so the next person doesn't have to wonder what social disease they just picked up. You fellows have it made.

Sometimes the better mouse trap--or in this case--the better toilet was a step backwards---in my humble opinion.

Is there an invention out there that you feel has done more harm than good thus creating your own pet peeve? Or are your pet peeves more on the human side?

47 comments :

  1. I'm glad to say that as someone who doesn't sit on a loo unless it's for a number 2 which I always manage to do at home not out in public, this is not an issue for me.

    I'm not a great fan of the security lights that come on every time a mouse walks by outside our house at night.

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    Replies
    1. Joey,
      Like I said, you guys have it made. That sure sounds like a hair trigger security light. At least no mice will sneak up on you:))

      Delete
  2. Few things annoy me as much as unsuspectingly sitting on a public toilet and coming away damp.

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    1. Marty,
      I know. My theory is that if women want to pee like a man, they should raise the seat like a man then lower it again like a good man.

      Delete
  3. I feel just the same about those hair trigger flushers. Fortunately I know where they are and I avoid them, too. I absolutely despise wet seats and often wonder just how the person who caused it must feel about our ire! Yes, you are known to me as Positive Patti all right. :-)

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    1. Djan,
      I know but one store I frequent has totally replaced all theirs with hair trigger ones.
      See what I mentioned to Marty above on how I feel about the wet seat also. Grrr.

      Delete
  4. Well, while we are discussing the bathrooms, I have to say the automatic faucets and soap dispensers are my main gripe. They don't work half the time and you have to move down the row until you find a set that will start. I also hate those hand dryers and just want paper towels. Often they don't have paper if they have the blow dryers. I have never been big on blow jobs:-)

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    1. Annie,
      I know. And here I thought it was me that couldn't get the faucet to turn on and I hate those blow dryers also.
      Not ever on his birthday?:))

      Delete
  5. My pet peeve: Daylight Savings Time! I wish "they" (whoever "they" is) would just pick one or the other. It messes up my sleep cycle for a week or so. And the older I get, the less important it is to me to have that extra hour of daylight in the summer evenings. Sure sign of getting old :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Carole,
      Tell you what, if you start the petition, I'll sign it as I am sure thousands would. I do like the extra daylight hour so I'd vote to make that one the permanent one.

      Delete
  6. I never give a thought to toilets except whether or not they are clean. I use public facilities only when absolutely necessary so it doesn't matter much as long as it's clean.

    The list of things I think do more harm than good is far too long to mention. High on the list are toys that remove any need for imagination and creativity. Or even physical activity. There are electronic "toys" for INFANTS for heaven sake.

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    Replies
    1. Carolyn,
      I totally agree with you on the electronic toys, especially for the really young. I see a stunted, flabby generation coming up.

      Delete
  7. I haven't come across the 'hair trigger' toilets yet. But I have had to go down the line to find a automatic faucet that works.. and have also seen one that wouldn't turn off. If I had a peeve, it would be those hand blow dryers. I won't use them. I think I heard Sheldon (on the Big Bang) once say that it was as sanitary as having a chimpanzee spit on your hands... and I agreed. Paper towels for me!

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    1. Rian,
      For one they don't dry worth a darn and I have heard that they just spread the germs. I once had one with such a powerful motor that it moved the skin around on my hands. That was weird.

      Delete
    2. And you often need to use that paper towel to open the door if it has a handle. I carry a couple of paper towels in my purse for that purpose.

      Delete
  8. As a male I do not have to worry about that. The seats in Men's Restrooms ALWAYS have pee all over them, and the one brave soul who sat down earlier in the day for a poop--never flushes the toilet, or it clogs-up. I would not sit on public toilet in a Men's Restroom for anything as the vast majority of my brothers were never toilet trained.

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    1. Dave,
      Well you have talked me out of using the men's room even in an emergency. You totally squashed any curiosity I may have had. Mercy fellows.

      Delete
  9. One that bothers me is the "self check out" registers at some of the stores, I have attempted to use one only to find that no matter what I do I either didn't scan the item correctly or place it in the right area.

    I don't figure they are paying me a cashiers wage nor are they giving me a discount, so why should I check myself out.

    I do my best to skip public toilets, very successfully I may add.

    ReplyDelete
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    1. Jimmy,
      Hum, I do use self check out for small amounts but did find that I didn't have the skill to disable the theft warning devices. I knew electronics had them but was surprised when Roundup set off the door alarms.

      Delete
  10. This is so funny. Had the same complaint at work years ago when I had to stand for a courtesy flush. I have not encountered the power flush for any movement, but I can imagine it. Why can't they just have a foot pedal flusher that the door will not open until it is pushed?

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    Replies
    1. Joeh,
      Well I see a project for you this afternoon. Invent that and get it patented. Sounds like a winner.

      Delete
  11. The only time I use a public restroom is when we are on the road. I travel with my own antiseptic soap and paper towels. I find rest stops to be particularly creepy. They do have those covers that go over the seat and mostly they work if you hover just a bit above it all. The auto flush works, and the timing is pretty much right. I never touch anything, if I don't have to, and if I can reach something with my foot, I do it. LOL! Yes, I'm obsessive about public restrooms.

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    1. robin,
      Ha, I kind of miss the days when a foot worked for flushing. Never tried the paper covers. I imagined them sticking to my behind. Don't blame you about public restrooms. They are petri dishes for germs.

      Delete
  12. I hate those auto-flushers too because they waste time and if you're at a busy function where the lines are long we shouldn't have to be in a stall trying to make the darn thing flush.

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  13. Jean,
    Ha ha, know what you mean. Those that don't have a hair trigger make you dance around and wave to get them to flush unless they have the manual button. Oh for the old handle days.

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  14. I know auto-flush was created for those who forget or don't flush after using the bathroom, but I get some kind of devious pleasure when I am in a stall and the toilet flushes before I get on, right after I get off and again before I leave. I think, if they are trying to save water, they are losing the battle!

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    Replies
    1. Snickelfritz,
      Ha ha, you got the three-peat hat trick. I've had two of those but never three. Something to look forward to I guess.

      Delete
  15. Pretty much a firm believer in the principle of "if it ain't broke don't fix it (or improve it) I stand firmly against anything with more buttons or "aps" than necessary" ..:)

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    1. TB,
      I know, what was wrong with the handle? I(t was the people that needed changing, not the toilet.

      Delete
  16. Sweet Patti I enjoyed this post very much. I have not used one of those as yet. I avoid all public restrooms if at all possible. My biggest pet peeve right now is...they have put Skype in my email which cannot be turned off and gotten rid of. It wants to keep me online all the time. I like the desktop Skype and use it a lot but hate the Skype app in my email. It is very aggravating to have to keep putting in on "invisible" or "away" every time I go check my email. People think I am online in Skype when I'm not. Makes me angry. Hugs

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    Replies
    1. Maggie,
      Oh my, I hope you can find a way to get rid of it. Try blogging about it. That is often a helpful way to find answers.

      Delete
    2. Microsoft says because of so many changes and updates right now going offline or getting rid of it is not available. :( I have already complained to them that I hate Skype in my email...a lot of good I figure that will do. Skype was all good until Microsoft took it over.

      Delete
  17. I'm not a fan of the hair-trigger toilets either. I apparently am a wiggler and often cause it to flush more than once before I'm done.

    But right now my pet peeve are the inconsiderate co-workers who leave a 1/4" of coffee in the bottom of the pot, walking away with making another pot. Arrggh! I'm pretty sure that peeve will be resolved when I retire.

    Eileen

    ReplyDelete
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    1. Eileen,
      Oh yes it will and you don't have too much farther to go do you? Don't worry, retirement brings its own set of frustrations but at least they are mostly in your control. Hang in there.

      Delete
  18. I can honestly say I have never had a toilet fetish ... however, single ply toilet PAPER causes me to swear !!!

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    1. Ginnie,
      Single ply and two inches wide rattle my cage also.

      Delete
  19. I hate those hair trigger flushes, cause just as I get the seat protective cover on the seat the flush triggers, taking the cover with it before I get a chance to sit down. A couple years ago I was in Indiana and every public rest room I was in -- Indianapolis -- had some sort of trigger device that automtically covered the toilet seat. I'd never seen that before or since, but sure liked it.

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    Replies
    1. joared,
      Ooh, ooh, I want to find one that automatically covers the seat. How cool is that?

      Delete
  20. Hi There, This post made me laugh since it is SO true. As you know we travel a lot.... Every public restroom (usually at Rest Areas along the interstates) have 'different' ways to flush (or wait as the case may be), or have it flush when you first get on spraying your underside good.... THEN--there is the water to wash your hands... Sometimes you have to turn on the water; sometimes you just put you hand under the faucet and get a drop or two.. IF you reach for the soap, the water shuts off.... AND---then when you want to dry your hands, sometimes there is a blower which most of the time blows cold air and your hands don't dry at all. OR --you try to get a paper towel out of a dispenser ---and sometimes you crank something and sometimes you stand there like an idiot with your hand under the thing waiting for that paper towel to roll out for you --as you drip water all over the floor... Shall I go ON?????

    But the worst is having people dribble all over the toilet leaving their mess for you to clean up... Dang!!!!!

    Hugs,
    Betsy

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  21. Betsy,
    Ha ha, you could have written this post. You nailed all the head shaking aspects of public toilets. Me too on the sprinklers. No matter how badly you have to go, you still have to examine the seat carefully before sitting. Just darn inconsiderate. If they would just raise the seat, no problem.

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  22. Yup! I've been splash by that auto flush myself. And like Betsy, the auto soap dispenser and dryer drives me crazy. Sometimes I'm standing there waving my hands under it and nothing happens. I feel so silly.

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  23. Dear Patti, I don't think I have a pet peeve, but who knows as I'm probably unaware much of the time!!!!!

    As to that toilet: I've never used one but they sound ridiculous.

    Oh, I did think of a pet peeve: the techs who revamp Microsoft Word ever couple of years and make it more and more difficult to use. If something's not broken, why fix it? The answer probably is making money! Peace.

    ReplyDelete
  24. My pet peeve in public bathrooms is the ladies who do the hover shower. This leaves the entire seat wet and there is just now cleaning that up without suiting up in hazard gear. So I usually exit stall and bang open doors until I find one that is reasonable dry. I hate public bathrooms and truthfully would rather pull over and find a tree to crouch behind.

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  25. I never had a good bladder so I always had to visit them. I hate those that flush at the slightest movement and hope they will not become the standard. Other than that, I need them and am glad they are there. Because what else would I do?

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  26. Gloriously Funny, thanks so much! :-)

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