What gets on your nerves?

By William R. Jones

My monthly high school newspaper printed a series titled, "Pet Peeves." The students, teachers and staff had a lot of fun reading it and learned exactly what annoyed or irritated us. A "pet peeve" is anything that is really small and unimportant, but particularly bothers or bugs you. However, others may find the behavior or whatever it may be to be insignificant and acceptable or may not notice it at all. Some people take their minor dislikes quite seriously. But for us, it was an uplift, all in fun.

Some typical pet peeves are: cracking one's knuckles, chronic lateness, simultaneously chewing food and talking, spitting in public, cutting in line, traffic jams, smartphone distractions, nagging, litterbugs, etc. Thus, anything can bother many, but be innocuous to others.

Seeing a recent TV commercial with Shaquille O'Neal wearing and walking in Susan Heyward's shoes while she was wearing his size 22 Reeboks, I remembered this uncommon pet peeve I read about on the web: "People who wear slippers that are either too big or too small for their feet." Now, I see that quite often and it doesn't bother me at all ― in fact, I am guilty of it both ways.

My all-time pet peeve is “robo calls,” or automated phone calls, because they are computer generated and impersonal. If perceived, I cut off communication immediately. A second pet peeve I maintain and defend is my dislike and disapproval of a professor's messy office. I remark that visitors would be surprised and puzzled by the mystery of why someone as educated as a professor has not matured beyond the adolescent habit of keeping a disorderly room. A third pet peeve I possess is that of selective responses from email recipients, or, no response at all to your comments or inquiries. Okay, that's just eccentric me. How about you? What gets your goat or drives you up the wall?

In many cultures, certain behaviors or actions are peculiar or outlandish to outsiders, but are characteristic and conventional to their citizens. Upon boarding and exiting a Seoul subway, I found it a bit strange that people pushed past each other in both directions and thought nothing about it. No "Excuse me" when shoving past someone. I very soon realized that we would constantly be speaking the social amenity and found it much more convenient to say nothing, lest going hoarse. I adapted to the jostling of the crowded conditions.

Some pet peeves may well be called “hate peeves” because some people really get bent out of shape when they occur and often become super upset and go berserk. An example would be “road rage” (especially if undeserved) caused by and bringing about things like tailgating, cutting off another vehicle, excessive use of the horn, etc. Generally, these people have other pathological issues in their lives that give them stress. I dare say that they might have a “personality disorder,” as defined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5).

We must put up with much in life and we should because none of us are perfect. So, don't let people's personal habits, even if they are bad, take the joy out of your life.

The author (wrjones@vsu.edu) published the novella, "Beyond Harvard," and presently teaches English as a second language.