Get Your Grump on Thursdays - Was (What's chapping my @ss today?)

[Matthew Strongin]

Throwing trash out of car windows.

I'm going to expand this to throwing trash anywhere that isn't a trash can. From a bike, while out for a walk, from a car. My lawn isn't a good place for your empty Burger McWendys bag.

[RickM]

Seconded.
And "you don't know what it's like to have..." or "you don't know how it feels..."
Do I know what it is like to be you? Do you know what it is like to be me? Isn't one of the very first infant developmental tasks supposed to be the realization that I am not you?
Sheesh.
I'm done now.

And yet I admit to selectively accepting some things as straight-up fact based on the individual's experiences. I guess it's a fallible system, but to paraphrase Louis Brandeis; You know it when you see it. Specific example; When someone like a J. Spinelli discusses the pressures young pros face around doping, etc...you have to sit there and think "Yeah, I get that.."
The flip side, of course, to this assumption that one needs no direct experience with things is the unfortunate instances of the Armchair Expert. Specific example might be, um, I dunno, arguing about tubing choices with an experienced builder, or telling someone like TooTall how to coach athletes. You know the type.

[Too Tall]

*Noted - While we all appreciate a good hug. Grumping is a solitary sport.

Weasels United

[false_aesthetic]

People who have gotten used to having a tool/app/other person do something for them; people who think that they're unable to do something just because they've never done it before;

I don't mean, "Hey can I get your help? I've never done this before."
I mean, "NOOOOOO! I can't do it. I've never done it before and I'm gonna fuck it up!!!!!"

Oddly, I'm not referring to my students today.

[jamesand]

Electro - Assists grafted onto an already crappy bike, being piloted by an (presumably!) able-bodied man.

Cat 6'ed me on my morning commute, and allowed it weighed 58 pounds, battle-dressed.

[chasea]

Rapha's pump pocket and the people who love them.

[davids]

Seeing chancerider properly use "shibboleth" prompts this one: People who misuse words. (I remember some guy here complaining about hearing 'penultimate' everywhere when he obviously did not know what the word meant....)

You don't know what a word means? Look it up.

[Dallas Tex]

Runners running the wrong direction. yeah, maybe this makes sense on roadways with car traffic etc. But not on car-free trail or bike path. The other day I am casually riding at a beautiful lake in Dallas, its blocked off to car traffic completely. Its a multi use trail so cyclists, roller bladers, walkers, baby-strollers, dog walkers, etc all share the trail and enjoy the lake views. Everything goes surprisingly smooth, slower taffic lets the quicker traffic pass, all good......................... Except for the utter chaos created by numb-skull runners that insist on running in the wrong direction, like a salmon swimming upstream.

When someone wants to move over to right, to let someone pass they are faced with some runner heading directly towards them. Aarrgghh!

[Chance Legstrong]

Seeing chancerider properly use "shibboleth" prompts this one: People who misuse words. (I remember some guy here complaining about hearing 'penultimate' everywhere when he obviously did not know what the word meant....)

You don't know what a word means? Look it up.

this is so ironic. or is it?

[RickM]

this is so ironic. or is it?

Har. I dislike how "Ironic" constantly gets used when 9 times out of 10...they mean "Coincidental".

[j44ke]

Lawn care guys who kick on their leaf blowers/lawn mowers/roto-rooter/chainsaws/jet engines precisely at the stroke of 8AM whether the lawn needs it or not because dammit there's a maintenance contract that says once every two weeks and then plow through anything in their way so you have to spend the next 2 hours retrieving fragments of your lucky pair of cycling socks from yours and the next four yards.

These guys are admittedly the hardest working guys in show business - all my respect - but my socks? Really? A little finesse please.

[marley]

Rapha's pump pocket and the people who love them.

I love them, not Rapha in particular but the pocket. I am sending you a jar of vaseline (C.O.D.) for your chapped @ss delivery by next Thursday so you have something to post about.

Now I forgot about my rant dammit.

[ElvisMerckx]

RG3 -- if you live anywhere near DC, you too probably hear "RG3" 80 times a day. You'd think this kid descended from the heavens riding a unicorn down a rainbow.

[roseyscot]

woken up multiple times by a sneazy, sniffly kiddo. slept through the crack of dawn ride alarm, woken instead when said sneazy kiddo climbed into our bed.

on the commute i argued with a guy who felt it was necessary to pull left out of his driveway into stopped traffic and thus block all the traffic (including me) that was coming from his left that could have otherwise passed. selfish prick didn't see anything wrong with his actions. later, squeezed by a driver using the bike lane in Newton to come around a driver waiting to take a left. Hand was placed on the hood and disbelieving glances were cast.

luckily, i was riding my Zank road bike so I was in a better than average mood. If I'd been on the CAAD9, there likely would have been physical contact involved.

[davids]

this is so ironic. or is it?

"Sarcastic" instead of "ironic". Eh, close enough...

[burgess1108]

RG3 -- if you live anywhere near DC, you too probably hear "RG3" 80 times a day. You'd think this kid descended from the heavens riding a unicorn down a rainbow.

Don't forget all the Redskins faithful that are already talking about heading to the Super Bowl after one game. Don't worry, Dan Snyder will find a way to torpedo his own team as he usually does.

[burgess1108]

Throwing trash out of car windows.

I saw this about two months back in a parking lot. Guy ridin' all gansta looked right at me as he dropped a soda lid on the ground. So I watched as he parked, pulled around and told him not to throw his trash on the ground. He and his girl gave me some dismissive shrug as they walked into the store. I went back, collected the top and some of the other trash in the immediate area and "gave it back to him" through his sunroof.

[Dave Wofford]

Sitting on the stoop last night at dusk with a beer after a great low humidity 40 mile ride and hearing gun shots and car squeals in my neighborhood again. close by.
I usually ignore 'em but the dog hates it, the wife hates it, and it sure does ruin the euphoric post ride endorphin rush... thankfully it didn't wake the baby.

I'm with TT on the car trash. When I'm mayor everyone caught doing that will be sentenced to 100 hours of community service picking up trash on the first offense.

[quickag]

broke my bike last night...she's been with me for 5 years through Portugal, Germany, England, France, Japan and Korea. Can't ride tonight because my Kona won't be here till Monday.

[King Of Dirk]

Just stop pressing the illuminated elevator call button, okay? I can see it's already lit, you can see it's already lit, we all can see it's already lit. I know you're uberimportant (that's german for "really important"), but the confounded thing isn't going to arrive any quicker because of your extra pressing. Just cool your jets, Flash Gordon; we'll all get upstairs in due course.

Yes, this is the same asswipe who says "reach out" when he means "communicate."