What little things drive you completely up the wall....?

[BabyMama]

Checked online for the schedule for my local baseball team, and clicked "schedule of all games." Instead of a PDF, like all normal people would have, it instead inserts all their games onto my Outlook calendar--and I can't find a way to delete them all as a group, so now have to delete each game individually from my calendar. And the play every day, sometimes double headers. Argh.

My two coworkers, who are BFFs but apparently don't call each other over the weekend and instead spend 45 minutes every Monday morning (and 15-20 every other morning, the Monday after a long Christmas holiday they spent 3-4 hours) discussing such menial things as the conversations they had with their children this weekend. One has a rather high pitched tone at the end of her sentences, and the other has a laugh that registers higher, and they don't seem to understand whispering/facing each other directly (or, you know, e-mailing!!), so everyone in the surrounding area gets to hear. People have asked them to be quieter, and they just go, "Tee hee, we just missed each other!" Their neighbor, after many fruitless attempts to shush them politely, tried discreetly asking her supervisor to step in--and on her next review she was reprimanded for not handling it herself.

[Celany]

You would think that people in the medical profession would know better. 

Just because you cannot speak for some reason does not mean that you cannot hear or understand.

Fifty thwacks with a frozen haddock for them...

Well, a segment of the general public thinks that if you can't walk, you can't think.  I had (botched) foot surgery and had to be in a wheelchair as I could not put weight on my foot. In the months I was in a wheelchair I was:  talked down to, hit in the head by a teenager who said as he passed, "Shouldn't let retards out in public" and once had someone hold the door shut so I couldn't get into a building.

Now, mind you, there were also many people who were helpful and kind. But now I  try to remember how I felt and ask the person if they need help instead of getting in their way under the guise of "helping." (Which was another of my pet peeves.)

In a perfect world, when someone who is a teenager does something like that, it's automatically recorded & sent to his mom.

Though I am making the assumption that his mom would do to him what my mom would do to me, and not actually back him up. What a despicable human being.

[Miss Misery]

Lately it seems like the only way to get people to listen to a simple request is to be mean about it.

On my DeviantArt profile page I had a request to not thank me for every single fav and llama. It clogs up my messages and gets annoying. So what do I see this weekend? "I know it says not to, but...."

People, I do not have banners and stamps that read "don't thank me for every.single.fav", "do not beg me for points" and "I do not do requests" wallpapering my profile page because they look so gosh-darn pretty. I have them up there because I MEAN IT. By blatantly ignoring me, you are not being cute or funny. You are just royally pissing me off, and believe me, I will tell you as such.

[BabyMama]

I volunteer for a small nonprofit organization. We were recently contacted by a planning committee to see if we would be interested in partnering with them. In the past they have paired with Large Nonprofit Organization, but recently LNPO has obtained their own premesis and has been pulling back from community events that aren't held at their own place. Which is great for them, and, of course, great for smaller groups like us. We were told that they had declined this event because it's not a big moneymaker for them (in their range of what constitutes $$--small change to them, big deal to us.)

Anyway, for this event, the planning committee would get 50% of the proceeds, and give the other 50% to whatever nonprofit organization they paired with. We jumped at the opportunity. It sounded fun, and it's also a milestone anniversary of the event, so would be a bigger deal.

This morning I was looking at the event's Facebook page. They just put out a new flyer--and right on the flyer it stated that LNPO would again be their partner.

What.

Our volunteer, who was the planning committee's contact, immediately called them. Apparently the planning committee decided that, due to politics with LNPO, they would continue naming LNPO as their partner--but we could still come, and any donations given directly to us would be "under the table." So...instead of $$ and the name spreading we were promised, we'll get a little booth and be the "poor relation" at the event of LNPO, and probably get $20 in donations, if we're lucky. Oh, and the event is 6 hours long and would also require setup the day before. And it's in City, where some of our volunteers work, but only the contact volunteer lives here. It's a ~30 minute drive for most. So, a 7+ hour commitment for very little immediate reward. I'm peeved.

[Morticia]

I volunteer for a small nonprofit organization. We were recently contacted by a planning committee to see if we would be interested in partnering with them. In the past they have paired with Large Nonprofit Organization, but recently LNPO has obtained their own premesis and has been pulling back from community events that aren't held at their own place. Which is great for them, and, of course, great for smaller groups like us. We were told that they had declined this event because it's not a big moneymaker for them (in their range of what constitutes $$--small change to them, big deal to us.)

Anyway, for this event, the planning committee would get 50% of the proceeds, and give the other 50% to whatever nonprofit organization they paired with. We jumped at the opportunity. It sounded fun, and it's also a milestone anniversary of the event, so would be a bigger deal.

This morning I was looking at the event's Facebook page. They just put out a new flyer--and right on the flyer it stated that LNPO would again be their partner.

What.

Our volunteer, who was the planning committee's contact, immediately called them. Apparently the planning committee decided that, due to politics with LNPO, they would continue naming LNPO as their partner--but we could still come, and any donations given directly to us would be "under the table." So...instead of $$ and the name spreading we were promised, we'll get a little booth and be the "poor relation" at the event of LNPO, and probably get $20 in donations, if we're lucky. Oh, and the event is 6 hours long and would also require setup the day before. And it's in City, where some of our volunteers work, but only the contact volunteer lives here. It's a ~30 minute drive for most. So, a 7+ hour commitment for very little immediate reward. I'm peeved.

Please tell me you have declined this "partnership".

[BabyMama]

Yeah, I don't think it's going to work out...the number of volunteers they want is right around our usual maximum number of people we can get participating (we are a very small group!) and now that there's going to be very little payoff...

I was excited to go, as this is the first time in years we've been around during that weekend (usually we're gone.) I was planning on bringing my family too. Now I still kind of want to go...but there's such a bad taste in my mouth that I don't know if I can get past it.

[PastryGoddess]

Yeah, I don't think it's going to work out...the number of volunteers they want is right around our usual maximum number of people we can get participating (we are a very small group!) and now that there's going to be very little payoff...

I was excited to go, as this is the first time in years we've been around during that weekend (usually we're gone.) I was planning on bringing my family too. Now I still kind of want to go...but there's such a bad taste in my mouth that I don't know if I can get past it.

I think you need to let the planning committee know just how much this act has tarnished their reputation with your NP and the other volunteers. 

[gmatoy]

Yeah, I don't think it's going to work out...the number of volunteers they want is right around our usual maximum number of people we can get participating (we are a very small group!) and now that there's going to be very little payoff...

I was excited to go, as this is the first time in years we've been around during that weekend (usually we're gone.) I was planning on bringing my family too. Now I still kind of want to go...but there's such a bad taste in my mouth that I don't know if I can get past it.

I think you need to let the planning committee know just how much this act has tarnished their reputation with your NP and the other volunteers.

And that some people have mentioned "reconsidering" going.

[BabyMama]

It's now come to light that one of our other volunteers apparently knows the planning committee contact as well, and mentioned to her "some weeks back" that she did not think it was worth a few hundred $ to "step on the feet of LNPO" and could the PP committee check with LNPO to see if they were ok with us being the new benefactors.

But, our volunteer just brought this event to us last week. And I don't know why WE just didn't call LNPO to ask--we have very friendly contacts there, and it would have cut out the middleman if we had just asked ourselves. I don't think they would begrudge us this event--they have shared donations with us in the past, and loaned us equipment when asked. (We have also done favors for them.)

It kind of seems to me like the first volunteer maybe gave the PP committee/LNPO the impression that we weren't super interested. She wasn't even going to be able to volunteer at the event, which makes it even more irritating that her opinion was seen as "the final word"--and that the PP committee would offer us the position and then change it without even telling us.

I am beyond frustrated.

[Carotte]

It's now come to light that one of our other volunteers apparently knows the planning committee contact as well, and mentioned to her "some weeks back" that she did not think it was worth a few hundred $ to "step on the feet of LNPO" and could the PP committee check with LNPO to see if they were ok with us being the new benefactors.

But, our volunteer just brought this event to us last week. And I don't know why WE just didn't call LNPO to ask--we have very friendly contacts there, and it would have cut out the middleman if we had just asked ourselves. I don't think they would begrudge us this event--they have shared donations with us in the past, and loaned us equipment when asked. (We have also done favors for them.)

It kind of seems to me like the first volunteer maybe gave the PP committee/LNPO the impression that we weren't super interested. She wasn't even going to be able to volunteer at the event, which makes it even more irritating that her opinion was seen as "the final word"--and that the PP committee would offer us the position and then change it without even telling us.

I am beyond frustrated.

It sounds like it's time, if possible, to have a group call with someone from your NPO, the LNPO and PC to set everything straight!
It might not be too late to tell them on what conditions your NPO would be able to participate and for them to reconsider it.

[BabyMama]

The first volunteer (who said she didn't want to tread on LNPO's toes) thinks we should still do it as a PR thing--they did give us a free booth, and backing out would probably totally burn the bridge. But again, she won't be there. The other volunteer and I are hesitant, as the whole thing feels like a slap in the face--but yes, it would be a good PR thing to at least have a presence there. Lemons into lemonade, you know. Meh.

[Shalamar]

BabyMama, I would almost believe that we have the same co-workers - except that mine DO whisper to each other.  For 20-30 minutes at a time.  For someone like me, who has misophonia, it is not fun.  Luckily, I can drown out their whispering with headphones.

However, there are times when they don't whisper - instead, they have the high-pitched conversation you mentioned, complete with peals of ear-splitting laughter.  They've been reprimanded more than once, and their response is usually "Tee hee, we're just having fun!"  When my supervisor (who brooks no nonsense) got that response, she said "Fun is great, true.  You're at work.  Get back to work."  Their response?  They wondered out loud to each other why Supervisor was "in such a bad mood" and speculated that maybe she wasn't having a good day.   They even asked her the following day "whether (she) was feeling better." 

[Xandraea]

BabyMama, I would almost believe that we have the same co-workers - except that mine DO whisper to each other.  For 20-30 minutes at a time.  For someone like me, who has misophonia, it is not fun.  Luckily, I can drown out their whispering with headphones.

However, there are times when they don't whisper - instead, they have the high-pitched conversation you mentioned, complete with peals of ear-splitting laughter.  They've been reprimanded more than once, and their response is usually "Tee hee, we're just having fun!"  When my supervisor (who brooks no nonsense) got that response, she said "Fun is great, true.  You're at work.  Get back to work."  Their response?  They wondered out loud to each other why Supervisor was "in such a bad mood" and speculated that maybe she wasn't having a good day.   They even asked her the following day "whether (she) was feeling better." 

The boss expects them to *gasp* work at work?! Surely she must be in a bad mood or feeling under the weather. Those two are quite special.

[violinp]

On the other side of the coin...

Okay, maybe it's not such a little thing, but I asked my manager if I could go on break at 5:30 on Sunday, since the mall closes at 6, and I'd like to buy and eat my dinner. Her response? "Well, I've been here since 8 this morning! When do I get my break?" Cue the  face from me. Why is it supposed to be my problem that you haven't taken a break, especially since you've let 2 - 3 other people go on break already? I grant you that she had a long shift (got there at 8 and probably wouldn't get off until 2 or 3 the next morning), but she needs to manage her own time and not get snippy with someone who's working eight - and - a - half hours and just wants to put her feet up for 30 minutes.

For the record, she did let me go on break at 5:30, but I was so irritated at her tone that it colored the rest of the day for me. Unfortunately, she's almost always like this with me, and gets huffy when I ask to leave a grand total of five minutes early because it's dead out there and I've collected all the tickets for the night. Gee, I'm sure 10:30 is going to be totally different from 10:25, since all the movies have now started and concessions will be closing in 15 minutes. Unless she truly needs me to help close (which I don't object to - I'd love the hours on my paycheck), I'd really like to get out and go home so I can take pain meds and relax.

[Shalamar]

This is a very little thing, but it drives me up the wall when I have to clear my throat (because something's stuck in it, for example), and someone thinks I'm trying to get their attention:

Me:  Ahem, cough-cough.
Them:  WHAT?  What do you want?

It's unfortunate that the clearing-of-the-throat has become associated with a passive-aggressive attempt to make someone pay attention to you, but there we are.