How I React Towards My Pet Peeves

Understanding Pet Peeves

Whether pet peeves cause me to leave the room or simply make me feel uncomfortable, I will continue to endure these occurrences for the rest of my life. A pet peeve is something that a particular person finds especially annoying. Minor irritations that bother one person but not another can also be included in this topic. A pet peeve may be an annoyance that another person might find inconsequential or unnoticeable. Dennis Rainey once said, “People who say that small things don’t bother them have never slept in a room with a mosquito” (Rainey, n.d.). Everyone has at least one pet peeve. Out of all the areas of annoyances, my pet peeves involve people, sports, and food.

How I React Towards My Pet Peeves

When dealing with people, my pet peeves are skippers, smokers, and people who yawn during conversation. Everyone has the choice to act however he wants to act, but sometimes one might lack morality. Most of my encounters with skippers happen at school. At Memphis University School as a seventh grader, the eighth graders skipped me because they claimed superiority over us “sevvies.” I remember trying to stand up for myself against the older students, but that resulted in being shoved towards the back of the line and injured. During the second encounter, I reported the students to the lunch line supervisor. I experienced a feeling of accomplishment because the skippers were sent to the end of the line, but I was also disrespected because I snitched. I learned that attempting to stop skippers was not worth it, so I have ignored this pet peeve to this day. My next pet peeve is not an issue with smokers but an issue with the pungent smell of cigarettes. Walking into Cracker Barrel, I hear “Smoking or non-smoking?” from the waitress. I disagree with the division of seating at some restaurants based on smoking because I believe that smoking and dining are not coherent with one another. Others fail to notice a conflict with smoking because it is their normality. This issue is exacerbated by the fact that smoking can have significant health implications, both for the smoker and those around them. Yawning during a conversation is my last frustration while dealing with people. My stepfather always demonstrates this pet peeve. The sad part is that he only yawns when I am actually paying attention to one of his interesting stories. During the yawns, I never understand the few words that are spoken nebulously. I take this pet peeve lightly because the situation rarely occurs, and the annoyance is minor. Although it is natural for people to do bothersome things in their free, unobliging ways of life, these actions are more frowned on while participating in organized sports.

Pet Peeves in Sports

In organized sports, my pet peeves are poor effort and bandwagoners. I have not always excelled in sports, so I learned that even with a mediocre skill level, I could always give 100% effort. Working as a team, I have watched my fellow teammates cut corners, speed up a drill while performing inaccurate motions, and give up because they are fatigued. Approximately one year ago, my basketball team practiced a drill called “low and slow.” This drill improved our defensive stance and was very painful. During our first practices, the other players sped up the drill to endure less pain. The coach noticed that I performed the drill effectively, so he appointed me to lead the drill. My leadership made my teammates keep my pace and complete the exercise correctly. Billy Cox influenced me with his famous quotation: “The two things in life you are in total control over are your attitude and your effort” (Cox, n.d.). I realized that there will always be others among me that do not care or give as much effort as I do. Another pet peeve is the role of bandwagoners. There will always be teams that are better than others. However, I am disturbed when I watch players join teams for the sole reason that the team is prospering. I would rather stay on the team during its struggle and believe the prosperity will return because that is the real definition of a true fan or member. For example, physical education class involves the students being split into four teams. There is always a team which included players who loved to play but did not have much skill. There is also a team that everyone wanted to be a part of just because of the “star athletes.” The players of the latter team are usually disconcerted with each other because of the great focus of winning while the players of the former team play to their highest potential and are always content with the outcome. Bandwagoners have always irritated me, but probably not as much as my pet peeves regarding food.

Food-Related Pet Peeves

My vexations with foods include having a plate with two different foods touching or mixing with each other, watching others chew gum with an open mouth, and someone asking for my food and grabbing it simultaneously. Since I was a kid, I have always eaten my meals one food at a time. I am frustrated when my peas touch my mashed potatoes. Therefore, I am in love with sectional plates. I remember my grandfather watching me eat breakfast. I ate the entire amount of my rice, toast, sausage, and eggs in that order. As I drank my orange juice, he stared at me and said, “You’re weird.” I looked at him and burst into a joyous laugh. Until that moment, I thought everyone ate in that manner, but I still considered myself the normal one. Chewing gum with an open mouth generally does not bother others unless smacking occurs, but this habit definitely bothers me. I do not find anything wrong with this way of eating except the fact that it is very annoying for me to watch, so I tend not to look. This simple pet peeve is one that I find somewhat humorous. My last pet peeve deals with those that ask for my food while in the process of grabbing or reaching for it. I am always troubled with the decision of letting the person have it because he touched it or throwing it away because of this person’s rude behavior. The situation gets worse when I am unacquainted with the individual asking for my food. I have always lived by the motto of never separating a man from his food. I take this motto to heart even though others would reply with the simple “sure man, here you go” gesture. Food is a personal experience, and sharing it should be a choice, not an obligation.

Conclusion

After all, I have many pet peeves in a wide range of importance from slightly bothersome to extremely annoying. I intend to extract some of these irritations from my head. But until that withdrawal occurs, I will continue to endure my pet peeves involving people, sports, and food. However, I hope that I will never have to sleep in a room with a mosquito.

Rainey, D. (n.d.). People who say that small things don’t bother them have never slept in a room with a mosquito.

Cox, B. (n.d.). The two things in life you are in total control over are your attitude and your effort.