A few things in the recent past have prompted a rant of sorts.

A Few of My Pet Peeves:

• When people don’t pick up after their dogs, especially on public property (or on private property that doesn’t happen to be THEIR property).  Happening upon dog poop in your yard, or on school grounds, or in the subdivision common area. Is. So. Disgusting. Sometimes I wish I could take some guinea pig poop and leave it in their yards… but I don’t think that it would make the same impression.
• When able-bodied people choose not to return their shopping carts to the shopping cart corral in the parking lot. They roll around and hit cars, block parking spots, are said to  increase grocery costs and are an aggravation in general. I saw a woman preparing to leave her cart in an empty adjacent spot at Kroger the other day. She was about my age, maybe a little older, and we were both parked far away from the store’s entrance (at an off-peak time with plenty of closer parking available) so I doubt mobility challenges were the issue here. She noticed me watching her and asked if I would like her cart. I was in a mood and perhaps more blunt than usual, so I said, “I don’t need it but sure, if you’re just going to leave it there, I’ll take it.” The cart corral was 15 steps away. I counted to myself as I marched the cart there and steered it in.
• Speaking of parking lots… people who park their cars on the lines adjacent to a handicapped parking spot. Sure, it’s not a handicapped spot exactly, but do they know why it’s there? In part it is there to provide room for people who need a ramp to get in or out of their vehicle to deploy said ramp. If someone has parked in that area, they don’t have that room. Sure, they can still park in the handicapped spot if it’s empty, but what good does that do them if they can’t get out of their car? Or, what if they’re already in the store shopping, and they come out to find that they can’t get INTO their car?

Maybe sometimes people do these things out of true innocent ignorance of how their actions affect other people. I think most people have moments like that. But I also think that plenty of times people do these things because it’s easier for them and they do not care about the consequences to others.

And, now, to counterbalance some of that …

A Few of the Things I Love:

• The moment my children see me at daycare in the afternoons. They may or may not drop what they are doing and come running, but they almost always look happy to see me.
• Time spent just before bedtime with the kids, crammed together in the recliner, reading books or talking or just sitting there relaxing
• Friday afternoons in general
• The moment of going to bed when I’m absolutely exhausted
• The way the air outside feels before a storm
• The way the air outside feels after a storm
• When something I’ve planted outside does well because I actually chose the right combination of plant, location and level of care.
• A great book
• Finding a hair product that does just what I want it to
• Accomplishing a goal
• Spending time with family and friends
• Good coffee
• Good beer
• Longhorn’s Watermelon margarita
• A clean house
• Feeling like I’ve done something well
• Living close enough to my parents and brothers that my kids know them well and see them regularly

What are some of your pet peeves? or things you love?