Bug List

1. When people don’t have manners with strangers in public.

• Why? Some people were never taught how to say ‘please’ or ‘thank you’ when they were young, so when they are old they come across as a rude individual.

2. When people chomp their gum with their mouth open.

• Why? I once read that people who chew with their mouths open have the mindset that they are powerful. They think that rules, even ones as common as manners do not apply to them. Although this may not be everyone’s motive, it makes perfect sense. The others that do not fall into this category were most likely raised with a slight lack of manners. 

3. When there is a line for the two- or three-stall restroom and class starts in 60 seconds (one example being the women’s restroom by the vending machines in Turlington).

• Why? People think that it is better to walk into class late rather than leaving in the middle of a lecture. Do I agree? Honestly, not really. But sometimes a girl has to go. 

4. When people get very competitive in even the smallest of competitions. 

• Why? Everyone knows that winning is a great feeling. Many strive for it a little too often. Many people that I surround myself with have developed a competitive nature over their lifetime, and I have noticed the main reason why they are so competitive is that they think that there is no point in doing the activity if they are going to lose. 

5. Sentences where full words or phrases are replaced with emojis.

• Why? People think that they are so tech-savvy that they should show their skills to the people that they talk to. I see this most frequently in the comments on my mom’s facebook page. In reality, it makes Karen look like she just learned what an emoji is. 

6. At least one of the Beaty Towers elevators is always broken.

• Why? I am not sure of the last time that the elevators in Beaty Towers (specifically the west building) were replaced. To be honest, I’m not sure if they ever have been. These elevators constantly break and when they do, the time it takes to fix them is between three days and a month. I’m not sure why there is not someone getting paid well to fix the elevators in a timely manner. It seems that one is always broken because the building managers see no need to fix the broken one if the other one is working. 

7. When people get on the elevator and get off at the 2nd floor (specifically in Beaty West).

• Why? Some people just do not want to take the stairs. I would understand this if they were unable, were carrying groceries or laundry, or the stairs were closed. This is never the case. The extra 30 seconds that it takes to stop at each floor truly makes a difference when you’re trying to get to class on time. 

8. Not being able to get rid of a cough after an entire semester of being told that it’s from allergies.

• Why? My roommate and I have had a cough since the beginning of school in the fall. When we go to the clinic, they tell us that we have allergies and prescribe us with allergy medications, rather than specific sickness medication that we look for. They do this over and over again. There is a possibility that the symptoms are from allergies, but it leads us to ask why we have had them for so long.

9. Dried up toothpaste on the mirror of my dorm bathroom.

• Why? Somehow people spit out their toothpaste and it gets on the mirror. I honestly don’t know how this happens. My guess is that they get so excited to finally finish brushing their teeth that their final spit goes in all directions.

10. The constant surrounding of fast food on campus.

• Why? The school finds it easy and convenient to give us the fast food options such as Chick Fil A, Panda Express, Subway, Pollo Tropical, and Wendy’s. Although these are all quick options, they are most definitely not healthy. Of course each individual can choose what they eat, but it bugs me that these are the options that I am surrounded with. 

11. Not being able to go to the beach without getting a sunburn, regardless if I apply sunscreen or not. 

• Why? Sunscreen does not work for me. Coming from Naples, FL, I’m sure that it has something to do with the UV index. Even when I apply once or twice an hour, as directed, I always leave the beach with a sunburn. Tanning is never an option.

12. When someone is aware that you are coming but they let the door close behind them (common in Beaty West).

• Why? The only reason that I can think of of someone doing this is stranger danger. Maybe they have never seen me around, and although I look like the average freshman girl, they do not want to let me in their building. This ruins my day because I have to dig into my backpack to find my building key when they were three feet in front of me and could have saved me the time. In the worst part of all of this, I then have to awkwardly stand in the elevator with them, in which I find out that they are usually a 2nd floor resident. *eye roll*

13. When people in front of you in line don’t move as the line moves forward.

• Why? Many times they are not paying attention. They go on their phones or talk to someone and don’t realize that the people in front of them moved. 

14. When people arrive extremely early to an event or meeting and text you that they are waiting for you. 

• Why? With good intentions, the person is just trying to inform you of their arrival. They are not trying to bug you, but if they are 45 minutes early and you arrive 10 minutes early, this type of person makes sure you know. The notification makes you feel like you’re running behind, even if you’re not.

15. When people go on their phone during an important time.

• Why? Sometimes these people legitimately have something to do on their phone. Sometimes it’s even urgent. Many times it is not, though, and the action comes across as rude. The worst experiences of this for me is when I’m catching up with someone at dinner. I know they don’t mean to make me feel like they don’t care about me, but they do exactly that. 

16. When people, especially the ones with their arms extended straight toward the sky, record entire concerts.

• Why? I totally get it. They are trying to record every moment so that they can look back on the event and relive it over and over again. They are bugging people now for their own happiness later, but many times they are not even aware. 

17. When the toilet seat is left up.

• Why? People forget. Men who use the toilet with the seat up forget that the person after them does not always do the same. Maybe it's a mindset of mild narcissism. It’s most likely just because people forget things sometimes. 

18. When people use the wrong form of 'your' or 'there'.

• Why? Some people were never taught the proper forms of the words. Some people were taught, but they don’t remember the things that they find unimportant to them. 
• You need to get your butt in there before their lions eat you like you’re some kind of divine meat. I heard that they’re very hungry.
• It’s not that hard. 

19. When people use 'LOL' and 'OMG' in an in-person conversation.

• Why? I am assuming people do this because they are so used to typing it on their phone that it just comes out of their mouth. People find this as an easier way to talk over text, so many think it would be easier to say the terms in an in-person conversation. For the record, it comes off as purely unnatural because no one would say “laugh out loud” when something is funny; they would just laugh. 

20. When people say “no offense” before they say something offensive to someone. 

• Why? People tend to think that by prefacing their offensive comment with a warning, it makes the situation better. One day, people will learn that adding two almost-meaningless words before a comment does not make it any less offensive.

Reflection: I found it strangely easy to make this bug list. I began to question if I was just easily irritable, or if this was normal. I remembered that this “bug list” was assigned for us to make. In conclusion, everyone has their own “bugs” that irritate them. If I hadn't worked on the assignment for multiple days, I probably wouldn’t have been able to make the full list. Many things bother us as humans, but we don’t see many until we look for them. I realized that the majority of these “bugs” spur from human interactions. Many things that humans do “bug” me. This makes sense to me as everyone has their own perception of how one should be living. When we see people living in a way that we were not raised to understand or do ourselves, it many times irritates us. This assignment made me think about how I could fix these actions that I saw as issues. Many times, there is no way to fix them unless everyone around me lives just like me, which will not happen.