MY TOP TEN: THINGS THAT ANNOY ME

Some of my annoyances below are humorous (now), some are semi-serious, and some are dead serious, but all of them have actually happened to me: 

10. People who block store aisles with shopping carts and/or stand there conversing with several friends--then are offended by an "Excuse me" when other shoppers try to get around them;

9.   Restaurant wait staff who exhibit irritation when customers request anything, even the silverware THEY forgot to bring;

8.   Being in the "wrong" checkout line when the cashier runs out of change and must wait for it, the cash register goes on the blink and nobody knows how to get it working, or the customer at the head of the line is purchasing $500 worth of cat food in those itty bitty cans; 

7.  Junk snail mail, junk email, and junk phone calls that waste trees and otherwise wastefully take up my own time/computer/living space;
     
6. TV commercials that are ten times louder than the TV shows so that viewers have to turn the volume down and back up constantly or suffer hearing loss;

5. TV commercials that are ten times louder than the TV shows (oh--did I already use that?);

4. How do you spell H-A-Z-A-R-D?
Drivers who talk on cell phones (or apply makeup, tie their shoes, read a book,) and are so absorbed in that activity that they are totally oblivious to what is going on around them;

3. Repetitive, unnecessary, and irritating noise that people create, such as jangling their car keys, cracking their knuckles, or whistling the same tune over and over;

2. People who say to me while I am trying to lose weight:  "Oh, one little piece of cake (or some other forbidden goodie) won't hurt you!"  (Oh yes, my dear size zero, it will);

TA DA . . . and my greatest annoyance of all time is:

1.  Attempting to get through to a live person when calling a government agency, an insurance company, or the like--(1) the automated menu gives no choices that fit why I'm calling; (2) the department I need usually does not answer; and (3) I get the recording:  "All of our representatives are currently busy right now, but your call is extremely important to us and will be handled by the next available representative.  You are #103 in the queue, and your wait time is approximately 45 minutes." 

Annoyance #1 really happened when I called a government agency for my mother a couple of months ago.  Did I keep holding?  Yes, I did, because this agency had incorrect information in her file, I had to clear it up right away.  Email or snail mail would have taken weeks (or longer) to receive a reply.  I put the call on speaker and proceeded to work on other things while waiting. 

As a Christian, I realize that life is full of these annoyances which are a part of the human condition.  Some loom much larger, but HOW I HANDLE THEM is the key, especially with #10, #9, #3, and #2, which involve face-to-face confrontations with others.  I might categorically state my case to the individuals involved, but I've learned to do so firmly but graciously, kindly but clearly.  I must treat others with respect, even when I feel that I am not being treated respectfully.

I want to maintain the kind of Christian testimony that will honor my Lord above all, but will also reflect positively upon my family and loved ones.