Assignment 2A- Things that Bug Me

Assignment 2A - Bug List

1.     Midtown bartenders automatically giving everyone two straws per drink.

WHY it exists- The bartenders have a fast-paced job, therefore, they do not stop to ask if the patron needs or wants straws. They assume that everyone just wants one to drink out of unless they make it clear from the beginning.

2.     When members of the sorority I work at taking more sauce than they need, leaving bowls full of it for us to clean/throw away.

WHY it exists- When sorority members make the dinner plates they normally want ketchup or some other sauce but they have no idea how much they will actually use. Therefore, they fill up an entire bowl of sauce to make sure they don’t run out but then they have a huge bowl of sauce that we have to throw away wasting a ton.

3.     People sharing super political posts that are more people-based than policy-based, therefore the post just serves as a way to attack a specific person.

WHY it exists- When people are attempting to make a point on Facebook they share a ton of articles from sources such as Politico or NowThis, however, these posts often are not about political views or policy rather attacking the credibility or morals of a specific person. Facebook is a great way to receive and give information, however, sharing videos or articles that are just about someone specifically are a bug.

4.     People walking across the street when they do not have the signal that it is okay to walk, specifically on the corner of 13th and 2nd, and in front of Chipotle on University.

WHY it exists- Sometimes people are in a rush to get to go where they are headed whether they are late or it is raining, etc. Therefore they cross the street without the signal from the crosswalk in order to save time.

5.     When people claim to be from major cities such as Houston, my hometown, however, they are from the suburbs or surrounding areas

WHY it exists- When people are asked from where they are from they often give the name of major cities as there hometown instead of what actual town or area they are from because it is easier than explaining. They may also claim to be from a larger city because as humans we want to feel apart of something bigger than just us therefore when they say they are from Houston they are apart of a bigger society.

6.     When waiters or people who work at the register ask you “is Pepsi okay,” when you ask for a Diet Coke specifically at restaurants in the Gainesville area like Applebee’s or Chili’s.

WHY it exists- A lot of restaurants in general but especially in the Gainesville area only serve Pepsi due to it being cheaper or their loyalty to Gatorade which is bottled by Pepsi. However, Pepsi and Coca-Cola are very different tastes, therefore, are not adequate substitutes.

7.     The very limited amount of spots on Southwest First and Second Ave. for street parking

WHY it exists- The limited street parking comes from a multitude of reasons but it is mostly caused by the fact that there are several large apartment complexes that either do not provide parking like the Courtyards or the ones who charge a ludicrous amount of money per month like Social 28 and the Standard.

8.     How the University of Florida has anti-bird nesting spikes on the lights outside of Turlington Hall

WHY it exists- The University of Florida is hoping to stop birds from nesting in an area that have high foot-traffic so that students are not going to be either attacked from territorial birds or hit with feces from the nests above.

9.     When people walk very casually (slowly) in front of you especially in areas with heavy foot traffic like Turlington and the Reitz Lawn

WHY it exists- Even though I have a class or somewhere to be, not everyone has the same schedule therefore sometimes fellow students have the ability to stroll through areas and just look around or look at their phone. Sometimes people just do not have something they did to get to this, in turn, gives them the ability to walk slower.

10.  When people riding the UF RTS buses put their bags on the seat next to them, therefore, blocking that seat from being used by anyone else.

WHY it exists- People may choose to put their bags on the sit for a couple of reasons it could be very valuable items they want to protect, it could be raining outside and the bus’ floor could be wet, or they are saving the seat for one of their friends who is about to get on the bus.

11.  The sheer amount of paper-waste that is created in Turlington along with the paper flyers that are handed out and immediately thrown away

WHY it exists- A ton of organizations at the University of Florida use tabling in Turlington Plaza or Plaza of the Americas as there way of reaching students. However they often use small paper flyers to do so, these flyers are sometimes immediately thrown away or are just crumbled onto the floor right after leaving the person who is passing them out. This creates a ton of paper waste each day with so many people taking flyers to be nice instead of clubs they are interested in.

12.  Holding the door for someone whether it be while going into a classroom, the Reitz Union, or any building on campus and the person walks through without acknowledging you

WHY it exists- When you decide to hold the door open for someone you may hope for a quick thank you or sign of appreciated but often time people are busy on the phone, tired and would rather not talk early in the morning, are in their own head thinking deeply, or a million other reasons. Therefore sometimes they will just quickly walk through the door without saying anything at all.

13.  Watching people riding bikes throughout campus not obey traffic laws like stopping at stop-signs or waiting for pedestrians to cross, this is especially prevalent near Plaza of the Americas and Turlington.

WHY it exists- People on bikers are in a gray space between being a pedestrian and being a vehicle, therefore the rules they are supposed to follow get a little fuzzy. This is why sometimes they will not stop or wait because they might view themselves as a pedestrian instead of a vehicle.  

14.  People who stop in the middle of Turlington or on a sidewalk on campus when they see their friends or are taking a phone call

WHY it exists- When you see your friend on campus it is a refresher because you are not in class or at the library so you do not have to be focused on school. Therefore, people talk advantage of this opportunity by stopping in the middle of their tracks forcing everyone behind them to have to find a way around.

15.  Taking a shower and realizing that you have left your towel very far, in my case hanging on the door

WHY it exists- Before people take showers they may be adjusting the music on their speaker or using the restroom, therefore, they are not focused on the location of their towel until it is too late. Often when I shower it is early in the morning and I am not fully awake meaning I can not plan ahead all the way after a shower.

16.  The very limited number of bathrooms in Midtown and the restaurants around it creating excessively long lines

WHY it exists- The amount of space in Midtown is very limited, and the square footage in each bar or restaurant is even smaller. This means that the owners do not have a lot of space for bathrooms creating normally one stall and one urinal for all of the patrons in the bar, creating huge lines limiting the time you spend having fun

17.  When you are telling a story and people check out halfway through and you are finishing the story to an audience of zero, especially when giving a presentation and everyone is on their computers

WHY it exists- In modern times people are developing smaller and smaller attention spans, therefore, if you are telling a story and while you are telling it their phone goes off, someone else walks into the room, or anything else catches their eye there is a good chance that you are telling a story to deaf ears. This holds true when you are giving a presentation in class and everyone has the opportunity to get on their computers because you will not be able to pull them away once the teacher’s head turns around

18.  Getting off the UF RTS bus but before you can reach the stairs there is a group of people already getting on the bus, making you have to wait

WHY it exists- So often people are in a hurry, someone is on their phone or talking to their friend not paying attention, or they re just unable to see you trying to get off so before you can make your move you have to wait and then hope that the bus driver still lets you off

19.  Living in a house with forty other guys is especially hard when they often come into your room and leave their food wrappers, paper bags, and cups in your room

WHY it exists- Sometimes we get so caught up in what we are doing that we are not thinking about how we just ate ten minutes ago, therefore not thinking about getting rid of the trash we created. My garbage cans and table get filled with triple the amount of trash from other people than from me

20.  The sheer amount of times I have misplaced my TV remote control, or when the couch has ‘eaten’ it

WHY it exists- Whenever I am done watching TV I tried to make an effort to put the remote on the table in front of me so I can find it after. But so often I either fall asleep while watching it or someone else has the remote so the next time I go to watch it, it is in deep on the couch, or nowhere to be found

Reflection-

            When creating this list, I thought I was going to have an easier time than most. I am not saying that I am someone who is very pessimistic or even who tends to notice negative things happening around me. However, when I was reading the assignment several bugs popped into my mind immediately. I was able to write down the first two or three right away, but after that, I hit a wall. In order to spark my imagination, I started just going through a normal day and trying to find small things that actually bothered me. This process made it a lot easier because I am a major creature of habit, doing basically the same thing every day. By breaking my average day into sections such as what I immediately do when I wake up like forgetting my towel, then what I do when on campus like walking behind slow strollers, what happens while I am at work like the extreme waste of sauce, and then what happens in my room during my downtime like the large amount of trash left in my room I was able to pick apart my day getting to the core things that bug me. I also sought out inspiration from things I really cared about like the Environment, this is how I was able to come up with the straw and paper-waste bugs.  

            I think what truly made this challenging is that when I am going through my day, I tend to be focused on whatever I am doing in that exact moment whether it be walking to class or washing dishes I tend to block out everything else. By staying so nearsighted I am able to stay motivated by whatever I am trying to accomplish but I miss what other people are doing and what is happening around me. Therefore without seeing what is happening around me, it is hard for me to notice things that bug me unless they are having a direct effect on whatever is in front of me.