Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Things That Have Annoyed Me Lately

My Stolen iPod

Yep, my iPod was stolen out of my room at the Marriott Marquis when I was at the RWA conference in New York City. Of course, the hotel denies any responsibility, which I accept. I knew the policy. But it still burns me that it happened in the most expensive hotel I've ever stayed in.

When I got to the train station on Monday, I wrapped the headphones around the iPod in its leather case and stuck it deep in my laptop bag. I never thought about it again, until Friday night. My roommate was gone, and I decided to listen to the iPod while I did my hair and makeup. But I couldn't find it. I dug and searched and emptied the bag. My headphones were coiled up in the bottom, but the iPod wasn't there. I got on the floor to look under the bed, thinking maybe it had fallen out, and spotted the leather case deeeeep under the bed, up against the baseboard. I guess I could tell just by looking at it, because my heart sank even before I reached in there to get it, and yeah, it was empty.

It had to be housekeeping. Who else could have had the time to do all that? I don't get tossing the case. If they'd taken it with them, it could have generated doubt about how it disappeared. It could have maybe fallen out in the train station or the train itself, or I could have decided I didn't remember using it and storing it somewhere else. But the empty case under the bed, that couldn't have gotten there in any manner except deliberately? Total giveaway. And housekeeping is really the only possible thief. They clean with the doors closed. My roommate was in the room most of Wednesday and Thursday, but not Friday. So the evidence is damning.

I hope you enjoy it, Vicki.

My Killer Foot

I pulled a muscle in my foot on Sunday, and it's been killing me. It's the top of my foot, so it's fine when I walk, but hurts most when I'm driving or sitting at my desk--which I do more than half my day, so by the time I go to bed, it's really throbbing. It also made me yell when I bumped it against my chair last night.

This isn't annoying so much because it's an injury, as the way it was injured. I bet this is a new one for you:

Walking too fast in slippery flip-flops.

Stupid People

I think my biggest pet peeve is stupid people. Number One (not the stupid person) is having a slumber party Thursday, and we're going to the midnight premiere of Harry Potter. One of her friends (also not the stupid person) couldn't give us her RSVP until yesterday, and it was late in the day. I tried to get tickets online, and they said there weren't any more, I'd have to try at the theater. So I headed out. And had this exchange with the guy at the box office:

Me: "Are the tickets for the midnight showing of Harry Potter sold out?"

Him: "Just the 3D."

Me: "Oh, good, then I need 6 tickets for the 2D show of the 12:01 a.m. Friday showing."

Him: "That will be $73.50."

Me: O.O

Him: "The 3D tickets have--"

Me: "You said the 3D tickets were sold out. I don't want 3D tickets."

Him: "I said we only had 3D tickets."

Me: "No, I asked if you were sold out, and you said just the 3D."

Him: "Oh, I thought you asked if tickets were available."

Yeah, because "available" and "sold out" sound exactly the same.

Get On With Your Life Already

I read a lot of paranormal young adult fiction, and there's a commonality in some that just doesn't make sense to me.

Why would immortal beings keep going to high school?

The whole "Edward controlling Bella" issue would never have happened if the 90-year-old vampire had actually graduated, like, 72 years ago. Angels who are millennia old and fighting a war shouldn't have to wind up in reform school. That they look young is irrelevant. They need fake IDs anyway, right? So why not make them fake-legally of age and get a job or something?

A mission or destiny that requires them to be in a certain place temporarily makes sense, but to happen across your reincarnated true love in high school without placing yourself there intentionally is hard to swallow.

So any authors out there writing YA with immortal or ancient characters, please consider the motivation a little more thoroughly. :)

So that's it. Tomorrow I think I'll post the things that are making me happy lately.

6 comments:

Susan Gourley/Kelley said...

I'm a PE teacher. I hear about flip flop injuries all the time. Never wear them myself.
I hope you find lots of happy for tomorrow.

Natalie J. Damschroder said...

That figures, Sue! Kids do stupid stuff in flipflops. And want excuses to get out of PE. LOL

Cindy Procter-King said...

Sorry about your IPod, Natalie. I lost a flash drive in my room (luckily all my files are password-protected) and when I came home I realized I also didn't have the hook-up cord for my camea (I was thinking to use my netbook to download pictures while I was in NYC, but then I didn't take that many). I had my camera with me at all times, but the cord and the flash drive I thought were in the same little bag that held my camera battery charger. I had time before the RITAs Friday night to begin packing, and I thought I had that room clean! I'm thinking the flash drive fell off the back of the desk without me realizing it, and God knows what happened to the camera cord. Luckily, at home, I can just plug the SD card into my desktop.

I also have a sore foot right one, but then I always have a sore foot.

And I LOL'ed at the high school thing. Well, we know why they're in high school - so 14-year-olds want to read the books!

Natalie J. Damschroder said...

That bites, Cindy! I hope you didn't lose any files with the flash drive. :(

Do you always have sore foot with a chronic problem, or are you just always hurting your feet? :)

I get why the protagonist is in high school! She (or he, but usually she) is usually human or at least actually 16 and of high school age. But if you've been around for dozens, hundreds, or thousands of years, why would you hang out in high school? If you think about it, it's kind of creepy. Even if you're actually living as a perpetual teenager (a la Twilight)...why?!

Ava Quinn said...

That is truly sucky about your ipod. >:C

My friend had an injured foot, and her doctor ordered a sonogram of it. I then declared that the foot was very promiscuous and must be pregnant out of wedlock. So she is now the proud owner of a slutty foot.

Hope there's some happiness on your horizon soon!

Natalie J. Damschroder said...

LOL! So does she have a pedoptic pregnancy? I imagine that's not viable. :)

I'll post my happinesses tomorrow. Just had 3 hours sucked out of my night by a salesperson.