Pet Peeves, you know?

As you may be aware, much of my time spent at home is in front of this computer with the radio playing. The local talk radio station is speaking to me from 9:00 a.m. through 3:00 p.m., and as long as I am here or in my car during those hours, it is on. Occasionally, if the subject matter disturbs me, particularly in the a.m. hours, I will listen to music instead, but otherwise, I listen. I listen not only to the hosts of the programs but also to the people who call in to their shows. Regardless of where the show originates, being nationally syndicated allows for callers from all over, even from other countries, in some cases. It is always a delight for me to hear the callers from WI, which makes me homesick a bit, hearing that upper Midwestern accent....

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Today, as I listened to Neal's show, the one Justin has called in on a couple times this year, I nearly reached into the radio to pull the words out of the caller! The hosts and screeners must have all the patience in the world to listen to the callers, who are so absolutely freaked about being on national radio. Every third word(s) of this particular caller was "you know", not necessarily in question form. "You know?" is often used as a space saver in a sentence, much like an "er" or "um" holds the spot while the caller or speaker searches for the missing thought. UGH! Or, there are the callers who use the word "like" in an inappropriate place in the sentence. "The car was like driving down the wrong side of the road like, and then he like drove right over the mailbox like man it wasn't like even there!!"

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I know a woman who regularly uses the Ebonics vernacular and is the first one to tell you about it, ending nearly every sentence with "ya' know what I'm sayin'?" No, tell me again, I am incredibly dense! Often the statement she has made does not even require a response from me, and yet I am asked if I understand. This is, of course, an absent response, an absent comment, and many people do not even notice after a certain point. However, for me, being asked "you know?" in every sentence, becomes more a contest of counting how many there are instead of listening to what is being discussed. My other friend who prefers the lecture format to conversational give 'n take, likes to begin her 'arguments' with, "No,......" and then goes on to express herself. How off-putting it is to begin a sentence in that fashion. I wonder what I say which rattles other people.......no need to answer that, please!

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We all have things, bugaboos, which drive us wacky and since "words are my plaything", as told me by a former co-worker, I guess it annoys me more when they are misused. I use too many of them, I am wasteful! As Justin told me about my Facebook problems a couple weeks ago, instead of putting in my 2 cents worth, I put in a buck fifty!!

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The sun is now shining in on me, warming me nicely, after having had a real soaker rain shower around 10:00 a.m. Many helicopters are going up and down the river, including one Coast Guard chopper, which rather freaks me out. The local radio news told of having two deaths in recent weeks due to the "swine flu" so I was searching the obits to see who these people were. One lady was in her young thirties but I do not know if her health was otherwise compromised prior to exposure to the virus. It was when reading the obits that I ran across one for a 28 year-old man from St. Augustine who died while diving with his father. Such a tragedy! It seems he was spearing a fish, and it might have kicked back enough to cause the diver to hit his head on coral, which rendered him unconscious. Rather like the accident that killed the crocodile guy in Australia, Steve someone or another.

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Last night was a preseason football game for the Jags, played in Miami, where they lost to the Dolphins. And I accidentally missed the Board Meeting for the Art Guild when I was working on something for church....time escaped me and then it was kick-off! Our Ladies' Group is sponsoring a Mission Festival on the 30th and I was garnering information about the missionaries assigned to our congregation so I could send it to Janet. She is putting together a display, while I am arranging for the bulletin insert, so folks are prepared to donate to the missionaries. There is also a young man in Keystone Heights who is attending Martin Luther Prep and going on to the ministry, and we are supporting his 'scholarship' fund as well.

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This week I am hostessing a Music Mixer at my house for all the people involved in music at church, whether operating the MIDI, playing an instrument, or singing. Or interested in any of the above!!! Sunday I distributed personal invitations to those who were even remotely involved with the music ministry of our congregation. Some folks were not present, it has been a bit on the scant side attendance-wise recently, but soon summer will be over, bringing back our missing members! Come to my house and have some of my delicious sloppy joes....make a note to buy some more relish for the joes!