Essay Pet peeves By Jennifer Matsui	フレームで見る  英文をプリントする  脚注をプリントする
いらいらの種 「いつもあれにはむかつくよね」という「いらいらの種」は、誰でも持っているだろう。 その内容は人によってさまざまだが、家族など身近な人の行動が気になることも多い。 筆者の場合、駅の券売機のあいさつ音声、ファーストフード店で客がやらされるトレーの片付け作業などがいらだちの元だ。

As someone who lists "complaining" as a hobby, I am always curious about other people's pet peeves. A "peeve" means something that is particularly irritating or annoying. The "pet" part means what annoys me may not necessarily bother someone else or vice versa.

For instance, I am not particularly bothered by people talking on their cell phones in public places, as long as the conversations are quiet and brief. But I know many other people who are extremely offended by any one talking on a mobile phone within 500 meters of them.

Another example: I am annoyed by the chirpy voice of my station's ticket machines, thanking me for my patience. Ironically, this computer courtesy means I have to wait longer than usual to receive my change. Still, I know many people who would rather be thanked by a machine for buying a ticket than have the ticket delivered to them faster.

Also, think of all the times you have had to wait while your supermarket cashier tries in vain to scan your groceries with one of those electronic devices that often just end up wasting everyone's time because they don't work. It seems to me that the old style of using a cashier's skilled fingers did the trick just fine.

Pet peeves are most often the specific behaviors of someone close to you such as a family member or spouse.

Think of the last time you wanted to drive a chopstick through the head of your husband for no other reason than the sight and sound of him scraping his bowl for the last bit of rice. There may have been a time when this habit of his seemed endearing, but after a few years, this harmless act, by virtue of its familiarity, becomes annoying.

On the other hand, my own husband probably has 101 reasons for wanting to throw me out of a fast-moving train, but thankfully, I remain blissfully unaware of them.

I've noticed that when I ask people what their pet peeves are, most will point out offenses likely to be committed by the opposite sex. Ask a woman what her pet peeves are and she will likely condemn behavior that is typical of certain types of men (public spitting, walking smokers and unpleasant body odors).

Men are also similarly inclined to point to women as the main source of their daily annoyances. Women who do their morning beauty rituals on the train top the list of pet peeves of most male commuters.

But nothing annoys me more than the whole concept of labor saving. Perhaps the worst abuse of a customer's time and energy in the name of labor saving can be found in the fast-food restaurants or American-style coffee shops where customers are required to perform trash and clean-up duties themselves.

Under this system, ice and drink remnants must be disposed of in the appropriate container, ashtrays (if used) dumped in a separate receptacle, and plastic and paper similarly separated. Often, we, the customers, end up spending the same amount of time providing free labor for these companies as we do eating and drinking there.

If I want to do thankless, menial labor, my time is better spent at home cleaning the cat box, where at least separating waste matter is limited to two simple categories. I have enough "pets" without the added "peeves."

Shukan ST: March 23, 2007

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