Off the chest

Doesn’t it make you mad when…

• You buy yourself a really nice outfit and your very rich neighbour picks up one that is exactly the same, wears it just once and then passes it on to her maid who then wears it to market!

• You call up a service centre because you urgently need your fridge serviced and you are kept on hold with the recording, ‘All our operators are busy. Please stay on line, your call is important to us.’ And this goes on for the best part of an hour, till you hang up in frustration.

• You polish your stove top to a blinding shine and then the milk boils over.

• You find the exact pair of shoes that you have been searching for, enough money in your purse to buy them and they don’t have your size.

• The dog chews up the new book that the library has sent across which, incidentally, costs a fortune and will probably cost you your membership. (Note: Do not eat ham sandwiches while reading).

• You have an early morning appointment and the person you are to meet turns up an hour late with the excuse, ‘Sorry, I overslept’. (The steam is still coming out of my ears from that one!)

• The cosmetics company discontinues your favourite shade of lipstick because it’s no longer in fashion.

• You are interrupted the same number of times as the numerous stitches you are casting on and you discover that you have seriously miscounted just when the pattern gets complicated.

But then, doesn’t it make you happy when you find something in common on someone else’s grouse list and you can agonise together?!

Well, that’s off my chest. The smile is back on my face. And the day is still young enough to get things done, including re-shining the stove (a great way to work off temper), ripping up the knitting (I was getting too ambitious anyway), and I have the glimmerings of an idea for my next blog (a good excuse to daydream!)

P.S. And here's one more grouse: Blogger does not offer optional bullets - I wanted the grumpy faces that Word so generously provides.