I think that today, here and now, the biggest thing that irritates me, that just makes me feel superior to the rest of humanity, is the latest fad of holding the door for a person. I have walked up to a restaurant and opened a door and been rushed by a half a dozen people all smiling and saying thank you as they enter ahead of me. Then when I get in there, they of course are ahead of me in the line. Grrrrrrrr.
Another version is as I approach a building, somebody coming out will stand there holding the door for me. That could be considered nice, but if I am, say, 10 feet away am I expected to rush so they aren't holding the door too long. I feel like I should and it bugs me to no end. I have left my gas pumps and as I approached the building, 40-50 feet away, somebody is standing there holding the door, smiling away. I have started to do things like walk slower, stop and fidget with my cell phone, start to turn, as if to say something to somebody, but keep walking slowly so the person has to stand there longer holding the door.
I recently had a guy with 4 coffees and a bag of doughnuts tucked under his arm, pushing the door open with his shoulder, stand there holding the door for me. I slowed way down and thought, "you are stupid."
Where did this all start? Is this the sign of a polite society? Aren't these the same people that will curse and yell at me if I don't quickly accelerate from a light that has just turned to green? Or that pass me with an attitude if I am simply doing the speed limit?
My solution has become simple. I hold the door for those that I want to. I do not hold the door for somebody that I would have to stand and wait for them to get to the building. I will let a door smack somebody that tries to enter ahead of me, if I didn't offer it. I will not hurry, and in fact as I explained above, I will slow down for anybody that holds a door for me that would require me to hurry to get to it. Probably rude, but my life just got less stressful.
Mick