I read an article recently (you can read it here if you like) that basically listed the 50 most annoying things we (a British study, but I know it applies to all of Western society really) have to put up with. It made my blood boil and so I’ve written this in response -

50 things to be grateful for in this world.

1. Pressure selling – people continuously trying to sell you something you don’t want? Great – you have choice!

2. Spam emails – oh, you have email and are connected to the world! Great!

3. Pushy sales people – At least there are sales people that aren’t ripping you off blind and will tell you all you want to know about a product

4. Foreign call centres – you get to speak to someone from a different country, cool! You get to hear another accent, cool!

5. Being put on hold – you can clean your nails, reflect on life, slow down a bit

6. Dog mess on the pavement – you don’t have to drink water from the same area the dog has pooed

7. Pot holes in the road – you have suspension. And a car or a bike.

8. Spam text messages – you have a mobile phone

9. Drivers who take up two spaces – There is loads of space a few metres away and you’re not having to walk 5kms just to get there.

10. Getting stuck behind really slow drivers – they’re driving carefully, not like idiots. At least if they hit something they won’t do much damage

11. Queuing – waiting is good for the soul.

12. Really slow people in front of you at the till – again, waiting is good for the soul. You get to have a chat to the person behind you and meet someone new.

13. Rude customers or clients at work – you get a chance to lighten up someone’s bad day. See it as a challenge.

14. Getting stuck in traffic – thankfully you aren’t likely to get hijacked as you sit there.

15. Having to stand on the train when you’ve paid loads for a ticket. Really? You’re not walking home; isn’t that a great thing!

16. Having to pay to use public lavatories – that are clean and safe.

17. You unload the washing to find a tissue has covered everything. Oh, my god. You have a washing machine and don’t have to cart a bucket of dirty water from the river.

18. Credit card offers through the post – you get stuff  in the mail and it’s not intercepted by corrupt mail workers

19. Bird mess on the car – you have a car. There are birds close to you.

20. Middle lane drivers – you have lots of other lanes to use should you want to. Why stress about something you can’t control?

21. You put on a couple of kilos in weight when you think you’ve been good. It’s clear you have enough food. More than enough, really. Many wish they had this problem.

22. Cars not stopping for you at a zebra crossing – there are zebra crossings.

23. Your delivery gets lost in the post – you have enough money to replace whatever it was

24. You hang the washing out only for it to rain – you have enough clothes to survive in the meantime.

25. Spelling errors in books. You have books. You can spell. You’re educated.

26. Company ‘reply to all’ emails that aren’t relevant to you – at least you have a job!

27. Having to shave – you have a normally functioning hormonal system and arms to shave with.

28. Having to find spare change for the supermarket trolley  - you have access to a supermarket, and don’t have to carry your stuff on your head.

29. Banks phoning you to offer you a credit card / loan / overdraft – You have access to credit if you need it

30. Being sold something different from what you paid for – you have the ACCC to back you up.

31. You close the computer or the computer crashes and you’ve forgotten to save your work. You have a job. You have a computer.

32. Predictive text – you have a phone, iPad or computer. Most likely all three.

33. Being duped by a sales person – you have authorities that will try to help you out that you can trust. You have enough money to survive a loss.

34. Self-serve tills – you get to play with a toy all by yourself.

35. Your partner leaving crumbs / mess on the kitchen side. You have someone to share your life with that loves you.

36. Delayed trains – You have a train to catch that will take you home.

37. Getting a paper cut – it’s not going to get infected, and if it does, you are very unlikely to die from septicemia because we have a health care system.

38. Calling companies complaints lines – there are complaint lines with people there to listen to you.

39. You miss the train by a couple of minutes – there will be another train shortly and you won’t have to walk miles home in the dark on your own.

40. Realising you’ve left your phone at home – you have a phone, and a home, that you can go back to. In the meantime you get to enjoy the peace.

41. Banks phoning you to check your personal details. Your money is safe.

42. Losing the remote control.  Now you can get some exercise!

43. You forget to put the bins out on rubbish collection day. Your rubbish isn’t piled up at your door. It will be collected next time. You don’t have to sleep in it.

44. Your shopping bag breaks and you lose your goods all over the floor.  You have enough money to buy a bag of groceries.

45. The milk has gone off. You and your family have plenty of food and drink to be healthy.

46. Breaking a nail. This doesn’t even warrant a response.

47. Dishes being stacked on the draining board. You have fresh running water to wash your dishes with. And a draining board.

48. Automatic direct debits. You don’t have to line up to pay your bills.

49. Keypad tones. You have a mobile phone.

50. Someone rings you and they lose reception straight away. Again, you have a mobile phone.

And I’m adding another:

51. Articles that show how pathetically privileged we all are without knowing it. I can be grateful that I have a computer to read it on…as much as it angered me!