Words or phrases that annoy you

pollypenny

I hate being greeted when waiting at a till in a shop with 'You all right there?' when what I want to hear is 'May I help you?'.

I'm not in pain, I just want to deal with the firm or pick up my specs etc.

There are two women in our local Specsavers who persist in that!

Flyonthewall

pollypenny wrote: »

I hate being greeted when waiting at a till in a shop with 'You all right there?' when what I want to hear is 'May I help you?'.

I'm not in pain, I just want to deal with the firm or pick up my specs etc.

There are two women in our local Specsavers who persist in that!

You alright/all right there doesn't have to be relating to pain. You can not be alright for other reasons such as needing help with something because you're struggling or maybe because you're confused, lost or angry about not being able to find something in the shop or because the person helping you has gone off and left you with no idea what's going on.

missbiggles1

AprilLady wrote: »

Haha, I knew whatever I wrote would be picked up on somehow in this thread - I should've been more careful! ;-) But no, not literally, that's another annoyance!

"I literally died of laughing" - unfortunately not.:)

NBLondon

Pollycat wrote: »

Might that be colloquial?

Very common where I come from.

M'wife does it now and then (She's a native of Sahf Lunden) which irritates me to the point I started replying "Yes. Why do think I might not be?" Worse when it comes in Estuary English as "Alwite?" (Whatever happened to Michael Barrymore - and why didn't it happen before he got on telly...)

NBLondon

and while I'm here... One that I keep seeing over in the Motoring Forum - people who think the part of a car which slows or stops it is called the "break" and tell how their "breaks" are squeaking or they "breaked" to avoid a cyclist.

pollypenny

Flyonthewall wrote: »

You alright/all right there doesn't have to be relating to pain. You can not be alright for other reasons such as needing help with something because you're struggling or maybe because you're confused, lost or angry about not being able to find something in the shop or because the person helping you has gone off and left you with no idea what's going on.

When one goes into Specsavers one usually needs an appointment or a glasses repair. When one approaches a till, carrying a basket or a pile or cushions as has just happened to me, it's usually to pay.

I might be retired, but I'm far from a confused old biddy, if there is such a thing.

Flyonthewall

pollypenny wrote: »

When one goes into Specsavers one usually needs an appointment or a glasses repair. When one approaches a till, carrying a basket or a pile or cushions as has just happened to me, it's usually to pay.

I might be retired, but I'm far from a confused old biddy, if there is such a thing.

Usually, but not always and that's only you, not everyone else. No doubt the staff say the same to everyone and it's just habit. At the till you may need help packing or may not have found something around the store so waited until you got to the till to ask.

You may look lost or confused or even in pain while waiting for a staff member to come back with your glasses, especially if squinting because of struggling to see. Maybe they've seen you standing a long time and want to be sure you are alright and don't want to sit down (if all seats are taken). Maybe you're sat their bored and they've mistaken the look for something else. Just because you know you're not any of them doesn't mean they know.

They are examples and general possibilities within a store, not specific to you and your trip to Specsavers.

Point is "are you all right" doesn't have to be relating to pain. As I said, you can not be alright for other reasons. It's really no different to them asking if you need any help.

Also, being confused has nothing to do with age. Have you never walked in a shop to find they've completely moved everything around and looked confused as you wonder where an Earth the things are that you came in for? Or seen two prices for what appear to be the same thing and been confused a moment while you work out which is the correct price? Or been confused when you see the staff member you've been waiting for walk towards you only to disappear into another room for seemingly no reason?

The staff are just trying to be polite and helpful when they say it. Admittedly it gets annoying when you get asked it numerous times, but they probably don't realise you've already been asked or they're double checking because you've been there so long. "May I help you" can be equally as annoying in my opinion (usually because when you actually need help there isn't a staff member in sight and when they do ask it's over something that you would never ever need help with).

lincroft1710

Haven't read whole thread but:

"Spot of lunch" - "lunch" alone is sufficient

"Park up" - again "park" is sufficient

pollypenny

Flyonthewall wrote: »

Usually, but not always and that's only you, not everyone else. No doubt the staff say the same to everyone and it's just habit. At the till you may need help packing or may not have found something around the store so waited until you got to the till to ask.

You may look lost or confused or even in pain while waiting for a staff member to come back with your glasses, especially if squinting because of struggling to see. Maybe they've seen you standing a long time and want to be sure you are alright and don't want to sit down (if all seats are taken). Maybe you're sat their bored and they've mistaken the look for something else. Just because you know you're not any of them doesn't mean they know.

They are examples and general possibilities within a store, not specific to you and your trip to Specsavers.

Point is "are you all right" doesn't have to be relating to pain. As I said, you can not be alright for other reasons. It's really no different to them asking if you need any help.

Also, being confused has nothing to do with age. Have you never walked in a shop to find they've completely moved everything around and looked confused as you wonder where an Earth the things are that you came in for? Or seen two prices for what appear to be the same thing and been confused a moment while you work out which is the correct price? Or been confused when you see the staff member you've been waiting for walk towards you only to disappear into another room for seemingly no reason?

The staff are just trying to be polite and helpful when they say it. Admittedly it gets annoying when you get asked it numerous times, but they probably don't realise you've already been asked or they're double checking because you've been there so long. "May I help you" can be equally as annoying in my opinion (usually because when you actually need help there isn't a staff member in sight and when they do ask it's over something that you would never ever need help with).

Ok, just ' Good morning/afternoon ' would suffice.

Honestly, when standing at the till a person is usually ready for some transaction, whether a purchase or an appointment.

And when I paid for my cushions yesterday whether I had a headache or not was irrelevant ! :cool:

heartbreak_star

Arrrgh one that repeatedly annoys me is the use of the word "dept" instead of "debt".

*gnaws chunk out of desk*

I feel better for that mini-rant.

HBS x