Annoy Not

There I was, sitting at a table amongst other creative writers. We were given 30 minutes to write a story. We all got into writing position and, in total silence, so I thought, we started writing.

Five minutes in, the Dose took note of a writer chewing gum. Minutes later, the gum chewer decided to start chopping and clicking her gum. You know the sounds.

As this was so annoying and distracting to me, I was grateful when my fellow writers started picking up their heads in total disgust. One was bold and polite enough to ask the gum smacker to stop chewing!

There are people who – usually unintentionally – annoy us. You know the ones. They can be loud and sloppy, and they typically lack self-awareness and awareness of those around them.

These annoyances appear in close quarters – office spaces, classrooms, and a variety of vehicles, to name a few. Whatever others are doing, that’s where these distractions are more clearly picked up on and hard to avoid or ignore.

As I observe such people in my environments, I can’t help but think – I must annoy others too.

What could I be doing to annoy others? The only way to find out is to ask… and that I do!

Annoy not.

Photo: The monkey who fully annoyed us by grabbing the bread off our dinner table! South Africa - 2024