Does anyone else have pet peeves and hate to discuss them? Right now I’ve got two, and I’ve just got to discuss them because They Are Everywhere.

The first is cell phones in cars. Now, okay, driving down the freeway or on a street not absolutely clogged with cars and people, and you’re bored, and you gotta talk to someone, so you make a call. I try to avoid it, personally. If I’m alone, I’d rather listen to a book on tape or CD (right now I’m listening to The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri) than hang on the phone in the car. If my son is in the car, or my husband, hanging on the phone is just plain rude and I wouldn’t do it.

But on the skinny streets of my town, when I see women and men in Mercedes and trucks or SUVs, especially, hogging up the street, turning corners, or backing up–yes! backing up or making u-eees–I want to scream. Sometimes I do, in fact, scream.

The other thing that’s been driving me a little nuts is e-mailed Christmas cards. Now, sometimes, it’s someone’s birthday and you’ve forgotten to send them a card or you don’t have their address and you e-mail a card. I’ve done it. Sure, why not? But when I receive an e-mailed Christmas card, I’m sorry but I tend to hit delete. (The exception this season was the one I received from Kim Dower, the sweetest book publicist ever. Her artist-husband created a cute cartoon and I printed it out.) And when I’m one on a list of about a million who’ve also been mailed said e-mailed card, I’m offended. It’s almost worst than no card at all.

Technology can be a wonderful thing, but it can also bring out the obnoxiousness that we’ve all got buried within us, don’t you think?

Thanks for letting me rant.