Y-o-u'r-e means you are, y-o-u-r means your!

I can't think of a more perfect day than Monday to talk about what peeves me. Everyone has them, those little things that shouldn't bug you as much as they do, but they.just.do. Whether they are BIG peeves or little peeves, learning to live with and work around the pet peeves' of those that you share space with can be challenging to say the least. Most of the time it can be as easy as sucking it up and ignoring it, but on those rare days when the werewolf is out, every, little thing gets under your skin. As long as this isn't every day, you're good :)

For those that know me and have lived with me, parents excluded, (Katie, Jessie, Kendall, Leah, Mary, Jessie, Alicia, and Mo) *WOW I have lived with a lot of ladies! I can easily be annoyed by what may seem to some as silly little things, but when you are sharing a living space with others they become HUGE things to me.

Let me preface this by saying that, despite what others may tell you, I am not a super, neat-freak or a bad roommate to have :) I simply prefer shared spaces to be kept tidy and decently clean seeing as multiple people are using them during any given day. Who wants to be crowded by other people's personal stuff and things? Not me. Ironically, one of my biggest pet peeves is in the kitchen. Are you laughing too? :) Rachael hardly ever cooks! How can she have a pet peeve that is associated with the kitchen? I find it annoying when I go in to cook or make food and there is already remnants of someone else's food on the counter, stove, or in the sink. I loath having to clean BEFORE I can cook or cooking around someone else's mess. For that matter, I also don't enjoy cleaning up around someone else's dirty dishes. Sure, sometimes I will help out and clean all the dishes left in the sink in addition to my own, but mostly I don't want to do this. It's just a common courtesy thing. If you don't like to clean right after you cook, cook last so your dishes aren't in the way. How hard is that really? My mom and dad were big on cleaning up the kitchen every night after dinner (I imagine that this was because with five kids, any left over mess makes the living areas feel even smaller!). Now, as an adult I also like to clean up each evening and start the new day NOT having to clean up two meals. This extends into most aspects of my life, work and home included. Clutter and left over messes or work that carries on to the next day only adds unwanted/unnecessary stress. Does this seem crazy to people who could care less if things are put away before bed? Heck yes it does, as I've been told many, many times, but this is who I am...you get the crazy with the awesome :)

Don't think of this post as a rant, just a way for you to better understand where I am coming from with my "crazy." Am I messy sometimes? Yes. Do I sometimes leave my clean clothes folded in a laundry basket for a day or two or my shoes in shared spaces? Yep, it doesn't happen often, but it happens. Am I occasionally lazy and don't clean up right after I'm done? Occasionally... I never said I was perfect! For the most part, I bite my tongue when it comes to my pet peeves, as they are just that...my pet peeves and I don't expect people to change on account of me. However, when living with others the consideration of feelings and quirks is important and will make the experience better for all involved :)