Greggity's Pet Peeves

One of my pet peeves is the seemingly blind use of common phrases, especially ones that don't make any sense if you look at them in a Seinfeldian sort of way.

[Editor's note: I've seen two full episodes of Seinfeld in my life].

First of all, I've never understood the 'taking candy from a baby' phrase to describe an easy task. It seems to me that babies get pissed and make a big fuss when you take anything from them -- even an empty candy wrapper. I guess the actual act of prying, say, a lollipop from a baby wouldn't be terribly hard; I've never tried, but they do have tiny hands. Still, I'd hardly describe the resulting fuss and wailing as easy or worth the effort.

The one that really bothers me is the 'ol 'have your cake and eat it, too', to signify you're somehow getting an even sweeter deal or more than your share. As if it's good enough to just sit there and look at a piece of cake. Tell me: What good is having a piece of cake IF YOU DON'T EAT IT?

I could go on, but I'll leave it at that for now. Actually, I should leave on an upbeat note, so let me tell you about a commercial I really like. There's a Jif peanut butter commercial that makes me happy.

It's the one where a dad and his daughter are sitting on the couch, about to enjoy peanut butter sandwiches. The dad flips the bread over on itself and the cute daughter asks him why. He tells her that's the way his dad used to do it, and he always wanted to be just like him. The daughter says, "that's silly," then sort of turns away and flips her own sandwich over on itself, just like her dad. He catches her and they share a smile.

Gets me every time.

g.