Peeves and Bugbears

This past week, while in conversation with a friend, we talked about pet peeves. I volunteered to air hers. She really wants everyone to have their headlights on at all times while driving. The lack of visible headlights in oncoming traffic, especially during snow and fog events, is not only annoying, it’s downright dangerous. You may feel you don’t need your headlights to see what you’re driving into, but they are definitely needed by the people you meet. Light-colored vehicles blend into that snow or fog. Even dark-colored vehicles can be hard to see at dawn or dusk. A person can’t make a truly informed decision to pass a slower moving car when they cannot see you coming towards them. You don’t want to be in a head-on collision, do you? Make yourself more visible.

I will add a peeve of my own here: those who drive with only their parking lights on. Those are for parked, non-moving vehicles only, not for when you are still moving. If you’re going slow enough that you think you might be a hazard to others, use your hazard lights. There’s a reason they’re called parking or hazard lights!

This subject, pet peeves, sent me down another rabbit hole, researching the why of the term. A peeve is an annoyance or irritant. You make a pet of it when you constantly find the need to complain about that particular thing that bugs you. The term pet peeve was first used in print in 1917. Peevish, which means ornery or ill-tempered, was from the mid-fourteenth century. Peeves are generally smaller irritants, but the “opportunity for complaint is rarely missed.”

Sometimes the term bugbear is used in place of pet peeve, even though bugbear is used mainly for things that can cause dread or fear. The bug part comes from the Middle English word bugge. That was used for ghosts, goblins, scarecrows, or other spooky creatures. Its second meaning is the same as for pet peeve.

And bugbear brought up hobgoblins, which has to do with mythology and/or fairytales, being a mischievous imp or sprite, sometimes fearsome. Then I was on to sprites (elf or fairy; or a brief flash in the upper atmosphere over a thunderstorm), bogey sense (worrying about something without having a reason), and bugaboos (an object of fear or alarm). That led right back to bugbears. And so I resurfaced from the rabbit hole . . .

To bring gardening into the Green Space, I’ll add one of my peeves: purchasing a whatsis at the greenhouse, only to much later discover it was a whosis. For example, I purchased Brussel sprouts, but grew broccoli. I purchased lemon cucumbers, but grew summer squash. I purchased acorn squash, but harvested pumpkins. My sun gold cherry tomato produced beefsteaks. All those beginner plants look alike as infants. When you’re checking out plants at the greenhouse, and pull up the identifying stake to read, please return it to the proper container. It only takes a little time to pay attention.

And now I’m off topic again: please get your medical checkups! Don’t put off your niggling worry about whatever you think is not quite right. Get your mammograms. Get your prostates checked. Have the colonoscopy. Yes, those exams can be scary or uncomfortable, but I guarantee going through chemo is worse. Finding the cause of whatever is wrong can really extend your life. Please, schedule your routine tests. Do it today.