1. Thievery. I’ve been doing a lot of designs for my Redbubble shop. Whenever I post something on Redbubble, I do a search to see what else is on there in the same vein. I like to check out the competition, but only after I’ve done my own since I don’t want to be unduly influenced. What I’ve discovered is a lot of theft.

   The top-selling tiger things are Calvin & Hobbes stuff. Out of the top selling T-shirts on all of Redbubble, only one is an original design, and the rest are all knockoffs of Game of Thrones, Breaking Bad, Sherlock, Pokemon, Harry Potter, etc.
   
   In the interest of full disclosure, even I am not innocent. I have one design in my store that isn’t entirely my own of the Detroit Tigers and Red Wings logos smushed together. I wanted it as a T-shirt and I couldn’t find it anywhere, so I made it myself. Sadly, it has quickly become one of my best selling stickers.
   

2. Mediocrity. In the process of checking out the competition, I have seen a lot of unique and awesome works from really talented people. I’ve also seen more crap than I’d care to shake my shaking stick at. Not that my art is all that, but I’m pretty sure it’s not godawful, since strangers keep buying it. I’m not going to call anyone out, because that’s just mean, but there are misspellings. There are things that you can’t even be sure what they are. I know art is subjective, but there are pictures of other people’s cats on there. Why in hell would I want to own something with someone else’s cat on it? Is anyone really so into cats that they want an iPhone case with someone else’s cat?
3. Time. I hate how linear it is. I hate how sometimes, like during a workday, it drags on forever, while other times, like when you’re having fun, it flies by. I hate that, unless we figure out some bionic/cryogenic/cloning/sciencey stuff, I’ve probably lived more of my life than I have left, at least, with my brain intact and no need of adult diapers. Make it count, people.
4. I hate that nearly fifteen years into the 21st century, we’re still squabbling over race, gender, nationality, religion, sexual preference or whatever other dumbass arbitrary thing makes people hate and want to kill each other. I’ve always said that there are enough reasons to hate people individually without resorting to stereotypes.
5. I hate that so many of us are shackled by our own demons, myself included. I would really love to never think about all the awful things that have happened to me. I would love to put them in a box, lock it up and never look at it again. I’d love not to have PTSD, anxiety and depression. I hate that because we have such big brains, they’re so easily broken.
6. I hate that so many of us don’t know how awesome we are. We look in the mirror and think we’re fat, ugly or have too many unicorn horns (we really only need one). I hate that our society bases so much of its own worth on appearances instead of what really matters: brains and hearts. You have a good brain and a nice heart. Forget about your hair. Hair is a dumb concept anyway.
7. Homophobia, both the word and what it represents. Homophobia isn’t a phobia. Being scared of heights or spiders is involuntary, and actually quite rational, when you get down to it. From an evolutionary perspective, heights and spiders were good things to be wary of, because they presented a clear danger. Hating gay people is not a phobia. There is no evolutionary basis for it. It is a man-made construct and it’s just bigoted and dumb.
8. Begging the question. I’ve written about this one before, but you people still insist on using it wrong. Every time you say, “that begs the question,” when you really mean, “that raises the question,” a little bomb goes off inside my brain. I can no longer hear what you’re saying, because I’m deafened by your word bomb. STOP SAYING THAT.
9. Salespeople. I work in an office with a bunch of customer service representatives. I can hear their conversations even over my headphones since one of the hallmarks of salespeople is that they’re loud. They’re also disingenuous. The difference in personas is remarkable. They’ll be all chirpy on the phone with a customer and when they’re done, they’ll talk to coworkers. Their voices drop half an octave when talking normally and all the chirpiness is gone. It’s all so fake.
10. Rude drunks. I went to a party last weekend and my friend’s girlfriend was drunk. She became a total harpy. In a five-minute conversation with another friend, she said at least half a dozen jaw-droppingly rude things. If drinking turns you into a mean girl, perhaps you should slow your intake or you just shouldn’t drink.

More Things I Hate.