Things that are more complicated than they need to be.

[ThreeApplesHigh]

I nominate hotel showers. Every time I have to use one, I have the Crystal Maze theme playing in my head while I figure out which combination of knobs and buttons turns the shower on and not the bath taps.

Your nominations?

Blue air check in and bag drop. Makes Wizz Air look like net jets (I'd imagine) 😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫

The timer on my boiler. I really don’t need a setting to switch the central heating on in a fortnight. I’ve had to watch YouTube videos to use the timer. It’s up there with the printer as the twin banes of my life.

How to do simple crap on my mobile.

Picking up a phone call... if I'm in the middle of something else then tap the green phone icon. If I'm not and it is on the home screen you have to swipe a green circle somewhere (still not exactly sure where, but whatever I do often works)

Still haven't worked out how to get all my health apps on one page, all my games on another etc...

Even bloomin twitter took ages to work out how to read replies to someone else's tweet.

This stuff should be easier. My past career was in computer network management... I can set up a router in minutes... mobile phone... nope.

Getting a repeat prescription.

Realised that I had run out of an inhaler. The previous prescription had been a new one and I'd thrown the old one in the dustbin the night before. Couldn't remember for the life of me what it was called.
Ring the surgery. Choose the repeat prescription option on the keypad.
Phone rings and eventually it's answered. Ask the person at the end of the line what it's called. Then ask if I can order it via her.
No, I have to go online.
Go online and have to register for online services.

Register for online services.
Then get a message to say I need to visit surgery with ID before my account is live.
Have to wait until someone can take me to the surgery (I'm on crutches. Whole other story).
Rock up at the surgery and present ID.
Ask for repeat prescription while I'm there as I also have a question as to which local pharmacy it will go to.(previous prescription for something different went to the out of hours pharmacy in next town)
Prescription ordered.
Half an hour after collection of prescription I get the email with my log in details.

It's horrible. Work system ever

@Badbadbunny 💐

Anything at all to do with bloody bikes. No parts are ever 'standard'. If you buy any sort of replacement parts or accessories they will invariably be THE WRONG specification. Arg.

Me too!

Paint waste disposal.... (I know).

My local authority (Greater London borough) doesn't have the facilities, so I have to go via the Corporation of London. I have to give them my council tax number and list each tin of paint individually, specifying the type paint and size. Then, I have to leave that tins outside our home where it will be collected. They leave you with a form that says you have to keep the form for 5 years.

That's definitely one and made worse in that they are desigbed so you can't experiment when standing away, you have to be naked and prepared for a nasty cold shock.

Having to order a new physical dongle to access a bank account, they kept telling me I could use the app now. Yes, but you need to activate that with the dongle and my battery has run out.
So I needed a new dongle sent to then activate the app access to then log in to then close an account.

Having to write a letter to close an account with 37p in it. Stamp cost more! But if I had kept it open I'd have to check it each year and would cost them more sending me post statements each year. I sucked that one up (2 others I could pop into a branch with id or email them a form)

Getting an appointment with a consultant.

• gp made referral but can't refer direct to the specialist I want to see, has to be via a central service
• get a letter to call central service at a specific time to make an appointment.
• call at the time and make an appointment that I don't want because that's all they can make.
• attend that phone appointment and ask to see the specialist in the specific issue. They agree and refer.
• appointment comes through - hoorah! Not the right individual but same area.
• cancellation of appointment arrives. Explanation 'ask whoever referred you'. They don't know.
• back to step 1.

It is exhausting! And I am no closer to be seen by the Dr who is the specialist in the specific issue.

Putting up an IKEA daybed as we found out last night. Click it in with your thumb on the instructions, I was literally bouncing on it with all my weight to get it to click.

Dairylea triangles.

The Government Gateway to see your state pension income tax etc. One can lose the will to live.

Like WD40, buying Gorilla Glue. I had a panic on and thought, F*ck this.

Buying anything on Amazon. In ye olden days, you might have a choice of three to choose from. Now you have thousands. It fries my brain. 🤯

Getting one part of the NHS to talk to another. I have regular appointments at my local hospital, and occasional ones at a specialist hospital, about a long term condition. The two need to be joined up but in reality never seem to be.

I spend a lot of time on the phone to the medical secretaries for each of the two depts, and every time it feels like this must be the first time ever in the history of hospitals that one dept at one hospital needs to work with a dept at another hospital!

Buying anything in 'Lush'. They always try to upsell random things I don't want. There isn't one in my town but we were out yesterday and passed one - I really need some more henna but I couldn't face the palaver.

The guy who decides packaging

Thought this would be appreciated! There's a whole series of them.

Printers. Printers should be simple. I have a document on my computer and I wish it to be transferred to paper. Heck, just dealing with the software is pain enough. Some apps have a print button, others hide it away somewhere and it's like playing hide and seek with an evil toddler.
So, finally, you tell it to print.

Printer, you have one job.
No, can't do it.
Why?
Dunno. Just don't feel like it today. Gonna make some odd clunking noises for a few minutes then spit out an error code.
By the way, you've given me the wrong ink. And the wrong paper. And it's all just wrong wrong wrong so I'm going to beep and complain. Never mind it printed fine yesterday.
Oh and I'm going to start printing... oh no, I'm out of photo magenta. I know you're printing black and white text but if I don't get my photo magenta I'm not printing. Booo.

By the way, the ink cartridges leak not only from the bottom, but from the top too!

This up selling the retail workers / waiters or waitresses have to do ( because bosses tell them to as part of the job or targets ) is annoying, but my strategy now is the following : No thank you. Polite but firm!

Maybe one day the companies might stop doing it!

Buying jeans when you are petite.

Mobile phone contracts and finding one that I can buy a handset not part of a set amount a month, but buy a phone and then pay for the contract from the same place. (Basically worked out the most simple and cheapest option is to buy the phone I want from John Lewis then get a similar only contract from ee, there is no option to just buy a handset and sim only contract from any of the phone companies I looked at).

Getting anything done via NHS.

Buying/ replacing light bulbs

Choosing paint colours especially white(!)

Most of the operational processes at my work, so much time wasting

Booking swimming on the Better app

Bicycle saddles

Washing machines seem to have about 20 more options than people would ever use, see also ovens and dishwashers

Modern skincare

Buying jeans

I've found my people - I truly thought this was just me.

We now have to book a slot for the local recycling center.
I think councils like to make things more complicated or not that easy to do (apart from collecting £ 1899 a year council tax payments, that works fine )
Printers have a deep dark soul that is mostly evil. Buying the ink for it involves taking out a small bank loan too!

🤣 at hotel showers. Stayed in hotel du vin this week on a work trip. Quick shower before meeting colleagues for dinner. 3 of the 4 of us were late down as none of us had been able to turn our showers off due to the mega complicated system. I nearly had to call reception at one stage.

We are all professionally qualified people. 😬

SIMS. It's always bloody SIMS.

@norks I can help you with where to view the programme you want to watch. There's an app called Just Watch. Hope it helps!