Petty things that annoy you on Mumsnet.

[PettyAndIKnowIt]

What little things on MN annoy you more than they should?

People responding to others on a thread but not quoting them so I have to scroll back pages and hunt for the comment that they were responding to.

People referring to 3 and 4 year olds as toddlers.

If someone's posts annoy me and their name involves something that I love, then that bothers me even more.

The one poster who always responds to a "What's your favourite episode of a show? or What's your favourite dish from the Chinese takeaway?or similar threads by informing us how much they hate takeaways or wouldn't watch said show if they had a gun held to their head.

The phrase "Give your head a wobble." It's utterly infuriating.

People who attempt to belittle whole points of view to 'big up' their own.

Eg "...but mn hates men/dogs/etc so you'll never get a decent answer on here."

Goes hand in hand with thinking all you need to back up your own pov is to slag if someone else's, rather than actually providing good debate about why yours is valuable.

Sure if it’s a very specific technical question and your DH happens to do that for a living. But when it’s just everyday stuff that everyone could/should have an opinion on it makes me cringe.

I was on a thread recently about potential names for a poster's daughter.

Another poster confidently said that the suggested names wouldn't work with the names of the OP's older children, because there were too many syllables in the baby's name; and it was too 'matchy-matchy' with their surname.

I was struck by the absolute conviction of her opinions, so I asked her 'who makes these rules??'.

She replied that no one does.

So, I'm still none the wiser.

That's a new one on me.

What does it mean? I'm guessing it's a snippy response?

When someone replies to someone on the thread with "you do realise...right?" Just to make themselves look more intelligent than the person they are replying to

I have absolutely no opinion of that woman, other than she's beautiful.

Anything more than that, I just draw a blank.

Exactly. Nobody is cock-a-hoop about being sick.

There might be some disgusting Reddit thread about people who do, mind you.

I once read a Felicity Cloake recipe that mentioned 'cukes'. 🥒

Naturally, people in the comments were (lightheartedly) asking her to never use that word again.

@isthisamistakeornot well I do agree with you on that

I've always assumed "The hills are that way" meant "Run for the hills!" (in the context of dumping a potential date, a recent date or an existing partner with too many perceived "red flags") - but I might be wrong.

The expression 'vanishingly rare'. It sounds so affected to my ears.

Also posters who use the c**t one. They are usually the same ones who write a snarly post and put HTH and 'There fixed it for you' at the end of their posts. I imagine them to be the type of people you'd cross the road to avoid in case they'd physically hit you.

@Ameanstreakamilewide I've seen it on the LTB type threads or where someone is in a relationship where there are 'red flags' as in 'run for the hills'!

"Shamelessly placemarking" - seriously, what's that all about??

@GeneratedRandomly more than once I have seen a poster refer to their "chester drawers" 😃

Ameanstreakamilewide:

"I was struck by the absolute conviction of her opinions, so I asked her 'who makes these rules??'."

Ah yes, the "rules".

Rules about what colours should not be worn by wedding quests; rules about how many times a man's monthly salary an engagement ring should cost (not that I can understand the point of engagements, anyway); rules about what colours should never be worn together or what outfits are now considered passé for the school run...rules, rules, rules...

The Times and Sunday Times also loves "rules": "The new rules for eating." "The new rules for exercising for the over 50s." "The new rules for jeans." and so on.

Threads that start with "Am I the only one...?" No, of course you're bloody not.

Or "I'm going to go against the grain here..." You're not going against any grain, there are loads of opposing views on thread, just read it ffs!

The funniest autocorrect I've seen on MN was a poster suggesting that a mum juggling a new baby and an older child at nappy changes ask the older child to "fetch the baby a Muslim".

I can't get passed it.

I absolutely love those type of threads, where everyone chit chats about mundane topics. I start the odd 'what's happening in your house' or 'why are you awake' thread too. They're a mumsnet tradition and I like them

I do too. Sometimes when there's something horrible going on in your life, it can be a happy distraction.

The coy term "sexy time" and "DTD", as in "Did the deed", make me wince.

I expect there is a MN back story to the use of "DTD" - but why can't adults just say "we had sex"? "DTD" sounds to me as though it's something a poster only engages in reluctantly.

-The assumption that everyone on here is middle class- people do have different backgrounds. I once saw someone scoff at a poster for being excited about some unexpected money because it was “only £800”. Bitch, that’s life changing for some people.

-Describing a man behaving horribly and all the while calling him “D”H. Does the D stand for douchebag?

-Being quoted by someone who replies to something you didn’t say. It’s fine if you wanna use my post as a jumping-off point but try and read it carefully enough that it’s actually relevant to what you’re saying.

Oh yes, awful. DTD is the gateway drug to saying BD – “baby dance” 🤢 – on conception topics.

I don't read the conception threads so hadn't come across "baby dance".

It's not what "go against the grain" means, anyway. To go against the grain is to go against your own nature.

It's not what "go against the grain" means, anyway. To go against the grain is to go against your own nature.

Yes, so irritating when people say 'going against the grain' when they clearly mean 'swimming against the tide'.

Oh yes, awful. DTD is the gateway drug to saying BD – “baby dance” 🤢 – on conception topics.

I wish people would just stick to proper scientific terms and call it a 'bubba cuddle' (that's probably actually the official terminology on NetHuns!)