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AIBU?

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Original poster

To think that parts of modern life are preposterous (lighthearted)

113 replies

madnessitellyou · 30/12/2020 11:41

Not long after I bought my first car in the late 90s I realised I needed an ice scraper. I went to the local hardware-cum-poundshop-cum-Home Bargains-type place and purchased the one ice scraper they sold. It was a couple of quid and served my ice removal needs very well until twenty-odd years and several car changes later I lost it.

Given pandemic and laziness I turned to Amazon. There were pages upon pages of ice scrapers of different designs. I suddenly found myself overwhelmed and spent a good 30 minutes reading reviews of ice scrapers, agonising over which one to buy.

How is this real life? It wasn't the first time I've wasted time forensically reading reviews of fairly insignificant items.

Am I getting old, or missing the point of what the modern world brings us?

OP posts:
thosetalesofunexpected · 31/12/2020 04:06

Hi Op
...And there was me thinking I am at times like the only one like a kid at a massivet toy store trying to choose which kind of toy I prefer..😕😊

ChestnutStuffing · 31/12/2020 05:03

@ButtWormHole

What gets me is...who felt compelled to share their reviews of ice scrapers?

They sat down, logged into Amazon and wrote out a review of their beloved ice scraper. For fun.

I once thought about doing this. I bought an expensive telescoping one because I couldn't reach the snow on the top of my car. It fell apart within a week.

I now just have a regular one and drive slow until the stuff on top slides off.

partofyoupoursoutofme · 31/12/2020 05:27

There is an interesting Ted talk about this called the paradox of choice.

MrsTerryPratchett · 31/12/2020 05:43

I now just have a regular one and drive slow until the stuff on top slides off.

You'd get hung drawn and quartered in some parts of the world for that. In cold countries they take their snow removal etiquette very seriously.

Also they have scrapers with snow brushes as the other end so you can always reach.

Schehezarade · 31/12/2020 05:44

Despite being able to scan the whole world for what you want (in theory) the fun has gone out of it and, imv, due to Google etc controlling search results, you get the same old same old. Used to be that down about page 5 you'd find some quirky shop with a clunky website who you could actually phone up and check that the thing they sell is what you want or could give you advice on it. Now you have to scroll through reviews which aren't that honest.

Oblomov20 · 31/12/2020 06:10

Completely agree. I even get bamboozled by toilet rolls and sanitary pads.

wellthatsunusual · 31/12/2020 06:25

I don't want to make anyone jealous but my car has an ice scraper all of its own. It lives in the little door to the petrol tank, thereby removing the agony of choice.

ChristmasUserName2020 · 31/12/2020 06:41

I’m so glad I’m not the only person to think this, in fact I was having this conversation with DH only a month or so ago. Earlier in the year I spent days searching for bumble bee drawer handles, decisions decisions. Then it was a screen protector for my phone. Both were agonising decisions that took hours of review reading and deciding!

Whatisapension · 31/12/2020 07:05

I did actually have a very easy time picking my glasses, despite there being so many options. There was only one pair with had small squared lenses, thicker sides (thin ones get stuck in my hair), no nose pads and on the plus point they were a nice colour.

I think it helped that I wasn’t picking online, so couldn’t get put off by reviews or stuck down a price comparison rabbit hole.

SophocIestheFox · 31/12/2020 07:14

More choice makes us less happy. I often get the horror in shops where all the stuff overwhelms me and I have to GTFO immediately.

I dream of living somewhere simple with one of everything I need that works forever and never needs replaced.

DuesToTheDirt · 31/12/2020 09:56

@partofyoupoursoutofme very interesting.

AcornAutumn · 31/12/2020 11:01

I'm sad that no one enjoyed my 1975 song lyric!

But, speaking of Instagram, it is preposterous in a way. I have this at the moment - need to do some home improvements and it seems like the only acceptable options, if I sell or rent, are instagrammable things.

Like it actually seriously adds value to property now, which is insane.

I don't have loo roll holders but tbh it's not something I'd ever pay for!

Grellbunt · 31/12/2020 12:27

Liked that Ted Talk.

Original poster
madnessitellyou · 31/12/2020 12:37

@AcornAutumn what do you mean?!

OP posts:
AcornAutumn · 31/12/2020 12:42

[quote madnessitellyou]@AcornAutumn what do you mean?!

[/quote]
sorry, what do I mean about what?

btw have you used the ice scraper? I think you should write a loving lyrical review and share it with us. Or maybe a poem.

Oh ice scraper
when I meet my maker
I will think of you
ice scraper
you made my life
what it was.

LeaveMyDamnJam · 31/12/2020 12:43

@DuesToTheDirt

How Obama solved the problem: “You’ll see I wear only gray or blue suits,” [Obama] said. “I’m trying to pare down decisions. I don’t want to make decisions about what I’m eating or wearing. Because I have too many other decisions to make.”
I’d rather he had stuck to swimming shorts. It is his best look. 🤪
sueelleker · 31/12/2020 13:08

@Grellbunt

Don’t get me started on passwords and not being allowed to use one that’s too short, or too similar to my last 6, or doesn’t have special characters in it...

I actually do believe it is causing this stress epidemic

Plus at least one capital letter and one number.
sueelleker · 31/12/2020 13:14

@madnessitellyou

Alas *@AcornAutumn* I am embarrassed to admit I wanted a particular colour.

The previous toaster I sent to the big kitchen in the sky simply because it wasn't pretty enough. It was old and wasn't toasting brilliantly but still: I gave up on it.

We bought our current toaster in Comet (so it's lasted very well) We thought it was plain white,and it was only when we used it for the first time that we realised it was a light-up one!
sueelleker · 31/12/2020 13:17

@DdraigGoch

Too much choice is indeed a problem. Here an 'author' has listed 40,001 names for babies. Surely if I were looking for a baby name, I'd want it narrowed down a little. ]] I'm not sure that all of these are names in any case. Dweezle, Bender, Leelee and Spunk for example.
Sound like characters in Futurama!
ICouldHaveCheckedFirst · 31/12/2020 13:42

The washing powder aisle scared me for years - why do we need so many different types? Was I using the wrong one? What are they all FOR? Then a former colleague explained most were exactly the same, made in the same factory, where he had worked. My stress over choosing evaporated immediately.

Aweebawbee · 31/12/2020 14:01

Bit controversial given the tone of this thread, but I am mourning the lack of specialist shops. I mean actual shops where you can try things on, touch and feel before you buy (Covid alert).

I grew up in a really small town that had an actual sheet music shop. Unthinkable nowadays. You have to order from a website with limited choice and it inevitably arrives late, is lost in the post or 'sorry, out of stock'. And specialist sports equipment is a pain to source because you only find generic trainers and yoga gear chains.

I think that the choice is just an illusion. Sure, you have 101 types of ice scraper, but try to find a simple white T shirt in a specific size with no logo on it.

AcornAutumn · 31/12/2020 14:47

Aw try Style &Beauty, those posters are curators who know all!

Mamasgonecrazy1 · 31/12/2020 14:52

There's a book about this called the Paradox of Choice. The paradox being that we think having more options gives us freedom to chose, but actually it creates anxiety, wastes time and therefore takes away our freedom to do the things we really want to do.

Grellbunt · 31/12/2020 15:04

The whole purpose of boutiques is to do the choosing for you I think!

hansgrueber · 31/12/2020 15:07

@TinkersRucksack

Back in the day I used a cassette box.

No need for high fallutin SCRAPERS.....

OH kept a selection of out of date plastic cards for this purpose.