Bug List

1.      Slow drivers in the left lane on I-4

-I commute on I-4 to work daily and its extremely irritating and vexing when I end up behind a driver going slower than the posted speed limit which affects multiple drivers not being able to go around or proceed in an orderly fashion.  It not only causes road rage; it also creates dangerous situations where a driver may feel compelled to perform a lane change maneuver that can further endanger other drivers as a consequence.

This bug exists because there isn’t a strict or enforced no passing on the right lane traffic laws.  This would in effect prevent motorists from going slow in the fast lane as this aspect would also be enforced in conjunction with the first part. 

2.      My 3-year-old toddler daughter delaying the ‘getting ready’ process in the morning

-Every morning I take my daughter to daycare and she purposefully drags her feet when getting ready, from brushing her teeth, to picking out her outfit, to eating breakfast and to finally putting her shoes on.  I have had to incorporate the utmost amount of patience I can muster in order to remain on task and get us out of the house on time and ensure I don’t have to drive like a mad man in order to get her to daycare, and myself to work on time.  Its kind of hard to level with a 3-year-old and explain the consequences of not arriving on time to work repeatedly and how it can cost me my job. 

This bug exists because my fiancé and I have to get better at enforcing the bed time routine we have with our daughter.  If we were to implement this more often than not, she would have a more set timeframe for bed which in turn would allow her to wake up earlier reducing the need for me to try to fit in what normally can be accomplished in a half hour, in about an hour. 

3.      My Waterpik toothbrush not charging properly or charging enough when I place it on its cradle

-I have a Waterpik toothbrush and it charges with a wireless charging stand.  For some odd reason every once in a while, even though the charging indicator scrolls the battery status indicator lights, it won’t result in the toothbrush charging.  I then have to manually brush my teeth.  I know it sounds trivial and kind of banal, but the toothbrush times the amount of time you spend on each quadrant of your mouth.  It also cleans more thoroughly than manual brushing and is a definite must for oral hygiene. 

This bug exists because possibly the battery on the toothbrush base is starting to deteriorate and not hold a solid enough charge between uses.  The fix would be to replace the battery in the base if possible or the base itself. 

           

4.      My iPhone 5S not holding a charge longer than a full work day

-I’ve had my iPhone 5S for a bit and it’s a great phone.  Not too big and not too small.  It weighs just enough and it meets all of my needs for a mobile device.  The only gripe I have about the device is that the battery life suddenly started to diminish and deplete way faster than it usually did.  I’ve verified all of the settings that could cause the phone’s battery to use up faster than normal and they are all not enabled.  The only thing I can think of that could be causing this issue is the hardware not playing well or nice with the latest version of the iOS operating system.  My fiancé thinks I should just upgrade to a 6S.  I figure I will but I’ll more than likely wait for the iPhone 7 to come out.  Until then I’ll have to deal with the battery life issue and just carry an extra charger. 

This bug exists because the hardware and software are not optimized for each other as in other Apple products.  The newer/later versions of iOS function better with the newer/later versions of Apple hardware.  The fix would be to simply use a newer phone. 

5.      Police speed traps by my job

-Approaching the business park where I work there is a fire station that is obscured by bushes at the crest of a curve.  It is a prime spot for sheriff’s deputies to hang out and walk out of the bushes and pull people over for going over the posted speed limit of 35mph.  I am normally on time and rarely have go slightly faster than the speed limit, but in the off chance that I need to, I have to be extra careful in this area as the 35mph speed limit is strictly enforced.  It definitely puts a damper on a lot of folks’ day as they are usually there pulling people over. 

This bug exists because the county generates revenue from speeding tickets.  I can ensure I leave for work on time and not have to speed in order to arrive on time. 

6.      Drivers driving dangerously slow or fast in the rain in Central Florida

-It seems that whenever it rains in the Central Florida area, drivers simply lose all sense of normal driving and end up endangering people with their driving.  When I drive on I-4 or the expressways and it rains, it seems drivers start to slam on their brakes and slow down drastically or they proceed to drive extremely fast and recklessly.  I try to slow down enough to retain control of the vehicle but without making sudden moves as visibility and reaction times are affected when it rains, especially with the sudden torrential downpours we tend to encounter here in Orlando. 

This bug exists because people are inexperienced driving in the rain and at normal highway speeds.  This may be due to the fact that FL is a highly transient state as well as a tourist destination with a lot of out town/out of state drivers.  

7.      2-liter soda bottles going flat

-I hate it when I go to pour myself a glass of soda, and I end up splashing the refreshing beverage on ice cubes only to find out its flat and not sizzling or bubbling.  It can be quite annoying and disconcerting. 

This bug exists because the soda bottle cap may not be tightened enough and the CO2 gas escapes causing it go flat pretty soon.  They sell bottle caps that pump and preserve the CO2 gas longer than usual which is a cool solution. 

8.     Humidity levels in Florida mostly year round

-I find it really difficult to deal with the humidity levels in Florida especially when I get ready in the morning and my car is still really hot inside.  I don’t have the cool feature to remote start my car and have the car chilled by the time I get in it.  It’s extremely unpleasant to get showered and dressed and then to go out and start to sweat and get all sticky is not very cool, literally. 

This bug exists because Florida is simply a hot and humid state by default. 

9.     Love bugs

-These lovely creatures come out seasonally and they end up staining my car’s windshield, front bumper and side view mirrors.  It is a pain to deal with these stains, as they are pretty difficult to scrub and remove them from the car’s paint.  You also have to live with the fact knowing you ended the little bugs lives which makes you feel even worst. 

This bug, literally exists because they have a mating season that causes them to join and then populate in abundance everywhere.  They in turn end up becoming victims to the deadly windshields of speeding motorists. 

10.  My fiancé’s aversion to turning on the AC at my house

-We own a 2 story house and it takes a while to cool down or heat my house.  My fiancé is, how do I put it succinctly, frugal.  She hates to adjust the AC thermostat because it would make our utility bill go up and since its an element of spending she can control, it ends up being a modifiable element that gets adjusted frequently. 

This bug exists because a 2 story house is inherently inefficient to cool and heat.  I’m sure better insulating properties and materials can be implemented but the house is already built.  I can take the time and money and invest in improvements, which I think ultimately may be the answer. 

11.  Drivers not putting on their turn signals

-For some odd reason I end up behind drivers who hate to use their turn signals.  The main reason it bothers me is because for me, I hate to brake late and have to make such a jarring action to stop on time.  It can be easily rectified by simply turning on the turn signal and giving the driver behind you the courtesy so you don’t have to brake so suddenly. 

This bug exists because this is not strictly enforced when encountered.  If the police were to ticket and fine motorists for not putting their turn signals on, this would be a less commonly occurring problem. 

12.  Going to Wal-Mart and deviating from my compiled list and spending way more than anticipated

-I normally make a list before I go to Wal-Mart with the clear intent to remain on task and not spend more money and obtain more items than what I wanted to.  But every time I go to Wal-Mart, I end up walking the aisles and I start to gather items that were not on my list.   I end up buying snacks and goodies that I didn’t plan for mostly because I made the mistake of going to the store on an empty stomach. 

This bug exists because Wal-Mart is extremely efficient at their store layout and product offerings.  I can also be a bit more restrained with my product selection and not go there on an empty stomach. 

13.  The shallow sink that came with my house

-We purchased our house and it came with a spacious kitchen with lots of counter space.  My only gripe is that it has an extremely shallow sink which makes it impossible to wash dishes or pots/pans that are not small or if they number a large quantity. 

This bug exists because the stainless steel sink that came with the house was designed and manufactured that way.  I’m sure a slightly deeper one would have been a bit more money but definitely worth the expense. 

14.  No gutters on the side of my house

-My house has a gutter system that does a great job at channeling water when it rains and it dumps said water towards the front of the house with great efficiency.  However, the 2 sides of my house don’t have a gutter so the end result is the grass area on the side of the house becomes flooded and puddled with water.  This isn’t so much a problem in the sense that the grass eventually absorbs the water, however when I need to cut the grass, I end up tracking through water, which eventually becomes mud.  This just makes cutting the grass a bit more tedious and effort-full. 

This bug exists because Florida is inherently a rainy state and we see our fair share of precipitation regardless of the design of the house or the existence of the rain gutter location. 

15.  Detail/cutting work when painting a room in my house

-As a fairly new home owner, I ended up having to paint some rooms a different color other than the standard color that came with the house.  The painting of the large expanses of the rooms isn’t so difficult in terms of labor, that’s not the crux of the problem.  My gripe is with the detail work when painting the borders of the wall where it meets the base board and the ceiling. 

This bug exists because it’s pretty time consuming to perform detailed work and as such proper results require proper effort. 

16.  Christmas lights being a tangled

-Every year I have to untangle Christmas lights and this proves to be a trying experience.  You have to painstakingly go through each set of lights and then make sure they work when plugged in. 

This bug exists because the form factor of the wires just tangle when wrapped together.  I’m sure I can get small device to more effectively wrap the lights and keep them from tangling. 

17.  Cup holders in my car being too shallow

-My car is a great car and I’m of course grateful that I am able to own it since it takes me places and allows me to work.  The car however has an ergonomic mistake which every owner must complain about since its so glaring.  The cup holder, I mention one since it’s the only one in the center console, is extremely shallow.  I can place a medium size cup however it spills over with any turn I take or when I brake to come to a stop. 

This bug exists because the vehicle interior designers did not thoroughly plan the cup holders in this vehicle.  Making them too shallow causes all drink items to spill and if they had put more thought into this item, it would have been better designed to hold a variety of cups. 

18.  Burnt popcorn smell from the microwave in the break room at my job or in general

-My desk at my job is very close to the break room.  This is usually not a problem but a benefit as I can heat up my lunch and get water from the filtered water dispenser with ease because of its close proximity.  The only problem I encounter is when people pop microwave popcorn and they put too much time on the microwave timer which ends up with nasty, burnt popcorn smell permeating not only the break room, but also the row where my desk is located. 

This bug exists because the microwave at the job probably has a problem with power levels which affects the popping of the microwave.  That and I can always move my desk and not be affected by the smell of the burnt popcorn. 

19.  Caked on food on stainless steel pans/pots

-When my fiancé cooks she tends to pan sear a lot of the protein we consume which is a fine way to prepare meals.  However, this cooking method on stainless steel pots can be a pain to clean up afterwards as the labor involved with scrubbing can be intense. 

This bug exists because we don’t use enough olive oil from the mister we utilize to line the stainless steel pan when we cook.  Another solution would be to use Bar Keeper’s Friend to clean the pots/pans or boil vinegar on the pots/pans after the fact. 

20.  Smoke detector chime/beep when 9V battery is running low

-This is a pet peeve of mine which I’ve had to deal with recently.  I have approximately 6 smoke detectors spread throughout my house.  This is definitely a great feature of the house as it can alert us of any fires and it generally serves to keep us safe.  My gripe with this is that when the battery runs low on one of them, it starts to beep, periodically, yet incessantly and very annoyingly. 

This bug exists because its meant to warn the home owners to the failing or dead battery in the smoke detector unit.  A solution would be to replace the battery as soon as the first beep is heard. 

This bug list was pretty hard to come up with and it did take me some time to really think about things that bothered me without being redundant.  Mostly they were things that unfortunately are out of my control, although not all of them.  I'm interested in seeing which bugs, if any I may have in common with other students in the course.  I'm sure it'll be a fun experience to see what bothers folks and how I can relate to their pain.