Bug List

I often find myself noticing--or becoming annoyed by-- unmet needs; however, I rarely take action. Although I consciously, and unconsciously, notice these gaps in my day-to-day life that bug me, I had a hard time actually recalling them to incorporate in this list. I think most people are wired to accept the world in its current form, rather than taking action to make even the smallest improvement, which is why this assignment proves difficult for many. Even when we have a passing thought of "wouldn't it be great if--" we don't even take the time to write it down, much less take action.

With that being said, here's my "bug list":

1. Whenever there's even the slightest possibility of a hurricane or tropical storm passing through, panic ensues and people buy out the stock of every store and gas station in the state of Florida.
• Why? Even though we live in Florida and it's "Hurricane" season, most consumers do not have the basic emergency supplies. Plus, consumers buy 5x more supplies than they would actually need in a post-apocalyptic, absolute worst-case scenario. On top of that, retailers have limited shelf/floor space in store and in distribution centers. During times of panic, supply cannot possibly meet demand because the demand is astronomical.
2. While on the topic of grocery stores, it bugs me when I'm at the grocery store and can't remember whether I already have something at home or not.
• Why? I normally go to the grocery store on my way home from work and did not plan ahead to "take inventory" of my fridge and pantry.
3. Speaking of driving to and from work...there's NO gas station on my way to or from work, which means I have to drive pretty far out of my way to fill up my tank most of the time. Could I plan ahead and leave for work 20 minutes early? Yes. Do I? Never.
• Why? I live near MCO (Orlando International Airport) on a back road. Other than my apartment complex, I am surrounded by a few fields and a Publix distribution center (No, this does NOT make it easer to buy water when Hurri-pocalypse strikes). Those open fields would be the perfect destination for a gas station, though.
4. There's not a Target within a 30 minute driving radius of my neighborhood.
• Why? I would love to know why an entire shopping center was built 1.5 miles from my apartment a few years ago and it did not include a Target.
5. Fruits and vegetables expire way too quickly
• Why? I try to do my shopping for the week all at once and by day 3 or 4 my fruits and vegetables are very sad looking. Sometimes, they look great in the supermarket lighting, then the next morning they're already rotting. Maybe I should get my weekly servings of fruits and vegetables in the beginning of the week, but that is no way to live...They call it Taco Tuesday, not Turnip Tuesday, for a reason.
6. No one turns on their headlights when it's raining--specifically on I-4, 528, 408 and 417! I would like to perform a citizen's arrest on each and every one of these scoundrels when the sky is black and it might as well be a hurricane and it's like a fun game of "are there any cars on the road?" or "how many cars will I hit when I have to merge four lanes immediately on SR528, but I can't see any cars?" All I would like to know is- What happened to the Floridians who thought they needed 12 cases of water per person, per day when it comes to turning on your headlights?
• Why? Floridians like to live on the edge. Also, cars don't automatically turn on your headlights when you've been using your windshield wipers for an extended amount of time.
7. If there's a lane to go straight and a lane to go right or straight, you should use the middle lane to go straight so that the rest of us can enjoy the lovely "right on red" privilege.
• Why? Not all roads have those beautiful lanes intended ONLY for right-turns.
8. The left-turn arrow at the intersection of Hazeltine and Goldenrod often skips 4-5 "rounds" of lights before turning green, even when there are no other cars on the road.
• Why? If it's 1 AM and there are no other cars on the road, I am too afraid to run the light in case there is a hidden police car and then they drag me off to "bad-driver" jail with the people from #6 and #7. Traffic light patterns should adapt better to the actual amount of drivers on the road.
9. It bothers me when I can't remember if I locked my car, apartment, etc., but I am too far away to go back and check.
• Why? There's no way for me to remotely check the status of said locks, without having a car and or smart-home that I cannot afford as a lowly working student.
10. Let's talk about reusable straws; Most options are awful. I prefer the reusable hard plastic or silicone straws; however, I am never confident that they are full clean.
• Why? Even with a little scrubber meant for reusable straws and then also putting them in the dishwasher, I don't trust that the inside of the straw is clean enough. There's no way to tell.
11. My iPhone batter dies way too quickly even when I'm not using it frequently.
• Why? Background apps and processes drain the battery. Or, it's because I still have and iPhone SE and it's planned obsolescence...you decide.
12. My neighbor steals packages.
• Why? Once again, for those of us who do not live in smart-homes, we need a better way to fight off the porch-pirates or make scheduled delivery times more accurate.
13. My office-neighbor at work talks 100 miles per minute and also enjoys hour-long personal phone conversations that distract me from working. Her conversations are not even interesting, but she talks too much and too fast.
• Why? I can't wear noise cancelling headphones because I need to be able to hear if my boss calls me into her office or if my office phone rings.
14. I never know what to do with my phone when I'm running.
• Why? Those arm bands are annoying and slide down my arm and don't even get me started on how annoying running fanny packs are.
15. I hate taking a ton of different vitamins to get the supplements I need.
• Why? Yes, there are multi-vitamins, but you can't customize which vitamins and in what dosage you are getting. I would love a customizable multi-vitamin.
16. Natural deodorants don't help with sweating at all.
• Why? The harmful ingredient in traditional deodorants is Aluminum. Unfortunately, that's also the ingredient that works as an anti-perspirant. Why can't I reduce sweating in this Florida heat without shoving Aluminum in the pores of my underarm? Is that too much to ask?
17. Dairy-alternative milks usually don't mix well with coffee. My stomach is not cut out for this cruel world and dairy really wreaks havoc on my stomach. Every dairy-free milk I try has a weird curdled look when I add it to my coffee or leaves a strange after taste.
• Why?  I know there are a lot of new, trendy products hitting the market to "solve" this problem, but so far, they're all awful too.
18. I can never keep a house plant alive. I have even killed a few cacti and succulents. I swear, I try.
• Why? Different plants have drastically different needs when it comes to sunlight and water. I can never seem to get it right. I also don't have a ton of natural light in my apartment.
19. It's way too easy to snooze my morning alarms into oblivion.
• Why? I think from years of hitting snooze on my alarm anywhere from once to...100 times, I now do it unconsciously. I swear, when I finally wake up, I don't have the slightest recollection of making the decision to hit snooze five times, yet apparently I did. I truly think it's become so habitual that I just automatically do it. I need a feistier alarm clock.
20. The final bug on this list may be the most oddly specific. It really bothers me when I go to get a gel manicure and then after waiting 20 minutes in the lobby, when it is finally my "turn", the technician then wraps up my nails with acetone, a cotton ball, and aluminum foil to remove my current polish and I sit there again for 10-15 minutes. I often will put off visits to the nail salon simply because I don't have time for the entire process to take up an hour.
• Why? Not only is this a waste of the client's time, but they could service so many more clients and increase sales if they just wrapped up my nails while I was waiting. There's always one or two technicians who are not actively servicing another client, but working the reception desk or performing other tasks around the salon. One of them could get this process started.

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