Oooo...So Frustrating!

The other week I bought a handy gadget...it's a very simple device for opening jars and bottles that have tight lids. And it works beautifully. No more gritted teeth and going scarlet in the face when opening a new jar of marmalade.

But...you just knew there'd be a 'but'...it was heat sealed inside its package. And the edges of the actual gadget were very close to the edge of the packet and they're soft rubbery material. So, to open it requires scissors and then careful negotiation to avoid snipping the rubbery bits and cutting through them.

The mouthwash I use has a plastic cup on top...that's sealed firmly to the top of the mouthwash bottle with a thin, incredibly hard strip of plastic that is virtually impossible to peel back with your fingernails and so also requires scissors...but small ones to wiggle underneath the hard bit.

The packet of anti-biotics I've just finished come in a strip...the strip is inside a foil packet...the foil packet is inside a cardboard box...and there's one of those dinky little packets of silica in there as well...and the users leaflet which is almost as big as War and Peace and takes almost as long to read.

Those pull things on cans break off at the very first attempt to undo Pilchards with Fresh Cooked Vegetables for the cats...they whack my hands with their paws because they can smell their dinner but can't actually see it in their dishes and wail when I have to go back to the kitchen to find the tin opener that only works when it feels able...which isn't very often.

And if there are pull rings on tins of Tuna why aren't there any on tins of Salmon...

Cellophane packets of pasta are the utter night-mare...cut here it says blithely...fold over to close. Don't be silly...you cut where it says...exactly where it says and hold the bag over the glass jar to empty the contents and give the littlest shake...bag immediately splits wide open and the kitchen floor is covered in Quills...

Same with bags of flour ...fold the top over to keep fresh. OK I can do that. Then you come to use it again and somehow...when you weren't looking...pounds of flour have squeezed themselves into the folded up bit. Open it up and you, the dogs, and the worktop are covered in a cloud of Self-Raising.

Small plants grown in polystyrene trays...push up from bottom...so you stick your finger into the bottom hole to push out a Pansy and the entire tray falls apart, scattering teeny fragments of that horrible white stuff all over the garden and if the wind is blowing it'll end up on Kitty's field...and the street.

Then there's the tubes of cling wrap in a packet with a serrated cutting edge...that simply doesn't cut under any circumstances...and the cling wrap folds back on itself and rips so you have to peel off most of the roll to get enough to cover a small bowl you're putting in the microwave...

Bet you can think of some as well...

[knitter]

The tiny little foil inner seal on a tube of toothpaste.

Not knowing which is the shampoo bottle or the conditioner when you are in the shower and can't read the writing.

The instructions on ready meals which are too small too decipher without my reading glasses

[Ergendl in reply to knitter]

And the instructions are on the bottom of the pack so if you've already torn off the lid you have to hold the micro-meal above your head to try and read them...!

[redted]

Everything you say is true,but it seems we just take it all in our stride until someone,like you points out how annoying it all is and that we are not alone in dealing with all the stupid wrappings. Enjoyed reading your version, must admit I get very uptight when dealing with anything that does not do what it is supposed to.😁

[Hidden]

All of yours plus on opening a tin of corned beef with the rolling key which snaps after opening about a quarter of the tin. Grr.

[NgaireM]

Ha ha ha so true - so sad too. I buy a 2 litre screw top milk, and they have put a seal underneath the cap which requires the force of the hulk to lift off. I rarely succeed without spilling a lot of milk or giving up and stabbing with my trusty scissors and tearing the offending pieces off in bits. Oh for the days of my horse-drawn milkman who left me lovely glass bottles with little foil caps!

[Nikkers]

My pet hate are those sealed packs of bacon with the so-called "loose" bit on one corner that you're supposed to be able to pull up. If you can even manage to get hold of it, it then tears off without even starting to open the actual packet.

How about the bottles of loo cleaner, bleach etc., Where you have to squeeze the top together and turn it at the same time! Impossible unless you have a hunky man available. I realise they're meant to protect children (the tops, not the hunky men) but for older people with arthritic hands they're a nightmare.

Sorry guys but I think the saying "If it's impossible or just downright awkward, it must have been invented by a man!"....is true. lol

[sassy59]

Everything nowadays is super sealed, never to be opened. I also laugh about the re-sealable bags that just aren't. Hey ho - 21st century - you can keep some of it.

Take care Vashti and stay well. xxxx

[Hidden]

Just sprung to mind my granddaughter then aged about 12 asked her mother if she could have some campol for a headache my daughter said no you won't be able to open it it has a childproof cap. Some 15 minutes later Vlkki said, mum how does it know it is a child who is trying to open it? She is nineteen now but we have never let her live it down.

[Azure_Sky]

I bought a packet of Ready Break, as soon as I open the packet to use it, clouds of Ready Brek fly out. So there it sits, alone and forlorn, until I can figure out how to get it from packet to bowl, without getting showered in the stuff.