Every week, the OnMilwaukee.com editors contribute things they like to the "OMC Recommends" column. In this "OMC Rants" article, the editors air their grievances and stuff that really irks them.
"Y.M.C.A." at sporting events -- Any sports team that still plays "Y.M.C.A." by the Village People at its events should be fined and after three infractions, banned from its league. It's old, stale and tired. Case in point, a few weeks ago the Celtics played the Pistons in one of the NBA's best games this young season. It was a great game. With 5:54 to go in the 4th Quarter, Boston made a run, Detroit called "time out," and The Palace speakers busted out "Y.M.C.A" to jack up the fans. While the commercial break came rather quickly, a brief scan of the crowd found many puzzled faces and you could practically see the "in Motown, seriously?" words coming out of the fans' mouths. Lame, lame, lame. If your favorite sports team still plays this horrible song (and you know who you are), tell them to ban it and call out their lameness. While you're at it, add "Mony, Mony" to the list too.
-- Jeff Sherman
Cell phones are overrated -- Those four words really say it all. I feel like I couldn't live without my cell phone, and I ditched my landline eight years ago when people still thought that was crazy, but I am constantly disappointed with my phones. I admit I don't pop for the super expensive models; I usually go for the $100-150 models. The last two have been Motorolas and particularly disappointing. Dropped calls, powering down for no reason and not "dialing" are just a few of the things that seem to happen with enough regularity that I find myself wondering why "they" haven't created a more dependable, medium-priced cell phone. -- Molly Snyder Edler
Foreign and increasingly disgusting spam -- I know that spam is just a part of life. Even with our filtering system, I still have to sift through about 200 phony e-mails each morning. Still, two categories of spam are increasingly getting my goat: the ridiculously graphic porn e-mails, and the Russian and / or Chinese e-mails. It was slightly humorous when the "increase your size and girth" messages were just text, but the close-up images, graphic calls-to-action and completely NSFW subject lines are just offensive to everyone. I just don't know who clicks on this stuff. And as for the Cyrillic and Chinese, I wish I could just tell my mail application that if the contents aren't in English, just dump them to my trash folder immediately. I mean, I don't even know what these Russians are pitching me (though it probably has something to do with "natural male enhancement.") -- Andy Tarnoff
Where have all the newsstands gone? -- I miss newsstands and I wish Milwaukee had a foreign language bookshop (see below). Newsstands are still vibrant, alive places that are bursts of color and suppliers of news, information and entertainment ... in many cities. But not Milwaukee, where the last one I remember -- at Third and Wisconsin -- closed down probably more than a decade ago now. I love the array of magazines in all languages and the orderly stacks on newspapers. Even with the Internet, a lot of people still love to read words on paper and there's no better place to get that fix than at a newsstand. -- Bobby Tanzilo
No water with dinner -- Most restaurants, and even some generous bars, greet guests at the table with water glasses, or arrive with them when they bring the ordered drinks. There are more than a few places that I've dined at recently, however, that completely disregard this most simple of courtesies. What's worse is the places that still forget to bring you water even after you've asked -- sometimes twice. How is this even allowed? Seems to me it should be standard practice when people are dining on (usually) savory dishes and / or drinking wine. I'm thirsty! -- Julie Lawrence
Getting in or out of Trader Joe's -- I love TJ's, but I find it annoying and difficult to get in or out of the place. If I am coming from the north on Port Washington Road, I can't turn left into Bayshore Town Center. Instead, I have to keep driving to Silver Spring Drive and hang a left, then another left into the congested Bayshore maze. If I am trying to access it from the south, it's easier. However, leaving Trader Joe's is a pain in the butt because you can't make a left turn onto Port Washington Road and have to take a right, ride four or five blocks -- through a stoplight, no less -- before you can legally turn around and head back north. I am starting to wonder if my Two Buck Chuck, bags of edamame and various other snackie items are worth it. -- M.E.
Retail Web sites without hours and / or phone numbers -- It amazes me, in this Internet first world that we live in, how many retail Web sites don't include store hours and / or easy to find phone numbers. If I find your site via search, I'm most likely looking for more information, often time this is a simple "are you open?" If you don't include it and you make it hard to find your phone number, I'm going elsewhere. -- J.S.
No foreign language bookshops -- I wish Milwaukee had a foreign language bookshop. Surprisingly, buying foreign language books isn't even all that easy on the Web and traveling to Europa Books in Chicago shouldn't be necessary when you live in a city as large and as diverse as Milwaukee. Although Schwartz Bookshop on Downer has a good array of foreign magazines, there's rarely a foreign language book (and even more rare are ones in languages other than Spanish) to be had even there. -- B.T.
The lack of all seasons for every series on On Demand -- Why can't On Demand offer more in their series archives? Every month, On Demand rotates a half dozen (or fewer) episodes, but, for example, why isn't the entire six seasons of "Sex And The City" available? I demand to know. -- M.E.
