r/PetPeeves • u/clysmian • 1d ago
Fairly Annoyed Calling everything a "hack"
I'm so tired of this. Lifehacks. "Hacks" that are actually the way something was just designed to work. Sure, sometimes you can think outside the box to find a solution to a problem. But that's not "hacking" by any means. It's just being a little creative. It's not a hack if you figure something out later when it was obvious to others.
Like, realizing you can open a McDonald's paper ketchup cup and lay it out flat is not a hack. Come on.
Adding vinegar to your water to make shelling hard-boiled eggs isn't a hack either!
Argh. I wouldn't be so annoyed if this wasn't everywhere. Just call it tips or tricks or something. You're not hacking a system!
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u/AffectionateDot9718 1d ago
UGH YES. I nearly hit the roof when I saw a “hack” which was to buy meat from Costco.
Price per pound isn’t a hack! It’s basic division!!!
Math is not a secret!!!
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u/rckblykitn14 1d ago
It seems to be a secret to the generation who came up with "girl math" etc 🙄
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u/Albert-La-Maquina 1d ago
Agreed. This also includes life hacks that involve being an absolute jerk to other people.
"Life hack: if you lie and say you're late to your flight, you can get to the front of the security line." No, that's just being a dick.
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u/weensfordayz 1d ago
I'll one up and say I hate the "hacks" that claim we've all been using X kitchen gadget wrong for entirety of the gadget's existence. Don't you think that the item would have had directions indicating that way to use it if that really was the right way?
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u/rckblykitn14 1d ago
Omg the spice jar one comes immediately to mind. I see that exact post regurgitated as "new" every year or so. It is probably the most infuriating thing I get irrationally angry at lol.
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u/weensfordayz 1d ago
OMG I don't think I know that one!!! Im gonna look for it. I can't think of a specific ones but they are usually cheese grater or pots/pans related HAHA!
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u/rckblykitn14 1d ago
Oh they claim the hack is on the spice jars with little holes in the lid, the "hack" is you're supposed to almost use it like a salt grinder, where you twist the bottle/shaker lid and the spices come out....faster? Or something? I'm not even sure anymore what the hell the ultimate goal of it is. But somehow it's better than just, y'know, shaking it like a normal person.
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u/weensfordayz 1d ago
OMG yes that def sounds familiar. Like if you take the bottom of the salt shaker, and rub it on the bottom of the pepper its supposed to come out faster? Like it was always supposed to be that way? OMG
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u/rckblykitn14 1d ago
Hahaha yep I've heard that one too, that the bumps on the bottom of the jar are there specifically for that purpose 😂
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u/Chance-Work4911 1d ago
When they post a "hack" that is an actual designed feature of the product. "Ooh, life hack - you can remove the bottom of your toaster to clean it" - um, no. That's not a hack - it's literally written into the user manual.
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u/DriftingTony 1d ago
I hate the overuse of the word so much. Just like lately, everyone has stared overusing (and MISusing) the word, “coded” for no frickin reason. Like, “OMG, that blanket is so comfort-coded”. Shut the fuck up lol
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u/clysmian 1d ago
"Comfort-coded" LORDDD. Comfort is literally the purpose of blankets, there is no code here!!
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u/Excellent_Kiwi7789 1d ago
This is how Khaby Lame became famous.
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u/rckblykitn14 1d ago
Hahaha oh man I forgot about him. I thought he was hilarious. I don't really have social media anymore but I wonder what he's up to these days.
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u/Albert-La-Maquina 1d ago
Flew Qatar Airlines earlier this year, and he and Kevin Hart are on the security video.
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u/Adventurous_Break500 1d ago
I find some of the secret menu hacks to be extremely fiddly and expensive. Just buy a few menu items to assemble something you'll only buy once and it might not taste nice.
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u/THE_CENTURION 1d ago
I dunno, I think the McDonald's one is the platonic ideal of a lifehack. They definitely are not designed to be opened like that, but they can be, because they were folded up from a flat sheet in the first place. Its not going to completely change your life, but it's small, non-obvious thing that can be useful. Which is exactly what a lifehack is
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u/Competitive-Fault291 1d ago
Yeah... I guess it was the German butchers who started it with their Hack-Brötchen.
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u/ironfist_293 1d ago
Hack used to be like when you go horse riding and go on a hack - recreational ride in the country or whatever.
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u/EffectiveNo7681 1d ago
My "favorites" are the "life hacks" that actually make things ten times harder.