Gushes

I love the solar lights in cemeteries!

— Anonymous

I’m excited about the publicity “Barter Kings” (the A&E channel’s new series on bartering) is bringing to the trade system. Our people thrived on trade and still do.

— Anonymous

Biodegradable packing peanuts that double as pet toys. Fun for all.

— Anonymous

Gripes

My gripes:

1) Businesses that don’t get back to you! We left a message for an attorney three times in two weeks and have not heard back from them yet. We asked for a quote on a remodel, the guy tells me he’ll have it ready in a couple of days, it’s been a week I don’t have the quote and he has not returned my call either!

2) People who take their trash to the dump in pickup trucks and let it blow all over the roads, then don’t stop to pick it up! Roads look nice with mattresses, etc. littering them up. Do they actually think that if they throw their Burger King bag of trash in the back of their pickups it won’t blow away?!?

— Cindy Treadwell, Gray

Big purple buses with no one on them. Waste! Waste! Waste! Why not minivans?

— Anonymous

Those dumb “vanity credits” after a sitcom. Why put them up if they don’t pause long enough for people to read them?

— Anonymous

People have no manners now. When someone invites a friend from out of town, who is also the eldest of the group, for a ride, they should be offered the front passenger seat. It should not be taken by the youngest male present over a lady.

— Anonymous

The shoddy novels they turn into movies and TV series. I can name more than 50 better authors than the pop culture literary fads in any category.

— Anonymous

Anyone else have such horrible parties and family get-togethers that they’ve thrown in the towel entirely? What is it about people that when you get more than four or five people together, manners, standards and all trappings of civility go right out the window. I’ve washed my hands of it now.

— Anonymous

In our culture as a northern Native American, we respect age, and the oldest woman in the family makes the decisions. Don’t look to the man to supersede his wife, salesmen. The woman makes the final decision.

— Anonymous

There’s nothing that makes me angrier than when someone has a yard or garage sale and then they decide to close up early or leave their signs up for days and make people travel to their homes for nothing.What a waste of gas and time. When someone does that to me the next time I see that their advertizing a sale I just don’t go to it.

— Anonymous

Gripes and Gushes offers readers a chance to chide and to cheer. Bring it on! But references to specific people, businesses, agencies, etc. will not be used, in order to keep us all out of legal trouble and to make the column general enough to appeal to all. Send your Gripes and Gushes to [email protected] or snail mail to Gripes and Gushes, b section, Sun Journal, 104 Park St., Lewiston ME 04243.