Another thing that drives me nuts is those electric hand dryers in some (all too many) restrooms.  When I was a kid, these things scared me.  Push the button and a very loud monster starts blowing in your face.  As an adult, I’ve seen more than one kid come screaming out of the bathroom at McDonald’s, terrified of the hand dryer.

“To serve you better,” says the label on one model, “we have installed pollution-free electric hand dryers.”  Better for who?  I don’t know one person who thinks these devices constitute better service.  They only serve the management by eliminating the need for paper towels.  I especially like the instructions on one model:

1.  Push button.
2.  Rub hands under warm air.
3.  Stops automatically.

And some wit added:

4.  Dry hands on pants.

Which is what I and most other people end up doing.  Why don’t theatre owners just remove the silly hand dryers and install a sign:  “To make things more convenient for us, we request that you dry your hands on your pants.”