IRRITATION

Imagine all of the obstacles a person might have to overcome if he were to walk from New York City to San Francisco. One man who accomplished this rare achievement mentioned a rather surprising difficulty when asked to tell of his biggest hurdle. He said that the toughest part of the trip wasn't traversing the steep slopes of the mountains or crossing hot, dry, barren stretches of desert. Instead, he said, "The thing that came the closest to defeating me was the sand in my shoes."

C. Swindoll, Growing Strong, p. 163.

Humor

Two drunks were in a railroad station at midnight, discussing the difference between irritation, aggravation, and frustration. They couldn't agree. One finally said, "I'll show you the difference." He went to the phone booth, circled a number in the book and called it. After ringing and ringing, it was finally answered. "Is Ned there?" "NO! There's no Ned here," and the phone was slammed down. "That's irritation," he said to his friend. After another 20 minutes he called again. The phone rang and rang. Finally someone answered and the drunk asked, "Is Ned there?" The answer came back, "There is no Ned here! I told you before!" --SLAM. "That's aggravation," he said to his partner. Another 20 minutes went by, and the drunk said, "Now I'll show you frustration," and he made another call. Finally the phone was answered, "I told you before, there's no Ned here!!!" "But this is Ned--any messages for me?"

Traditional.