Random Thoughts That Don't Deserve Their Own Thread Go Here

[JonInMiddleGA]

I'm a little disturbed to discover that -- apparently at least -- there's a couple of "things I've known for 30-40 years" that are either misremembered, confused, or in one case some sort of Mandela Effect.

Neither are anything major/life changing or anything, so that's good but it did give me pause for a bit with concerns about, well, aging.

The thing that keeps me from being too worried is that in both cases we're talking about stuff I've "known" for decades, so wherever my wires got crossed it can't actually be anything recent.

[sovereignstar v2]

Has handshaking actually decreased? I remember thinking that if there was one good thing to come out of the pandemic it might be less handshaking. But it's 2023 and it's still pretty much an automatic thing for me.

[21C]

All of the old habits have come back in full force. I see people all the time (students mainly but quite a few teachers) coughing into their hand and wiping/rubbing their noses.

So handshaking? Why not?

[CrimsonFox]

Originally Posted by sovereignstar v2

Has handshaking actually decreased? I remember thinking that if there was one good thing to come out of the pandemic it might be less handshaking. But it's 2023 and it's still pretty much an automatic thing for me.

Thankfully I see people in church stop that nonsense

[miami_fan]

Originally Posted by Edward64

More power to you Travis Bickle. Happy to hear all the plumbing still works.

Was this intentional? If this were a movie, one of the older De Niro kids files a lawsuit accusing this kid's mother of entrapping the older De Niro.

[Edward64]

Intentional ... as in De Niro wanted it to happen? I didn't think otherwise since he announced it.

The Oscar-winner first shared the news on Monday in an interview with ET Canada to promote his new film, aptly named “About My Father.”

Speaking of fatherhood in the interview, the 79-year-old politely corrected interviewer Brittnee Blair when she mentioned De Niro’s previously known six children.

“Seven, actually,” De Niro said, adding “I just had a baby.”

[Edward64]

Originally Posted by Edward64

... and in other news, the Whataburger is here!

Wife and I talked about checking it out in next month or two, give them a chance to iron out their kinks. I don't have unrealistic expectations but like the Culvers that opened a couple years ago, have to welcome them to the neighborhood

Had a Whataburger today. The onion rings weren't great but the burger was decent. Drive-through only for now, took about 20 min.

[NobodyHere]

https://www.cnbc.com/2023/05/05/here...ettlement.html

I just got an email saying I was entitled to 30 bucks as part of the settlement. Yay me.

[Edward64]

Originally Posted by NobodyHere

https://www.cnbc.com/2023/05/05/here...ettlement.html

I just got an email saying I was entitled to 30 bucks as part of the settlement. Yay me.

I saw that and figured we were eligible. We've used TurboTax for 2021 & 2022 but we've not received an email yet.

[Lathum]

Originally Posted by NobodyHere

https://www.cnbc.com/2023/05/05/here...ettlement.html

I just got an email saying I was entitled to 30 bucks as part of the settlement. Yay me.

case of beer or bottle off bourbon...

[Lathum]

My niece is an amazing kid. Raised by a single mom who was widowed by suicide when my niece was 2. Also had twin brothers so mom wasn't really able to handle much. My sister also has a lot of her own issues.

Tomorrow my niece graduates Rutgers school of engineering number one in her class, and number on in all of Rutgers. She has been invited to a reception at the school presidents house and can bring 2 guests. She is bringing her boyfriend of severl years and her grandmother who has helped pay for a lot of her education. My late father is also an alumnus of the school. He would be so proud.

She already has a job with a company she interned with. She relies on my wifes ( a senior VP/GM with a Warren Buffet owned company) advice a lot, and is headed in a great direction.

This kid is the first child I was around, and showed me how much you can love a child. I wouldn't claim to be a father figure, but I was all she had, and I love her so much. I'm so insanely proud of her.

[CrimsonFox]

midweek rehearsal was so amazing. I am playing Father in Children of Eden and it is indeed a magical experience. I just wish anyone I know would see it

[21C]

Originally Posted by Lathum

My niece is an amazing kid. Raised by a single mom who was widowed by suicide when my niece was 2. Also had twin brothers so mom wasn't really able to handle much. My sister also has a lot of her own issues.

Tomorrow my niece graduates Rutgers school of engineering number one in her class, and number on in all of Rutgers. She has been invited to a reception at the school presidents house and can bring 2 guests. She is bringing her boyfriend of severl years and her grandmother who has helped pay for a lot of her education. My late father is also an alumnus of the school. He would be so proud.

She already has a job with a company she interned with. She relies on my wifes ( a senior VP/GM with a Warren Buffet owned company) advice a lot, and is headed in a great direction.

This kid is the first child I was around, and showed me how much you can love a child. I wouldn't claim to be a father figure, but I was all she had, and I love her so much. I'm so insanely proud of her.

This place sadly lacks a Like option.

Great bit of news, Lathum. Really heartwarming stuff.

[GrantDawg]

Originally Posted by Lathum

My niece is an amazing kid. Raised by a single mom who was widowed by suicide when my niece was 2. Also had twin brothers so mom wasn't really able to handle much. My sister also has a lot of her own issues.

Tomorrow my niece graduates Rutgers school of engineering number one in her class, and number on in all of Rutgers. She has been invited to a reception at the school presidents house and can bring 2 guests. She is bringing her boyfriend of severl years and her grandmother who has helped pay for a lot of her education. My late father is also an alumnus of the school. He would be so proud.

She already has a job with a company she interned with. She relies on my wifes ( a senior VP/GM with a Warren Buffet owned company) advice a lot, and is headed in a great direction.

This kid is the first child I was around, and showed me how much you can love a child. I wouldn't claim to be a father figure, but I was all she had, and I love her so much. I'm so insanely proud of her.

Congrats! That is amazing.

[Edward64]

Kroger is our default as it's closest.

In addition to their Kroger card, they've started rolling out "digital coupons" which (1) requires an additional signup to their app and (2) you have to specifically pick/select the coupons before going to the counter/kiosk to get the discount.

I don't understand the rationale, it inconveniences shoppers unnecessarily. You'd think the digital coupons, which Kroger has sent you and so it's on your record, should be applied automatically ... why do I have to select each individually? They still get the data on what I bought etc.

[CrimsonFox]

Originally Posted by Edward64

Kroger is our default as it's closest.

In addition to their Kroger card, they've started rolling out "digital coupons" which (1) requires an additional signup to their app and (2) you have to specifically pick/select the coupons before going to the counter/kiosk to get the discount.

I don't understand the rationale, it inconveniences shoppers unnecessarily. You'd think the digital coupons, which Kroger has sent you and so it's on your record, should be applied automatically ... why do I have to select each individually? They still get the data on what I bought etc.

just use the website at home before you go shopping and remember.
Or you can use the website in the store. You don't HAVE to have the app.
And luckily there is usually a yellow tag on the shelf saying that an item has a digital coupon.

[NobodyHere]

Originally Posted by Lathum

case of beer or bottle off bourbon...

Bourbon

On a related note has anyone tried Shaker and Spoon? It's like a home meal delivery kit but instead of food it has ingredients for various cocktails. I was thinking of giving it a go.

[flere-imsaho]

Originally Posted by CrimsonFox

I've been thinking. NobodyHere is just a lie. SOMEbody is obviously there.

Shrodinger's Poster?

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by Edward64

Kroger is our default as it's closest.

In addition to their Kroger card, they've started rolling out "digital coupons" which (1) requires an additional signup to their app and (2) you have to specifically pick/select the coupons before going to the counter/kiosk to get the discount.

I don't understand the rationale, it inconveniences shoppers unnecessarily. You'd think the digital coupons, which Kroger has sent you and so it's on your record, should be applied automatically ... why do I have to select each individually? They still get the data on what I bought etc.

I'm missing the context for this post as it seems like it is part of a discussion that I can't find.

Anyway, Kroger has been doing digital coupons for years. Like, close to a decade. Maybe what you're thinking of is the "digital deals" in the weekly ad (the print version of which is going away shortly, btw) which have been around for awhile, but are relatively recent.

Whether it's a coupon or ad deal, my guess is that this is just the grocery business way of compromising on the online comfort/familiarity of consumers with doing things online, while simultaneously saving money on printing costs and (most importantly) making money off of the sale of things that show a sales price but you accidentally buy for the full price because you forgot to clip the coupon or don't even have an account.

That last part is the easy answer to your question of what their rationale is. Sure, they can load every offer onto your card, but if you buy those items, you're guaranteed the sales price. If consumers have to do the work, a portion of them will be too lazy or stupid to realize the big flashing price they see is not what they are paying, and the store has just made a sale at a higher price that they probably wouldn't have made otherwise.

[Edward64]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

If consumers have to do the work, a portion of them will be too lazy or stupid to realize the big flashing price they see is not what they are paying, and the store has just made a sale at a higher price that they probably wouldn't have made otherwise.

This may be it but how I started noticing this was when I saw a great deal for Cokes and something else. When I did a self-checkout, I realized I wasn't getting the deal I expected.

I asked the self-checkout aide person and said need to use the digital coupon (or deals, its relatively new) by selecting it in the app. So I noticed.

But you're probably right, there is a certain level of profit to be made by people that didn't pay attention.

[Ksyrup]

I love the Kroger digital coupons. Once I week, I just scroll through and select a bunch of stuff I could see us using (as well as the weekly ad deals) and it's done.

I especially appreciate the personalized coupons. For the past 12-18 months, every 6-8 weeks or so, Kroger gives me a free deodorant. I have a stash of around 5 of them right now. I don't think I'll ever pay for deodorant again in my lifetime if this keeps up.

[albionmoonlight]

Like a lot of school districts, our district has a severe bus driver shortage. So most days, my son's high school sends out an announcement that certain routes will not be run.

And, at the beginning of the year, the announcements were apologetic and filled with "we understand that this is difficult . . . " type language.

Now they are just "The following routes have no coverage this afternoon. Please make alternative plans:"

[Ksyrup]

For whatever reason, it just dawned on me earlier today that I graduated from college 30 years ago (don't recall the exact date, but it was probably first weekend in May). I guess I always think of those things in terms of high school, and college graduation wasn't a big deal to me (since I was headed off to 3 more years of law school), but it's one of those big, round "X number of decades" numbers tied to something other than high school. Yeesh.

[SirFozzie]

Let's talk about solar panels.

As some of you might know, My brother (who I live with due to health) moved into a newly built home in January. One of the things that he decided to do is install solar panels on the roof, which was completed late last month.

Now, there was an up front cost (reduced by rebates), but since that's gone up, it generates approximately 80 kw/h of electricity a day. It's allowed him to basically zero out his carbon footprint plus. On an average day, we use 35 or so kw/H, so we get a credit for the unused portion.

Now, it's not always standard electric use (he has a Tesla, so it takes a good amount of electricity for the battery), but even during winter (where rougher weather will limit the amount of energy generated), we'll likely have to pay nothing for our home energy (and his car use), as the built up credit will suffice.

Just in May, we've generated approximately 800kw/h of power, and over a month and few days, it's SAVED 1600 lbs of CO2 emission. I recognize it's expensive, but it's definitely worth it over the long run. Look into it if you can

[NobodyHere]

The word "shoe" sounds like it should have a long "O" sound to it.

Amirite?

[flere-imsaho]

We had our solar panels put on the year before last and so far we've generated almost 17 megawatts, or, apparently, offset 11.7 tons of CO2.

We also basically don't pay an electric bill for several months over the summer and close to zero some months in spring & fall depending on how much sunlight there is.

It's been great. We also did ours just after we got our roof replaced which is the only piece of advice I'd give: try to do it as you replace your roof because the lifespan of both systems is roughly the same (for a shingle roof).

[Lathum]

I live on a cul-de-sac, 9 houses, all the neighbors are friendly and get along. A few weeks ago some kids decided to throw a bunch of stuff against the side of a house and slam on the front door and run. The couple was older and called the cops who stopped by my house and asked if I knew anything.

Tonight they kids came back and picked the wrong house. About 9:30 huge bang on the front door, dog goes crazy. We are on the corner and my wife sees them running down the side street. I jump in the car and haul ass after them. Catch up to them and read them the riot act, including telling them the cops know and that I have a doorbell camera and they are on it. I'm a pretty big dude and I completely scared the shit out of them. I told them they better not come back on my street.

[NobodyHere]

Originally Posted by Lathum

I live on a cul-de-sac, 9 houses, all the neighbors are friendly and get along. A few weeks ago some kids decided to throw a bunch of stuff against the side of a house and slam on the front door and run. The couple was older and called the cops who stopped by my house and asked if I knew anything.

Tonight they kids came back and picked the wrong house. About 9:30 huge bang on the front door, dog goes crazy. We are on the corner and my wife sees them running down the side street. I jump in the car and haul ass after them. Catch up to them and read them the riot act, including telling them the cops know and that I have a doorbell camera and they are on it. I'm a pretty big dude and I completely scared the shit out of them. I told them they better not come back on my street.

I assume you taught their parents a little "sexual" lesson right?

[Edward64]

I know it's not my wishful interpretation, but I'd pay to see this ...

'Why don't you come and f*** me up?': Megyn Kelly challenges Charlize Theron, who played her in 2019 film Bombshell, after the Hollywood actress threatened to take down anyone who criticized drag queens

[GrantDawg]

Oh. That would be terrible. Please don't.

Sent from my SM-S916U using Tapatalk

[Edward64]

There may be more to the story but based on the article, I don't get how the jury found the franchisee liable.

Nothing out of the ordinary was pointed out so assume (1) ordered and went to the window (2) was handed the happy meal with the nuggets in the standard box and bag.

Sometime soon after, someone reached for the nuggets & dropped one, or the bag fell over and the box opened up and became "lodged between her 4 year old daughter's leg and car seat".

McDonald's found liable after child suffers burns from 'hot' chicken nuggets, Florida jury finds | CNN Business

The jury on Thursday found that McDonald’s and franchise owner Upchurch Foods liable for failing to properly warn or provide reasonable instructions on the possible harm from the hot McNuggets dispensed at a Tamarac, Florida, drive-thru, the news station reported. However, only Upchurch Foods was found to be negligent. Jurors also found there was no inherent defect in putting McNuggets on the market and no breach of implied warranty.

The complaint said Holmes bought and paid for the Happy Meal from the drive-thru and then drove away. The nugget fell and became lodged between her 4-year-old daughter’s leg and car seat, the law firm representing the plaintiffs said.

“The Chicken McNuggets inside of that Happy Meal were unreasonably and dangerously hot (in terms of temperature),” and caused her “skin and flesh around her thighs to burn,” the complaint alleged, leaving her “disfigured and scarred.”

The complaint said the franchise should have known the nuggets were “unfit for human handling,” had a duty not to sell them, and it should have adequately trained and supervised its employees.

[flere-imsaho]

Megyn Kelly slipped into irrelevance pretty quickly. In fact, has there been anyone who's left Fox and still has the kind of clout they had when they were there? Glenn Beck's another example, will be interesting to see if Carlson becomes one, too.

[stevew]

Anyone notice that Milk dies very quickly in the fridge these days? Seen several different unrelated people mention this lately and was wondering if it was regional. Could also just be everyone is drinking way less milk these days.

[cuervo72]

We've had pretty good luck with lactose-free milk in half gallon cartons. Yeah, it's maybe a little more expensive per unit than buying a gallon jug but we don't go through milk like we used to with kids and figure it can only help the digestion.

[stevew]

I usually go organic abd/or ultra pasteurized. I think most issues are with regular milk.

[Ksyrup]

I haven't noticed any difference with milk. But we usually finish the gallon well before the expiration date.

[CrimsonFox]

Originally Posted by stevew

Anyone notice that Milk dies very quickly in the fridge these days? Seen several different unrelated people mention this lately and was wondering if it was regional. Could also just be everyone is drinking way less milk these days.

I've noticed regular milk no longer mixes well with ovaltine. Only Lactose free milk does

[cuervo72]

Pretty sure about 15 minutes ago my wife and I heard someone getting cuffed in the back yard next door. (Cats were VERY interested in what was going on out the side window.)

[Ksyrup]

Our cats can be a little too nosy during sex, too.

[cuervo72]

Heh. I can't really speak to that.

But yeah - my wife was watching a murder show, I had earbuds in while reading. Our family room is at the back left of the house, two windows flanking the fireplace on the side, four windows on the back. The two corner windows are open. The window right behind the fireplace is also just behind the gate to our back yard; neighbor's fence is set back a handful of feet. It's got to be less than 20 feet between houses.

I initially thought I could pick up some voices behind the back yard -- there was some party or religious service (! - swear someone was belting out hymns and a sermon) earlier, figured it was either stragglers or someone calling for a dog or something. A little later the cats race over to the window. I take my ear buds out and I hear "get on the ground, hands behind..." type talking out the window. Not all that loud really. Then a few clicks, then nothing. Check outside a bit later and there are a couple of cops with flashlights. Might still be a car or two out there. (We didn't really want to gawk...) I'm thinking maybe they chased someone behind the houses through the easement and maybe they jumped the neighbors' fence (it's lower than everyone else's). Or maybe they weren't really in the back but on the side/front in front of the fences, tough to tell where sound is bouncing from. Curious what the story is though.

[CrimsonFox]

also jamie foxx is doin alright and the previous reports were total media bullshit

[Ksyrup]

Every time I see a Kia with the new logo, my first thought is that Trent Reznor started a car company.

[CrimsonFox]

yeah but the green m&m's boots were too slutty

[miami_fan]

"IRREGARDLESS" HAS BEEN AROUND SINCE 1795. ITS INCLUSION IN THE DICTIONARY IS NOT A SIGN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE FALLING TO PIECES, OR PROOF OF THE EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM FAILING, NOR IS IT THE WORK OF CURSED MILLENNIALS. IT JUST MEANS A LOT OF PEOPLE USE IT TO MEAN "REGARDLESS." pic.twitter.com/qmJELYyrjj

— Merriam-Webster (@MerriamWebster) May 13, 2023

[Lathum]

Its amazing how many businesses dont answer their phones during normal hours

[Ksyrup]

I've noticed that with a lot of servicers, especially one-man shops or maybe they've got a single individual in an office, many of the calls go to their cell phones, and if they are busy, they just don't answer.

[Ksyrup]

I haven't actually read or seen anything about this Harry and Meghan incident other than the 3-4 breaking news notifications that came across my phone so I'm sure that whatever happened was real, however seeing as though we are less than a full day from the NBA draft lottery and I have yet to put my conspiracy theory hat away, if one wanted to engage in an image rehabilitation campaign, one could not come up with a better way to begin than with a "sympathy" incident that is remarkably similar to the manner in which the mother of one of the individuals passed away.

[miami_fan]

Originally Posted by Lathum

Its amazing how many businesses dont answer their phones during normal hours

I am surprised how many businesses still have customer service phone lines and the like in-house. Many have gone to third party companies which put you through the twenty line annoying script/checklist before they start addressing your issue. Going to the business in person, sending an email or text, even the chat service are all preferred methods of communication that calling them.

[Atocep]

In today's episode of Damn, we old, Leroy Jenkins is 18.

[Edward64]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

I haven't actually read or seen anything about this Harry and Meghan incident other than the 3-4 breaking news notifications that came across my phone so I'm sure that whatever happened was real, however seeing as though we are less than a full day from the NBA draft lottery and I have yet to put my conspiracy theory hat away, if one wanted to engage in an image rehabilitation campaign, one could not come up with a better way to begin than with a "sympathy" incident that is remarkably similar to the manner in which the mother of one of the individuals passed away.

They have a proven track record of being drama queens. Pretty good odds they've vastly exaggerated the incident.