I assume the 5th one says you'll never pay that shit off.
Lounge random thoughts/stories thread -- CURRENT
- Thread starter The Sam
- Start date
Sad thing is that college graduates are still generally financially better off even with the giant loan/anchor. Not as much as they used to be though.
Here's my random thought for the day: what do drip coffeemakers generally consider to be a "cup" of coffee? I'd always heard it was 6 oz, but looking at my old warhorse Melitta ultra-basic drip coffeemaker* it has to be more like 4 oz because when I pour in a quart of water it nearly comes up to the hash mark labeled 8. If I put in a pint it comes up to nearly 4, about the same distance from said mark as the quart was to the 8 mark.
*(I think I got it nearly 30 years ago by falling for one of those slick ads in The Atlantic for Gevalia coffee, supposedly the coffee provider to the Danish Court or some nonsense. I got a neat black ceramic sealable jar for coffee beans too. Turned out either the Danish Court has no taste for good coffee or the company sends us saps the cheap crap (but at a price premium, natch). I quickly canceled the subscription but at least I still have the jar and the coffeemaker. I was using fancier ones for a while with thermal carafes and all that but they all died, so it was back to the basic one, which is still hanging on.
*(I think I got it nearly 30 years ago by falling for one of those slick ads in The Atlantic for Gevalia coffee, supposedly the coffee provider to the Danish Court or some nonsense. I got a neat black ceramic sealable jar for coffee beans too. Turned out either the Danish Court has no taste for good coffee or the company sends us saps the cheap crap (but at a price premium, natch). I quickly canceled the subscription but at least I still have the jar and the coffeemaker. I was using fancier ones for a while with thermal carafes and all that but they all died, so it was back to the basic one, which is still hanging on.
I've noticed that, too.
And thanks for starting me down the Wikipedia rabbit hole. Who knew this went all the way back to before coffee was introduced to Europe?
So 4 oz as I suspected, at least on a Euro-style coffeemaker. Maybe the American ones like Mr Coffee starting in the 1970s (and they were freaking expensive for the time) are the ones that were graduated in 6-oz segments.
For me, a cup is a cup (8 oz) and I drink four a day, hence the quart of water mentioned above.
For me, a cup is a cup (8 oz) and I drink four a day, hence the quart of water mentioned above.
I wonder how the original coffee cup size relates to the locally preferred roast, grind, and extraction method…
Took them long enough, breaking an Achilles into smaller units is always a massive pain.
I thought we were talking about bad beer in a different thread.
I've used basic Mr. Coffee drip machines forever and they are advertised based on 4 oz. cups, and I expect all their competitors are as well. The calibrations (such as the markings on the pot) are just slightly more than 4 oz. "cups" to allow for the loss of water that is retained by the grounds in the filter. My normal coffee mug holds 8 ounces - my "12 cup" machine gives me 6 normal mugfulls. Perhaps the classic old-fashioned delicate china cup only held 4 ounces and that was supposed to be their "cup" basis, but I think the unrealistic cup size is actually just a marketing ploy.
It rings, you pick it up and talk. That's the social convention. You must adhere to the social convention, you must answer each and every call. It's a precious, limited resource, so you have to use it.
Also, because it's so important to them that they're actually calling you.
Also, because it's so important to them that they're actually calling you.
Starting last week, spam phone calls have increased dramatically, yesterday was 4, today 4. Before last week, I'd get one or two a week.
Anyone else seeing this?
Anyone else seeing this?
Been seeing a similar uptick in calls being labeled as Scam Likely since about last week or so as well. Not quite at the level you are getting but did 2 on Monday and 4 today.
Going for a walk with a toddler is like doing an NPC escort quest in a game - one of those really slow and annoying quests where the NPC pauses every five steps to look at an interesting flower. I never considered that video games would prepare me for fatherhood, but here I am.
Brings back a memory of my 4 year old being more fascinated with the post and chain "barrier" in front of the snow leopard enclosure at the zoo than with the actual animals. While he was inspecting every detail of the links and how they interacted with each other, the leopard was carefully stalking him, then crouching in preparation to pounce on the human child.
So I guess everyone enjoyed the zoo their own way that day.
That hasn't been true for a long time, now that I think about it.
Not coincidentally, right about the time they made phones expensive slippery glass rectangles, most people decided it was easier to type.
Proper social convention is as such:
1. Phone rings.
2. Initial rush of anxiety.
3. Check to see if it's spam.
4. Second rush of anxiety as you realize it's a real person.
5. Ignore it anyway.
6. Wait a random amount of time between 1 minute to 24 hours, then text back "sorry I missed your call, what's up?"
7. Ignore second callback.
8. Repeat step 6 until text conversation is established.
1. Phone rings.
2. Initial rush of anxiety.
3. Check to see if it's spam.
4. Second rush of anxiety as you realize it's a real person.
5. Ignore it anyway.
6. Wait a random amount of time between 1 minute to 24 hours, then text back "sorry I missed your call, what's up?"
7. Ignore second callback.
8. Repeat step 6 until text conversation is established.
One of the few up-sides to working at a university that has cut our department's budget between 2 and 25% every year for the last 18 years, is that it has solved the problem of annoying phone calls. Due to budget cuts, we were all told we'd have to pay for our own phones (out of our grant funds or some other account). I asked, "what if I don't pay?" The answer was, "we'll take your phone away." It took me all of about 10^-3 seconds to say "good!" So no I have no office phone on which to get annoying phone calls
With one added step in my life:
2. If it's Hangfire then I'm either eating, shitting or fucking because he is only able to call me at those times. Dude has magic Spidey Sense for always calling at the least opportune moment. This is someone I talk to maybe 3-4 times a year, but the consistency is astounding. I think the last time was mid-graduation ceremony for the Boy moving up to adult kung-fu classes. (which is admittedly not one of the three things I first listed)
If they don't leave a voicemail explaining what they want I won't even txt them.
LOL my wife gets unreasonably pissed when I pass on her phone calls. Maybe I'm old fashioned, but if we are in the same house, and you are not stranded on the toilet for lack of TP, you need to come talk to me face-to-face. But then, I hate having a cell phone, so that may be a factor. I literally waited on getting one until worked purchased one for me, and even then I did not give the number out to anyone.
My wife was gonna call(on the phone) down for dinner. I think I actually said "What the fuck" out loud. Then I proceeded to be snarky and go "Watch this", walked over to the stairs and yelled up that it was time for dinner.
"yeah, but you had to get up"
![:\](https://cdn.arstechnica.net/civis/data/assets/smilies/slash-1x.png "Slash :\")
"yeah, but you had to get up"
We have no stairs, and my kids' bedrooms are off the main room that is the kitchen/dining/family room. If they are not in the family room, they are in their bedrooms, so just speaking out loud is enough. Mrs. F will call me when I am using the bathroom, which is why I always pass on her calls. With that said, we have 4 acres, and I could very well be in an outbuilding or working on one of my neverending DIY "make this home as resort-like as possible" projects out in the hinterlands, and I totally get calling me on the phone then. But when she is in her office, and I am in mine, I am not answering her calls. She can do like I do, and get up, walk over to my office, knock if the door is closed, and talk to me face to face. Getting up is not the inconvenience to be avoided at all costs, that path leads to an early death. We humans were built to move.My wife was gonna call(on the phone) down for dinner. I think I actually said "What the fuck" out loud. Then I proceeded to be snarky and go "Watch this", walked over to the stairs and yelled up that it was time for dinner.
"yeah, but you had to get up"
Or about how you MUST contribute to this or that House or Senate Campaign Committee or the world will surely end!
Ha, that's totally my experience when walking with my 87 year-old mom (she lives with me due to memory/executive functioning issues). Not only does she walk very slowly when she does walk, but she's constantly wanting to stop and look at some plant or other or comment on some feature of a tree or house or whatever. I want to get from one place to the other.
I'm glad there are others who use the code word "my office" for the toilet.
At the rate we're going it's probably going to happen regardless within the next century. Freaking climate change (thanks, Exxon-Mobile et. al. for the 30+ years of FUD!) and all the shit it's going to unleash coupled with late monopoly capitalism means the world is in for a hell of a ride, as envisioned in Gibson's "Jackpot" series (from what I've heard of the books).
It can be frustrating, as we are all taught to get from A to B, but, there is also a lot to be said for the fun that can be had from stopping to notice the little details. I think it can actually lead to enjoying life more. But, life needs to also allow for taking casual strolls and noticing details, or little bugs or plants, and life doesn't always grant that. Get from A to B, post haste. Get from A to B and enjoy the walk. Different approaches. The world doesn't really reward a person enjoying the little details. Which kinda sucks, because those details are neat.
Just an end to the human part of it. Once we're gone, mother nature can begin to heal.