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

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Ghost Econ

That must be a Georgia thing, because every Mellow Mushroom I've gone to has been garbage.

I'm not a big fan or anything but they're generally considered in the top ... third I'd say ... of all the options around the state

[Edward64]

Originally Posted by NobodyHere

My local one does.

I know my parents likes Marcos because they are the only local chain that offers anchovies.

FWIW I don't like anchovies on pizza but actually don't mind crispy anchovies. In Malaysia, there's a dish called "nasi lemak".

[GrantDawg]

I love a Ceasar's salad with anchovies. It is great on a Greek pizza with gyro meat and feta cheese as well.

Sent from my SM-S916U using Tapatalk

[Silver Owl]

Marcos is our place for pizza, it is definitely the best chain pizza in our area.

[CrimsonFox]

I dopn't know how it happened but I suddenly like the taste of scotch now

[Ghost Econ]

My wife watched the Vow on Netflix tonight. It's a Rachel McAdams/Channing Tatum movie where she has amnesia and forgets loving him.

We have 1000% watched this movie before and she has absolutely no recollection.

This almost too on the nose.

[Lathum]

Originally Posted by CrimsonFox

I dopn't know how it happened but I suddenly like the taste of scotch now

Johnny Black on the rocks is my go to when we go out to a decent restaurant.

A few years ago I went to Hawaii with my wife for a work trip. The owner of the company she was selling to was there and he cracked a bottle of Johnny blue and me, him, and a couple of the guys who worked for him polished it off out of paper cups. She got the sale...

[Ksyrup]

Nothing like flying 13 hours and then sitting on the plane for another 45 minutes because customs doesn't open until 6am.

[flere-imsaho]

Originally Posted by CrimsonFox

I dopn't know how it happened but I suddenly like the taste of scotch now

You became a man of taste and discernment, that's what happened.

[flere-imsaho]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

Nothing like flying 13 hours and then sitting on the plane for another 45 minutes because customs doesn't open until 6am.

See, that's where O'Hare helps you out. You land and they don't have a gate open for an hour anyway.

[Ghost Econ]

Some random mortgage company has called me 15 times in the last day asking for Michael or just not responding when I pick up. All random numbers. Eventually I just started screaming or asking for 911.

This morning they texted me and I replied telling them I not Michael. They then called again. I told the girl I'm not Michael, they called me 15 times in the last day and to stop fucking calling me. She got offended and I told her she wouldn't have to get offended if her business wasn't fucking shit and she hung up.

I'm now calling each number back and noting if I get a live person and am just trying to be as annoying as possible until they agree to remove my number. Even though they're random numbers they actually connect to their call center. So far 3 have said they'll add me to the list.

Make that 16 times.

17. I've now found the personal contact info for their owner. I called with my Google voice number and he answered with the correct first name. I played it off as a wrong number.
Since he lives in California, I'm going to start calling him when I wake at 5 am tomorrow until I get confirmation this has been resolved.

[molson]

I opened a new Bank of America credit card account, made 1 extremely non-suspicious charge (a car registration), then got a fraud alert and had to spend 90 minutes on the phone, transferred 5 times. The first two people told me they couldn't verify my identity on the phone, so I had to all in using the chat feature on the app. OK. I told the chat feature I was trying to remove a fraud alert, called in from there. First person only handled login issues, transferred. Second person only handles fraud reports, not fraud card blocks, transferred. Periods of hold in between - and the call quality is very scratchy. Third person asks me a few ordinary questions, removes the block, and tells me "they do this secondary check sometimes when a new account opens" and it has nothing to do with any charges.

I blame AI. And somehow this card now feels the LESS secure of any of my cards.

Oh, and the last three people who I had to reach through the App could only be used during business hours, so this was a 2-day effort for me (I like to do this kind of shit in the middle of the night if possible). The first two people couldn't help and told me I had to wait even though I was implored to "call immediately".

[Edward64]

Originally Posted by Ghost Econ

17. I've now found the personal contact info for their owner. I called with my Google voice number and he answered with the correct first name. I played it off as a wrong number.

Since he lives in California, I'm going to start calling him when I wake at 5 am tomorrow until I get confirmation this has been resolved.

The government should get involved and do something about this. The no-call list seemed to work early but not so much anymore.

There are several ways to stop this but requiring X, Y, Z. The real question is will the government go after the bad actors and take them down aggressively.

-- Put some responsibility on the telcos. Emails have done fairly well, why not telcos
-- All legit calls must text a site where you can "unsubscribe"
-- All legit calls must have a legit caller id vs random number
-- All legit companies must have a transparent public forum for people to complain
-- All legit companies must have a "verified" indicator when calling. All others have an "unverified" indicator.

etc.

[molson]

I saw a reddit discussion yesterday about how scammers have changed the culture of phones - I think most people don't even pick up anymore unless they know the number. And then once you're doing that, a lot of people just won't pick up at all.

There's other parts to that obviously, texting, technology making social anxiety thrive, but, easily 99% of calls I get are scam calls. It's almost become the only function of my phone's talking feature. I don't know what I'd lose if I cut off all incoming voice calls. My girlfriend is the only one I'll pick up for, and we talk on the phone maybe twice a year (usually if I'm in the grocery store and can't figure out my shopping instructions).

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by molson

I opened a new Bank of America credit card account, made 1 extremely non-suspicious charge (a car registration), then got a fraud alert and had to spend 90 minutes on the phone, transferred 5 times. The first two people told me they couldn't verify my identity on the phone, so I had to all in using the chat feature on the app. OK. I told the chat feature I was trying to remove a fraud alert, called in from there. First person only handled login issues, transferred. Second person only handles fraud reports, not fraud card blocks, transferred. Periods of hold in between - and the call quality is very scratchy. Third person asks me a few ordinary questions, removes the block, and tells me "they do this secondary check sometimes when a new account opens" and it has nothing to do with any charges.

I blame AI. And somehow this card now feels the LESS secure of any of my cards.

Oh, and the last three people who I had to reach through the App could only be used during business hours, so this was a 2-day effort for me (I like to do this kind of shit in the middle of the night if possible). The first two people couldn't help and told me I had to wait even though I was implored to "call immediately".

In preparation for our trip overseas, I looked into notifying both AmEx and Chase about my upcoming travel, and both had documentation online that said don't bother, we have sophisticated algorithms that tell us when something is fraud or not. And sure enough, not a single charge I put through on either bank's cards was flagged.

I have a BoA card, but I only use it for 0% balance transfers/cash advances.

[Ghost Econ]

Now 18 calls and another text. They said they got my number off the mortgage refi application.

In the text the girl said she would quit if she couldn't get me a better mortgage offer. I told her to quit since it would be impossible since I'm not the person you're looking for. I also called and she refused to quit and hung up. I intend to call back periodically to see if she is quitting.

Also, I'm normally laid back with this stuff. If I had signed up, I'd be annoyed but my fault. But someone got my number in their system and they won't take no for an answer, so now the gloves are off.

Also, #20

Make that 22.
I called the non-emergency line for the police in their jurisdiction but of course no one answered. I left a detailed message with their office headquarters and requested to file a harassment complaint. I'm sure a lot will happen.

[molson]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

In preparation for our trip overseas, I looked into notifying both AmEx and Chase about my upcoming travel, and both had documentation online that said don't bother, we have sophisticated algorithms that tell us when something is fraud or not. And sure enough, not a single charge I put through on either bank's cards was flagged.

I have a BoA card, but I only use it for 0% balance transfers/cash advances.

I've experienced that with Amex and Chase too and that gives me confidence in the way they run their systems.

A little Googling tells me that BOA is a little behind the rest in that kind of technology. The issue may have been that the card took 2 1/2 weeks to get to my house after account approval, so the "delay" in in activating the card may have flagged something. Even though that was still within their ridiculously slow processing and shipping estimates (shipped 4 days after account opening, at which point I'm told card will arrive in "7-10 business days"). So now I have less than 2 1/2 months to reach minimum spend for bonus instead of 3 - they have no virtual card option before the physical card gets there. I'll be able to make the spend with normal spending, but, I'm sure they trick some people out of it this way.

[bhlloy]

I’m so old I remember when you had to notify your bank and CC provider when you went to Vegas otherwise you’d have no chance of getting anything done.

Now I’ve lived in Europe and used my Amex in multiple continents over the last 18 months and haven’t heard a peep. Definitely a completely different world.

[Ghost Econ]

#26. This has moved beyond personal.

Also, I would ignore it except I play music through my phone while I work and each call is interrupting my music. And I've received calls while I'm on a work call and zoom so having the buzzing in the background is annoying.

[molson]

I'm seeing a Jason Statham movie tonight, the Beekeeper, which I believe may provide some solutions to your issue.

[molson]

Originally Posted by molson

I'm seeing a Jason Statham movie tonight, the Beekeeper, which I believe may provide some solutions to your issue.

The Beekeeper.

Absolutely ridiculous.

10/10

[Edward64]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

In preparation for our trip overseas, I looked into notifying both AmEx and Chase about my upcoming travel, and both had documentation online that said don't bother, we have sophisticated algorithms that tell us when something is fraud or not. And sure enough, not a single charge I put through on either bank's cards was flagged.

I have a BoA card, but I only use it for 0% balance transfers/cash advances.

Yeah, I've noticed that in the past couple years. Out of habit, I'd called the cc customer service, press the buttons, and basically told no need to inform what countries I was travelling to.

I think that was with Chase & Wells Fargo. Just recently got Capital One cards, so I'll call their number and see what they say with my upcoming trip.

[PilotMan]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

Nothing like flying 13 hours and then sitting on the plane for another 45 minutes because customs doesn't open until 6am.

Damn planes and pilots and airlines. Stupid early arrival.

[PilotMan]

Originally Posted by Ghost Econ

#26. This has moved beyond personal.

Also, I would ignore it except I play music through my phone while I work and each call is interrupting my music. And I've received calls while I'm on a work call and zoom so having the buzzing in the background is annoying.

This feels like it should be destined for its own thread. I get you. Sometimes that murder button just gets pushed and you want to make someone pay for it.

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by PilotMan

Damn planes and pilots and airlines. Stupid early arrival.

Exactly!

This was my first international trip and re-entry into the US, so I don't know if this is standard or just LAX, but it seems like there could/should be a better process than having us collect our baggage from the baggage claim, take it to another area and put it on a new conveyor belt to get it on our connecting flight, and then making us exit the terminal (outside, where it was 45 degrees in freaking LA!), walk what seemed like at least a couple of blocks to come back inside, and go through security all over again.

I suppose it's related to the separation of the international terminal from the other terminals at LAX? Not sure. But at 6am after a long flight, that kinda sucked.

[PilotMan]

Yeah, international, you and your bags clear customs to get back in, then you get kicked outside security and you have to do it all over again. It's always that way. Which is why I say anything less than 3 hours to connect on an international flight is putting your connecting flight at risk if you're running a bit late. It's not just LAX, and frequently, there are long walks with international flights. They are kept apart from the rest of domestic because they are different.

[Ghost Econ]

Originally Posted by PilotMan

This feels like it should be destined for its own thread. I get you. Sometimes that murder button just gets pushed and you want to make someone pay for it.

This is not what I want to hear from my pilot mid-flight.

Also, cockpits have a murder button?

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by PilotMan

Yeah, international, you and your bags clear customs to get back in, then you get kicked outside security and you have to do it all over again. It's always that way. Which is why I say anything less than 3 hours to connect on an international flight is putting your connecting flight at risk if you're running a bit late. It's not just LAX, and frequently, there are long walks with international flights. They are kept apart from the rest of domestic because they are different.

Got it. We still had plenty of time so it was fine.

I've heard that for repositioning flights (switching airlines), you should go in the night before. We're not doing that in May when we go to London. But we've got a nearly 7 hour layover in Toronto. Have to switch from Delta to Air Canada. I'll be praying those Delta flights are good. Coming back, same deal. But if I'm delayed a day getting back, work can wait. I don't want to screw up the front-end of the trip, though. Priorities.

[molson]

I LOVE long layovers on the front-end of an international trip. I've gradually convinced by girlfriend that this is the way to go. 5-6 hours are great if I can get 'em. Get a big meal, have some drinks, maybe get lounge access, check out the weird airport historical exhibits nobody else looks at, get some reading in. And most important - peace of mind. And the busier my life is, the more I enjoy just hanging around an airport.

[Honolulu_Blue]

I don't get hangovers very often, but when I do they are three day affairs. It's awful.

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by molson

I LOVE long layovers on the front-end of an international trip. I've gradually convinced by girlfriend that this is the way to go. 5-6 hours are great if I can get 'em. Get a big meal, have some drinks, maybe get lounge access, check out the weird airport historical exhibits nobody else looks at, get some reading in. And most important - peace of mind. And the busier my life is, the more I enjoy just hanging around an airport.

Agreed. Honestly, I think that general sentiment is one of the reasons lounge access issues have exploded for domestic travel as well - not just that everyone has a credit card that gives them access, but they want to use it. I don't even look at flights with a layover less than an hour both as a buffer to make me comfortable I'm going to make a connection and so I have a chance to hit up a lounge for food or a charge or whatever. I kinda enjoy the whole airport experience, especially as a casual business flyer (I do 4-5 work trips a year, tops) and a few personal/vacation flights a year.

[cartman]

I had an overnight layover in Istanbul on my way back from Europe last fall. Got a hotel in the Sultanahmet area and walked all over the place. Saw the Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque, the Bosporus Strait, Grand Bazaar, and tons of the free range cats.

[NobodyHere]

Originally Posted by Ghost Econ

This is not what I want to hear from my pilot mid-flight.

Also, cockpits have a murder button?

It's right there next to the Martini button.

[21C]

I got some glitches on my Windows 11 work laptop where most of my icons disappeared. I tried all of the fixes which were unsuccessful but I thought I could live with it until Task Manager and File Explorer had other weirdness.

I just bit the bullet and reset Windows. Didn't take too long and things went back to normal for everything. The only thing I'm dealing with now is fixing all of my settings and reinstalling many of my programs. The programs were no big deal but the restoration of my settings is doing my head in. This is on top of my daily teaching is a huge pain.

[Edward64]

Originally Posted by cartman

Saw the Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque, the Bosporus Strait, Grand Bazaar, and tons of the free range cats.

As a Civ fan, I've been wanting to visit the Hagia Sophia.

As a "Painted Man" fan, I've been wanting to visit the Grand Bazaar.

Tell me that both were worth it?

[Ghost Econ]

I was walking my dog and we came across the neighbor's outdoor cat going to town on some alley cat in the middle of the road. While my dog was very confused by what was going on, all I could think of was:

[CrimsonFox]

a classic!

[JonInMiddleGA]

There's probably a more appropriate thread for this post but, well, I ain't sure which one.

Saw this earlier today. 18 minutes I sure didn't think would be nearly as powerful as it turned out to be.

Eric "Butterbean" Esch found a way back with a lot of help from a lot of people. But he put in the work, that can't be overlooked. Like most things, that's key.

I wasn't planning on finding this story as ... uplifting ... as it turned out to be.
But for however cynical/hardened/weary/whatever as I might be, I couldn't NOT be happy to see the difference in how he walked into DDPY versus how he walked out of it.

Hearing about "change" is one thing ... SEEING it is something else entirely.

Good on 'em all.

https://youtu.be/gCpzp-j58dY?si=Go_QxlJcO2y2Xs2G

[molson]

We were talking about credit cards and security, in another thread maybe.

I opened a Bank of America card for an Alaska bonus last week, and I've had to call in 3 times for declined/charge fraud alerts already, each time with over 45 minutes waiting, each time being transferred twice.

I asked if there was anything I could do to avoid this - and she told that the problem was I paid my Verizon bill "online". I said - how else do people play their cell phone bills with a credit card, and she said, "well, I go into the store and pay." I don't believe her. Has anyone ever gone to the Verizon store to pay their bill with a credit card? I had to go to a Verizon store once for something else, I took a number at sat there for 30 minutes.

Then, she saw a gas station charge, and said, "Oh, did you pay at the pump?" And I said, of course I did, like a normal person. And then she explained to me the concept of skimmers and how I should pay inside. I know about skimmers. I check for them. I've paid at the pump hundreds of times without being skimmed, or without my card company shutting me down because of the transgression.

I have to carry on and reach my minimum spend for my stupid Alaska Airline points. But I can't believe that conversation happened.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Social media provides no shortage of baffling tidbits but rarely does one baffle me so completely that I'll post about it here on the FOFC.

I saw a post shared on FB by a friend. The o.p. is someone that I do know, well enough that I know the post is legit.

Someone apparently stole the tailgate off her husband's pickup. Not the whole truck, JUST the tailgate.

It's a 1992 Chevy Silverado. Looks to be in good shape for the age but honestly nothing remarkable about the tailgate or anything. Appears to be stock part, nothing fancy or special or particularly interesting about it otherwise.

WHY does someone steal ONLY the tailgate? No, I'm not accepting "they needed a tailgate" as an answer. There has got to be something deeper than that. Meth is the only answer I can make sense out of.

[stevew]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Social media provides no shortage of baffling tidbits but rarely does one baffle me so completely that I'll post about it here on the FOFC.

I saw a post shared on FB by a friend. The o.p. is someone that I do know, well enough that I know the post is legit.

Someone apparently stole the tailgate off her husband's pickup. Not the whole truck, JUST the tailgate.

It's a 1992 Chevy Silverado. Looks to be in good shape for the age but honestly nothing remarkable about the tailgate or anything. Appears to be stock part, nothing fancy or special or particularly interesting about it otherwise.

WHY does someone steal ONLY the tailgate? No, I'm not accepting "they needed a tailgate" as an answer. There has got to be something deeper than that. Meth is the only answer I can make sense out of.

Sled riding would be a possible answer but you live in Georgia so that’s out

[JPhillips]

I'd watch the heck out of this.

There is a german TV show where contestants try to split things perfectly in half pic.twitter.com/ZM8Me58qCr

— Dexerto (@Dexerto) February 17, 2024

[GrantDawg]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Social media provides no shortage of baffling tidbits but rarely does one baffle me so completely that I'll post about it here on the FOFC.

I saw a post shared on FB by a friend. The o.p. is someone that I do know, well enough that I know the post is legit.

Someone apparently stole the tailgate off her husband's pickup. Not the whole truck, JUST the tailgate.

It's a 1992 Chevy Silverado. Looks to be in good shape for the age but honestly nothing remarkable about the tailgate or anything. Appears to be stock part, nothing fancy or special or particularly interesting about it otherwise.

WHY does someone steal ONLY the tailgate? No, I'm not accepting "they needed a tailgate" as an answer. There has got to be something deeper than that. Meth is the only answer I can make sense out of.

Just something can easily steal. Tires or a catalytic converter would have taken actual work.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Something from today's GHSFB Daily newsletter caught my eye ... Why did I notice this more than any of the dozens of other HC changes that happened this year?

Because, off hand at least, I think Kearney may be the first head coach to emerge from the list of players who I covered regularly during their HS playing career. He played at Griffin in the late 90s when I was doing play-by-play for the Bears.

Not that I suddenly feel older than I did when I woke up or anything.

And from that post about three years ago to the shocking headline I saw this morning

Spalding football coach charged with murder in Maryland
Carl Kearney Jr. faces first- and second-degree charges in Prince George’s County.

He apparently strangled his girlfriend and then drove to the police station & reportedly confessed.

https://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/gri...-murder-charge

[RainMaker]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Social media provides no shortage of baffling tidbits but rarely does one baffle me so completely that I'll post about it here on the FOFC.

I saw a post shared on FB by a friend. The o.p. is someone that I do know, well enough that I know the post is legit.

Someone apparently stole the tailgate off her husband's pickup. Not the whole truck, JUST the tailgate.

It's a 1992 Chevy Silverado. Looks to be in good shape for the age but honestly nothing remarkable about the tailgate or anything. Appears to be stock part, nothing fancy or special or particularly interesting about it otherwise.

WHY does someone steal ONLY the tailgate? No, I'm not accepting "they needed a tailgate" as an answer. There has got to be something deeper than that. Meth is the only answer I can make sense out of.

I did a little searching and it sounds like it's pretty common. Not sure if they go after the old ones for scrap metal or because so many truck owners need to tailgates. But it sounds like they're very easy to take off which might be the lure.

[JonInMiddleGA]

New (to me anyway) find on a Walmart trip today: knockoff candy bars.
There's knockoff 3 Musketeers, Snickers, and Milky Way, might be more but that's all I saw.

The hook for them is the price: $0.78 each

If you've bought a candy bar anywhere lately you know what a bargain that price is.

Sampled the Snickers already, and it quickly becomes obvious how these are gonna work: Base layer of nougat that's reminiscent of 3 Musketeers but lacking the creaminess. The faux Snickers then tops that with a thin layer of caramel and tops that with what look like sliced in half peanuts. The faux Milky Way I'm sure will be the caramel layer, sans peanuts.

Not quite as good, nor as close, as the Aldi knockoffs of various candy bars but for the price, a totally acceptable sweet snack that would be worth having around if you're into that sort of thing.

[RainMaker]

Knockoff Reece's peanut butter cups are as good as the real thing I've found. Everything else is kind of hit or miss depending on the brand. Never seen a knockoff Snickers though (the best candy ever made).

[stevew]

The knockoff WM candy bars were decent. The 3 musketeers(or Milky Way?) was the best of the bunch.

[NobodyHere]

Is running a Ponzi scheme legal if you publicly state to clients that it is a Ponzi scheme?

[flere-imsaho]

I doubt it.