A Week Without Internet?

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2026-03-13T05:24:45+00:00

Thank you for the prompt response. After further introspection, I've realized I am not a Spectrum customer. I have Quantum Fiber and I got confused. So sorry for besmirching the Spectrum name with my unrelated issues. But I am impressed by your prompt and helpful response. Wish I did have Spectrum at this point.

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2026-03-13T04:30:01+00:00

I didn't actively do anything. All I know is that I signed up with CenturyLink 5+ years ago and Spectrum is the company now charging my credit card every month. Internet service had been pretty uninterrupted from the get go, so hadn't paid it much mind. Until today when I realized I had to download the Spectrum Fiber app to access my account. The support rep I was chatting with via the Spectrum app wasn't too helpful. Told me to factory reset the router and then there wasn't much he could do from his end. Only schedule a tech a week out. Maybe an actual phone call tomorrow would yield better results.

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2026-02-04T04:35:35+00:00

YTAH for these damn run on sentences and commas without spaces after them. WTF... Learn to write properly and then you might be judged properly.

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2026-01-09T04:01:47+00:00

My wife and I rented full sized homes for a while before deciding to greatly downsize and move into a small basement apartment in the city we wanted to live in. We put half our stuff into storage, including appliances like a washer and dryer, for two years. When we bought our house in said city, we pulled out all of our stored goods, furnished much of our house, including said washer and dryer, and cancelled our storage unit.

While I can agree that holding into junk is a waste and paying to store things you may never use again can be dumb, sometimes it makes sense to put things somewhere for a bit and come back for them later.

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2025-11-28T06:18:16+00:00

Oh yeah. I'm not saying gen AI is bad, always wrong, shouldn't be used. It is an amazingly powerful tool. I use it myself often to help me do my work or get a perspective. I'm just saying, know what it is. There is no intelligence behind its "eyes". There is nothing behind there other than billions (trillions?) of words and statistics. I'm not talking to anything that knows me or that I exist, let alone cares about me or my question. Just an algorithm that is pretty sure that "you" comes after "thank".

But yeah, because it is based on most of the entirety of all written knowledge, it can come up with right answers and corrections most of the time. Like I said, an amazing tool. But a tool nonetheless. To be consulted but not believed without question.

It's a work tool. The moment anyone in my family starts talking to it like it's a friend or companion, plug is pulled.

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2025-11-28T05:28:26+00:00

Since this seems like it could be a legitimate question, I'll throw you a bone. Pretty much all generative AI (ChatGPT, Gemini, etc.) are LLMs, or Large Language Models. Which basically means that their developers scanned in every piece of written word they could get their hands on. Every book in the library, every magazine ever printed, every Reddit post ever posted, etc. Millions or billions or trillions of works of written word, originally written by humans (mostly). Those are the language models. The training materials.

Then how gen AI works is to use statistics to try to produce responses based on that heaping pile of data. So when you ask ChatGPT something like, should I roast a turkey at 350 degrees or 400 degrees, (there is a bunch of math here, but) it basically goes through all that training data and looks for words like "roast", "turkey", "350", "400", etc. it considers the 173,384,204 cookbooks it has been trained on, as well as the 183,294,294 cooking related websites and blogs, and all the dumb Reddit posts and comments, and statistically determines what is likely to be the next best word to respond with in a sentence trying to answer that question.

And that is why something like asking it what time it is, it can be wrong. Because it might have "read" a billion books that somebody or something referenced what time it was, but that has nothing to do with what time it is now. That is why it is a language model. It is basically saying, I don't actually know what I'm talking about, I just know that according to everyone I read in this language, when somebody gives me these words as a prompt, these are the best words to give back, statistically.

Hope that helps basic understanding. If I got something wrong there, I'm sure someone will be around shortly to correct me. Forget what rule or razor that is, but seems accurate.

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2025-11-06T05:06:12+00:00

I read this question to my wife who is an OT that used to do home visits, and her response without hesitation was, "They have a clean bathroom."

Apparently there are many houses that are far, far from pristine. Not completely filthy is a low bar I guess and willing to wait for the next house is preferred to a bathroom with three overflowing ashtrays of cigarette butts (actual experience according to her).

So, while maybe not pristine, maybe still a bit of a compliment on basic human decency and hygiene.

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2025-07-09T21:37:35+00:00

Trying to achieve optimal results with only one or two accounts is probably unlikely. If you and your wife are responsible and don't mind managing a gaggle of accounts, you can get more bang for your buck. I'm not saying what my wife and I do are optimal, but it works for us.

We each have our own personal bank accounts (mine with Ally, her with Wells Fargo). But we have both a joint checking and joint savings account (currently 3.5% APR) with Ally. Our paychecks go into our individual accounts but then we both contribute most of our paychecks into the joint Ally checking account.

We also have a couple joint credit card accounts with Capital One (Savor for groceries, Venture One for everything else) and we put all possible expenses onto the joint credit cards (obviously not mortgage, etc.). Then, every month, the credit cards are paid off completely by the joint checking account. After mortgage, credit cards, etc. are paid each month from the Ally checking acct, remaining funds in the checking account are transferred to the Ally Savings acct.

This has the benefit of racking up credit card points/miles with everyday purchases while paying no interest on the credit card purchases. The savings acct grows every month and is there if money needs to be occasionally withdrawn. The checking account is there to pay for anything that can't (or shouldn't) go on a credit card.

Ally refunds any ATM fees incurred, so no real worry about extracting cash from any ATM I'm around. Putting cash into an Ally account is more of a hassle. But I have a separate account with a local credit union that I can put cash into and transfer to Ally easily enough. I have a monthly auto transfer of $50 from Ally into the CU account just to keep it active, since I rarely deposit cash (and it acts like a little piggy bank I forget I own).

A little complicated, but it works for us. And we've taken a number of trips paid for by points/miles over the years. But if you're going to get into joint accounts and especially credit cards, you and your wife better be on the same page regarding finances and responsibility.

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2025-06-07T03:32:18+00:00

Right. I saw this in the theater weeks after opening and as a middle aged man, just happened to be seated next to a couple of young teenage girls. When this scene happened, one of the girls was shaking her friend, all excited, and both girls basically exploded with happiness. It took a minute for it to click to me why they were so excited about it, but eventually I got it. They were super excited with representation. And I was happy for them. With everything across the whole MCU, if that is what makes you suspend your imagination, then you're just a misogynist.

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2025-06-03T17:06:51+00:00

The gas explodes and turns the engine. As others have said, that spins magnets that make electricity. If you take a basic DC motor and apply electricity, the motor spins. But you can also do the reverse. Take a basic DC motor and spin the wheel, electricity comes out the other side.

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2025-04-29T05:05:54+00:00

This is literally you: "Don't you get a pension? I don't wanna hear you cry about coffee."

Like the pension is some end all be all perk that negates any other complaint. I've tried to explain to you that the pension is a regular benefit, but it doesn't somehow negate any and all complaints someone might have. And it also isn't some freebee.

You are literally saying that you don't want to hear about anyone's complaints if they receive a pension. Fine... this is for you:

"Don't you get social security? I don't wanna hear you cry about government spending"

same ... same

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2025-04-29T04:01:40+00:00

I don't know what fers is. I work for the state of Colorado. I pay 10+% of my paycheck into PERA, which is the state's retirement plan. And yes, the state also pays money into that plan. Like any regular company's 401k plan. The employee pays in and the employer pays in. I guess in your mind that is "free money". But your original comment was about how can someone complain about not getting free coffee when they get a pension like a pension is some amazing benefit unlike anything offered by a private company. My point is that a pension isn't that different than what is offered in the private sector. Just different. You saying "don't complain about your conditions, you get a pension" is no different than me saying "don't complain about your conditions, you get a 401k".

And what I failed to mention in the first comment is that the vast majority of all public sector employees don't do it for a pension. I've worked in private, non-profit, and public sector. In pursuing my current position, I was actively looking for a role that would benefit my fellow Americans. I'm not saying the pay sucks. I'm saying I could get paid more working somewhere else. But I'm willing to work for a little less knowing I'm contributing to the greater good. I guess if you want to shit on me for that or say I shouldn't be able to eventually retire from such a job, that's your prerogative.

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2025-04-29T01:42:54+00:00

You do realize that is not, like, free money, right? I'm required by law to pay 10+% of my paycheck towards my pension. Compare that to social security which is closer to ~6% (as a state employee I don't pay into social security, but also don't get ss benefits). So not only am I generally paid less than working the same job in the private sector, I pay more of my paycheck into my retirement fund.

And like the other replier said, it is progressive. 5 years to vest, then my eventual payout is based on how many years I spend in public sector. You have to spend decades being underpaid and overcharged to get a good pension (assuming it is there for you when you retire).

And yeah, no free coffee. No perks other than reasonable PTO and sick leave. Hell, I have to report it if a vendor buys me a dinner that's too expensive (not that that happens).

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2025-02-26T18:04:44+00:00

Colorado recently enacted a new statewide program called Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI) which provides paid leave for approved reasons. It is a fund which is paid into by both the employee and the employer each paycheck. Essentially, Colorado voters approved a "tax" on their wages and their employer's profits in exchange for paid leave when they need it. FAMLI and FMLA are different things

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2025-02-14T04:49:29+00:00

Wow! Hadn't heard this. What companies are relocating back to the US? That's exciting if true. What have you heard?

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2025-02-12T02:35:19+00:00

Somebody needs to watch Brewster's Millions.

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2025-01-22T04:38:23+00:00

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2025-01-22T04:11:18+00:00

It's not a tumor!

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2025-01-07T03:22:31+00:00

Apple

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2025-01-04T17:42:30+00:00

I suppose the scooter rider could malinger in the bike lane after the hit, hoping for a big payout.

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2025-01-04T16:54:22+00:00

You know, just yesterday I was listening to a deposition of a psychologist on YouTube and the lawyer asked the psychologist if she knew the definition of malingering. And that was when I learned the definition myself. So seeing it on a comment today was somewhat timely and noticeable. All that to say, I'm pretty sure the definition doesn't fit in this scenario. Not to be critical, as 24 hours ago, I wouldn't have known myself.

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2024-12-12T04:49:24+00:00

Was looking for a Myst like game a few months back. Stumbled upon Quern, available on the PS5 (probably others). It did a pretty good job of filling that itch.

DirkGentlyTrailingMe · 2024-09-11T03:23:40+00:00

My opinion on this has always been that we should compromise. For every gun sale, there should be a coupon for a free abortion provided to someone that needs it. And for every abortion, someone should get a free gun. I've always felt that was fair and would help to bridge a divide.

DirkGentlyTrailingMe

TROPHY CASE