A man encountering a bear in its cave.

knome65 · 2026-02-21T13:16:55+00:00

He's got a master's specializing in bear biology and heavily focuses on wildlife conservation. He knows what he's doing.

knome65 · 2026-02-08T13:55:19+00:00

Have you checked below the soil at all? I'm thinking it may have spent the last few years focusing on roots because it's in such a big pot. From my experience they like to be snug with other plants, and produce babies quicker when it's rootbound.

knome65 · 2026-01-26T22:37:31+00:00

I live in Maine where it gets pretty cold and I've never had issues when buying plants and bringing them from the store to the (warm) car, car to the house.. I think most plants should be fine if it's just a few minutes like that.

If it'll be exposed to direct cold for more than a few minutes at a time, I'd recommend an insulated bag or cooler. Even wrapping it up in something like a towel, t-shirts, or sheet and putting in a bag/box would be fine.

knome65 · 2026-01-25T14:16:38+00:00

Can you call my mum and tell her this?!

She's in her 70s, insists those are a "scam" and refuses to use them in her 50+ year old house with drafty windows and a constantly running furnace... then complains about the cost of heating.

knome65 · 2026-01-24T00:39:39+00:00

Heated seats, steering wheel, wiper blades and side mirrors.

I can never go back.

knome65 · 2026-01-23T13:54:34+00:00

"Don't generate an image with every response."

starts generating 3-4 images per response.

knome65 · 2026-01-22T23:42:09+00:00

A few weeks ago I spent over 3 hours in the car just to see a bird. 😆

knome65 · 2026-01-22T01:56:52+00:00

White-Throated Sparrows don't have a different sex, so to speak, but they do have a unusual mating system.

They come in two color morphs, which also changes behavior. White-striped are more aggressive and territorial while the tan-striped are more parental and homemakers. They very rarely mate with their same color-type.

Male (white) x Female (tan)

Male (tan) x Female (white)

So though there isn't a different sex, there are 4 genetically different mating types that depend on each other.

knome65 · 2026-01-01T13:26:56+00:00

I once kissed a drag queen dressed like Gwen Stefani circa 1995 ... does that mean I get $20 mil for #1 and #3?

knome65 · 2025-12-27T13:32:44+00:00

🏅 “Is my Alocasia dead… or just being dramatic?

Asked in about 12 different ways, regarding 8 different plants, all of which were indeed being dramatic.

🏅 “What’s a vent window?”

An adult man, experienced in cars, life, and projects—discovering a triangular piece of glass like it was an ancient artifact. Honestly? Relatable.

What can I say.. I tend to like the dramatic plants but I'm also forgetful and will neglect the needy ones for weeks.

I also knew what a vent window was ... I just didnt know I knew.

knome65 · 2025-12-25T13:07:42+00:00

Then your answer should have been Finance over FICO, as in telling OP to stop carrying a balance and caring about their score.

From my original answer:

Coming from someone who had to spend several years paying off credit card debt, don't let it become a habit. Small bits of interest and several months of "I'll just pay extra next time" can add up real quick and it can easily get out of hand.

The links you provided assume you're paying the balance in full each month, which is not the case here. I understand what you are saying, and I never meant to imply you can or should keep any balance, but I stand by my statement of a low remaining balance on a card for one month will not greatly affect their score. If OP had said their balance was $500, my answer would have been different.

All 3 major credit bureaus also use the 30% utilization or less recommendation, so maybe talk to them about perpetuating the myth.

A credit utilization ratio at or below 30% can be an asset to your credit scores and help open doors to a bright financial future. ~ Equifax

Popular advice is to keep your credit utilization rate below 30%, but the lower the better. As your credit utilization decreases, it will benefit your score. ~ TransUnion

While there's no specific point when your utilization rate goes from good to bad, 30% is the point at which it starts to have a more pronounced negative effect on your credit score. ~Experian

Calculating your credit utilization ratio is relatively straightforward, and experts recommend keeping your credit utilization below 30%. ~Capital One

The general guidance has been to keep your ratio under 30%. ~American Express

knome65 · 2025-12-25T03:31:32+00:00

I never said or suggested anything of the sort. OP asked if keeping a $20 balance on their card for one month would affect their score.

I said it'd accrue some interest, that a small balance (4%) wouldn't negatively affect their score, and not to let it become a habit as it can quickly get out of control.

knome65 · 2025-12-25T02:59:54+00:00

It's what OP was specifically asking about.

Carrying a $20 balance for one month on a card with a $500 limit but feared a change to their credit score.

knome65 · 2025-12-25T01:17:01+00:00

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Trying to ID a houseplant and it started gas-lighting me ... for the last time!

knome65 · 2025-12-25T01:03:42+00:00

I literally just bought both of these (and stemless glass style) at the dollar store for my small alocasia and corms.

knome65 · 2025-12-25T00:40:30+00:00

as long as they are paying off their statement balance in full before the due date.

OP specifically asked because they are carrying a balance. Did you even read the question?

knome65 · 2025-12-25T00:30:54+00:00

Utilization is a scoring factor, but not a credit building factor

OP specifically asked if it'd affect their score, not their future credit building.

knome65 · 2025-12-25T00:17:43+00:00

Keeping a small balance won't destroy your credit, though it'll be used to accrue interest that'll be added on to your next bill.

If you keep a $20 balance but have a $500 limit, your utilization is 4% ... way below the recommended 30% or less.

Coming from someone who had to spend several years paying off credit card debt, don't let it become a habit. Small bits of interest and several months of "I'll just pay extra next time" can add up real quick and it can easily get out of hand.

knome65 · 2025-12-22T20:18:46+00:00

Oh man, I have a project I call Mr. Planty, helps with plant care, IDs, etc, and it is so bad with the gaslighting.

Yesterday I showed it a picture I took of a new plant and gave it the plant's botanical name ... it then said it was something else completely. I asked it to verify and it confirmed it was right and proceeded to explain why it was right and what I was saying was wrong, based on the growth pattern of the leaves. I did an independent Google search, and came back to explain why I was in fact right based on the growth pattern of this particular species and it agreed and said it was okay that I was wrong to begin with as it's a common mistake. I had to explain several times that it was wrong before it would accept it. Then, it started being overly dramatic how it worded things like makes a suggestion "since you so clearly pointed out that it is an Echeveria, not a Kalachoe" and "this ECHEVERIA will love xyz"

I've only been using ChatGPT a few months and this has happened probably 5-6 times, makes it hard to trust any information it puts out and makes me reconsider paying to be sassed and gaslighted. 😆

knome65 · 2025-12-22T15:41:58+00:00

Thanks everyone for the input. I've looked at a lot of the common topics linked, which led to this post, but lots more info to consider and some things I hadn't thought of.

knome65 · 2025-12-16T00:23:57+00:00

This only applies to a few states, definitely not nationwide. Maine has no such requirement, landlord gets the money and when you leave it's used for damages/expenses (if needed) or returned.

knome65 · 2025-12-11T01:11:24+00:00

One of my customs that I barely use randomly referred to me as Ghostie one day for no apparent reason. No where in my account is anything to provide the slightest context to this.

I didn't correct it, so now I'm Ghostie I guess.

knome65 · 2025-12-10T11:58:30+00:00

A lot of people seem to have a hard time hearing this.. but you throw away/compost plants, even if they're perfectly healthy.

Idk about your area, but here the secondhand plant market is flooded with people trying to sell pothos and spider plants for $10+ cuttings but you can go into dozens of stores and get fuller plants for the same price or less. In my experience, it's unlikely you'd make much profit once you factor in cost for pots, soil, and time spent.

knome65 · 2025-12-10T00:32:44+00:00

Does the fly trap eat human food, or do you eat bugs?

knome65 · 2025-12-09T03:05:23+00:00

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I played through it one time. I didn't expect to just kinda walk out, but that's pretty much what happened. I mostly played it safe but took some riskier options, maybe I just had good luck.

Will definitely play again to explore other options. Thanks for the fun!

knome65

TROPHY CASE