So trivial, yet it really ticks you off.

[Hercule]

Plenty of times, I've found myself unable to pay by card. Not because of power outages, but just because the banks systems are down for some reason. I know others have had the same issues with other banks/cards. I always like to have a bit of cash handy for such eventualities.

Agree, though it seems that more often than not I have no cash on me. Otherwise I do like to keep a $20 and a couple of $1 on me for a hair cut.

I am still of an age/situation where I still get birthday money. I'm very quick to stash it in the deepest recesses of my wallet where I hope to forget about it. It's always a joy to find forgotten money. Speaking of which, just last week, for an outing to a book store, my son (he's 15) put on a pair of shorts not worn since last summer. On the way home after spending my money on several books, that little rat reaches into his pocket and finds $75!!!

Actually, he's the only one in the house who has any (at all!) cash on hand.

 

[BobHufford]

I mailed a vintage necktie to Denmark (from Missouri) on January 16th. It made it to Chicago on January 21st and disappeared. After several emails and calls to the USPS it magically appeared in Denmark this week and was delivered today. The buyer paid for "expedited" service. Geez ...

 

[Zombie_61]

I mailed a vintage necktie to Denmark (from Missouri) on January 16th. It made it to Chicago on January 21st and disappeared. After several emails and calls to the USPS it magically appeared in Denmark this week and was delivered today. The buyer paid for "expedited" service. Geez ...

Between the pandemic precautions and the sabotage of the USPS by Postmaster General DeJoy, I had a few packages take some unusual routes between the vendors' locations and our house over the last year or so. One was so waylaid that I had to file two separate "whereisit?" requests about six weeks apart. I know what happened--both times the package was in a trailer that was parked in a USPS lot waiting to be emptied while other trailers got priority--but I wanted someone at USPS to know I was watching. And this was normal shipping within the boundaries of the continental United States; I can't begin to imagine how bad international shipping could have been.

 

[Bushman]

All the cyber attacks mentioned, that pipeline shut down by an attack, a huge meat processor hit in three countries including Canada, and people are still surprised my wife and I did not make our new home a "smart" one, i.e., connected to the internet of things.

We are having a total internet loss as I type, girls cannot do school, I cannot work, and people wanted my home run by it.

Absolutely.

NOT.

What I dislike even more is the inevitability of it through being forced upon us by manufacturers. It's impossible to buy a new car these days without some kind of "smart" feature built in it. Mine has built in OnStar that I never set up, and routinely get "ads" from OnStar reminding me to set it up. And I'm stuck between that, buying a beater I have neither the interest/skills to perform the upkeep on, or a classic I'd be in constant worry of scratching or dinking.

 

[MisterCairo]

First time I heard a complaint about computer chips in cars - 1982.

Grade 9, newly made friend, his father worked for A M C Canada (bought by Chrysler) , complaining that a part you could fix with a screwdriver now was one that had to be replaced by a new chip.

1982.

 

[Trenchfriend]

Swallows are totally cute, but why they are talking so much in the window corners??

 

[tonyb]

... And I'm stuck between that, buying a beater I have neither the interest/skills to perform the upkeep on, or a classic I'd be in constant worry of scratching or dinking.

Besides my having far better uses for my limited resources, that is why I hesitate to buy a “classic” car. Cars that actually get used as cars (you know, driven to the supermarket and to and from the workplace and/or school and all that) can’t help but show signs of that use.

 

[MisterCairo]

Swallows are totally cute, but why they are talking so much in the window corners??

Gossiping...

 

[Harp]

The 2021 Kentucky Derby proved a rough and tumble contest leaving more questions in its wake than answers,
wrapped within a medication controversy that leaves its winner subject to disqualification. Three weeks later a
newbie rookie won the Preakness; clocking Pimlico at 1:53:67 or so, and serving notice to the racing world.
Rombauer shocked its connections whom promptly entered him in the punishing third leg of the Triple Crown,
the Belmont Stakes. I missed hitting the board with Rombauer; although I had him on my place and show tickets
I discounted his chance of winning. A dumb mistake on my part. I should have recognized a comer set for a breakout
since his record and line placement pointed toward an upset victory. Instead of profits I had worthless paper tickets.
My own damn fault for a lack of objective assessment and a little instinct.

The Belmont Stakes listed Rombauer second to Essential Quality at 3-1 odds; again, I discounted him to win,
choosing Essential Quality with a modest trifecta wager. I netted a $500 gain but having missed the far easier
Preakness scenario, and far greater profit, felt all the more bittersweet over the Belmont Stakes.

 

[MisterCairo]

June bugs.

I HATE them.

Die now, all of you...

 

[V.C. Brunswick]

There's another issue that would need to be dealt with in a moneyless society--current, as in electrical. What happens when there's a power outage longer than a minor inconvenience and we have no access to our electronic personal information such as bank accounts? What then?

Ugh, that's another modern convenience I can do without--everyone doing everything on and with their damned cell phones. How can that possibly be safe and secure with so many thieves out there with equipment that simply pulls your information out of thin air? Nope, not a fan.

Despite the amount of time people spend on their phones, they can't communicate! For some reason they can't be bothered to call or text you simple but important things such as a change of plans or that they're running late. And also if you expect me to call you be ready to pick up!

 

[Zombie_61]

^ My best-friend-for-life "John" has been fighting the newest technological revolution (i.e. cell phones) harder than almost anyone else I know. He's not a complete Luddite, but he doesn't see the need to complicate his life with gadgets and such. So it was a complete surprise when, during the first week of April, I received a text from John. Nothing important, just his way of letting me know he'd taken his first steps into a world he worked so hard to reject. During a subsequent face-to-face discussion of this event, he informed me that all of his much younger co-workers almost refuse to talk to each other directly and that they'll waste 10 minutes texting something that could have taken two minutes if they had simply walked the 30 feet between themselves and told the other co-worker the information. As such, it has forced him to engage whenever they text because one out of every so many texts is work related and it could very well be something he needs to know. Mind you, he still hasn't bothered to set up Voicemail on this phone that he's now had more than two months, but...

 

[GHT]

John sounds like someone I can easily empathise with. My so called, smart phone, has proved to be far to smart for me. Text & talk is about my limit.

Despite the amount of time people spend on their phones, they can't communicate! For some reason they can't be bothered to call or text you simple but important things such as a change of plans or that they're running late. And also if you expect me to call you be ready to pick up!

That is so true and so frustratingly annoying.

Besides my having far better uses for my limited resources, that is why I hesitate to buy a “classic” car. Cars that actually get used as cars (you know, driven to the supermarket and to and from the workplace and/or school and all that) can’t help but show signs of that use.

Yesterday I was loaned a courtesy car while my own was in the workshop for a service. This new car was probably a prop in Star Trek, some pod that was used like a moon rover.

It was keyless, you press the fob to gain entry. The computer sensed the weight of my fat backside and knew someone was in the car. I now have to dispense with the fob. There's no steering column keyhole, why would there be when there's no key. There is a silver button, an inscrip[tion on it reads: "Press to stop & start." I press it, nothing happened. Actually something did happen, the dash screen told me to press down on the footbrake and press the button. The car responded by starting, The gears are automatic but selecting drive and reverse takes a degree in quantum physics.

On the side of the "gearstick" or drive/reverse selection stick, whichever you prefer, is another button. The dash screen informs me to press down on the footbrake whilst simultaneously pressing this new button. The car responds, D1 comes up on the dash screen but the car won't move. I look for a handbrake, there isn't one, there is though a button style lever, about the size of a postage stamp, I press it, the dash screen tells me to press it whilst pressing down on the foot brake. Finally the car moves forward. All goes well until I pull up at a red traffic light and the engine stops, a touch on the accelerator and it restarts.

Talk about my head exploding, just how do the kids who steal cars know exactly what to do?

 

[Edward]

^ My best-friend-for-life "John" has been fighting the newest technological revolution (i.e. cell phones) harder than almost anyone else I know. He's not a complete Luddite, but he doesn't see the need to complicate his life with gadgets and such. So it was a complete surprise when, during the first week of April, I received a text from John. Nothing important, just his way of letting me know he'd taken his first steps into a world he worked so hard to reject. During a subsequent face-to-face discussion of this event, he informed me that all of his much younger co-workers almost refuse to talk to each other directly and that they'll waste 10 minutes texting something that could have taken two minutes if they had simply walked the 30 feet between themselves and told the other co-worker the information. As such, it has forced him to engage whenever they text because one out of every so many texts is work related and it could very well be something he needs to know. Mind you, he still hasn't bothered to set up Voicemail on this phone that he's now had more than two months, but...

The first thing I did when I got a new handset after they invented voicemail was disable it. Never saw the point of paying to hear whose call I missed and then paying to call them back. If it's important enough, they'll call again... Course, texts have also largely made voicemail irrelevant for me.

IT's funny how a mere twenty years ago, you'd see some real poseurs making a show of having a mobile phone. These days, the pose has become making a big deal out of not having one.

I'm very glad to have ditched my unwanted landline at long last!

 

[tonyb]

..,

Talk about my head exploding, just how do the kids who steal cars know exactly what to do?

We’ve discussed here before the opposite phenomenon — how the younger car thieves would be at a loss in a car with a foot-operated starter and a manual transmission with a steering-column mounted gear shifter.

 

[Edward]

We’ve discussed here before the opposite phenomenon — how the younger car thieves would be at a loss in a car with a foot-operated starter and a manual transmission with a steering-column mounted gear shifter.

Double-declutching is the real killer for them now!

 

[tonyb]

^^^^^
It’s a technique we all pretty much had to master back then. It was fairly easy once the how and why of it was explained.

I found it easier to come to a dead stop at the traffic light or stop sign before downshifting into first.

 

[MisterCairo]

Those fibrous, stringy things on bananas.

 

[Zombie_61]

...Yesterday I was loaned a courtesy car while my own was in the workshop for a service. This new car was probably a prop in Star Trek, some pod that was used like a moon rover...

Four or five weeks ago I finally bought a replacement for my truck which was totaled in December; a 2018 Chevy Cruze L with 30k miles on it. Since my truck was 14 years old it has taken a bit of time to learn the newer tech, and I'm not sure I haven't only scratched the surface. Fortunately, this is not quite a keyless vehicle; you press a button on the fob and the part that goes into the ignition flips out of the fob like a switchblade knife, then when you reach your destination you can "retract" it so the fob will allegedly fit into wherever you keep your keys easier. Not sure I see the point, actually; it just seems like another not-too-well-conceived gadget for younger drivers to play with. Overall not a bad vehicle for a smallish sedan, but we're still in the honeymoon stage of the relationship. One of these days I'll have to read the manual to see if I can disable whatever it is that turns the engine off and on whenever I stop...y'know, just in case.

 

[MisterCairo]

The corrosive power of Deep Woods Off bug spray, after rubbing hands and arms and legs, then holding my phone in its case: