# I just said that **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 9, 2015, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-said-that/734101 "2015-10-09T23:46:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2015, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-said-that/734101/1 "2015-10-09T23:46:55Z")
_Air Disasters_ is on TV, and the episode is about a DC-9 that ran out of fuel. There seems to have been a discrepancy between actual fuel and instrumentation. Mrs. L.A. said, ‘Maybe the fuel gauges were wrong.’ I replied, ‘From what I’ve heard, aircraft fuel gauges are _always_ wrong.’ As soon as I said that, an investigator on the show said, ‘Aircraft fuel gauges are not known to be especially accurate.’ What did you just say? ---
**Author:** ![Mikeisskeptical](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@Mikeisskeptical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mikeisskeptical)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2015, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-said-that/734101/2 "2015-10-09T23:56:34Z")
Proof, as if it were needed, that the Lizard people are stealing your thoughts. This happens to me all the time when conversing with my TV. Of course, the nay-sayers will claim it’s all a “coincidence”. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2015, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-said-that/734101/3 "2015-10-10T00:31:47Z")
This reminded of another running out of fuel problem: > [@](#): > > The Gimli Glider is the nickname of an Air Canada aircraft that was involved in an unusual aviation incident. On July 23, 1983, Air Canada Flight 143, a Boeing 767–233 jet, ran out of fuel at an altitude of 12,500 metres (41,000 ft) MSL, about halfway through its flight originating in Montreal to Edmonton. The crew were able to glide the aircraft safely to an emergency landing at Gimli Industrial Park Airport, a former Royal Canadian Air Force base in Gimli, Manitoba. > > The subsequent investigation revealed a combination of company failures and a chain of human errors that defeated built-in safeguards. Fuel loading was miscalculated because of a misunderstanding of the recently adopted metric system which replaced the imperial system. > **[Gimli Glider](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gimli_Glider)** > > Air Canada Flight 143, commonly known as the Gimli Glider, was a Canadian scheduled domestic passenger flight between Montreal and Edmonton that ran out of fuel on Saturday, July 23, 1983, at an altitude of 41,000 feet (12,500 m), midway through the flight. The flight crew successfully glided the Boeing 767 to an emergency landing at a former Royal Canadian Air Force base in Gimli, Manitoba, which had been converted to a racetrack, Gimli Motorsports Park.\[excessive citations\] It The accident w... ---
**Author:** ![Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e4f/32.png) [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Digital_is_the_new_Analog)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2015, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-said-that/734101/4 "2015-10-10T02:07:49Z")
This used to happen to me a lot back when I was younger and lived with my parents. I’d point out some random fact about the show we had on TV, and it would repeat my comment. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2015, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-said-that/734101/5 "2015-10-10T02:33:42Z")
> [@PastTense](#): > > This reminded of another running out of fuel problem: There was also a DC-8 crash in Portland, Oregon, in 1979 when that plane ran out of fuel. There was a problem with the landing gear and the captain aborted the first landing attempt to diagnose the problem. The captain got so absorbed in dealing with the gear that he didn’t pay enough attention to how much fuel he had left, and didn’t listen to the warnings from the other members of the flight crew. They ran out of fuel and crashed short of the runway. That crash, and the Gimli Glider one have been done on episodes of _Air Disasters_. Interesting show. Don’t think I’ve seen the DC-9 one that the OP mentions. > [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](#): > > This used to happen to me a lot back when I was younger and lived with my parents. I’d point out some random fact about the show we had on TV, and it would repeat my comment. Happens to me all the time watching _Jeopardy!_ I’ll say “who is Millard Fillmore” and just a couple seconds later someone will say “who is Millard Fillmore.” It’s kinda irritating after a while. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2015, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-said-that/734101/6 "2015-10-10T02:38:22Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > There was also a DC-8 crash in Portland, Oregon, in 1979 when that plane ran out of fuel. That’s the one the TV show was about. EDIT: I just re-read the OP. I _swear_ I typed an 8 and not a 9! I must be sicker than I thought. . ---
**Author:** ![Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e4f/32.png) [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Digital_is_the_new_Analog)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2015, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-said-that/734101/7 "2015-10-10T14:30:48Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > Happens to me all the time watching _Jeopardy!_ I’ll say “who is Millard Fillmore” and just a couple seconds later someone will say “who is Millard Fillmore.” It’s kinda irritating after a while. Especially when it’s followed by Alex saying “No. The correct question is The Grand Canyon.” ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2015, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-said-that/734101/8 "2015-10-10T14:47:25Z")
> [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](#): > > Especially when it’s followed by Alex saying “No. The correct question is The Grand Canyon.” Please rephrase your answer as a question. ---
**Author:** ![Balance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ccd318/32.png) [@Balance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balance)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2015, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-said-that/734101/9 "2015-10-10T16:36:02Z")
Many years ago, I was on an extended assignment in a Podunk town. One of the guys I worked with was a fan of supernatural/horror shows, and I took to watching them with him. One evening, we were watching such a show (_Poltergeist: The Legacy_, IIRC), and one of the characters was trying to read some journal they’d found. He didn’t recognize the script it was written in. I casually commented, “The fool–it’s obviously mirror-reversed Aramaic.” A moment later, the character picks up a mirror, holds it up to the page, and exclaims, “Of course, it’s Aramaic!” The double-take from my coworker was more entertaining than the show. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2015, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-said-that/734101/10 "2015-10-10T17:17:20Z")
Any time you’re watching scripted TV the dialog is so inane that only an idiot can’t predict the next sentence. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2015, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-said-that/734101/11 "2015-10-10T20:39:17Z")
Jerry Lewis, while guest-hosting _The Tonight Show_, was relating an anecdote of a time he got to take an at-bat in a MLB game. He said that he’d had to get a special dispensation from – and then he stammered, evidently trying to decide whether he should say “the Commissioner of Baseball” or “Bowie Kuhn.” I filled in, “the Pope,” to the amusement of my younger brother, with whom I’d been watching. Jerry glanced up at the camera in irritation, and said, “NOT the Pope!” ---
**Author:** ![Fubaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@Fubaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fubaya)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2015, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-said-that/734101/12 "2015-10-11T03:38:16Z")
This is the opposite, but about 10 years ago we were gathered at my dad’s house for Christmas. The TV was on and they were showing a parade in a mountain town about an hour away. Snow was falling like crazy in the background of the TV personalities but it wasn’t snowing at our location. About 8 adults all wondered if the snow was real or fake and although people were talking, eating, playing with presents, etc, we all kept bringing it up at various times over the next couple of hours. Someone would state an observation about the snow and we’d debate it for a minute then drop it. I don’t remember what all was said so I’m making this up but it went something like this: “I wonder if that’s fake snow?” “I dunno, maybe it’s snowing there.” “What’s the temperature?” “The thermometer says 36 here but it’s probably colder in the mountains.” “Hmm, maybe it’s snowing there.” **15 minutes later…** “The ground isn’t white, that must be fake snow” “It’s could be melting as it hits the ground.” **15 minutes later…** “I don’t see any snow in the wide shots, it’s gotta be fake.” “But snow is hard to see in a wide shot during the day.” **15 minutes later…** “Sometimes the snow looks big and sometimes it looks small like real snow would.” “But you’d think that we’d see it in the wide shots when it’s big.” “But have you noticed if they’ve done any wide shots when the snow was big?” “Well, no.” **15 minutes later…** “There! It’s snowing in that wide shot!” (tv announcer walks into shot) “Oh, they’re filming the wide shot from the announcer’s booth.” **15 minutes later…** “Sometimes you see snow on the announcers shoulders and it’s gone a couple minutes later like real snow melting.” “Doesn’t real snow melt faster than that?” “I guess it depends on the temperature of the outer surface of the coat.” **15 minutes later…** “Look, the female’s wooly coat has snow on it. That guy’s smooth outer coat shell doesn’t. I think real snow trapped in her coat ‘hairs’ would melt slower than snow laying flat on his. His is thinner anyway so the outer surface is probably warmer from his body heat that her thick coat.” “Or is it because fake snow slides off his smooth jacket but gets trapped in her fuzzy coat?” **15 minutes later…** “It’s really coming down. If that was fake snow, it would be piling up.” “Maybe it’s piling up behind the booth where we can’t see.” “But then what? There’s gotta be a lot of it, it should be spreading out to the sides where we could see it. Do they shovel it up when the camera isn’t on the announcers?” **15 minutes later…** “If it’s real, you’d think we’d have seen it in a wide shot by now or accumulating somewhere.” “It’s been snowing hard there for like 2 hours. Would they really use like 40 tons of fake snow just to make it look like it’s snowing behind the announcers. What would be the point? And where would it all go?” **15 minutes later…** TV announcer blathering about the parade: “We have a good turnout here today as an estimated X number of people showed up. And look at that, there’s a cute baby all bundled up on this cold day…” My brother-in-law says rather confidently “Ya know, we’ll probably never know for sure, they’re apparently not going to talk about it on TV, but I’m convinced that’s real snow. I guarantee it. We’ve been watching this forever and I’m sure of it now and I’d bet money…” The TV announcer interrupts him: “… pretty cold but, obviously, what the people at home are seeing here behind us is, of course, fake snow.” * * * That certainly won’t be funny in the re-telling but we all cracked up at the time. It was such a long buildup where everyone in the room had looked at every possibility and investigated every angle and still couldn’t figure out such a mundane mystery. Then the _second_ one of us had the guts to come to a conclusion and confidently speak up about it…