Comcast? Yeah, they’re really pissing me off lately. One day I’ll have 22mbs download speeds, then suddenly it will crash down to less than 1mbs for several hours or even overnight. Constant cannot load the page error messages.
Call Comcast and half the time they have no idea why, the other half of the time I get an automated message saying that there is a temporary outage in my area. Really? Several times a week?
That was a joke about AT&T back in the day. “We don’t care. We don’t have to. We’re the Phone Company.” Nowadays you may as well apply that to Comcast. “Lost your internet? We don’t care. We don’t have to. We’re your Monopoly Cable Company.”
I’ve nearly finished a 600-page book on computer programming and it’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done. But the publisher’s marketing department is upset because I’m not blogging and tweeting and giving talks at conferences.
I understand their concern, but not all authors are celebrities in their field. I don’t have a Twitter account and I don’t want one. Even if I had an account, I doubt anyone would care.
Anyway, I’m going to have a conversation with the publisher’s CEO tomorrow to discuss this. Not looking forward to it.
Missed the edit window: Oh, you wrote it. Well, congratulations.
In my defense, I’d find reading a six-hundred page book on computer programming would be about the hardest thing I’ve ever done…
To my Sis: (1) I realize you’ve had a really big medical scare recently. And that you dodged the bullet. Trust me, I couldn’t be happier and I’ve got a few hangovers to show for my own (local) celebrations of the outcome. But… Deciding to suddenly leave your husband and “start a new life” might be worth a little contemplation. (2) I had to drop everything this weekend to fly to your city to help you move, and I sometimes wonder if this could’ve waited a little just to be sure.
To the controllers at a certain international airport: Planes fly at different speeds. Get over it. Asking me to maintain 50 knots over my normal approach speed down the ILS is evidence of your poor planning, not a deficiency of my aircraft. I had to slow down, just to be able to land. Quit reminding me of the jetliner behind me. I can’t change the laws of physics.
To Landmark Aviation: Seven bucks a gallon for avgas :eek: WTF? Unless the cute receptionist is going to throw in a BJ, that price is a ripoff and you know it. Don’t give me the stinkeye when I only take on enough fuel to fly to a more reasonable price at another airport.
Please, please tell me clock radio alarms turn off automatically after a certain amount of time. Please.
DICKWAD UPSTAIRS, YOUR CLOCK RADIO HAS BEEN GOING OFF FOR HALF AN HOUR
I’m assuming fuckface isn’t around right now, or else he’d turn the goddamn thing off. It’s driving me fucking nuts. I cranked up the music, but I have phantom beeping in my head now.
GODDAMN IT YOU RUINED MY LOVELY SUNDAY
You know how they made those gag remotes that can turn all TVs in the area off and on? Do they make those for alarm clocks?
It’s been a trying weekend, sorry about my rant (I realize there are bigger problems in the world). To answer your question, this particular plane holds 50 gallons, and gets 15-16 mpg. I needed around 22-25 gallons, but only took on 9 at the place in question. That’s about an hour’s flying at altitude (take-off and climb use fuel much faster). Range with safe reserves is around 600 miles (depending on winds), but I rarely stay aloft more than 4 hours (550 miles) at a stretch. Normal cruise is 140 mph.
Ah. Interesting! One of my neighbors has his own plane, and often ‘commutes’ from a small airport in Mass to one in New Jersey. I’d wondered how the cost compared with making the trip by car, but didn’t have the balls to flat out ask him.
So, it looks like it costs more $ but saves significant time.
Look, lady. I KNOW that you’re calling because you need help. That’s why I’m trying to give you to someone who CAN help you. I’m just the operator. I can’t even change your freaking address in the system! Please don’t interrupt me when I say “I’m going to transfer you to your caseworker’s supervisor since you can’t get hold of the caseworker” to scream at me, “But I need help!” You’re GETTING help (god allow that the sup picks up his phone) which you can’t get from me directly.
I have no idea what’s going on this morning, but the last 6 calls that I’ve taken, I haven’t even managed to get the “Blank County Office” out of my mouth before the caller breaks in like they’re calling in a wildfire or something demanding to talk to their caseworker. At least let me greet you, people! Geez!
I can already tell this is going to be a doozy of a day…
I pit myself for taking my dog’s medicine instead of the antihistamine I had intended to. After unsuccessfully trying to empty my otherwise empty stomach I called poison control and they said there should be no ill effect. Five minutes later I went to wake up my daughter and saw that she had pink eye. Not a great start to the week.
“Thank you for calling XYZ…”
ARGLEBARGLE BLAH HELP ME NOW!!!
(wait for them to stop)
“Ok, let’s try this again. Thank you for calling XYZ, my name is Chimera, may I have your name please?”
If they interrupt me the second time, I deliberately interrupt them (“Stop. Stop. Stop.”) and ask them to tell me their name. If they can’t do that, then I tell them I’m not doing anything for them until they give me their name. Third time is the last time, because my company policy allows me to hang up on people who refuse to provide their name, so BYE BYE, call back when you’re willing to tell me your name and allow me to speak.
The whole thing is designed on my part to stop the verbal diarrhea and get them to slow down and talk like a real human being.
And our system too has requirements of having stuff entered in if I have to transfer them to someone else. There are people who throw a fit and demand that you just transfer them NOW NOW NOW. NO NO NO. I have to get this in or it won’t let me transfer you, so you can either wait for me to complete it, or you can call back when you have the time if you’re so damned busy now. Urgency on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part.
The in-laws have a new RV, fully hooked up to water and electricity.
The in-laws are nice people. Steady, hard working, pleasant people. I like them a lot. But…we have a tent. And when we camp with them we have to camp in places that have full RV hook ups as well…this limits the camping choices.
I admit, I’m used to camping with my folks in places you have to walk/canoe/crawl to get to, where you have to sanitize your water, dig holes for a toilet and skinny dipping is not optional, but the preferred method for bathing.
The camping area this weekend was basically a huge field, with a tree every now and then. There was a playground in the middle. We were surrounded by screaming kids. Yes, if you walked a bit you could see a lake. There was no beach. The nearest ‘bathroom’ was a porta potty.
Our corner tent spot was bordered by two roads, and we had a scenic view of an empty, brown plot across the way. At night, you could hear cars going over the highway at irregular intervals. Saturday night, as I lay freezing, a tick crawled on me from the dog (who was not acting like a heat blanket, but instead a wet-smelly-tick-creating blanket) and I got an hour of sleep.
I just don’t get it. What is the purpose? Why would you camp in a big empty field when WE COULD JUST TENT IN OUR BACKYARD AND ENJOY MUCH MORE GREENERY. I COULD GET A TICK THERE TOO! WOULD THAT MAKE YOU HAPPY?
Oh, sister, you’re funny. “I have a job interview at 3 today - can you quickly go over my resume?”
Sure - okay, there are problems with this, this, this, and this.
“I have no time! I can’t fix any of those things!”
So, uh, what were you looking for then? She has a sparkling personality, which is good, because her resume is a mess. Apparently the professional resume people are telling her that it’s a great resume - a three-page wall of text resume is not a good resume, no matter what industry you’re in. I just ended by telling her it looks fine - what else you gonna do?
