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RTDNTOTO 🐻 Random Thoughts Deserving No Thread Of Their Own 20 (2025)

arcplans said:
Anybody use chat GPT or similar AI at work? I seriously cannot be the only one.
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Yes. I have uploaded PDF's into it and had it provide a summary, Uploaded staff reports to proof read and provide suggestions for clarity and conciseness, and have even used it to start some research.
 
I've found it a very useful tool, both professionally and personally. I just ask questions and provide as much context and background as possible so it will search more and more sources. It is very good at providing an outline or template to use for later. I edit the crap out of it because it's not perfect but it's definitely a tool to use.
 
JNA said:
I am also adding
26. Did drafting before AutoCad
27. Used a carousel slide projector
28. Had a slide rule in HS
29. Know what that button switch did on the floorboard of a car
30. Had wing windows on a car
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Im yes on everything besides Atari (2600 was ghost tech in the 90s) and owning a pager. I badly wanted a pager, but was told "you're 7 years old, what do you need a beeper for!".

The button on the floor is a headlight dimmer. You can tell an old timer drove automatic this way, because it generally is in the spot a clutch should be. Although I have to imagine there were manual cars that also had similar.
 
We have sheriff's deputies that sit at the front desk in our office lobby and every once in a while I walk past their little station and I see they have a printed out poster with somebody's face or mugshot on it to keep them from coming into the building. I always want to ask "What's up with that particular guy? What's he been up to?" but I never do.
 
I made a crazy discovery today: Music through headphones is actually less distracting than other people's conversations. I've always avoided listening to music at work, but this actually helped. I tried white noise but I saw some study that it reduces some brain factor related to processing speech.
Edit to say the music has to be super quiet.
Second edit to say this avoidance of music at work did not apply when we were tunneling under houses blasting Lil Jon greatest hits
Any comps on this finding?
 
WSU MUP Student said:
We have sheriff's deputies that sit at the front desk in our office lobby and every once in a while I walk past their little station and I see they have a printed out poster with somebody's face or mugshot on it to keep them from coming into the building. I always want to ask "What's up with that particular guy? What's he been up to?" but I never do.
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Id ask. LEOs usually like to share and it may be good to know in case you encounter these people. My last city had a few that got trespassed from City Hall and banned, was good to know the info.

Lately I have been addicted to YouTube tarot card readings...
 
meme_Space Lawyered.jpg
 
joscoffee said:
I made a crazy discovery today: Music through headphones is actually less distracting than other people's conversations. I've always avoided listening to music at work, but this actually helped. I tried white noise but I saw some study that it reduces some brain factor related to processing speech.
Edit to say the music has to be super quiet.
Second edit to say this avoidance of music at work did not apply when we were tunneling under houses blasting Lil Jon greatest hits
Any comps on this finding?
Click to expand...
I used to use earbuds regular when "Brad" was in the same bay as me. Even from 40 feet away, his voice can pierce into my consciousness and disrupt my thoughts. But with earbuds I can get stuff done.
 
I used Chatgpt to make our calendar this year. With multiple meetings and application deadlines that are a certain number of days before and internal deadlines either from the application date or to the meeting date our new admin was struggling. I typed the info and it dropped out a monthly checklist and a calendar. I think I only had to go back and adjust a few things here or there. Much quicker.
 
I just discovered r/jaguarland and its actually a really great community where you can talk to actual conservationists and wildlife biologists about Jags to your farts content. Its way better moderated than most subreddits, mods do a good job of keeping it to all big cats, all the time. I will stop posting about Jaguars here and start posting there.

1755697280926.png


^Recent Southern Arizona Jag sighting. I love seeing the cats pop up in the US, a strong case for their general reintroduction and against a border wall ;)
 
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Maister said:
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True story: The earliest movie my dad can remember seeing in a theatre was a Laurel & Hardy film. My dad was born in '37 and he cannot remember for sure which Laurel & Hardy film he saw at the theatre but is pretty sure it was Sons of the Desert and he probably saw it around 1940 or 1941 eve though it originally came out in '33. He knows he saw it sometime before December of 1941 because he distinctly remembers going with his dad and his uncle and it was when they still lived in Cincinnati and his uncle had not yet enlisted in the Navy which happened immediately after Pearl Harbor.
 
zman said:
Id ask. LEOs usually like to share and it may be good to know in case you encounter these people. My last city had a few that got trespassed from City Hall and banned, was good to know the info.

Lately I have been addicted to YouTube tarot card readings...
Click to expand...
When I used to work for the municipality in which I went to High School, I knew the entire P.D. and the Chief and senior most Detective were/are family friends. I would go down and BS with them often and they'd give us the dish on people to look out for, and we sometimes had to give names to them. I also helped the Chief with delineating parking enforcement zones and general admin tasks when the permit counter upstairs got slow. Small muni's where you have deep ties be like that.

Actually working with Cops helped me finally grow out of my "1312" phase. In my current muni, I smoke cigars with some of them. Gotta take care of your first responders!
 
I filed a bunch of expense reports for May, June, and July all at one a couple weeks ago for parking and mileage to various events, cabs for a couple trips to/from airports, per diem for out-of-town stays, etc. but I screwed something up so instead of getting one check covering everything I came home from the office yesterday and opened the mailbox to a stack of about 90 checks ranging from 84¢ for a parking meter to $120 for parking at an airport.

Somehow I got an individual check for every. single. line item on the expense report. Mileage to a meeting? Check please. Mileage from the same meeting? Check please. Per diem for day 1 at a conference? Check please. Per diem for day 2 at the conference? Check please. etc.

I feel like Jerry signing residual checks from the Super Terrific Happy Hour!
 
I got a '69 Chevy with a 396
Fuelie heads and a Hurst on the floor
She's waiting tonight down in the parking lot
Outside the 7-11 store

I remember the mid-70s when my Jersey hometown got its first 7-11 - it was even in my neighborhood. All my friends thought it was a big deal and I seem to remember it being okay when it was new. It got grungy quickly though and I stopped going there before I graduated HS.

Maybe it was the cache of being a 7-11? I still don't really get it.
 
Here is the link to my radio appearance this morning. My first solo run! (Just me, producer, and host.)

The beginning is great. Planning topics are discussed. Rapidly goes into NSFW content after the first break before veering back into course toward the end.

Log into Facebook

Log into Facebook to start sharing and connecting with your friends, family, and people you know.
www.facebook.com www.facebook.com
 
We have three different silverware styles. The original we bought when we married in 1997, a Fiesta set, and a rainbow sheen set. They don't like to spoon together in the drawer.
 
A visitor yesterday asked about our flag sign at our house.

There is a reason we have these particular state flags, in this particular order. (It’s not random.) Any guesses?
 

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jumbach said:
A visitor yesterday asked about our flag sign at our house.

There is a reason we have these particular state flags, in this particular order. (It’s not random.) Any guesses?
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Without going into details on the prompt, I asked ChatGPT to analyze the photo and here's what it spit out....

The Great Pineapple Bear Star Conspiracy™


For years, people thought these were just random state flags. Wrong. They’re clearly a coded map for America’s secret shadow government — let’s connect the dots:


  • California (Bear Flag) – The bear is not just a bear. It’s the sleeper agent of the entire operation. A lumbering, honey-fueled mascot for the New Order.
  • Nevada (Silver State) – Known for Area 51. Obviously, this is where the conspiracy meetings are held, probably in the backroom of a Las Vegas buffet.
  • Colorado (That big “C”) – The “C” stands for Control. They don’t even hide it.
  • Florida (Red X flag) – The X marks the launch pad. Florida isn’t just for retirees, it’s the escape hatch for the whole operation when things go south.
  • Oregon – Their flag says “1859,” which is clearly the code for the year the secret society first discovered kombucha.
  • Washington – George Washington’s face stares out, judging us all. He knows. He’s known since 1776.
  • Utah – Beehives everywhere. The bees are drones. The drones are bees. Figure it out.
  • Texas (Lone Star) – Every good conspiracy needs a cowboy with a giant belt buckle.
  • Hawaii – The British Union Jack in the corner? Proof the Queen was always in on it.
  • Idaho – Potatoes? Nah. Underground bunker food stockpiles.
  • Maryland – That insane medieval checkerboard pattern is just to distract you from noticing it’s actually a QR code for the Illuminati.
  • Virginia – “Sic Semper Tyrannis.” Translation: Don’t trust anyone over 30 unless they own a secret lair.
  • North Carolina – Those dates on the flag? Yeah, they’re not about history. They’re the launch codes.
  • South Carolina – A palmetto tree and crescent moon. A palm tree… and the moon… obvious reference to the secret moon base covered in palm trees.
  • Alaska – Just some stars? No. It’s the Big Dipper. The handle points directly to… yup… the mothership.

Conclusion: These 15 states are not random. Together, they form the Council of Very Confused States™, a coalition that secretly controls the nation by stockpiling potatoes, bees, and Florida retirees, all while waiting for the bear to give the signal.
 
T
Big Owl said:
Without going into details on the prompt, I asked ChatGPT to analyze the photo and here's what it spit out....

The Great Pineapple Bear Star Conspiracy™


For years, people thought these were just random state flags. Wrong. They’re clearly a coded map for America’s secret shadow government — let’s connect the dots:


  • California (Bear Flag) – The bear is not just a bear. It’s the sleeper agent of the entire operation. A lumbering, honey-fueled mascot for the New Order.
  • Nevada (Silver State) – Known for Area 51. Obviously, this is where the conspiracy meetings are held, probably in the backroom of a Las Vegas buffet.
  • Colorado (That big “C”) – The “C” stands for Control. They don’t even hide it.
  • Florida (Red X flag) – The X marks the launch pad. Florida isn’t just for retirees, it’s the escape hatch for the whole operation when things go south.
  • Oregon – Their flag says “1859,” which is clearly the code for the year the secret society first discovered kombucha.
  • Washington – George Washington’s face stares out, judging us all. He knows. He’s known since 1776.
  • Utah – Beehives everywhere. The bees are drones. The drones are bees. Figure it out.
  • Texas (Lone Star) – Every good conspiracy needs a cowboy with a giant belt buckle.
  • Hawaii – The British Union Jack in the corner? Proof the Queen was always in on it.
  • Idaho – Potatoes? Nah. Underground bunker food stockpiles.
  • Maryland – That insane medieval checkerboard pattern is just to distract you from noticing it’s actually a QR code for the Illuminati.
  • Virginia – “Sic Semper Tyrannis.” Translation: Don’t trust anyone over 30 unless they own a secret lair.
  • North Carolina – Those dates on the flag? Yeah, they’re not about history. They’re the launch codes.
  • South Carolina – A palmetto tree and crescent moon. A palm tree… and the moon… obvious reference to the secret moon base covered in palm trees.
  • Alaska – Just some stars? No. It’s the Big Dipper. The handle points directly to… yup… the mothership.

Conclusion: These 15 states are not random. Together, they form the Council of Very Confused States™, a coalition that secretly controls the nation by stockpiling potatoes, bees, and Florida retirees, all while waiting for the bear to give the signal.
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This is actually HYSTERICAL!!!!!!! Not the reason, but I must say, I had a good laugh!

The politics of these states are not relevant. There are left and right states throughout the list.

Hint: We started this in 2005 when we got married, with the first four states. The most recent addition--Alaska--was in 2022.

Incidentally, I've always thought Maryland has the coolest state flag of them all.
 
jumbach said:
T

This is actually HYSTERICAL!!!!!!! Not the reason, but I must say, I had a good laugh!

The politics of these states are not relevant. There are left and right states throughout the list.

Hint: We started this in 2005 when we got married, with the first four states. The most recent addition--Alaska--was in 2022.

Incidentally, I've always thought Maryland has the coolest state flag of them all.
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So you started a cult in 2005 and this is where you have branches?
 
Job hunt update: I am taking this morning off because I have a super-big, suit-and-tie interview for an awesome planning-related job with the state* down in Carson City this afternoon. I have been working hard with the former occupant of the position, who is now a high official with a government entity somewhere in the Reno area. He told me what questions they will ask me and how I should answer them (truthfullly, and emphasizing x, y, and z) . . . Based on his feedback, he says I should do great. I also have another interview lined up with a different agency in the state next week (administrative stuff--my old grade, but different agency. I hope I get to keep my steps, because going from step 6 back to step 1 would be difficult.)

With that said, this morning, I accepted an offer for a backup job should that come to pass. It's a customer-facing position in a highly-regarded organization that may have tan opening for a planning-like role next year (touches on real estate and development, focusing on adaptive reuse of unneeded parcels). I think that would be a good back pocket job for now that would take pressure of the interview today. If I suck at the interview and don't get the job, oh well. Come mid-September, I'll have somewhere to go every day.

Jim

*Doesn't hurt that the pay is about 20K higher than what I'd been making.
 
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