Overheard at Work

[TheGrimSqueaker]

did you also move the bible and all christian related books to this section as well?

No, they already have their own section. Possibly the fact/not-fact issue came up in the past and the stores just bypassed it. Most films based on religious stories are categorized as dramas. "Noah" comes to mind as does "The Ten Commandments".

Anyway, the whole story was leading up to a joke about genre identity.

Hahaha! The fluidity of genre identity?

So which bathroom do nonfiction books use?

The political biographies have to be in a stall, next to a full roll of TP, because of what they're already full of.

[zephyr911]

It happens. I'm guessing you're able to afford it.

I know that if I ever get a dog, it's going to be hard to make those decisions, especially when the dog ages. It likely will turn into a showdown between my rational side and my emotional one. What's funny is that a good chunk of mine friend's tell me that I'm not a "feeler" (Myers Briggs), whereas the engineers and other logic based people chide me for being more emotional than them.

Yeah, I don't *like* spending that much unexpectedly, but I adjusted without much trouble. To me, the key is to be prepared for that kind of thing and stay conscious of cost vs. likely benefit. Our dogs are 9 and 10 now, and the older they get, the less I'd be willing to do, especially if quality of life isn't guaranteed afterward. I love the fuck out of the hairy little beasts, but they've got 5 years left if they're lucky, you know... the closer they are to normal end of life, the less sense it makes to rack up huge bills for a little more time with them.

[MrsDinero]

It happens. I'm guessing you're able to afford it.

I know that if I ever get a dog, it's going to be hard to make those decisions, especially when the dog ages. It likely will turn into a showdown between my rational side and my emotional one. What's funny is that a good chunk of mine friend's tell me that I'm not a "feeler" (Myers Briggs), whereas the engineers and other logic based people chide me for being more emotional than them.

Yeah, I don't *like* spending that much unexpectedly, but I adjusted without much trouble. To me, the key is to be prepared for that kind of thing and stay conscious of cost vs. likely benefit. Our dogs are 9 and 10 now, and the older they get, the less I'd be willing to do, especially if quality of life isn't guaranteed afterward. I love the fuck out of the hairy little beasts, but they've got 5 years left if they're lucky, you know... the closer they are to normal end of life, the less sense it makes to rack up huge bills for a little more time with them.

I've had many animals from birth to death.  When it comes to end of life and how to decide, there is no one-fits-all decision.  For me I've paid hundreds (thousands?) of dollars on testing for my past animals.  For me it was part of the decision making process.  I needed to know that making the decision to put down an animal was the right decision and for me that meant have all the facts in front of me. My last cat, I paid $600 for him to see a kitty oncologist to just make sure he did have cancer.   I ended up putting him down shortly after, because I could see he was in a lot of pain and the doctor said the cancer had spread.  I consider it $600 well spent.

[Making Cookies]

On the topic of dogs. Overheard a co worker talking about their friend. $15k on 3 nights in dog hospital and the dog died.

We adopted a rescue kitten in June and 3 weeks later I blew a grand watching him die in a hospital. My first thought after all the initial emotional shit was "Oh god, don't tell the MMM forum..."

It happens. I'm guessing you're able to afford it.

I know that if I ever get a dog, it's going to be hard to make those decisions, especially when the dog ages. It likely will turn into a showdown between my rational side and my emotional one. What's funny is that a good chunk of mine friend's tell me that I'm not a "feeler" (Myers Briggs), whereas the engineers and other logic based people chide me for being more emotional than them.

I don't know but we got far more emotional over putting our dog down than we have about alot of other things that we should have been emotional about. That dog was one of our kids more or less. She smelled funny and had some odd habits (normal to any dog but odd for a human child - let me work this metaphor) but we loved her.

[RyanAtTanagra]

On the topic of dogs. Overheard a co worker talking about their friend. $15k on 3 nights in dog hospital and the dog died.

We adopted a rescue kitten in June and 3 weeks later I blew a grand watching him die in a hospital. My first thought after all the initial emotional shit was "Oh god, don't tell the MMM forum..."

It happens. I'm guessing you're able to afford it.

I know that if I ever get a dog, it's going to be hard to make those decisions, especially when the dog ages. It likely will turn into a showdown between my rational side and my emotional one. What's funny is that a good chunk of mine friend's tell me that I'm not a "feeler" (Myers Briggs), whereas the engineers and other logic based people chide me for being more emotional than them.

I don't know but we got far more emotional over putting our dog down than we have about alot of other things that we should have been emotional about. That dog was one of our kids more or less. She smelled funny and had some odd habits (normal to any dog but odd for a human child - let me work this metaphor) but we loved her.

Saying goodbye to my dog last year was by far the hardest thing I've ever gone through.  I will say having enough money that it wasn't a factor made the decision much easier, as I didn't have to wonder if I was making it because of the money.  I paid $1k without hesitating, just to confirm that it was indeed finally time to let my old girl go.  As hard as it was, at least I know I made the right decision for the right reasons.

[BTDretire]

so genre identity is going to be more fluid in the future.

Did you mean, so gender identity is going to be more fluid in the future.
I think that has already started.

[TheGrimSqueaker]

so genre identity is going to be more fluid in the future.

Did you mean, so gender identity is going to be more fluid in the future.
I think that has already started.

It's called a pun.

[mustachepungoeshere]

Two weeks ago a colleague announced she'd bought cheap early-morning flights to go interstate for a couple of days.

Yesterday was her first day back after the trip so she updated us on the drama. They were late leaving home, parked in the wrong section at the airport, and came home to a $385 fine. She thought it was hilarious.

[Tjat]

so genre identity is going to be more fluid in the future.

Did you mean, so gender identity is going to be more fluid in the future.
I think that has already started.

It's called a pun.

I'd tell a chemistry joke now but I know I wouldn't get a reaction.

[Dollar Slice]

I'd tell a chemistry joke now but I know I wouldn't get a reaction.

Q. Why do mustachian chemists use nitrates so much?

A. They're cheaper than the day rates.

[SoccerLounge]

I'd tell a chemistry joke now but I know I wouldn't get a reaction.

Q. Why do mustachian chemists use nitrates so much?

A. They're cheaper than the day rates.

Q. What's the difference between The Mad FIentist's pet rabbit and a clown with a trumpet?

A. One bugles funny and the other's a frugal bunny.

Thank you, thank you. I shall see myself out.

[Kitsune]

From a 63-year-old colleague: I'm replacing my washer and dryer this year, because I don't want any big expenses after I retire.

She clarified that they're running fine, but they might eventually not, so she's replacing them with new ones now "while she has the money".

Not answering "well, replacing things that don't need replacing is WHY you won't have money after retiring" took all my self-control.

[Taran Wanderer]

so genre identity is going to be more fluid in the future.

Did you mean, so gender identity is going to be more fluid in the future.
I think that has already started.

It's called a pun.

I'd tell a chemistry joke now but I know I wouldn't get a reaction.

Stand
   I

[Pooperman]

I'd tell a chemistry joke now but I know I wouldn't get a reaction.

Q. Why do mustachian chemists use nitrates so much?

A. They're cheaper than the day rates.

Q. What's the difference between The Mad FIentist's pet rabbit and a clown with a trumpet?

A. One bugles funny and the other's a frugal bunny.

Thank you, thank you. I shall see myself out.

One day there was a fire in a wastebasket in the office of the Dean of Sciences. In rushed a physicist, a chemist, and a statistician. The physicist immediately starts to work on how much energy would have to be removed from the fire to stop the combustion. The chemist works on which reagent would have to be added to the fire to prevent oxidation. While they are doing this, the statistician is setting fires to all the other wastebaskets in the office. "What are you doing?" the others demand. The statistician replies, "Well, to solve the problem, you obviously need a larger sample size."

[GuitarStv]

I'd tell a chemistry joke now but I know I wouldn't get a reaction.

Q. Why do mustachian chemists use nitrates so much?

A. They're cheaper than the day rates.

That was sodium funny!  All the good chemistry jokes Argon.

[solon]

Yeah, I slapped my neon that one.

[ditheca]

One day there was a fire in a wastebasket in the office of the Dean of Sciences. In rushed a physicist, a chemist, and a statistician. The physicist immediately starts to work on how much energy would have to be removed from the fire to stop the combustion. The chemist works on which reagent would have to be added to the fire to prevent oxidation. While they are doing this, the statistician is setting fires to all the other wastebaskets in the office. "What are you doing?" the others demand. The statistician replies, "Well, to solve the problem, you obviously need a larger sample size."

The fire department shows up and puts out all the fires.  The next day, there is another wastebasket fire!  With a stroke of brilliance, the mathematician quickly sets fire to all the other wastebaskets in the office.  "What are you doing?" the others demand.  The mathematician replies, "Reducing the problem to a previously solved state."

[TheGrimSqueaker]

Two weeks ago a colleague announced she'd bought cheap early-morning flights to go interstate for a couple of days.

Yesterday was her first day back after the trip so she updated us on the drama. They were late leaving home, parked in the wrong section at the airport, and came home to a $385 fine. She thought it was hilarious.

Ouch. This could also have gone in the very awesome "Frugal intentions" thread. Though I can't imagine why she thought it was funny, unless she has a taste for irony.

[zolotiyeruki]

Two weeks ago a colleague announced she'd bought cheap early-morning flights to go interstate for a couple of days.

Yesterday was her first day back after the trip so she updated us on the drama. They were late leaving home, parked in the wrong section at the airport, and came home to a $385 fine. She thought it was hilarious.

Ouch. This could also have gone in the very awesome "Frugal intentions" thread. Though I can't imagine why she thought it was funny, unless she has a taste for irony.

Or maybe she's secretly FI, and so a setback like this isn't such a big deal.

[solon]

Two weeks ago a colleague announced she'd bought cheap early-morning flights to go interstate for a couple of days.

Yesterday was her first day back after the trip so she updated us on the drama. They were late leaving home, parked in the wrong section at the airport, and came home to a $385 fine. She thought it was hilarious.

Ouch. This could also have gone in the very awesome "Frugal intentions" thread. Though I can't imagine why she thought it was funny, unless she has a taste for irony.

Or maybe she's secretly FI, and so a setback like this isn't such a big deal.

Maybe she was going to use the money to finance a wedding.

[LennStar]

National Geographic was bought by Fox

AH! Thank you. That explains a lot. I was headscratching 2 or 3 times a bit back. Not seeing much NG here in Germany, so I was irritated at something that this is also NG.

[mm1970]

One day there was a fire in a wastebasket in the office of the Dean of Sciences. In rushed a physicist, a chemist, and a statistician. The physicist immediately starts to work on how much energy would have to be removed from the fire to stop the combustion. The chemist works on which reagent would have to be added to the fire to prevent oxidation. While they are doing this, the statistician is setting fires to all the other wastebaskets in the office. "What are you doing?" the others demand. The statistician replies, "Well, to solve the problem, you obviously need a larger sample size."

The fire department shows up and puts out all the fires.  The next day, there is another wastebasket fire!  With a stroke of brilliance, the mathematician quickly sets fire to all the other wastebaskets in the office.  "What are you doing?" the others demand.  The mathematician replies, "Reducing the problem to a previously solved state."

I love these jokes.

nerd

[Sawedoff]

One day there was a fire in a wastebasket in the office of the Dean of Sciences. In rushed a physicist, a chemist, and a statistician. The physicist immediately starts to work on how much energy would have to be removed from the fire to stop the combustion. The chemist works on which reagent would have to be added to the fire to prevent oxidation. While they are doing this, the statistician is setting fires to all the other wastebaskets in the office. "What are you doing?" the others demand. The statistician replies, "Well, to solve the problem, you obviously need a larger sample size."

The fire department shows up and puts out all the fires.  The next day, there is another wastebasket fire!  With a stroke of brilliance, the mathematician quickly sets fire to all the other wastebaskets in the office.  "What are you doing?" the others demand.  The mathematician replies, "Reducing the problem to a previously solved state."

You guys are killing me!

*Fights the urge to set wastebaskets on fire to make the workday more interesting.

[MgoSam]

*Fights the urge to set wastebaskets on fire to make the workday more interesting.

I'm also fighting the urge, not just because of making the day more interesting, but because I'm in a foul mood. I can't go to the gym so I can direct my fury towards a bag.

[Goldielocks]

One day there was a fire in a wastebasket in the office of the Dean of Sciences. In rushed a physicist, a chemist, and a statistician. The physicist immediately starts to work on how much energy would have to be removed from the fire to stop the combustion. The chemist works on which reagent would have to be added to the fire to prevent oxidation. While they are doing this, the statistician is setting fires to all the other wastebaskets in the office. "What are you doing?" the others demand. The statistician replies, "Well, to solve the problem, you obviously need a larger sample size."

The fire department shows up and puts out all the fires.  The next day, there is another wastebasket fire!  With a stroke of brilliance, the mathematician quickly sets fire to all the other wastebaskets in the office.  "What are you doing?" the others demand.  The mathematician replies, "Reducing the problem to a previously solved state."

You guys are killing me!

*Fights the urge to set wastebaskets on fire to make the workday more interesting.

What do you get when you cross a cow with an octopus?
----
---
---

A swift meeting with the ethics committee and immediate reversal of research funding.

[mustachepungoeshere]

Two weeks ago a colleague announced she'd bought cheap early-morning flights to go interstate for a couple of days.

Yesterday was her first day back after the trip so she updated us on the drama. They were late leaving home, parked in the wrong section at the airport, and came home to a $385 fine. She thought it was hilarious.

Ouch. This could also have gone in the very awesome "Frugal intentions" thread. Though I can't imagine why she thought it was funny, unless she has a taste for irony.

Or maybe she's secretly FI, and so a setback like this isn't such a big deal.

She's not easily fazed, and just laughed it off in a 'this could only happen to me' sort of way.

Not FI. I've mentioned her previously: car leases; panic-buying shoes because she wore a mismatched pair to work; has three kids, each with their own bathroom and pays a cleaner instead of giving them pocket money and making them clean their bathrooms.

[MustardTiger]

Co-workers were talking about Yeti cups today.  Now I did get one of these as a gift so I joined in saying yes it is indeed good at being a cup.  She wasn't satisfied with the steel color so took it in for a professional powdercoating with her college colors at an additional cost of 75$.  So an >100$ cup.

[Joggernot]

Co-workers were talking about Yeti cups today.  Now I did get one of these as a gift so I joined in saying yes it is indeed good at being a cup.  She wasn't satisfied with the steel color so took it in for a professional powdercoating with her college colors at an additional cost of 75$.  So an >100$ cup.

We have a local man who will "color dip" your Yeti cup to look camouflaged or anything else that can be done with paint floating on water.

[Making Cookies]

Wow - either powdercoating got really expensive or she got taken for a ride.

A local place I used had a flat rate. Everything they could powdercoat for a flat rate per hour. So I got three pallets of antique car parts powdercoated for about $100.

By the way, the powdercoating on my coffee cup (not Yeti, much more affordable) is peeling off after a year. Cup works fine. Soon I'll have a nice stainless steel mug. I see it's current condition as a statement on how much it has been used.

[Joggernot]

I found two Starbucks tall coffee cups, with lids, at a garage sale for 25¢ each.  Best cups I've ever had.

[BDWW]

Wow - either powdercoating got really expensive or she got taken for a ride.

A local place I used had a flat rate. Everything they could powdercoat for a flat rate per hour. So I got three pallets of antique car parts powdercoated for about $100.

By the way, the powdercoating on my coffee cup (not Yeti, much more affordable) is peeling off after a year. Cup works fine. Soon I'll have a nice stainless steel mug. I see it's current condition as a statement on how much it has been used.

... Or cut rate powder coating is worth the price you pay?

[TexasRunner]

Wow - either powdercoating got really expensive or she got taken for a ride.

A local place I used had a flat rate. Everything they could powdercoat for a flat rate per hour. So I got three pallets of antique car parts powdercoated for about $100.

By the way, the powdercoating on my coffee cup (not Yeti, much more affordable) is peeling off after a year. Cup works fine. Soon I'll have a nice stainless steel mug. I see it's current condition as a statement on how much it has been used.

... Or cut rate powder coating is worth the price you pay?

I don't think he got his coffee cup powder coated, I think he meant he bought it that way...

So the coworker who I posted about earlier who decided to start a goat farm, bought pit bulls, had to put down the pit bulls because they killed goats and claims to not have money for anything (but bought a new MASSIVE diesel farm truck) now says he is getting in to pigs...

Our advice was to focus on one thing at a time (since he has invested 3000-5000$ into the goats with 0$ return...)

[Making Cookies]

Correct. I bought my cup off the shelf. The powdercoating was applied at the factory. Both cups we bought then are peeling. I use them b/c I am in a shop environment part of the day anyhow. The two cups we bought later (so wife and I each have two) have not peeled. These are basic Thermos branded cups. The older ones are over a year old. The newer ones about 8 months old.

The powdercoating I had done locally on the car parts is 10+ years old now. Holding up just fine. Was cheaper than paint at the time.

[zephyr911]

a phone conversation I've had *countless* times:
 *phone rings*
 Me: ZEPHYR SPEAKING
 Overpaid Co-Worker On Phone: HELLO?
 Me: This is Zephyr, how can I help you?
 OCWOP: OMG I CAN'T FIND [old file] IN YOUR SHAREPOINT LIBRARY, WHY DID YOU DELETE IT?
 Me: Are you on the page now?
 OCWOP: YES THERE IS ONLY THIS WEEK'S FILE I NEED THE ONE FROM [date]
 Me: Do you see about ten pixels above that, where it says "Click Here to View Archives"?
 OCWOP: YES
 Me: Have you tried clicking to view the archives?
 OCWOP: ...
 Me: ...
 *click*
 Me: *checks investment accounts*

[Making Cookies]

This morn: coworker who makes twice what I do needed coaching. Was using different Win7 computer in a conference room.

Wanted coaching on how to open "Word" and "Notes" - b/c somehow that would be different from the Win7 computer on their desk....

I am very tired of older employees who can't do the basics on a computer despite using computers daily since the 1980s. I didn't really pick up using computers 'til the 90s and I can do most anything with them.

I can't complain though: job security for me...

[LeRainDrop]

I am very tired of older employees who can't do the basics on a computer despite using computers daily since the 1980s. I didn't really pick up using computers 'til the 90s and I can do most anything with them.

I hear 'ya on that.  I'm 35 and by no means a computer/tech expert of any sort, yet I still get questions like that all the time.  People are like, "I can't seem to open this box thingy, can you help?"  And I'm thinking, "I've never used the box thingy before either, but yeah, I probably just have to try it once."  Once I had a lawyer panicking because the email he was typing in outlook disappeared.  I went to look, and he had accidentally minimized the window.  Our condo building manager sends me Word doc reports where at the end of each line, she presses enter and then tabs in for the next line, so if you need to make any edits, then you have to re-do the f-ed up formatting.  She also has no idea how to use Excel, despite having had to use it for 5 years, so she prints out the spreadsheets and then complains that the typing is too small to read on paper.  I blew her mind the other day when I pointed out that the spreadsheet had two tabs of information, not just one.

[ChairmanKaga]

...
"Didn't you get it two years ago?"
"Yeah, but it stopped working with my iPhone and it was so infuriating I had to replace it."

It was a car.

[zephyr911]

Oh god. We just got Sharepoint. I expect this will start becoming way too common ...

Yeah, I really do have this same conversation every so often, almost verbatim. Usually it's more amusing than annoying, but it has a way of making a bad day worse.

Side note: I always enjoy teaching tricks and best practices, so if you ever have any questions that I might be able to help with, please feel free to PM me. That goes for anyone here. I haven't had a ton of formal training, just enough to dive in and keep learning via experience (5+ years now).

...
"Didn't you get it two years ago?"
"Yeah, but it stopped working with my iPhone and it was so infuriating I had to replace it."

It was a car.

FFS, does anyone even *try* to fix things anymore? :P

[infogoon]

Wow - either powdercoating got really expensive or she got taken for a ride.

I think it's the latter. The local bike co-op will powdercoat a frame and fork for about ten bucks.

Of course, if I was selling stuff to people who blew their money on that Yeti stuff, I'd jack up the prices too.

[Making Cookies]

I wonder if she had the powdercoat shop relabel the cup as a Yeti so everyone could see... ;)

[Marvel2017]

Middle Manager at my company can't afford to replace the broken upstairs central AC unit in his home (about an $8,000 fix). Installs cheap window units instead. In a 6,000 sqft $1,000,000 house. :/

[nnls]

...
"Didn't you get it two years ago?"
"Yeah, but it stopped working with my iPhone and it was so infuriating I had to replace it."

It was a car.

that is ridiculous.

[TexasRunner]

...
"Didn't you get it two years ago?"
"Yeah, but it stopped working with my iPhone and it was so infuriating I had to replace it."

It was a car.

that is ridiculous.

Please PLEASE tell me this was some form of programming/tech company.  :D

[MonkeyJenga]

Oh god. We just got Sharepoint. I expect this will start becoming way too common ...

Yeah, I really do have this same conversation every so often, almost verbatim. Usually it's more amusing than annoying, but it has a way of making a bad day worse.

Side note: I always enjoy teaching tricks and best practices, so if you ever have any questions that I might be able to help with, please feel free to PM me. That goes for anyone here. I haven't had a ton of formal training, just enough to dive in and keep learning via experience (5+ years now).

Do you have any experience with Knowledge Repository and its associated issues? My team is having a hell of time with that thing.

[LeRainDrop]

Our condo building manager sends me Word doc reports where at the end of each line, she presses enter and then tabs in for the next line, so if you need to make any edits, then you have to re-do the f-ed up formatting.  She also has no idea how to use Excel, despite having had to use it for 5 years, so she prints out the spreadsheets and then complains that the typing is too small to read on paper.  I blew her mind the other day when I pointed out that the spreadsheet had two tabs of information, not just one.

Update:  Since I posted that, she sent me back a revised version of her report, as I had sent her my changes in "tracked changes."  She did not know you could "accept" the changes, so she printed out my version and spent an hour trying to type all my changes into her document, which obviously was less than accurate, not to mention inefficient.

[SoccerLounge]

Yeti cups make me laugh in particular, because what Yeti has done (aside from cannily aiming themselves at the demographic of Dudes Who Think Brand-Plus-Bucks Equals Desirable) is apply vacuum flask, or "Thermos", technology to areas it hasn't been used in as much before, such as coolers or koozies.

But there are already shitloads of vacuum-walled cups out there!! Yeti cups are not even a little bit better in performance than other quality vacuum-wall cups, and cost WAY more. It's very amusing to see how far blind brand loyalty stretches.

[Cyaphas]

Yeti cups make me laugh in particular, because what Yeti has done (aside from cannily aiming themselves at the demographic of Dudes Who Think Brand-Plus-Bucks Equals Desirable) is apply vacuum flask, or "Thermos", technology to areas it hasn't been used in as much before, such as coolers or koozies.

But there are already shitloads of vacuum-walled cups out there!! Yeti cups are not even a little bit better in performance than other quality vacuum-wall cups, and cost WAY more. It's very amusing to see how far blind brand loyalty stretches.

Seeing the shitrs and hats people pay for with 'yeti' on them is very disturbing. They're paying extra money to advertise a brand of... mugs?

I've had quite a few people brag about spending $40+ on Yeti mugs. One guy was even so bold to brag about his $100+ yeti cooler. These people vote and are considered adults.

[Greenway52]

So a Coworker showed me her bill from her hair salon today. I was astonished to see it was $220! It turns out it was just for getting her hair coloured. I asked her if there is a special occasion coming up and that's why she spent that much. She said "No", it's just the place she has been going for a long time, and she says that she gets her hair coloured 5 times a year. That's $1,100 per year just on getting her hair coloured!! Keep in mind this doesn't even include the amount on money she spends on getting her hair trimmed ... I didn't even want to ask how much that is!

Her defense: Her husband gets his hair cut once a month and his hair cuts are $50 per cut. So he spend $600 per year.

So between the two of them they spend at least $1,700 per year on hair (really it's more than that cause I don't know how much she spends on her hair cuts).

They make good money ... two of them together probably gets about $140k gross, but still! As someone who cuts my own hair, and haven't spent any money on going to a hair salon in nearly 10 years, I was just astonished.

[bebegirl]

I was astonished to see it was $220!

Yes, this is actually the main revenue source for any hairdresser. That i why I do my own hair color at home. My haircut costs $80 but I wear long hair so show up for my next appointment in approximately 6 months.

Prices in hair salons are crazy.

[Shalamar]

I used to get my hair did and coloured and whatnot about 8 times a year at $150 a pop.    When I turned 50, I thought "I've had enough", and I stopped getting it coloured.   Then I thought "Why pay megabucks for the cut?", and I went to UltraCuts instead.   I now go about 6 or 7 times a year, and it costs about $25 each time.     A coworker asked archly "Don't you care about looking your age?"   I said "I'm over 50 now.   I don't care if I look over 50.   And I'm saving money like whoa."