Category: Thoughts on Life

I’m usually proud to be an attorney, but when I see something like the product below having a warning that it contains nuts, I’m pretty sure one of my professional colleagues was involved.

More often lately, I’m finding that I need to shield myself from people’s social media posts in order to remain friends with them in real life.

ChatGPT is the 2025 version of Ask Jeeves.

I’m almost done doing my taxes, and I think I’m going to end up owing $7. If this were the Price is Right, wouldn’t I get some sort of bonus prize for being closest to the actual price without going over?

I was never a big fan of broccoli when I was younger, but Chinese food taught me to love it. As long as it’s not mushy.

Without tribal politics, 90% of the things we’re supposed to be upset about would be properly met with a shrug.

Dear Every Web Site that Exists on the Planet,

No, you may not send me notifications. Ever. About anything. I’ve got this.

Yours Truly,

Bryan

It just occurred to me that, given how little cash I use these days, I might never fill my piggy bank again.

I’ve noticed that shopping cart etiquette varies a good bit in the different places I’ve lived. In New Jersey, people just leave the carts wherever. Next to their cars, in empty parking spaces, inside the shop next door, wherever’s most convenient and doesn’t require an ounce of extra effort. In Maryland and New Hampshire, people generally bring the cart back to the stall where you are supposed to return them. The jumble of carts can be a little chaotic but it works.

Pittsburgh is the only place I’ve lived where people not only return the carts to the stall, but properly organize them as necessary. People who don’t even work there will collect carts from the parking lot, and then re-pack the different types of carts in the stall as necessary to make things a little easier for whoever has to return them to the store. I’ll always love Pittsburgh.

As I go through today’s mail, it amazes me how much banks and insurance companies must spend on trying to get us to switch. Maybe it’s just me, but I’ve been with the same bank for almost a decade, and the same insurance company for a few years with no intent of switching. But my physical mailbox at this point seems like it’s nothing but letters from Progressive and Chase trying to convince me to change over. Do these actually work on anyone?

There’s one thing that could get me to switch. If someone whispered to me that there was an insurance company that did not spend millions of dollars on ads, but just laid low and put all that money into paying claims and lowering premiums, I’d pay attention.