Random Thanksgiving/Christmas/New Years/Year End Thoughts (2025)

[ZLoth]

[Molandfreak]

If Santa gives someone money or gift cards, are those counterfeit?

[Max Rockatansky]

Why can't Santa's shelf-based surveillance drones move when directly observed?  How much data are they actually reporting back to the North Pole?...where is it stored?

[bandit957]

One time when I was a high school freshman, a classmate chewed a stick of gum he found behind the radiator.

[Scott5114]

Why can't Santa's shelf-based surveillance drones move when directly observed?

It's elf on the shelf, not PTZ on the shelf.

[Max Rockatansky]

Why can't Santa's shelf-based surveillance drones move when directly observed?

It's elf on the shelf, not PTZ on the shelf.

Now you got me wondering if we are the only two people on the forum that know what a PTZ is?

[vdeane]

Why can't Santa's shelf-based surveillance drones move when directly observed?

It's elf on the shelf, not PTZ on the shelf.

Now you got me wondering if we are the only two people on the forum that know what a PTZ is?

Pacific time zone?  Polite train zone?  Potential tiger zoology?

[Max Rockatansky]

Why can't Santa's shelf-based surveillance drones move when directly observed?

It's elf on the shelf, not PTZ on the shelf.

Now you got me wondering if we are the only two people on the forum that know what a PTZ is?

Pacific time zone?  Polite train zone?  Potential tiger zoology?

Pan, Tilt, Zoom

Basically a type of surveillance camera which moves around.

[Scott5114]

Why can't Santa's shelf-based surveillance drones move when directly observed?

It's elf on the shelf, not PTZ on the shelf.

Now you got me wondering if we are the only two people on the forum that know what a PTZ is?

Pacific time zone?  Polite train zone?  Potential tiger zoology?

Pan, Tilt, Zoom

Basically a type of surveillance camera which moves around.

I'm sure my wife would enjoy trying potential tiger zoology on people cheating at blackjack, though.

[JayhawkCO]

My favorite board game YouTube channel has two PTZs.

[Henry]

I've always been amazed at how many of these holiday movies are set in Chicago, like Planes, Trains & Automobiles, National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, the Home Alone series (although most of the second film took place in New York), Christmas with the Kranks, and Fred Claus. As it is, I'm proud that my hometown is the most popular place to be at this time of the year, as far as Hollywood is concerned.

[Max Rockatansky]

I've always been amazed at how many of these holiday movies are set in Chicago, like Planes, Trains & Automobiles, National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, the Home Alone series (although most of the second film took place in New York), Christmas with the Kranks, and Fred Claus. As it is, I'm proud that my hometown is the most popular place to be at this time of the year, as far as Hollywood is concerned.

A surprising amount of Planes, Trains & Automobiles is shot in/around Lemoore, California.  I was just on the segment of CA 198 that was in the "wrong way" scene.  The Kings Rest on CA 41 was the motel from the movie.

[Max Rockatansky]

My wife loves the Santa Clause movies, but I find them to be incredibly strange.  These are the core themes which I see in the films:

Santa Clause 1:  Murder and body horror.
Santa Clause 2:  The evils of artificial intelligence and marrying for the greater good.
Sante Clause 3:  Time travel and the excesses of commercialization.

I'm not really sure what was going on with the TV show.  I left mostly wondering why Scott Calvin has forsaken Charlie.

[GaryV]

I've always been amazed at how many of these holiday movies are set in Chicago

You need to watch a Hallmark movie. It might start in Chicago, NY, LA, Seattle, wherever. But it soon transitions to a little town where the heroine can meet her hero (or vice versa). And to get to this small hometown, they never take an Interstate - it's always some scenic backroad.

[ZLoth]

I've always been amazed at how many of these holiday movies are set in Chicago

You need to watch a Hallmark movie. It might start in Chicago, NY, LA, Seattle, wherever. But it soon transitions to a little town where the heroine can meet her hero (or vice versa). And to get to this small hometown, they never take an Interstate - it's always some scenic backroad.

I swear, those Hallmark movies have a standard plot template with several plot variations planted throughout to make each movie unique.

[ZLoth]

[Max Rockatansky]

I've always been amazed at how many of these holiday movies are set in Chicago

You need to watch a Hallmark movie. It might start in Chicago, NY, LA, Seattle, wherever. But it soon transitions to a little town where the heroine can meet her hero (or vice versa). And to get to this small hometown, they never take an Interstate - it's always some scenic backroad.

I swear, those Hallmark movies have a standard plot template with several plot variations planted throughout to make each movie unique.

They are all pretty much the exact same story with few exceptions.  My wife and mother in law are big on watching the holiday themed movies.  About most interesting variation I saw was when Lifetime went batshit crazy and plugged Colonel Sanders into the formula:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Recipe_for_Seduction

[Scott5114]

I've always been amazed at how many of these holiday movies are set in Chicago, like Planes, Trains & Automobiles, National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, the Home Alone series (although most of the second film took place in New York), Christmas with the Kranks, and Fred Claus. As it is, I'm proud that my hometown is the most popular place to be at this time of the year, as far as Hollywood is concerned.

It's even weirder when you spend most of your life living in a place nobody cares about, then move to a place like Chicago everybody knows. We were out to dinner tonight and on the TVs they were showing a UFC fight that was being staged on the Strip. It was sort of weird knowing that we had driven right past it on the way there. I pointed out to my wife that the let's-get-ready-to-rumble guy in the dorky red coat has probably gotten stuck at the same red lights she has at some point.

[thenetwork]

Going to Australia and New Zealand in the week or two leading up to Christmas is on my bucket list.   I want to experience the holiday season and traditions down under when it's practically summertime weather.

[Rothman]

Going to Australia and New Zealand in the week or two leading up to Christmas is on my bucket list.   I want to experience the holiday season and traditions down under when it's practically summertime weather.

Heh.  Just was in a car with a New Zealander this morning.  She said they just go to the beach and have barbecue.

[ZLoth]

Going to Australia and New Zealand in the week or two leading up to Christmas is on my bucket list.   I want to experience the holiday season and traditions down under when it's practically summertime weather.

I'll one-up you. Christmas on Christmas Island.

[ZLoth]

[JayhawkCO]

Going to Australia and New Zealand in the week or two leading up to Christmas is on my bucket list.  I want to experience the holiday season and traditions down under when it's practically summertime weather.

I'll one-up you. Christmas on Christmas Island.

I'll one-up you. Christmas on the more exotic Christmas Island.

[wanderer2575]

I've always been amazed at how many of these holiday movies are set in Chicago

You need to watch a Hallmark movie. It might start in Chicago, NY, LA, Seattle, wherever. But it soon transitions to a little town where the heroine can meet her hero (or vice versa). And to get to this small hometown, they never take an Interstate - it's always some scenic backroad.

I swear, those Hallmark movies have a standard plot template with several plot variations planted throughout to make each movie unique.

[catch22]

I've always been amazed at how many of these holiday movies are set in Chicago

You need to watch a Hallmark movie. It might start in Chicago, NY, LA, Seattle, wherever. But it soon transitions to a little town where the heroine can meet her hero (or vice versa). And to get to this small hometown, they never take an Interstate - it's always some scenic backroad.