Steve DeGroof

@stevedegroof

Approximately 60% water and 40% organic molecules, arranged in a configuration that is, among other things, capable of describing itself in this manner. (he/him)

116 Folgt222 Follower5.679 Posts

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Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· 26d

WARNING: The following image contains Taco Bell foodstuffs.

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· 27d

July 16, 2026 131 points • No mistakes 🌟🟨🟨 🌟🟦🟦 🌟🟩🟩 🌟🟪🟪 4x3.fun #fourbythree

July 16, 2026
131 points • No mistakes
🌟🟨🟨
🌟🟦🟦
🌟🟩🟩
🌟🟪🟪
https://4x3.fun

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· 28d

July 15, 2026 165 points • No mistakes 🌟🟦🟦 🌟🟪🟪 🌟🟩🟩 🌟🟨🟨 4x3.fun #fourbythree

July 15, 2026
165 points • No mistakes
🌟🟦🟦
🌟🟪🟪
🌟🟩🟩
🌟🟨🟨
https://4x3.fun
#fourbythree

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· Jul 13

They do realize that they're trotting this out in front of generations of people who grew up on Highlights Magazine's "What's Wrong" puzzles, right?

Screenshot of Mitch McConnell and Elaine Chao. Mr. McConnell is holding today's Washington Post sports section. Three red circles highlight possible errors:
- Ms. Chao appears to have more than the usual number of tendons in her wrist, and they seem to veer off to one side as they approach Mr. McConnell's elbow
- Mr. McConnell's right hand appears to be missing the tip of its middle finger, and the newspaper below it is severely blurred.
- The column that should have the heading "Noskova claims title in all-Czech showdown" is distorted beyond readability.

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· Jul 12

Spherical Cows

A white beachball and a large black marker are at the top of the image, separated by a plus sign. Below these is an equals sign. Below this are three white beachballs with markings on them so that they resemble Holstein cattle.

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· Jul 9

I spoke to Mitch McConnell this morning for about 20 minutes. It went OK for a while but, about 15 minutes in, he started calling himself MechaHitler. I'm guessing that's a side effect of the pain meds.

A Grok Business interface altered to say "ChatGOP" instead of "Grok"

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· Jul 8

Periodic reminder that all my #books can be downloaded DRM-free from Ko-Fi. ko-fi.com/treelobsters... #SFF #Writingcommunity

Prime Oddities

Hack – Elliot is having a very unsatisfactory customer experience with a robotaxi.
Wardwell’s Pond – It’s just a duck pond, except something scared away all the ducks.
5x5 – Government-mandated ennui.
It’s Always Ten O’Clock Somewhere – Four people gather to discuss their memories of a past that never happened.
Cog – Cog broke Asimov’s first law, and one or two other things.
The Talking Machine – There’s something not quite right with Grandma Aggie’s old victrola.
Dead Trees – Marin’s books speak to her, usually in her nightmares.
Anything You Can Imagine – The residents of Gaia were perfectly safe, as long as their thoughts didn’t wander to far off-track.
By The People – After the rebellion, every person had an equal say in the legislative process, depending on your definition of “person”.
All In Your Head – Isaac has a great life, except for that persistent noise.
Wilkins – Wilkins was the perfect butler, right up until the most recent software update.
Destination – Weldon decides to take his new time machine for a spin, and ends up right at the K-T boundary.
Whither, Whence and Wherefore – Cindy adopts three kittens. Or possibly just one, depending on your point of view.

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· Jul 6

This one was just a tiny bit confusing... "I wasn't expecting all aliens." - for a collection of short stories that had the following description.

Scatter Plot
Steve DeGroof
A Hole in the Sky - Things are looking up... with telescopes.
Book Keepers - Librarians rule! No, seriously, they rule.
Batterie de Cuisine - Aliens would like to have humans for dinner.
Cat Flap - The problems involved in living with a hyperdimensional cat.
Invasive Species - Alien brain parasites have invaded. No one's above suspicion.
Feedback Loop - The robots killed us all off, then felt a bit bad about it.
Contact Paper - Flying saucer? How cliche!
Magic Markers - You can do magic? Expect a visit from the Feds.
Relation Ship - A mining operation quickly turns into something else entirely.
Character Study - Are we living in a simulation? Flip a coin.

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· Jun 28

I remember being at a wedding reception many years ago, where they served chilled sparkling muscadine. Tasted just like Grape Nehi. I'm guessing the monster stuff tastes quite similar and is just as purple.

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· Jun 26

No idea where this is going. Hope it's somewhere fun. #WIP #AmWriting

“Your Grace!” Elder Sinclair shouted, bursting into Matriarch Griselda III’s Contemplation Chambers.
He hadn’t even bothered to knock.
“Sinclair,” Griselda admonished. “I gave explicit instructions not to be disturbed. I’m in the middle of putting the finishing touches on the coronation speech.”
She had, in fact been doing a crossword puzzle. She’d polished off the speech several days ago, but it was such a good excuse to avoid being pestered, she hated to let it go. Besides, it was the New Kippax Times Sunday crossword, and therefore required quite a bit of concentration.
“Yes, Your Grace,” Sinclair said, shuffling his feet and wringing his hands. “My apologies for intruding. However, there is a problem with the coronation.”
“Oh, is there?” Griselda gasped. “What is it this time? Is one of the emeralds on the crown a bit loose? Are the commemorative paper napkins not quite the correct shade of royal blue? Or maybe it’s that one of the decorative — and completely non-functional, I might add — wheels on the Royal Hovercart has developed a slight wobble? Let me know if I’m getting close.”
The earnestness of Sinclair’s shuffling and wringing increased significantly.
“Well, the thing is, Your Grace,” he stammered. “We tested Prince Malcolm’s DNA in order to determine his exact lineage. This is usually just a formality, of course, and…”
“Yes, I know all this,” Griselda snapped. “A complete waste of time, if you ask me. I baptized Prince Malcolm. I’ve his parents. I buried his mother just last…”
She paused.
“What do you mean, ‘usually just a formality’, exactly?” she asked. “Is he… not King Basil’s son?”
“He is not,” Sinclair admitted. “He is also not Queen Stacy’s son. In fact, he appears to be completely devoid of any royal blood whatsoever.”
“What, none?” Griselda pressed. “How is that even possible? Everyone has at least one royal in their family tree. Usually King Chad the Fifth. Notorious philanderer, I’m told. He’s both my great-great-great-great-great-g

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· Jun 26

hankgreen.com/fourbythree #fourbythree

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· Jun 24

Not sure which one of these I like better.

Two responses to "A fifth of Leave voters have died":
- "Welp, they left"
- "Technically, they're Remains now."

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· Jun 24

Once or twice.

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· Jun 24

JUST IN: Money Incinerator Could Run Out Of Money If Not Given More Money

JUST IN: Anthropic CEO says AI companies need hundreds of billions in revenue, or they'll go bankrupt.

Headline is accompanied by 2 images: one presumably of the Anthropic CEO, one of a crudely-drawn asshole. Seems a bit redundant, IMO.

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· Jun 22

Tried out my ingredients scanner in the wild today, and it correctly flagged lentils as potentially high #FODMAP. The web app is located here, if you want to try it out. degroof.github.io/fodmapscanne... (works best on a mobile device)

A FODMAP ingredient scanner, with an image of the side of a box of crackers in it. The ingredients list has been selected, and the app has flagged "lentil" as a potentially significant keyword.

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· Jun 16

Cat Food Bag Cat wants you to know that he's not angry; he's just disappointed. #cats

A bag of 11+ senior cat food, with a picture of very disappointed-looking cat on the front.

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· Jun 14

Which Rocky are you?

Rocket "Rocky" J. Squirrel, Rocky Balboa
Rocky (Frank N. Furter's creature), Rocky the alien

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· Jun 8

"Claude" is the new "Spam".

Still from Monty Python "Spam" sketch, with the caption "CLAUDE, CLAUDE, CLAUDE, CLAUDE, CLAUDE, CLAUDE, BAKED BEANS..."

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· Jun 3

The solver app I wrote indicates there are 144 possible solutions for today's puzzle. I looked at a few of them and, yeah, you'd need to be a Scrabble wizard to come up with some of those words. 😆

A FiveByFive solver app with the tile letters INGRAONERMICTERTFOANA entered. There's a progress bar that indicates 144 solutions found. There's also a scrollable text area with a list of solutions. The text has been blurred out.

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· Jun 2

I wrote a thing to solve #FiveByFive, and entered the letters for today's puzzle. It (eventually) came up with 850 solutions using the 5-word dictionary that the game checks against. It took a really long time to run, though. I definitely need to come up with a better algorithm.

A screenshot of a FiveByFive solver. A text entry field contains the letters "ESAIAIGRNEUYESTVMNVRL". Below that is a green "Solve" button. Below that is a text area that contains the text "850 solutions found.", followed by a list of valid solutions (which are blurred out).

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· Jun 1

A 2×2 grid with columns labeled "Claiming to Predict" and "Claiming to Cause Stuff", and rows labeled "Actually Causing Stuff" and "Actually Predicting Stuff". The four cells contain the text "market manipulation", engineering", "science" and "that thing where you travel back in time and just happen to have solar eclipse table on you".

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· May 29

I've added a parameter to #FiveByFive, so now you can get a random game to practice on. There are tens of thousands to choose from. Just tack on "?random=1" to the base URL, like this: degroof.github.io/fivebyfive.h... #WordGames #PuzzleGames

A word puzzle game with a 5x5 grid. The first, third and fifth rows are populated with "state", "apple" and "exact". The first, third and fifth columns are populated with "slace", "a pha" and "event". All letter tiles are green except the "l" and "a" in "slace", which are red, and the "h" in "a pha", which is white. There is a rack of 21 spaces below the grid that contains the letter "l". Below that are two buttons: "give up" and "hint".

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· May 27

Looks like somebody at NASA cribbed off of "Space: 1999" To be fair, at the time, "Space: 1999" cribbed off of NASA. gizmodo.com/nasa-unveils...

Eagle transporter landing at Moonbase Alpha on "Space: 1999".

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· May 25

Stacy's mom has got a Robotron

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· May 23

"Star Trek: The Next Generation" title card with the text "First Contact Fuck-Up"

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· May 22

I just googled the word "disregard", and the 3rd hit was an article saying you can no longer google the word "disregard". To be fair, my default search engine settings are a bit different

Google results for "disregard", showing the definitions from "Merriam-Webster and Cambridge, followed by a TechCrunch article with the headline "You can no longer Google the word 'disregard'".

A Chrome search engine settings dialog, with the URL for the search engine set to "{google:baseURL}search?q=%s&udm=14".

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· May 19

Pick a Bond villain from the photos you already have on your phone

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· May 12

A picture of Ceres, with the text "Ceres, Demoted from planethood before it was cool"

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· May 12

Are we sure this isn't one of those creepy face images that looks like a completely different creepy face when you turn it upside down?

Rob Schneider and a drawing of a clean-shaven face with a smile and a full head of hair.

Rob Schneider upside down and the same drawing rotated 360° so that it's now a bald-headed face with a frown and a beard.

Steve DeGroof@stevedegroof· May 9

Nice! I wouldn't've expected that. I tried today's Ablatonyms on Gemini, Copilot and ChatGPT, using this text prompt. Gemini (thinking mode) and Copilot both solved it. ChatGPT didn't.