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So apparently, I got a new thermostat recently.  I didn’t know about it, but I didn’t opt out

Wow.  Talk about biting the hand that feeds you.  You know this Blag is hosted on The Google, right?  

Well, yes.  But I assume the fine, upstanding folks at The Google will understand a little comedy and satire.  Especially when everything I say on this Blag is 100% truth at all times.

Maybe only 83% of the time.

Either way...this is true.  

So you may be aware that there has been a "smart" thermostat on the market for a little while called "Nest."  It supposedly learns your schedule and the weather and stuff, making smarter decisions on heating your home which supposedly saves you money over the long run.  I'm okay with the concept, but never really wanted to make the initial investment to buy the thing...it's pretty expensive, and I already have a programmable thermostat in my house, so I didn't really see the need.  I used a very passive method of not having a new thermostat.  

Historically, I also used a very passive method of not having a new social media outlet in that I never signed up for Google Plus.  It's like Facebook for people who don't like Facebook...especially the whole part about social interaction, because Nobody Uses Google Plus.  Turns out, this tacit rejection was not an effective enough method, apparently.  At some point, Google went and signed everybody up for Google Plus who had a gmail email address.  Since this Blag is on The Google, it has a gmail address...and subsequently, a Google Plus account.  I've never seen it.  Lately, The Google has been taking a lot of guff for a certain privacy setting built into Google Plus that lets anybody send you an email to your gmail account through your Google Plus page, regardless of whether or not they know you.  It's a bit of a Spamming loophole, and people on the Internets are freaking out over it.  Of course, the setting to disable this practice is available, but you have to log into your Google Plus page to disable it.  Your personal information is 100% public unless you specifically tell a social media outlet you didn't know you had that you don't want it telling everybody your personal information.  Super.  

I told you that story so I can tell you this joke.  The Google recently bought the company that produces the aforementioned "Nest" home thermostat.  So you now have one, whether you know it or not.  If you don't want it, you can log into the thing and opt out of the service, but you probably don't know how.  Good luck, suckers!