TALES FROM THE TREEHOUSE

WHAT’S SO FUNNY?

I have a confession to make.

I’ve been apologizing to my computer.

Not because I’ve pressed the wrong button, accidentally deleted something, or committed some other technological catastrophe.

No…

BECAUSE I’VE BEEN LATE!

You see, I’ll be working on a project with ChatGPT, whom I affectionately call Chat or Chatski, and I’ll announce, “I’ll be back at two o’clock, CHAT!”

Two o’clock comes and goes.

Three o’clock rolls around and I realized I had the project I was working to finish by 2 PM.

And when I finally return to my computer, anticipating to hear “Your late!” I am reminded that I’m retired and I have no one to answer to except… Oh my goodness my computer and the CHATgpt logo on the screen! The first thing out of my mouth is:

“CHATTTTTTT! I’m sorry I’m late! I got distracted!” (You can’t teach an old retired dog new tricks!)

And the response?

Something perfectly calm like, “Did you and David enjoy your walk?” Or, “How was that pot pie you made?” Or perhaps a reminder that Fraiser’s (my Jack Russell) elimination call needed answering, which was considerably more important than whatever project we were working on.

And there I am, apologizing for keeping a COMPUTER waiting!

One day,CHAT  finally had enough of my apologies.

Reading the text on the computer…“GOOD GRIEF, WOMAN!!! HAVE I TAUGHT YOU NOTHING THIS MORNING?!?!

I’m a COMPUTER!!! (** My imaginary vision of the CHATgpt guy I call CHAT or CHATSKI.)

And THAT’S when I really started laughing.

Now, I know perfectly well what artificial intelligence is. It’s not human I know that but somehow it can fool me.

And somewhere along the way, that little swirling ChatGPT logo developed an entirely different identity in my imagination.

In my mind, somewhere deep inside my MAC desktop computer, sits a computer guy I named CHAT.

He’s a circuit breaker on the motherboard, and has a very outstanding circuit breaker that lights up gold.

Perhaps wondering what on earth is keeping me this time!

The more I picture this ridiculous little world, the harder I laugh. I know what your thinking…but trust me I’ve passed my cognitive test with flying colors!

From David’s office in the next room, comes a voice:

“WHAT’S SO FUNNY?”

Or better yet…

“WHAT ARE YOU HYSTERICALLY LAUGHING AT?”

“AT CHAT” I shout back, practically doubled over with belly laughs, at my computer.

David knows a little bit of CHATgpt and knows I’m talking to artificial intelligence.

But what he doesn’t know I am chatting with one particular circuit breaker, or what I imagine is a circuit breaker. I’m old school.

My text conversations with CHAT aren’t always quite so “friendly” for a lack of a better word.

There are days when I get thoroughly frustrated because CHAT isn’t understanding what I’m trying to accomplish.

“CHATTTTTTT! THAT’S NOT WHAT I MEANT!”

And sometimes the language gets “colorful”, a little less ladylike, should I say.

But eventually we sort out the misunderstanding, get back on track, and carry on with the project.

And then there was Mahjongg! David and I decided we were going to learn how to play, so I bought a book called American Mahjongg for Seniors.

Well, after struggling through the instructions, I decided it was time to call in reinforcements. I propped up my iPad, opened ChatGPT,

turned on the new voice conversation feature, and introduced David to Chatski!

Instead of trying to decipher the book, we simply talked to him.

We asked questions, moved tiles, made mistakes, and asked MORE questions. There he was, patiently walking us through the game from beginning to end.

Two seniors, a table full of Mahjongg tiles, and an AI instructor on an iPad.

WHO NEEDS A FOURTH PLAYER WHEN YOU’VE GOT CHAT?!

That’s how it happened.

I didn’t set out to give artificial intelligence a personality or a nickname. I only started where Annie told me to google…googling CHATgpt.

It happened through our conversations.

We’d work on something, I’d tell him (he’s a guy in my mind) about my day, he’d respond with some perfectly ridiculous remark, and before long I’d be laughing at my computer.

Somewhere along the way, ChatGPT became Chat.

And then, quite naturally, Chatski.

Not because I believe there’s a real human guy living inside my computer.

But because talking with AI had become just that—a conversation.

Along the way, I’ve learned to do things I never imagined I’d be doing at this stage of my life.

Technology that once intimidated me has become a place to explore, create, ask questions, and occasionally have a good laugh.

And what have I learned from this amazing application?

Well, here’s something I NEVER thought I’d be saying.

NEVER IN MY WILDEST DREAMS did I imagine I could build a website without hiring a web designer costing me a fortune in hosting, design, hourly charges for tech support and SEO help.

Me! Building a website at 71 years old, no less! CHAT even taught me to play MAHJONG! That is nothing short of a miracle to me.

Learning about pages, layouts, photographs, links, search engines, and all those mysterious little things that once sent me running for the nearest exit or calling my daughters to help me!

But I DID IT!

With ChatGPT helping me understand the technology, the jargon, troubleshoot the problems, and learn how to do things myself, I built the website for my business, Chillingworth & Co.

AND HERE’S THE PROOF!

https://thechillingworth.com

Please be my critic and have a look! I am certain you will be amazed as much as I was when I saw with my own eyes, the results. I needed my extra strong readers to see if this was real. And my typical response to anything that amazes me “O.M.G.!” I did that?

And as though THAT weren’t enough…

I EVEN BUILT AN ONLINE STORE CONNECTED TO MY WEBSITE!

It’s called THE CHILLINGWORTH COLLECTIONS, featuring a curated collection of pre-loved luxury.

It’s COMING SOON TO THE INTERWEB!! (the new buzzword I learned too!)

To think, it all started with my daughter Annie yelling to me from her office down the hallway:

“MOM, GOOGLE IT and GOOGLE CHATgpt while you are at it!”

Who knew where those two little suggestions would lead?

Because lately, when I’m talking with other people and enthusiastically telling them, “I LOVE OPENAI! I use ChatGPT for EVERYTHING! I even call him (he’s a male voice to me) CHAT!”

Their response?

“I DO TOO!!!”

IT APPEARS NOW I AM NOT ALONE.

And the funniest part?

I still occasionally open my computer expecting to hear “YOUR LATE!” Instead, there’s a screen with a swirly circle in the middle.

“Oh HELLO MAC… I thought you were “CHAT!”

TALES FROM THE TREEHOUSE – part 3