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Are the bad things causally related?

Is there one person that was involved in all three bad things? In two of them? Multiple people that were involved in multiple bad things?

Do the bad things all happen in the same: century? decade? year? month? day?

Bad things = injury/death? Financial loss? Emotional trauma? Mundane inconveniences?

Would the fourth bad thing have been worse than the first two?

Are the bad things causally related? Yope.

Is there one person that was involved in all three bad things? In two of them? This is closest. Multiple people that were involved in multiple bad things? Noish.

Do the bad things all happen in the same: century? decade? year? month? This. day?

Bad things = injury/death? Financial loss? Emotional trauma? Mundane inconveniences? This.

Would the fourth bad thing have been worse than the first two? Yope.

So, if bad thing 1 and thing 2 had not happened, thing 4 would have happened, but it didn't? Might 4 have happened if only one of the first two had occurred? Did thing 1 cause thing 2? Did thing 2 cause thing 3? Did thing 1 cause thing 3?

Did thing 1 and thing 2 happen to the same person? Was one of the things on a bigger scale/more general, so it did not involve just one person?

Is technology involved in 1? 2? 3? Did something break/stop working? Or multiple things?

Could any of the things be said to be someone's fault? If 1 and 2 had not happened, would it cause someone to take an action leading to 4?

Does this involve a workplace situation?

A historical story? A military one?

Did the two bad things cause changes to be made that unwittingly prevented the fourth bad thing? Was the third unrelated to the others?

So, if bad thing 1 and thing 2 had not happened, thing 4 would have happened, but it didn't? Contact. Might 4 have happened if only one of the first two had occurred? Yope. Did thing 1 cause thing 2? Yes. Did thing 2 cause thing 3? Did thing 1 cause thing 3? No to both.

Did thing 1 and thing 2 happen to the same person? Yes. Was one of the things on a bigger scale/more general, so it did not involve just one person? Yes.

Is technology involved in 1? No. 2? 3? Yes to both. Did something break/stop working? Or multiple things? Yes.

Could any of the things be said to be someone's fault? Yes. If 1 and 2 had not happened, would it cause someone to take an action leading to 4? No.

Does this involve a workplace situation? No.

Did the two bad things cause changes to be made that unwittingly prevented the fourth bad thing? Yesish, DOYD.Was the third unrelated to the others? Yes.

Were repairs made after 1 and 2, and/or 3? New techniques? A different procedure? Different material? Different people involved?

Politics involved?

Were repairs made after 1 and 2, and/or 3? No, no and unknown. New techniques? A different procedure? Different material? No to all. Different people involved? No, no and unknown.

Politics involved? No.

"Did the two bad things cause changes to be made that unwittingly prevented the fourth bad thing? Yesish, DOYD."

DOYD of changes? DOYD of unwittingly? Did 1 and 2 cause changes, but but it is unclear if they prevented the 4th thing?

Did thing 2 result from a different method of doing whatever led to thing 1? Perhaps introducing technology as a way to prevent thing 1 from happening again?

Do 2 and 3 involve the same technology? Different forms or versions of technology for a similar purpose? Completely separate technologies? Would the 3rd thing have led to the 4th thing, if not for 1 and 2?

Thing 1 and 2 happened to one person...was it their fault? Did they break something? If so, did they break the tech involved in thing 2? or thing 3? Are they a public figure? HAM/F?
Are other people directly involved in 1 and 2? If so, 1 other person, 2, 3, 4, etc...?
Is this one person involved in thing 3? Would they have been involved in thing 4?

"Did the two bad things cause changes to be made that unwittingly prevented the fourth bad thing? Yesish, DOYD."

DOYD of changes? Yes. DOYD of unwittingly? No. Did 1 and 2 cause changes, but but it is unclear if they prevented the 4th thing? No, it's clear.

Did thing 2 result from a different method of doing whatever led to thing 1? No. Perhaps introducing technology as a way to prevent thing 1 from happening again? No.

Do 2 and 3 involve the same technology? No. Different forms or versions of technology for a similar purpose? No. Completely separate technologies? Yes. Would the 3rd thing have led to the 4th thing, if not for 1 and 2? Correct.

Thing 1 and 2 happened to one person...was it their fault? Did they break something? If so, did they break the tech involved in thing 2? Yes to all. or thing 3? No. Are they a public figure? No. HAM/F? HAM
Are other people directly involved in 1 and 2? No. If so, 1 other person, 2, 3, 4, etc...?
Is this one person involved in thing 3? DYOD of "involved". Would they have been involved in thing 4? Yes.

Do all these things happen in the same place? If so, a specific place? A specific type of place? Anything illegal relevant?

Thing 1: Something broke.
Thing 2: Something happened because Thing 1 was broken?
Was the person involved in these building/assembling something? Repairing? Eating? Playing? Hobbies involved? Was he doing it in public? At home? Was he doing it for someone else?

Do all these things happen in the same place? No. If so, a specific place? Yope. A specific type of place? Yope. Anything illegal relevant? No.

Thing 1: Something broke. Yes.
Thing 2: Something happened because Thing 1 was broken? Yes.
Was the person involved in these building/assembling something? Repairing? Eating? Playing? No to all. Hobbies involved? Yes. Was he doing it in public? Yope. At home? No. Was he doing it for someone else? Yope.

Do the events occur in different parts of a wider space that is often considered singular (different ends of a valley or different neighborhoods of a city, for example)?
Is a sport relevant? Tools or accessories? Clothing?

Do the events occur in different parts of a wider space that is often considered singular (different ends of a valley or different neighborhoods of a city, for example)?
Is a sport relevant? Tools or accessories? Clothing? Yes to all, DOYD of "tools/accessories".

Skydiving relevant?

Skydiving relevant? Yes.

Does the sequence of events end in a (relatively) good thing?

Was skydiving equipment damaged? Lost? Replaced? A part of the aircraft? Anything labelled or relabelled?

Does the sequence of events end in a (relatively) good thing? Yes.

Was skydiving equipment damaged? Lost? Replaced? A part of the aircraft? Anything labelled or relabelled? No to all.

Would the fourth bad thing have been a serious skydiving accident?

Do any of the bad things have to do with a dive (is jump a better term?) being interrupted? Delays in getting to the site? Is weather relevant?

Thinking it could be loosely connected things, such as:

#1: it rained. #2: because the roads were wet, your car slid off the road, which meant that #3: you missed your jump. But had you gone skydiving, something worse would've happened?

Is this along a profitable train of thought?

Would the fourth bad thing have been a serious skydiving accident? No.

Do any of the bad things have to do with a dive (is jump a better term?) being interrupted? Delays in getting to the site? Is weather relevant? No to all (jump is the term we use).

Thinking it could be loosely connected things, such as:

#1: it rained. #2: because the roads were wet, your car slid off the road, which meant that #3: you missed your jump. But had you gone skydiving, something worse would've happened? No to all.

Is this along a profitable train of thought? Not at all.

I don't know what planet my brain was on when I couldn't remember whether "jump" or "dive" was the correct term. Goodness.[i][/i]

Is the technology that broke specific to skydiving? Is it used for skydiving? Is it technology that most people would be likely to own? To carry around with them? Is it GPS? A phone? A watch? Fitness tracker? Go Pro? Is it technology embedded into a vehicle?

Was new technology developed over the course of this puzzle?

The good end result: is this a separate thing from the things in the puzzle statement? Like, after the three bad things, something good happened? Because the three bad things happened, something good happened? Or is it only a good result inasmuch as something terrible didn't happen?

I don't know what planet my brain was on when I couldn't remember whether "jump" or "dive" was the correct term. Goodness.
No worries.

Is the technology that broke specific to skydiving? Is it used for skydiving? No to both. Is it technology that most people would be likely to own? Yes. To carry around with them? Yes. Is it GPS? A phone? This. A watch? Fitness tracker? Go Pro? Is it technology embedded into a vehicle? No.

Was new technology developed over the course of this puzzle? No.

The good end result: is this a separate thing from the things in the puzzle statement? Yes. Like, after the three bad things, something good happened? Yes. Because the three bad things happened, something good happened? Yes. Or is it only a good result inasmuch as something terrible didn't happen? You could put it that way, yes.

Is the phone breaking Thing 1? Thing 2? Did two things break in this puzzle? (I think one set of answers from July 23rd established that something broke in Thing 1, but that technology is not involved in Thing 1.)

Was it you doing the jump? You and others? Relevant? Does the experience level of the jumpers matter?

Is there an app or something on your phone that is important for skydiving?

Was the jump completed in the end? Is that the good thing that happened? Is the good thing that someone got a new phone?

Is the phone breaking Thing 1? Thing 2? This. Did two things break in this puzzle? Yes.(I think one set of answers from July 23rd established that something broke in Thing 1, but that technology is not involved in Thing 1.Correct.)

Was it you doing the jump? You and others? Relevant?No to all, FA Does the experience level of the jumpers matter? No/FA

Is there an app or something on your phone that is important for skydiving? No/irr.

Was the jump completed in the end? FA. Is that the good thing that happened? No. Is the good thing that someone got a new phone? No.

Time to get back to this one.

Did the phone break because it fell? Got dropped? Something fell on it? Or was dropped on it? Because someone sat on it? Stepped on it? Because it got water in it? Because it fell in water? Because it got heated up? Frozen (by cold, not the screen freezing)? Because it got run over by something? Caught up in something? Crushed some other way? Because it was a Samsung that just burst into flames? Was it a self-detonating phone that took planned obsolescence to the extreme? (I wouldn't put it past Apple.)

Was whatever broke in Thing 1 supporting the phone somehow? Was it carrying the phone? Was it something that you'd regularly put a phone in? I'm thinking the phone was in someone's pocket, and then the pocket got a hole that the phone fell through, or their belt broke and pants went a-scattering on the floor. Was the other thing that broke above the phone? Did its breaking cause something to fall on the phone? Cause the phone to fall?

Is the first thing that broke someone's hand/arm? And when they had a cast on it was hard to pick up the phone, which caused them to fumble it?

Time to get back to this one.

Did the phone break because it fell? Got dropped? Something fell on it? Or was dropped on it? Because someone sat on it? Stepped on it? Because it got water in it? Because it fell in water? this. Because it got heated up? Frozen (by cold, not the screen freezing)? Because it got run over by something? Caught up in something? Crushed some other way? Because it was a Samsung that just burst into flames? Was it a self-detonating phone that took planned obsolescence to the extreme? (I wouldn't put it past Apple.)

Was whatever broke in Thing 1 supporting the phone somehow? No, but OTRT. Was it carrying the phone? Yope, explore. Was it something that you'd regularly put a phone in? Yes. I'm thinking the phone was in someone's pocket, and then the pocket got a hole that the phone fell through, or their belt broke and pants went a-scattering on the floor. No to both, but OTRT. Was the other thing that broke above the phone? Did its breaking cause something to fall on the phone? No to both. Cause the phone to fall? Yope, explore.

Is the first thing that broke someone's hand/arm? And when they had a cast on it was hard to pick up the phone, which caused them to fumble it? No to all

Was the first thing a purse? Other bag? Phone armband? Waistband? Phone case? Did a supportive element of this first item break? Causing this item itself to fall? With the phone in it?

Was the water a bath/shower? Sink? Toilet bowl? Puddle? Glass of water? Pool? River? Lake? Ocean? Aquarium? Snowbank?

Was the first thing a purse? Other bag? Phone armband? Waistband? Phone case? Did a supportive element of this first item break? A pair of shorts, where I used to carry the phone in one of the pockets, broke. Causing this item itself to fall? With the phone in it? The phone didn't fall when the shorts broke, but explore.

Was the water a bath/shower? Sink? Toilet bowl? This. My poor phone took a bath in the toilet. Puddle? Glass of water? Pool? River? Lake? Ocean? Aquarium? Snowbank?

Relevant how the shorts broke? Or how long from the shorts breaking to the phone falling in the toilet? Were you holding the phone in your hand when you dropped it in the toilet? Were you wearing the shorts that broke? Was your phone in the pocket of whatever you were wearing?

Did you mend the shorts? In a normal way? Did you jury-rig something to fix them? Did you buy new shorts to replace them? Which didn't hold your phone as well?

Did you stop putting your phone in your pants pockets at all because your shorts broke?

Does the third bad thing have to do with skydiving? Does the potential fourth bad thing have to do with sky-diving?

Does this involve missing a message/notification/call/email because your phone was unusable? Getting a new phone? Clothing store dressing rooms relevant?

Relevant where the toilet was?

Relevant how the shorts broke? No. Or how long from the shorts breaking to the phone falling in the toilet? Mildly. Were you holding the phone in your hand when you dropped it in the toilet? Were you wearing the shorts that broke? No to both. Was your phone in the pocket of whatever you were wearing? No, but explore.

Did you mend the shorts? In a normal way?No to both. Did you jury-rig something to fix them? Noish. Did you buy new shorts to replace them? No. Which didn't hold your phone as well? But yes.

Did you stop putting your phone in your pants pockets at all because your shorts broke? Yes, because...

Does the third bad thing have to do with skydiving? Does the potential fourth bad thing have to do with sky-diving? No to both.

Does this involve missing a message/notification/call/email because your phone was unusable? No. Getting a new phone? Yope. Clothing store dressing rooms relevant? No.

Relevant where the toilet was? Possibly; it was at the skydiving club.

Did you drop your phone into the toilet because you'd put it in an unusual place? and did not think of it that moment?
Was the thing that prevented the fourth bad thing from happening that you did not have a phone at that moment? Would the fourth bad thing have involved an unpleasant phone call? a phone call in an unpleasant moment?

Did you drop your phone into the toilet because you'd put it in an unusual place? and did not think of it that moment? Yes to both.
Was the thing that prevented the fourth bad thing from happening that you did not have a phone at that moment? No. Would the fourth bad thing have involved an unpleasant phone call? a phone call in an unpleasant moment? No to both.

Did you drop your phone in the toilet because you'd put it somewhere else on your person? Such as a shirt pocket? Did you put it on a counter near the toilet? On a ledge or something above the toilet? On your lap? In or on some part of some skydiving gear? On top of a hand dryer/paper towel dispenser? Is the layout of the bathroom relevant?

Does the third or fourth bad thing have to do with plumbing? Is either of them skydiving-related? Did fixing one of the problems created by the first three things reveal a problem that would've created a fourth issue later on? But could now be fixed because you became aware of it?

I can't remember, but is the third bad thing causally related to the first two?

Did you drop your phone in the toilet because you'd put it somewhere else on your person? Yes. Such as a shirt pocket? Did you put it on a counter near the toilet? On a ledge or something above the toilet? On your lap? In or on some part of some skydiving gear? On top of a hand dryer/paper towel dispenser? Is the layout of the bathroom relevant? Finding out exactly what happened here will only be an uninteresting slog, so I'll just say it: I put it in the waistband of my swimming shorts, which were the only other shorts I had brought, and they lacked pockets.

Does the third or fourth bad thing have to do with plumbing? No. Is either of them skydiving-related? No. Did fixing one of the problems created by the first three things reveal a problem that would've created a fourth issue later on? No, but OTRT. But could now be fixed because you became aware of it? No, but worth exploring.

I can't remember, but is the third bad thing causally related to the first two? It is not.

Edit:
Recap:
First, my shorts broke.
Because of that, I later dropped my phone in the toilet.
Then, a third bad thing happened, unrelated to the first two, and unrelated to skydiving.
If these three bad things hadn't happened, a fourth bad thing would've happened.

Following its swim, was the phone no longer functional, whether temporarily or permanently? Did the third bad thing necessitate the use of the phone, which was now u/s?
Were you able to leave the bathroom? Did thing 3 happen there or at another location? Location of event 3 or 4 relevant?

Following its swim, was the phone no longer functional, whether temporarily or permanently? Correct - it was unusable for the rest of the puzzle. Did the third bad thing necessitate the use of the phone, which was now u/s? No.
Were you able to leave the bathroom? Yes. Did thing 3 happen there No. or at another location? Yes. Location of event 3 or 4 relevant? Yes.

So, the fact that you effectively had no phone... meant that you couldn't make or receive calls, or use the internet, or other phone functions? Was the fact that you wouldn't be disturbed or distracted by the phone relevant? Was a specific call or caller relevant and/or resultant lack of connection or information - actually or potentially?

So, the fact that you effectively had no phone... meant that you couldn't make or receive calls, or use the internet, or other phone functions? Not with my own phone, anyway. Was the fact that you wouldn't be disturbed or distracted by the phone relevant? Was a specific call or caller relevant and/or resultant lack of connection or information - actually or potentially? No to both.

Was the fourth thing prevented from happening solely ty the fact that your own phone was not functional?
Did the third thing create the situation where the fourth thing might have happened?
Did you need to use a phone? did you use someone else's phone? not use any phone at all?
Provided your phone was working: would the fourth thing then have been caused by you making a phone call? receiving a phone call? sending a message? receiving a message? upload a picture or clip? would the fourthi thing have involved someone seeing you using your phone? noticing that you used it?
Would the fourth thing have been related to skydiving? (as you mentioned the third wss not)

Was the fourth thing prevented from happening solely ty the fact that your own phone was not functional? No.
Did the third thing create the situation where the fourth thing might have happened? No.
Did you need to use a phone? DOYD of "need".did you use someone else's phone? Yes. not use any phone at all? No.
Provided your phone was working: would the fourth thing then have been caused by you making a phone call? receiving a phone call? sending a message? receiving a message? upload a picture or clip? would the fourthi thing have involved someone seeing you using your phone? noticing that you used it? No to all.
Would the fourth thing have been related to skydiving? (as you mentioned the third wss not) No.

Can we have a recap please?

Is skydiving relevant beyond your shorts being torn at the club?

Is the third bad thing something that happened to you? To someone else? To the person whose phone you were using? To their phone?

Did you: see something on their phone that you weren't supposed to see? Did somebody mistake you for the person whose phone it was? Did you screw up something on this person's phone? Did you accidentally delete an app? Change some info? Switch an account? Did you drop their phone in the toilet, too?

Is your relationship to the person whose phone you used relevant? Are they a: romantic partner? Friend? Co-worker? Co-hobbyist? Co-skydiver? Family member? Professional phone-lender?

Is skydiving relevant beyond your shorts being torn at the club? No.

Is the third bad thing something that happened to you? To someone else? Yes to both. To the person whose phone you were using? To their phone? No to both.

Did you: see something on their phone that you weren't supposed to see? Did somebody mistake you for the person whose phone it was? Did you screw up something on this person's phone? Did you accidentally delete an app? Change some info? Switch an account? Did you drop their phone in the toilet, too? No to all.

Is your relationship to the person whose phone you used relevant? Vaguely. Are they a: romantic partner? Friend? This. Co-worker? Co-hobbyist? Co-skydiver? And this. Family member? Professional phone-lender? Haha, no.

Did the third thing happen: at your home? At the friend's home? At work? In a car? On public transit? Outdoors? Indoors? In a restaurant/bar/pub? At a performance event, such as a play or concert? At a sporting event? At a movie theatre? At a place you go to for exercise? For leisure? At a phone repair shop? At a phone store? At another type of store? In a public space?

Did the third thing happen: at your home? At the friend's home? At work? In a car? On public transit?OTRT. Outdoors? Yes. Indoors? In a restaurant/bar/pub? At a performance event, such as a play or concert? At a sporting event? At a movie theatre? At a place you go to for exercise? For leisure? At a phone repair shop? At a phone store? At another type of store? In a public space?Yes. No to all others.

Can the fourth thing cause death? Is sickness involved? Was the fourth thing trivial as a bad thing? Did the first two/three things cause you to learn something?

Can the fourth thing cause death? Is sickness involved? Was the fourth thing trivial as a bad thing? No to all. Did the first two/three things cause you to learn something? The first two did, but that's not relevant to the puzzle.

Was your cellphone or anything lost?

Was your cellphone or anything lost? No.

Did the third thing happened while you were on your way home from the skydiving club?
Were you walking? driiving? on a bicycle?
Was the friend who gave you his phone next to you when the third thing happened?
Did you make a phone call? if so: is the person you called relevant?

Did the third thing happened while you were on your way home from the skydiving club? Yes.
Were you walking? driiving? on a bicycle? No to all.
Was the friend who gave you his phone next to you when the third thing happened? Yes.
Did you make a phone call? if so: is the person you called relevant? Yes to both.

Are the first two things connected? Were you late for something? Was the fourth thing about buying something?

Are the first two things connected? Yes, and it has been established. Ripped pants indirectly led to my phone not working anymore. Were you late for something? Yes. Was the fourth thing about buying something? No.

Was the fourth thing related to skydiving?

Was the fourth thing related to skydiving? No.

Was the fourth thing being late to something?

Was the fourth thing being late to something? Close/OTRT (on the right track), explore.

Did your cellphone cause you to be late on the fourth thing?

Did your cellphone cause you to be late on the fourth thing? No.

Was the fourth being absent to something? Did someone indirectly caused the fourth thing? Did someone directly cause the fourth thing?

Was the fourth being absent to something? You could put it like that. Did someone indirectly caused the fourth thing? Did someone directly cause the fourth thing? The fourth thing didn't happen, but if it did, it could be indirectly and directly caused by someone.

Was the third thing related to transportation?

Was the third thing related to transportation? Yes.

Was the fourth thing a professor/teacher being late to something?

Was the fourth thing a professor/teacher being late to something? No.

Were you using your friend's phone when the third bad thing happened? If yes, to make a call? To text? To check emails/other messages? To play a game? Using the GPS?

You weren't walking, driving, bicycling, or taking the bus. At the risk of being pedantic, were you in a car that someone else was driving? Possibly your friend? Were you on a train? In an Uber/cab? Were you taking a mode of transportation that enabled you to feel the breeze on your face? Were you skateboarding? Using a scooter? E-bike? Segway? Pedal pub? Boat?

Were you using your friend's phone when the third bad thing happened? Yope. If yes, to make a call? To text? Either of these would work. To check emails/other messages? To play a game? Using the GPS? No to the rest.

You weren't walking, driving, bicycling, or taking the bus. At the risk of being pedantic, were you in a car that someone else was driving? Possibly your friend? Yes to both. Were you on a train? No. In an Uber/cab? No. Were you taking a mode of transportation that enabled you to feel the breeze on your face? Were you skateboarding? Using a scooter? E-bike? Segway? Pedal pub? Boat? No to all.

Were you involved in a car accident? Did your use of the phone: distract your friend? Upset your friend? Result in a distracted driving ticket, or getting pulled over?

Were you involved in a car accident? Did your use of the phone: distract your friend? Upset your friend? Result in a distracted driving ticket, or getting pulled over? No to all.

Would the fourth bad thing have happened later the same day? Would it have happened at your home? At your friend's home? While you were still in the car? Would it have involved someone not being able to contact you? Not being able to contact your friend? You not being able to contact somebody else? Your friend not being able to contact somebody else? Would it have involved an event you had to get tickets for or register for? And was that info inaccessible because of the damaged phone? Did you call another friend? A family member? A customer service line? Someone who could help you replace/repair your phone? Timed events relevant, such as raids in Pokemon Go?

Does this involve having to replace ID or cards or something? Replacing something that was stored on your phone? Or stored with your phone, in a phone/card holder thingy?

Would the third bad thing have happened if you weren't using your buddy's phone? Was it related to the car? Did the car break down? Tire blow out?

Would the fourth bad thing have happened later the same day? Yes. Would it have happened at your home? At your friend's home? While you were still in the car? No to all. Would it have involved someone not being able to contact you? Not being able to contact your friend? You not being able to contact somebody else? Your friend not being able to contact somebody else? No to all. Would it have involved an event you had to get tickets for or register for? Noish. And was that info inaccessible because of the damaged phone? Did you call another friend? A family member? This. A customer service line? Someone who could help you replace/repair your phone? Yes, replace. Timed events relevant, DOYD, explore. such as raids in Pokemon Go? No.

Does this involve having to replace ID or cards or something? Replacing something that was stored on your phone? Or stored with your phone, in a phone/card holder thingy? No to all.

Would the third bad thing have happened if you weren't using your buddy's phone? Yes. Was it related to the car? Did the car break down? Tire blow out? No to all.

Would the fourth thing have happened to the person you called? Did the person you called replace your phone? Help you replace your phone? By buying you a new one? Upgrading? Giving you their phone? Hooking you up with an old phone?

Does this person work in a phone shop? Did they go to one to get you a new phone? Relevant how they're related to you? If so, spouse/partner? Offspring? Parent? Sibling? Cousin? Niece? Nibling?

Is the third bad thing something that doesn't happen all at once? Something that takes a while to happen? Did it happen to you? Your friend? Your family member? Someone else?

Timed events: things that are scheduled and start at a certain time? Things that must be completed within a certain timeframe of being started? Things that have to happen before a certain time? Such as getting to a shop before it closes?

Is the occupation of anyone in the puzzle relevant?

Would the fourth thing have happened to the person you called? No. Did the person you called replace your phone? Yes. Help you replace your phone? By buying you a new one? Upgrading? Giving you their phone? Hooking you up with an old phone? This.

Does this person work in a phone shop? Did they go to one to get you a new phone? No to all.Relevant how they're related to you? No. If so, spouse/partner? Offspring? Parent? Sibling? Cousin? Niece? Nibling?[b] Stepdaughter.[/b]

Is the third bad thing something that doesn't happen all at once? Something that takes a while to happen?Hard to answer. Did it happen to you? Yes. Your friend? No. Your family member? No.Someone else? Yes.

Timed events: things that are scheduled and start at a certain time? Yes. Things that must be completed within a certain timeframe of being started? Things that have to happen before a certain time? No to both. Such as getting to a shop before it closes? No, but OTRT.

Is the occupation of anyone in the puzzle relevant? Not anyone mentioned do far.

Is there another person relevant to this puzzle that hasn't been discovered? Would the fourth bad thing have happened to them?

Timed event: something you had to get your child/stepchild to? An activity you/your friend/your stepchild participate in? That the undiscovered person participates in? A class? A lecture? A show? Just you saying you were going to be somewhere (possibly home?) at a certain time?

Is the communication with your stepdaughter relevant to the fourth bad thing not happening?

Do either of the third or fourth bad things involve financial loss? Miscommunication? Getting lost? Being unable to get ahold of someone? Someone being unable to get ahold of you? Being able to prove ID? Vaccination status? I think I've asked this before, but mistaking one person for another because someone else's phone is being used?

Is your stepdaughter's age relevant? Does she have to do anything other than answer your call and give you her old phone throughout this puzzle? Does she tell someone else that you lost your phone? That you had an accident at the skydiving club?

Did you need to prove your phone was yours? That your stepdaughter's wasn't? Is an AI or answering service relevant? Did you stop or spot something that would have affected your stepdaughter?

Is there another person relevant to this puzzle that hasn't been discovered? Yesish. Would the fourth bad thing have happened to them? No.

Timed event: something you had to get your child/stepchild to? An activity youYesish, would use other words though./your friend/your stepchild participate in? That the undiscovered person participates in? Yesish, DYOD. A class? A lecture? A show? No to all. Just you saying you were going to be somewhere (possibly home?) at a certain time? No, but explore.

Is the communication with your stepdaughter relevant to the fourth bad thing not happening? Yes.

Do either of the third or fourth bad things involve financial loss? Probably not, though the 4th thing could have.Miscommunication? Getting lost? Being unable to get ahold of someone? Someone being unable to get ahold of you? Being able to prove ID? Vaccination status? I think I've asked this before, but mistaking one person for another because someone else's phone is being used? No to all.

Is your stepdaughter's age relevant?Adult. Does she have to do anything other than answer your call and give you her old phone throughout this puzzle? Yes. Does she tell someone else that you lost your phone? That you had an accident at the skydiving club? No to both.


Did you need to prove your phone was yours? That your stepdaughter's wasn't? Is an AI or answering service relevant? Did you stop or spot something that would have affected your stepdaughter? No to all.

Is the timed event something you do for fun? For work? For upkeep of your residence/body/mental health? Is it a medical appointment? Vehicle appointment? Someone coming to fix something at your house? Therapy appointment?

Swimming, or other sport, relevant? Stopwatch? Using a phone to time a race, if said phone hadn't been broken? Breaking a record? Was the phone rendered u/s by being dropped in the pool? Were you unable to have a conversation with your stepdaughter (or anyone else) because your phone was broken?
(Returned late to this, sorry if Q's irrel).

Actually, could we have an update please?

Is the timed event something you do for fun? For work? For upkeep of your residence/body/mental health?No to all. Is it a medical appointment? Vehicle appointment?You could call it that, but you probably wouldn't. Someone coming to fix something at your house? Therapy appointment? No to the rest.

Swimming, or other sport, relevant? Stopwatch? Using a phone to time a race, if said phone hadn't been broken? Breaking a record? No to all. Was the phone rendered u/s by being dropped in the pool? No, but irr. Were you unable to have a conversation with your stepdaughter (or anyone else) because your phone was broken? No.
(Returned late to this, sorry if Q's irrel). No prob.

Actually, could we have an update please? Yes.

The puzzle starts at the skydiving club, where I break my shorts (bad thing 1), leadning me to dunk my phone (bad thing 2), making it unusable.

Later, I'm on my way home from the club. I'm in a car with a friend driving. My friend loans me his cellphone, and I use it to call my stepdaughter, asking if she can replace my phone. Because I called her, the fourth bad thing didn't happen. She also does replace my phone.

Bad thing also 3 happens, but not at the club. It happens to me and to others as well. Public transit/transportation is relevant.

I am late for something. Bad thing 4, which didn't happen, would've happened on my way home, after leaving the car, and is related to being late for something.


To explore: what is bad thing 3? What is bad thing 4? How are they related? What did my stepdaughter and another person do?

Does bad thing 3 relate to using your friend's phone? Did this cause confusion, for example if your daughter tried to call you back by simply calling the last number she'd spoken to, which was no longer in your possession?

Does bad thing 3 relate to using your friend's phone? Did this cause confusion, for example if your daughter tried to call you back by simply calling the last number she'd spoken to, which was no longer in your possession?
No to both.

Was your daughter about to do something when you called her, that she did not do? Vice versa? Is it relevant that you asked her to replace your phone (in the sense that normally you would have done it yourself)? Did you need a phone of your own immediately. Something else, that you otherwise could not do yourself?

Is there a calendar or timer on the broken phone, that would have caused you to be late if you didn't have it?

Other than happening during your drive home, did Bad Thing #3 have anything to do causally with #1/#2? like for example, the fact that you didn't have a working phone caused you to take a different route, that put you where Bad Thing #3 was going on? Am I correct in assuming that #3 was something that generally affected the driving conditions on some roads for everyone, e.g. something like an accident, traffic backup, road closure, protest, etc.?

Or alternatively is the only relevance of #3 that it would have made #4 likely (even though the call, prompted by #2, averted it)? Like for example, the traffic delay due to #3 would have led you to not getting home to complete a task on time, but your stepdaughter was able to complete the task for you instead?

Was your daughter about to do something when you called her, that she did not do? Vice versa? Irr. Is it relevant that you asked her to replace your phone (in the sense that normally you would have done it yourself)? Yes. Did you need a phone of your own immediately. DOYD of "need"; she had one I knew I could use. Something else, that you otherwise could not do yourself? No, but...

Is there a calendar or timer on the broken phone, that would have caused you to be late if you didn't have it? Irr.


Other than happening during your drive home, did Bad Thing #3 have anything to do causally with #1/#2? No. like for example, the fact that you didn't have a working phone caused you to take a different route, that put you where Bad Thing #3 was going on? No. Am I correct in assuming that #3 was something that generally affected the driving conditions on some roads for everyone, e.g. something like an accident, traffic backup, road closure, protest, etc.? No, FA.

Or alternatively is the only relevance of #3 that it would have made #4 likely (even though the call, prompted by #2, averted it)? No. #3 made avoiding #4 possible. Like for example, the traffic delay due to #3 would have led you to not getting home to complete a task on time, but your stepdaughter was able to complete the task for you instead? No.

Was the whole way home by car? or, given the hint that public transportation is involved, was part of the trip on public transportation? if so, was this part of the journey after the part that was by car? Did your friend drop you off at a transit station? possibly either too late, so you missed the transit ride you were hoping to catch? or the opposite, the transit was late and that meant you had time to catch it?

Was the whole way home by car? No. or, given the hint that public transportation is involved, was part of the trip on public transportation? Yes. if so, was this part of the journey after the part that was by car? Yes. Did your friend drop you off at a transit station? Yes. possibly either too late, so you missed the transit ride you were hoping to catch? Yes. or the opposite, the transit was late and that meant you had time to catch it? Yope, explore.

Was the transit a bus? a train? a ferry?

Did you miss the specific ride you had intended to board, but were able to catch another one? that would ordinarily have already passed the station (or not stopped there at all), if not for "bad" thing #3?

Was the transit a bus? Yes. a train? No, but explore. a ferry? No.

Did you miss the specific ride you had intended to board, but were able to catch another one?Noish, explore. that would ordinarily have already passed the station (or not stopped there at all), if not for "bad" thing #3? No, but OTRT.

So you both took, and intended to take, a bus? but a train, or something like it, is involved?

Was a bus delayed because it was waiting at a train station to pick up passengers getting off a train, and the train itself was delayed?

So you both took, Yes. and intended to take, No. a bus? but a train, or something like it, is involved? Yes, explore.

Was a bus delayed because it was waiting at a train station to pick up passengers getting off a train, and the train itself was delayed? No.

Did you intend to take a train, but ended up taking a bus instead? Was the third bad thing the train not arriving, or having already left? and you were able to do something while riding the bus, but could not have done aboard a train, that prevented the fourth bad thing?

Bus replacement service relevant?

Would #4 have been related to public transit? Would you have been stuck on a train that ran into trouble? On a bus that run into trouble? Would you have missed a connection with someone? Possibly with your daughter? With the other person?

Is #3 related to public transit? Were you stuck on a bus that ran into trouble? Did you become aware of it before you left the club? In the car? Between getting out of the car and getting on the bus? While you were on the bus? Is it something that you had to warn your daughter or the other person about?

Did your daughter give the replacement phone to this other person, to give to you? Did either of them go somewhere to give you the phone? Did either of them take public transit to do so? Did they drop the phone off somewhere for you? Did you have to go to your daughter's home? To the other person's home? To either of their places of work?

Is the other relevant person a bus driver? Someone who works for the transit system?

I forget. Does it matter what you were late for?

Did you intend to take a train, but ended up taking a bus instead? Yes. Was the third bad thing the train not arriving,Yes, see below. or having already left? No. and you were able to do something while riding the bus, but could not have done aboard a train, that prevented the fourth bad thing? No.



Bus replacement service relevant? Yes, the train was replaced by bus, which was bad thing #3.

Would #4 have been related to public transit? Yes, small ish. Would you have been stuck on a train that ran into trouble? On a bus that run into trouble? No to both. Would you have missed a connection with someone? No(ish). Possibly with your daughter? With the other person? No to both.

Is #3 related to public transit? Yes, see above. Were you stuck on a bus that ran into trouble? Did you become aware of it before you left the club? No to both. In the car? Yes. Between getting out of the car and getting on the bus? While you were on the bus? Is it something that you had to warn your daughter or the other person about? No to all.

Did your daughter give the replacement phone to this other person, to give to you? No. Did either of them go somewhere to give you the phone? Yes. Did either of them take public transit to do so? No. Did they drop the phone off somewhere for you? Did you have to go to your daughter's home? To the other person's home? No to all. To either of their places of work? Yes, explore.

Is the other relevant person a bus driver? Yes. Someone who works for the transit system?

I forget. Does it matter what you were late for? Yes.

Were you late to catch a bus? train? other public transport?
Late for some shop which was then closed already?
Late for some event? (theatre? cinema? party?)
Late to pick someone/something up?
Late for watching something?
Did it become impossible to finish the trip in the intended way? (like: because a road or bridge was closed for the night, because you missed the last ferry boat, ..)
Did someone wait for you?

and by the way: Congrats for running this puzzle for more than a year! (and nearly 100 posts) - we didn't have that for quite a while here.

Were you late to catch a bus? Yope, explore. train? If the train had not been replaced by a bus, I would've been too late. This would've been bad thing 4. other public transport?
Late for some shop which was then closed already?
Late for some event? (theatre? cinema? party?)
Late to pick someone/something up?
Late for watching something?
Did it become impossible to finish the trip in the intended way? (like: because a road or bridge was closed for the night, because you missed the last ferry boat, ..)This would've been the result if there was a train instead of a bus.
Did someone wait for you? Yes, explore.

and by the way: Congrats for running this puzzle for more than a year! (and nearly 100 posts) - we didn't have that for quite a while here. Thanks!

So someone was waiting for you when you got off public transit? and the bus got you to that station faster than a train would have? if so, because the train ride was actually shorter (i.e. went longer distance, had more/longer stops, etc.)? or because the train was late but the bus wasn't? or did the bus and the train take you to different places entirely, and you realized during the phone conversation that whoever was picking you up could easily get to one place but not the other?

So someone was waiting for you when you got off public transit? and the bus got you to that station faster than a train would have? if so, because the train ride was actually shorter (i.e. went longer distance, had more/longer stops, etc.)? or because the train was late but the bus wasn't? or did the bus and the train take you to different places entirely, and you realized during the phone conversation that whoever was picking you up could easily get to one place but not the other? No to all.

So, your plan was to go by train? but you were already late and would not have had a chance to catch the train? this would have meant that you would not have been able to reach your destination the same day? because the train was the last one into some direction?
Happily the train was replaced by a bus? you got on the bus? because the bus departed later? from a different place? took a different route so you had a chance to wait for the bus on the way and hop on?
Is the fact that the train got replaced by a bus related to you a) ruining your shorts? b) dumping your phone?
Was it an on-demand train? (that runs only if people call the train operator beforehand that they are willing to travel)
Was the bus actually a replacement for the train? or would it have gone anyway, just later?
Is the skydiving club located on an island? in a place with restricted access? accessible only through a road which is closed during some hours of the day?

So, your plan was to go by train? but you were already late and would not have had a chance to catch the train? this would have meant that you would not have been able to reach your destination the same day? because the train was the last one into some direction?Yes to all.
Happily the train was replaced by a bus? you got on the bus? Yes to both. because the bus departed later? Yesish, explore. from a different place? Irr. took a different route so you had a chance to wait for the bus on the way and hop on? No.
Is the fact that the train got replaced by a bus related to you a) ruining your shorts? b) dumping your phone?No, it was just another bad thing, all three of which had to happen for me to reach my destination.
Was it an on-demand train? (that runs only if people call the train operator beforehand that they are willing to travel) No.
Was the bus actually a replacement for the train? Yes. or would it have gone anyway, just later? No.
Is the skydiving club located on an island? in a place with restricted access? accessible only through a road which is closed during some hours of the day? No to all.

Did the bus driver wait for you?

Does your stepdaughter know the bus driver personally? Was she able to contact the driver to tell them to wait for you? Is she the one who told you that the train was down?

I'm thinking that if your belt/trousers hadn't busted, and you hadn't dropped your phone in the toilet, then you wouldn't have phoned your stepdaughter, and she wouldn't have been able to alert the bus driver to wait for you. Close?

Did the bus driver wait for you? Yes.

Does your stepdaughter know the bus driver personally? No. Was she able to contact the driver to tell them to wait for you? Yes. Is she the one who told you that the train was down? No, but irr.

I'm thinking that if your belt/trousers hadn't busted, and you hadn't dropped your phone in the toilet, then you wouldn't have phoned your stepdaughter, and she wouldn't have been able to alert the bus driver to wait for you. Close?

Close enough for a
***SPOILER***
You've got it.
My pants tearing and my phone being damaged led to my stepdaughter coming to the train station with an old spare phone for me, where she was able to delay the bus for two minutes so that we could catch it (traffic from the drop zone was atrocious). If it had been a train, it wouldn't have waited and I would've had to sleep over and take the first train in the morning.