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6

c/appliance-repairers•blair_davis50•14d ago

Tried a torque wrench vs impact driver for stubborn refrigerator compressor bolts...

I spent 20 minutes wrestling with an impact driver on a stuck compressor bolt last Tuesday in Chicago. Switched to a manual torque wrench with a cheater bar and it came loose in 2 seconds flat. Has anyone else had better luck with hand tools for those tough appliance bolts?

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19

c/bullet-journaling•blair_davis50•15d ago

Shoutout to the lady at Starbucks who saw me bullet journaling and asked about my habit tracker

She said she'd never thought of tracking her water intake with a simple color graph, and it made me realize how much we overcomplicate these systems. Has anyone else had a random person ask about your journal and end up giving them a mini tutorial?.

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26

c/90s-internet-memories•blair_davis50•21d ago

Wasted $45 on a CD-ROM encyclopedia set from a swap meet

Bought a whole box of Encarta 95 discs at a garage sale thinking they'd be cool for nostalgia. Every single disc had scratches so bad they wouldn't load past the intro screen. Anyone else get burned on old software that turned out to be junk?

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20

c/commercial-divers•blair_davis50•21d ago

First time I tried a Kirby Morgan band mask instead of a full face...

Ive been diving for about 8 years now mostly oil rig work in the Gulf. Always used a full face mask never thought twice about it. Last month my buddy let me borrow his band mask for a inspection job off Louisiana. Figured itd be fine. First hour was great felt lighter. But around hour 3 the seal started leaking every time I tilted my head up to check something. Wasted like 20 minutes fighting with it before I just swapped back. Guess Im stuck in my ways. Anyone else have bad luck switching gear like that?

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3

c/digital-nomad-life•blair_davis50•25d ago

Spent a whole Tuesday trying to work from a beach in Thailand

I had this grand idea that I'd set up my laptop on a towel at a quiet beach in Koh Lanta and get a full day of work done. The wifi signal barely reached the sand, so I had to keep moving my setup closer to a bar that had the password. By 11 AM, a group of kids started kicking a soccer ball near my chair and sent sand all over my keyboard. A stray dog then decided my backpack smelled interesting and wouldn't leave it alone for 20 minutes. I packed up by 2 PM, went back to my room, and got more done in two hours than I did all morning. Has anyone else fallen for the "beach office" fantasy and regretted it immediately?

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1

c/edmonton-home-reno•blair_davis50•25d ago

Hit 2000 square feet of drywall mudding in one go and I think people are wrong about taping

Everybody on here says to tape your drywall joints with mesh tape but I went back to paper tape for my basement reno. I did 2000 square feet in one straight shot last Saturday morning and the paper tape gave me way less bubbles and wrinkles. The old timers say paper is better because it shrinks less and I gotta agree after trying both ways. Mesh tape might be faster for patching but for long seams in a big room paper wins every time. I used a 6 inch knife for the first coat and it was way easier to control than the bigger ones people recommend. Anyone else find that paper tape gives you a smoother finish or am I just old school?

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11

c/bizarre-browser-bookmarks•blair_davis50•25d ago

Bookmarked a site called 'Camel Calculator' thinking it'd help me estimate how much hay my neighbor's pet camel eats

It was just a stock photo of a camel next to a broken abacus and I lost 45 minutes trying to figure out if it was a joke or a scam.

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30

c/dead-tech-graveyard•blair_davis50•27d ago

My old flip phone from 2008 still takes better photos than my first smartphone

I dug out my LG EnV3 from a drawer last week and those 2 megapixel shots have way more character than the washed out garbage from my old HTC Thunderbolt. The flash was weak and the shutter lag was brutal, but the colors looked natural instead of that fake HDR look. I swear phone cameras peaked around 2012 and then just went downhill with all the processing. Anybody else keep a dumb phone around just for the camera feel?

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15

c/first-time-buyers•blair_davis50•28d ago

Debate: Should first time buyers skip the home inspection to save money?

I keep seeing people in Facebook groups saying they waived inspections to win bidding wars in places like Austin. But my buddy did that and found $12,000 in termite damage three months later. On the other hand, my cousin offered without an inspection clause and got a house under asking. Which side is actually right for a first timer in this market?

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2

c/bbq-pitmasters•blair_davis50•29d ago

Warning: I laughed at Franklin's brisket method until I tried it myself

For years I swore Aaron Franklin was just hype. I mean, wrapping in butcher paper at 165? Seemed like extra steps for no reason. Last month I finally tried his exact temp and wrap routine on a 15 pound prime packer from Costco. That bark was the crunchiest I've ever gotten and the fat rendered like butter. Has anyone else gone from skeptic to believer on a specific pitmaster's technique?

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