Just realized how much my rigging check changed after a close call last fall

I used to just give the slings a quick glance, but after a synthetic web strap looked fine but failed under a light load in October, I started using a pick pen on every single one. Has anyone else had a rigging component pass a visual but still be shot?

Just watched a hostel in Lisbon go from $18 to $45 a night in two years, and it's not just inflation.

I finally understood why people get so heated about filler episodes

I was at a small anime con in Columbus last month, just hanging out in the lobby. Two guys next to me started arguing about the pacing in a popular shonen show. One guy was saying the filler arc was 'a complete waste of 12 episodes' and the other guy was getting red in the face, saying it 'built the world and gave the main cast room to breathe.' I always just skipped filler, no question. But hearing him say that made me pause. I went home and rewatched one of those 'bad' filler arcs from a show I love, but this time I didn't skip. I actually paid attention to the character moments, the jokes, the little bits of world building I always missed. It wasn't all great, but there was a whole episode about the main character just helping a random village fix their water supply that was... nice? It felt peaceful. Now I don't auto-skip anymore, I give it a few minutes to see if it has any charm. Does anyone else have a filler arc they ended up liking?

Talking to a retired lineman at the hardware store made me see my fish tape in a new light

My sourdough starter hit 100 days old and I almost threw it out last month

I was ready to quit after my last three loaves came out flat and gummy. I almost dumped the jar into the sink on day 72. But I kept feeding it, and yesterday I baked a loaf that actually had an open crumb and a good ear. It made me realize I was rushing the bulk ferment every time. Has anyone else had a starter that just needed more time to get strong?

Can we talk about the moment you realize you've been gluing things wrong for a decade?

I was using wood glue on a piece of scrap metal and my friend just said, 'You know that's not going to hold, right?'. What's your biggest 'oh, that's why' moment with materials?

Vent: I realized I was the reason our game nights kept ending early

I mean, for like a year, I was always the one pushing to start a new game right after we finished one, even if it was getting late. I thought I was keeping the energy up. But last week, my friend Mark just said, 'Amy, we're all tired, can we just hang out and talk?' It hit me that I was treating game night like a tournament to get through, not a social thing. I was so focused on playing that I missed the point of just being with friends. Has anyone else had to learn to slow down and not treat every meetup like a marathon?

Serious question, why are so many techs skipping the amp draw test on compressors?

I watched a guy in our shop replace a perfectly good unit yesterday because he just swapped the relay and called it done. That extra 30 seconds with your meter saves a customer $800 and your reputation.

Appreciation post: An old timer at the Detroit Diesel plant set me straight on torque specs

I was putting together a Series 60 head and thought I could just go by feel, but this guy named Carl saw me and said 'Kid, you're gonna warp that deck if you don't follow the 50-75-100 ft-lb sequence exactly.' He made me redo it with his calibrated wrench. Now I always use a torque wrench and the factory manual, no shortcuts. What's one piece of advice that changed your basic routine?

My uncle, a lifelong darkroom guy, insisted I always use a tripod for 400 speed film and I finally saw why when my first roll of Portra 400 came back blurry from hand-holding in low light.

Has anyone else found a specific speed where you just can't trust your hands anymore?