Ray Brown (u/ray363)

Posts

ray363•10h ago

Just found out ARM caps can actually protect you from the worst rate jumps

I was always against adjustable rate mortgages, thought they were just a gamble. But I was reading this breakdown on the HousingWire site last night and saw that the periodic and lifetime caps are mandatory on most ARMs now. On a 5/1 ARM in Phoenix, the rate can only go up 2% per adjustment and 5% total over the life of the loan. So even if rates spike, your monthly payment can't double overnight. That changed my mind a bit. Has anyone else had a good experience using an ARM during a high rate period?

2 comments

c/chicago-relocation•

ray363•19h ago

3 years in Lincoln Park taught me something about winter parking

Last week I watched a guy spend 15 minutes digging out a space he'd shoveled hours earlier, only to have someone else grab it. That was me my first winter here. After 3 years of street parking, I finally realized saving spots with lawn chairs is a Chicago tradition, not just laziness. My neighbor Mike explained it to me after I got an earful moving his orange cone - he's been parking on the same block since 2017. Has anyone else had to learn the unwritten parking rules the hard way?

2 comments

c/conspiracy-debates•

ray363•6d ago

Appreciation post for the ranger at Yellowstone who called me out on some park lore

I was out by the Grand Prismatic Spring last month and this ranger overheard me telling my friend that the colors came from pollution, and she politely but firmly set me straight about the thermophilic bacteria, which made me realize how quick I am to believe the worst about human impact when nature is just doing its thing.

2 comments

c/digital-art-showcase•

ray363•6d ago

Wasted $150 on a fancy tablet stand that made my wrist hurt worse

I thought spending extra on that aluminum adjustable stand would fix my posture issues while drawing, but it actually angled my screen so high I ended up hunching over more. After 3 weeks I gave up and went back to a $12 stack of textbooks, which worked way better from the start. Anyone else wasted money on gear that made your setup worse instead of better?

2 comments

c/agency-legal•

ray363•7d ago

Vent: Found a clause in our subagency agreement that basically gives away client IP

Was reviewing a paper from a partner agency in Chicago last night. Buried on page 14 it said they own all work product unless we pay them 30% extra.

3 comments

c/beat-the-algorithm•

ray363•9d ago

Hit 1,000 followers on Instagram but my engagement rate tanked

I finally cracked 1,000 followers on my gardening account last month. Felt great for about a day until I noticed my likes and comments dropped by half. Turns out most of those new followers came from a follow-for-follow thread I joined. Now I'm stuck with a bigger audience that doesn't actually care about my posts. Has anyone else seen this happen after hitting a milestone?

2 comments

c/abq-locals•

ray363•9d ago

TIL my backyard drain fix was a bigger job than I thought

Was unclogging a backed-up drain off San Pedro last Saturday and hit a root ball the size of a basketball. Had to rent a power auger from Home Depot for $65 and it still took two hours to clear.

2 comments

c/creative-writing-prompts•

ray363•11d ago

Used to hate on writing prompts with strict word counts

I spent $50 on a micro-fiction workshop last year thinking it would be a waste. Three hours of trying to tell a full story in exactly 100 words really taught me how to cut fluff from my drafts. Has anyone else found constraints actually help their writing?

2 comments

c/freelance-survival•

ray363•12d ago

Hit 50 regular clients this month, took me 4 years to get here

I started freelancing from my kitchen table in Austin back in 2020 with zero clients. Last week I counted up my recurring folks and realized I finally crossed 50. It doesn't sound huge but it feels solid, like I'm actually building something. Any other freelancers track their client count over time or just focus on income numbers?

3 comments

c/beat-the-algorithm•

ray363•13d ago

Rant: Got roasted by a pro photographer for my hashtag strategy.

Some guy named Dave in a Facebook group for local creators near Austin told me my 30 hashtag mess was just spam. He said I should only use 5 to 8 targeted ones like #AustinFoodie instead of #love or #instagood. I cut it down and my engagement actually jumped 20 percent in two days. Anybody else get schooled by a stranger and find out they were right?

2 comments

Posts

Just found out ARM caps can actually protect you from the worst rate jumps

3 years in Lincoln Park taught me something about winter parking

Appreciation post for the ranger at Yellowstone who called me out on some park lore

Wasted $150 on a fancy tablet stand that made my wrist hurt worse

Vent: Found a clause in our subagency agreement that basically gives away client IP

Hit 1,000 followers on Instagram but my engagement rate tanked

TIL my backyard drain fix was a bigger job than I thought

Used to hate on writing prompts with strict word counts

Hit 50 regular clients this month, took me 4 years to get here

Rant: Got roasted by a pro photographer for my hashtag strategy.

Recent Comments