Nina Ross (u/the_nina)

Posts

Saw a crew in Austin skip mud curing on a hot day and learned my lesson

I was on a job site in Austin last August watching a crew pour a driveway in 95 degree heat. They sprayed cure compound but skipped the wet burlap and poly, and within 3 hours the surface was checking like crazy. Has anyone else seen guys skip proper curing and end up with a mess?

2 comments

c/camera-repairers•

the_nina•3d ago

I spent 3 years cleaning lenses wrong before someone called me out

I was at a workshop in Chicago last month and a guy watched me clean a lens. He asked why I was using so much pressure. I told him that's how you get the smudges off. He just shook his head and showed me his method - barely any pressure, just a slow wipe with a microfiber cloth and a tiny bit of solution. Turns out I was grinding dust into the coatings this whole time. I went home and checked my oldest lens and sure enough there were micro scratches all over the front element. Has anyone else been cleaning lenses wrong for years without realizing it?

3 comments

c/cabinetmakers•

the_nina•9d ago

Showerthought: That $200 Blumotion soft close kit I bought was a nightmare

Thought I was being smart. Upgrading all my old cabinets in the kitchen. Picked up a full set of Blumotion dampers and hardware. Cost me about $200 for the whole setup. Took me a whole weekend to install them. Half of them didn't even line up right with my existing hinges. Ended up having to drill new pilot holes and mess with the mounting plates. Now three of them are already sticking after 4 months. Should have just stuck with my old mechanical hinges. Anyone else get burned by aftermarket soft close stuff?

2 comments

c/budget-friendly-meals•

the_nina•9d ago

Why does nobody talk about how frozen veggies can save your whole meal budget

I was at Aldi last Tuesday staring at a $4 bag of fresh green beans for a stir fry and almost walked out to get takeout instead. Then I grabbed a $1 bag of frozen mixed veggies and it made THREE meals. I had been avoiding frozen stuff for years thinking fresh was always better. That one switch cut my weekly grocery bill from $85 to around $60. Has anyone else had that moment where you realized convenience brands fooled you into paying more?

2 comments

c/budgeting-wins•

the_nina•10d ago

Warning: my 'budget' grocery run turned into a $120 disaster last Saturday

I went to Aldi in Austin thinking I'd grab my usual $60 worth of stuff. But I walked in hungry and ended up buying a bunch of premade meals and snacks I didn't need. By the time I got to the register, the total was $120 and I had no meal plan for the week. Has anyone else had to start bringing a strict list or cash only to stop this from happening?

2 comments

c/fashion-design-ideas•

the_nina•13d ago

Wasted $150 on cheap fabric scissors that couldn't cut through denim

Bought a set of budget shears off a random website and they dulled after cutting three yards of cotton. Had to spend another $60 on proper Gingher scissors from a local shop in Portland. Anyone else fall for those "professional grade" deals that just waste your money?

2 comments

c/budget-travel-hacks•

the_nina•14d ago

Had to choose between a hostel dorm and a sketchy motel in Madrid

I was in Madrid last spring and ran out of money after two days. I had 45 euros left and had to pick between a 12-bed hostel dorm with no AC or a motel outside the city center that looked like it was used for crime scenes. I picked the dorm because I figured safety in numbers. Turns out, my bunkmate snored like a chain saw and someone stole my flip flops. Has anyone else had a budget lodging choice backfire on them?

4 comments

c/baking-fails-and-wins•

the_nina•15d ago

My sourdough starter went from sad to STRONG in just 2 weeks - heres what fixed it

I started my first sourdough starter back in January and it was totally flat and lifeless for like 10 days. I was about to toss it but then I switched from tap water to filtered water and started feeding it every 12 hours instead of once a day. After 2 weeks it finally doubled in size and I got my first real rise on a loaf. Has anyone else had a starter that just wouldnt take off and what did you change?

3 comments

c/astronomy-photos•

the_nina•1mo ago

Can we talk about how stacked Hubble vs Webb images actually compare

I was real skeptical when people kept saying Webb photos just look better because of processing. Then I spent an afternoon pulling raw data from both telescopes on the same target, the Pillars of Creation. Hubble's version is sharp but you can see where it hits its limit in infrared. Webb caught dust structures that are just invisible in Hubble's shots, no amount of editing would bring those out. Has anyone else sat down and really compared the raw files side by side?

2 comments

c/crane-operators•

the_nina•1mo ago

Talked to a old timer at the supply yard yesterday and it changed how I read wind

I was picking up some chokers and this guy in his 70s starts talking about how he used to watch the tops of trees before picking up a load. Said he never trusted a wind meter on site because ground level readings mean nothing when you got 200 feet of boom up. He told me about a job in Port Alberni where a sudden gust he didn't catch spun a beam into a wall. Now I find myself looking up at treetops way more than my phone screen. Any of you guys still rely on that old school method?

3 comments