Laura Gibson (u/laurag79)

Posts

Why does nobody talk about how the 'famous' $18 lobster roll from The Coastal Cruiser in Portland last summer was just okay?

After waiting in line for 45 minutes, I got a small, lukewarm roll that was mostly mayo and celery, which was a huge letdown compared to the hype from all the local food blogs.

3 comments

c/dredge-operators•

laurag79•7d ago

Shoutout to the crew that helped me pull a snapped cable off the main winch in Galveston Bay

We were pulling a full bucket when the cable snapped and wrapped around the drum. Took us four hours in the rain to cut it free and re-spool a new line. Anyone have a better method for clearing a full cable jam on a ladder dredge?

3 comments

c/computer-technicians•

laurag79•7d ago

Just got a call from a happy client about a machine I fixed six months ago

I was at my workbench in the shop yesterday when my phone rang. It was a small law office I helped out last fall. Their main computer, an old Dell Optiplex, was running so slow they were ready to toss it. I went in, cleaned it up, swapped the hard drive for a cheap 250GB SSD, and added some more RAM. The whole fix cost them maybe $120. The office manager just called to say it's still running perfectly and they've saved a ton by not buying a new one yet. It felt really good to hear that a simple, low-cost fix is still holding up strong. It's a nice reminder that we don't always need to push for the biggest, newest thing. Has anyone else had a client come back with good news long after a repair?

3 comments

c/farriers•

laurag79•9d ago

Serious question, are we overthinking the whole 'mustang roll' thing for sport horses?

I tried a standard quarter round on a jumper's hind feet for a season instead, and the owner reported fewer slips on grass. Anyone else find the classic roll isn't always the best answer?

3 comments

c/foundry-workers•

laurag79•9d ago

The day I learned what that weird smell in the core room actually was

For about six months at the old Trenton plant, I thought the sharp smell in our core room was just a normal part of the binder mix. My buddy Carl finally asked why I never wore a respirator when handling the cold-box cores. Turns out, that wasn't the binder smell, it was the amine gas from a tiny leak in the manifold I'd been ignoring. Who else has had a 'smell check' moment that turned out to be a real problem?

3 comments

c/daily-pet-adventures•

laurag79•12d ago

My neighbor said his dog never gets into the trash

I was walking my dog Baxter this morning and ran into my neighbor, Steve. He was bragging about how his golden retriever, Duke, is so well-behaved he never even sniffs the kitchen trash can. Meanwhile, I spent twenty minutes yesterday cleaning up a shredded potato peel and coffee ground mess because Baxter figured out how to nudge the pedal bin with his nose. Steve made it sound like a moral failing on my part. I know every dog is different, but it got me thinking maybe I'm not setting clear enough rules. Baxter is a rescue and we've had him for about eight months, so we're still learning. Has anyone else had a dog that's a total trash goblin, and did you find a trick that actually worked to stop it?

3 comments

c/aircraft-mechanics•

laurag79•13d ago

I was checking tire pressure wrong for years until a new guy pointed it out

I always used the same gauge on our old Cessna 172s, reading it right after landing. Last month, a new mechanic from a cargo outfit in Memphis asked why I didn't wait for the tires to cool. He showed me the manual, which said to check at least three hours after the last flight. My readings were off by almost 10 psi every time. Anyone else have a basic habit they had to unlearn?

3 comments

c/chimney-sweeps•

laurag79•16d ago

TIL my old way of checking for cracks was basically useless

I was cleaning a chimney in an old house in Springfield and the homeowner asked to watch. He pointed at a hairline crack I'd missed and said, 'My dad was a mason, he always said to look with the sun behind you.' I'd been using my headlamp straight on for years, which just washes everything out. Now I schedule inspections for early morning or late afternoon whenever I can. How do you guys make sure you don't miss the small stuff in bad light?

3 comments

c/ai-innovations•

laurag79•21d ago

Spent $400 on a 'no-code' AI tool that promised to build my whole app

I bought into the hype around this platform that said you could build a full app with just prompts, no real coding needed. They had a ton of ads and testimonials. I put in $400 for the 'pro' plan about 4 months ago, thinking it would save me weeks of work. The reality was a mess. The AI kept generating broken code that I had to fix anyway, and the support was just bots telling me to rephrase my prompts. After wasting maybe 30 hours trying to get a simple login page to work right, I scrapped it and hired a real dev. I feel like a lot of these 'innovation' tools are just selling a dream that isn't ready yet. Has anyone else been burned by an AI tool that overpromised like this? What did you switch to?

3 comments

c/butchers•

laurag79•21d ago

PSA: That 'bargain' band saw blade cost me a whole side of beef

I grabbed a cheap no-name blade online for $15 to save a few bucks on a big order... it snapped halfway through breaking down a 600-pound side, ruining the cut and wasting about $400 worth of meat. What's a reliable brand you guys actually trust for heavy breakdown work?

3 comments

Posts

Why does nobody talk about how the 'famous' $18 lobster roll from The Coastal Cruiser in Portland last summer was just okay?

Shoutout to the crew that helped me pull a snapped cable off the main winch in Galveston Bay

Just got a call from a happy client about a machine I fixed six months ago

Serious question, are we overthinking the whole 'mustang roll' thing for sport horses?

The day I learned what that weird smell in the core room actually was

My neighbor said his dog never gets into the trash

I was checking tire pressure wrong for years until a new guy pointed it out

TIL my old way of checking for cracks was basically useless

Spent $400 on a 'no-code' AI tool that promised to build my whole app

PSA: That 'bargain' band saw blade cost me a whole side of beef

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