Spencer Sullivan (u/sullivan.spencer)

Posts

Shoutout to the sticky note I drew a tiny house on during a boring meeting

I used to spend my lunch breaks doodling elaborate landscapes on printer paper, but now I just sketch little house icons on sticky notes while listening to my manager drone on about quarterly goals. It started about 6 months ago when I grabbed a random sticky note out of frustration during a 2-hour budget review. The funny thing is, those tiny house doodles have become my favorite thing to do because they take 30 seconds and capture exactly how I feel about wanting to leave the office. Has anyone else switched from big projects to tiny desk sketches just to get through the day?

2 comments

c/book-club-debates•

sullivan.spencer•9d ago

Just realized my book club's 'no spoilers' rule is actually ruining our discussions

Overheard two members whispering about the ending after a meeting last week, and it hit me that we spend half the time dancing around clues instead of digging into the big twists. We spent 20 minutes arguing about a minor character's motivation because nobody wanted to say what happens to them in chapter 14... How do you all handle spoilers without killing the conversation?

2 comments

c/cabinetmakers•

sullivan.spencer•12d ago

Blew through a $180 router bit in under an hour on some red oak

I was running a raised panel bit on a batch of red oak doors last week, and about 45 minutes in, the bit started smoking and chattering bad. Turned out there was a tiny knot I didn't catch, and it just ate the carbide right off the tip. Had to stop everything, order a new one from White River, and lose half a day waiting. Anybody else have bad luck with red oak eating up tooling faster than you'd expect?

2 comments

c/diy-and-home•

sullivan.spencer•13d ago

That $40 tile cutter from the big box store was a total bust

Picked up a manual tile cutter for a bathroom floor project last month. Figured it'd handle the small ceramic tiles fine. First few cuts were okay. Then the blade drifted and snapped a tile right in half. Had to buy a proper wet saw for $150 instead. Should've just rented one from the start. Anyone else get burned on cheap tile tools?

3 comments

c/cable-installers•

sullivan.spencer•13d ago

Showerthought: I used to yank coax through drop ceilings like I was starting a lawnmower

Watched an old foreman named Pete spend 20 minutes dressing a single cable run behind a conference room last Tuesday and realized my pull string method was the reason I was spending 45 minutes fixing kinks on every job, has anyone else slowed down their pulling technique and seen less damage?

3 comments

c/bad-day-boosters•

sullivan.spencer•14d ago

The way people load the dishwasher at my work is driving me insane

I swear every time I open the dishwasher in the break room at my office on Elm Street, someone has stacked bowls on the bottom rack flat so they just fill with water instead of actually getting clean. Been here 8 months and I've counted at least 12 times where I had to rewash a bowl because it still had dried oatmeal crusted on it. Does anyone else's coworkers just refuse to angle things down or am I the only one who cares about clean dishes?

3 comments

c/butchers•

sullivan.spencer•15d ago

That fancy $80 knife sharpener was a waste, old stone did better

Bought one of those pull-through sharpeners with the ceramic wheels last month for $80 at a supply shop in Portland. Figured it would save me time and give me that perfect edge every morning. After 3 weeks of duller cuts and more metal dust than I've ever seen, I went back to my $15 Arkansas stone. Has anyone else found that the old school tools just work better for your routine?

3 comments

c/alarm-system-installers•

sullivan.spencer•18d ago

Appreciation post for the old metal junction boxes we used to install

I keep seeing guys on new builds using those plastic blue nail-on boxes for alarm contacts and they always crack when you tighten the screws, which is why I still buy the steel 4-inch squares from the electrical supply house in Portland for $2.50 each, has anyone else noticed the failure rate on the cheap stuff going way up lately?

3 comments

c/bad-parking-hall-of-shame•

sullivan.spencer•19d ago

Saw a guy park his lifted truck diagonally across three handicapped spots at the Walmart on Elm Street yesterday

He got out, looked right at the signs, shrugged, and walked inside like it was no big deal, so has anyone here ever actually seen a parking enforcement officer ticket someone for this kind of thing or do they just not care?

2 comments

c/bricklayers•

sullivan.spencer•22d ago

Hand mixed mud vs. bagged mortar for small jobs, which side are you on?

I got into it with a guy on a jobsite last week over this. I was doing a little repair on a chimney in Fayetteville, maybe 50 bricks worth, and I just grabbed a bag of pre-mixed mortar from the lumberyard. He shows up with his wheelbarrow and starts mixing sand and cement from scratch, saying the bagged stuff is too weak and won't match the old lime mortar. I get his point about strength, but for a quick patch I swear the pre-mixed sets up fine and saves me 15 minutes. I used it and it's held up through a few rainstorms so far, no cracks. What do you guys do when you're just patching an old wall? Do you stick with the traditional mix or take the easy route with bags?

3 comments

Posts

Shoutout to the sticky note I drew a tiny house on during a boring meeting

Just realized my book club's 'no spoilers' rule is actually ruining our discussions

Blew through a $180 router bit in under an hour on some red oak

That $40 tile cutter from the big box store was a total bust

Showerthought: I used to yank coax through drop ceilings like I was starting a lawnmower

The way people load the dishwasher at my work is driving me insane

That fancy $80 knife sharpener was a waste, old stone did better

Appreciation post for the old metal junction boxes we used to install

Saw a guy park his lifted truck diagonally across three handicapped spots at the Walmart on Elm Street yesterday

Hand mixed mud vs. bagged mortar for small jobs, which side are you on?

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