Just found out 'The Last of Us' season 1 used over 400,000 gallons of fake rain...

Read that in a production article from HBO. Makes all those soggy scenes way more impressive to think about now. Anyone know other shows that went all out on a single effect like that?

Heard a client at the salon say she only washes her hair twice a week now because of a TikTok trend. It made me wonder how often we're really steering people versus just following what's viral.

TIL my vinegar test on a 'gold' nugget from the creek gave me a surprise

I was cleaning up some creek finds from a trip to the Blue Ridge foothills and had this one piece that looked like a small, rough gold nugget. I've always heard that a drop of white vinegar can help tell gold from pyrite, since pyrite will fizz. I put a drop on it and waited. No fizz at all, which got me excited. But then, after about a minute, the spot under the vinegar turned a dull, chalky white. That's not right for gold either. I looked it up and it turns out it was probably a piece of weathered galena, and the vinegar reacted with the lead to make lead carbonate. I thought the test was a simple yes or no, but it showed me there's a whole middle ground of weird mineral reactions. Has anyone else had a common field test backfire and show you something totally different?

Update: I pulled cash out for a kitchen reno expecting my payment to jump, but the rate drop kept it flat

We got $85k at 5.25% last fall, replacing a 7% loan from 2019. Has anyone else seen their payment stay the same or even go down after a cash-out?

A chat with an old timer at the truck stop in Flagstaff made me rethink engine break-in procedures.

I was grabbing coffee last week and got talking to a guy who's been running heavy haul for 40 years. He said modern diesels don't need the 500-mile gentle break-in the manuals push, and that a proper load right away seats the rings better. I've always followed the book to the letter, but he had some convincing stories about engines he'd seen last 800,000 miles. What's the real consensus here, gentle run-in or hard run-in from the start?

Spent 4 hours on a simple hydraulic fitting in zero viz

Working a bridge inspection in Mobile, my backup light hose blew a fitting at 80 feet in total mud. Had to feel for the right size in my kit with thick gloves, took forever to get the threads started straight. What's your go-to method for dealing with small parts in black water?

My neighbor swore by adding a teaspoon of vinegar to my meringue

She said it would give it more structure, but my lemon meringue pie topping turned out weirdly grainy and weepy after 40 minutes in the oven. Has anyone else had a meringue fail with vinegar, or was it just my technique?

Changed my mind about those expensive shears

Dropped $300 on a pair of 'pro' Japanese shears thinking they'd be a game changer, but honestly my $80 pair from beauty school still cuts better for my hand. Has anyone else found that the super high end stuff isn't always worth it?

Appreciation post: Remembering the first time I binged a whole season in one weekend

I was at my friend's apartment in Portland about 8 years ago, and their internet went out for the whole weekend. We had just gotten the first season of Stranger Things on DVD as a gift. With nothing else to do, we started it Friday night and just didn't stop, finishing all 8 episodes by Sunday afternoon. It was the first time I ever watched a show that way, and it felt like a whole different experience compared to waiting week to week. Now I kinda plan my weekends around finding a new show to dive into like that. Anyone else have a specific moment that turned them into a binge watcher?

Unpopular opinion: The glass at the new museum in Austin felt kind of lifeless to me

I went to that big modern art museum that opened last month, and their whole glass sculpture wing just felt off, like everything was too perfect and cold. Maybe it's just me, but I think a piece should show some of the maker's hand, not look like it was made by a robot. Does anyone else feel like some studio glass is getting too polished and losing its soul?