After 2 years of raising chickens, I just realized I was giving them way too much protein

I kept wondering why my hens were laying weird soft shells and some were getting aggressive with each other. Took them to the vet last month and she asked what I was feeding them. I was giving them a 26% protein feed because I thought more protein meant better eggs. She told me that's way too high for most backyard flocks unless you have roosters or meat birds. Switched to a 16% layer feed and within a week the shells got harder and the pecking order calmed down. Anyone else get bad advice from the feed store guy who just wants to sell the expensive stuff?

My brother-in-law in Pittsburgh said he never uses a level on big boiler flanges

We were having a beer after a long day on a plant shutdown, and he told me he just uses a plumb bob and a tape measure from two fixed points on the structure. He said he's been doing it that way for 15 years and it's always dead-on. I tried it last week on a 48-inch steam drum flange, and it saved me a ton of time wrestling with a 4-foot level. Does anyone else have a go-to trick for squaring up big flanges without a giant level?

My school's new 'AI tutor' system is making me want to scream

Last week, our district in Austin rolled out this adaptive learning AI for math. It's supposed to give each kid a custom lesson plan. But it flagged half my 7th graders as needing remedial work on fractions, which they mastered last month. The system's logic is totally broken, pulling from outdated test scores. I spent three hours on Friday manually overriding its assignments just to get us back on track. Has anyone else had to fight a 'smart' system that's actually making your job harder?

Rant: I bought a $75 variant cover that was just a reprint

I saw a cool looking 'exclusive' cover for a new issue at my local shop and grabbed it without checking the fine print. Turns out it was just a second printing with a different cover, not a real variant, so it's basically worthless now. Has anyone else fallen for this trick?

Rant: I thought cleaning a clogged shower drain was a 10 minute job, it took me over an hour.

I finally realized how install chats have changed over the years

People used to be curious and ask lots of questions while I worked. Now, they usually stay quiet or focus on their devices, which makes the job feel different.