The 7:15 express bus versus the 7:30 local route is a night and day difference

For a year I took the local bus from my stop in Tacoma, which stopped every two blocks and took 55 minutes to get downtown. Last month I started walking ten minutes to catch the express instead. It uses the freeway and makes only three stops total, cutting my trip to 32 minutes. The extra walk is nothing compared to getting 23 minutes of my morning back. The express is also less crowded because fewer people are willing to make that initial walk. I wish I had switched years ago. Has anyone else made a small change to their route that saved a huge chunk of time?

Used a zip tie to fix a stripped climbing rope lock on a job in Tacoma

The lock on my Petzl Zigzag was slipping bad, and the shop was an hour away. I put a heavy duty zip tie through the cam hole as a temporary stop, and it held for the whole removal. Some guys say this is a dangerous hack, but it got me down safely and saved the day. What's your take on field fixes versus strict gear rules?

Warning: I had to choose between a full control board swap or just replacing the relay on a 5 year old dryer

The dryer had a dead heating element. The relay on the main board tested bad, but the board was $180. A new universal relay was $12 and a 30 minute solder job. I went with the relay fix to save the customer money. It worked for about a month, then the board failed completely from another fault, and I had to go back for the full swap anyway. Has anyone else had a universal relay fix backfire, or is it usually worth the gamble on older units?

My neighbor told me to put a damp sponge in the microwave to clean it

My neighbor, Frank, said to put a wet sponge in the microwave for two minutes to kill germs. I tried it last week and the sponge came out hot and steamy, but it smelled weird and felt kind of melted in one spot. Has anyone else tried this and had it work, or did I mess it up?

Just realized I'm the only person I know who remembers 'The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.'

Tried to explain the plot to my nephew last week, about a Harvard lawyer turned bounty hunter in the 1890s West chasing an orb with weird powers. His eyes just glazed over. I got so into describing the episode where Brisco rides a prototype rocket sled that I knocked my coffee right off the table. Anyone else have a show they love that feels like it vanished from the planet?

Why does everyone say to proof bread dough in a warm spot?

I proofed my sourdough on the cool counter for 18 hours last week and got the best oven spring and flavor I've ever had. I think a slow, cool ferment is way better than rushing it with warmth. What's your go-to proofing temp?

I just finished my 100th tile cut on my bathroom remodel and realized I was doing it wrong for the first 90.

Pro tip: I was using way too much PVA glue for years without knowing

I mean, I always thought more glue meant a stronger hold, right? But then I saw a video from a binder in Portland who showed their process, and they used maybe a quarter of what I put on. I tried it on a test copy of 'The Great Gatsby' and the spine was way more flexible and opened better. Has anyone else had that 'aha' moment with glue amount?

PSA: Manual dimensioning on that big warehouse project versus using the auto tool in Civil 3D.

The auto tool was 30% faster but I had to redo half the sheets because it missed key offsets. Anyone else find the time saved gets eaten up by fixing mistakes?

I bought my sister a fancy coffee machine for her birthday and it was a total flop

I was at her place in Austin last month for the party, and she opened the box looking confused. She said, 'I don't even drink coffee, I'm a tea person.' I felt so bad because I spent over $300 on it. I ended up returning it and we went shopping together for a nice teapot instead. Has anyone else had a gift idea backfire because you got the person's hobby totally wrong?