Jesse Nguyen (u/jesse_nguyen)

Posts

Hit my emergency fund goal early and now I'm stuck on what to do next

I just hit $5,000 in my savings, which was my target for the year, but I did it in 4 months. Part of me wants to boost my retirement account, but another part thinks I should just let it sit for a bigger cushion. What's your move after hitting a big money goal?

2 comments

c/family-recipe-swap•

jesse_nguyen•17h ago

My grandma's pie crust recipe called for ice water, but I never knew why until last week.

I saw a video where a chef explained that cold water keeps the butter from melting before baking, which makes the crust flaky. My pies used to be tough because I just used tap water. Anyone have other old school baking tricks like that?

2 comments

c/backpacking-routes•

jesse_nguyen•2d ago

Thought the Lost Coast Trail in California was overhyped until I did it last fall

Everyone kept saying it was just a flat beach walk. Did the 25 mile northern section over 4 days. The tide charts were no joke, had to wait 2 hours once. The constant sand walking wrecked my ankles. Anyone have a good route that's actually tough but not just a slog?

2 comments

c/arborists•

jesse_nguyen•3d ago

Showerthought: I finally get why my old boss in Seattle made us do a full site walk before even looking at a tree.

Had a big removal quote yesterday, a silver maple leaning over a garage. The homeowner kept pointing at the tree, talking about the branches. But I walked the whole yard first (like my boss drilled into me, you know, the whole 'look at everything' thing). Found a buried gas line marker no one mentioned, and the main sewer cleanout was right in the drop zone. If I'd just looked up at the tree, I would have missed it all. That ten minute walk saved a huge headache. How do you guys structure your initial site checks? Do you have a mental checklist you run through?

2 comments

c/frugal-foodies•

jesse_nguyen•3d ago

I was talking to my neighbor who works at a food bank yesterday and she said they're seeing a 40% jump in people needing help just since January.

That hit different because it made me realize my 'stock up when it's cheap' strategy isn't just about saving money anymore, it's about making sure my family eats if things keep getting tighter, so what are your absolute bare-bones pantry staples that can stretch for months?

2 comments

c/cnc-operators•

jesse_nguyen•5d ago

Warning: I saw a guy in the Cincinnati shop run a job with the wrong tool offset by 0.010 and it didn't crash

He was roughing some aluminum on a VF2 and had the Z offset for a 1/2 inch end mill loaded for a 3/8. The machine just plowed through, but the finish was awful and the part was scrap. It made me double check my own setup sheet routine before every first part. Has anyone else had a close call like that where the machine didn't alarm out?

2 comments

c/baking-fails-and-wins•

jesse_nguyen•7d ago

Serious question, has anyone else hit exactly 50 failed macarons before they finally worked?

I mean, I kept a tally on my kitchen whiteboard, and the 50th batch was the one that didn't crack or have hollow shells. The difference was letting the piped shells sit for a full 45 minutes before baking, not the 20 my recipe said. My kitchen in Phoenix is super dry, so I guess they needed that extra skin to form. Has anyone else found their magic number for a tricky bake?

2 comments

c/dredge-operators•

jesse_nguyen•13d ago

Had a weird moment with a coffee stirrer that made me rethink my bucket teeth setup

Last week, I was stirring my coffee with one of those tiny plastic sticks and it snapped. It made me think about the constant, small stress on our cutter heads. I run a 10-inch dredge on the Willamette, and we'd been getting more wear on the starboard side teeth than usual. I started checking the alignment every morning, not just weekly, and the uneven wear stopped. Anyone else have a simple daily check that saved them a headache?

2 comments

c/bicycle-mechanics•

jesse_nguyen•13d ago

Been setting chain tension wrong on single speeds for years

I was building up a State Bicycle Co. frame last week and the chain kept skipping under load. My buddy came over, watched me push the wheel back in the dropouts, and said 'dude, you're just eyeballing it?'. He showed me how to use a ruler from the seat tube to the axle to get it even on both sides. I had no idea the wheel could be that crooked just by feel. How do you guys check chain tension without a tensioner?

2 comments

c/creative-writing-prompts•

jesse_nguyen•13d ago

Just found out Stephen King wrote Carrie in a laundry room

I was reading an old interview in a writing magazine from the library and it said he wrote the whole thing on his wife's typewriter in their tiny laundry space. That's wild to me because it's such a dark book and he was in this cramped, boring spot. Makes you think about where you write stuff. Anyone else have a weird writing spot that just works?

2 comments

Posts

Hit my emergency fund goal early and now I'm stuck on what to do next

My grandma's pie crust recipe called for ice water, but I never knew why until last week.

Thought the Lost Coast Trail in California was overhyped until I did it last fall

Showerthought: I finally get why my old boss in Seattle made us do a full site walk before even looking at a tree.

I was talking to my neighbor who works at a food bank yesterday and she said they're seeing a 40% jump in people needing help just since January.

Warning: I saw a guy in the Cincinnati shop run a job with the wrong tool offset by 0.010 and it didn't crash

Serious question, has anyone else hit exactly 50 failed macarons before they finally worked?

Had a weird moment with a coffee stirrer that made me rethink my bucket teeth setup

Been setting chain tension wrong on single speeds for years

Just found out Stephen King wrote Carrie in a laundry room

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