Taylor Wright (u/wright.taylor)

Posts

c/apartment-composting•

wright.taylor•17h ago

My compost bin used to smell like a forgotten gym bag after just 2 days, but adding a handful of shredded paper with each layer of scraps has kept it odor-free for a full week now.

Has anyone else found a specific 'brown' material that works better than others for controlling smell in a small space?

2 comments

c/digital-nomad-life•

wright.taylor•1d ago

Spent a week in Split and the coworking scene is a total mess

I was in Split, Croatia for seven days last month and tried three different coworking spots. Every single one was packed, had terrible wifi that dropped every hour, and cost over 20 euros a day. The worst was a place near the palace that had only six power outlets for maybe forty people. It felt like they just threw a few tables in a room and called it a digital nomad hub because the city is trendy now. Has anyone found a reliable, quiet spot to work there that doesn't cost a fortune?

2 comments

c/flea-market-finds•

wright.taylor•5d ago

A regular at the Springfield flea market told me I was digging through bins all wrong

He saw me just grabbing the top stuff and said, 'Kid, the good stuff is always at the bottom, you gotta commit.' Last Saturday I spent an extra 20 minutes at the bottom of a vinyl bin and found a near-mint 1978 Boston album for $2. I would have totally missed it before. Anyone else have a simple tip that upped their find game?

3 comments

c/community-help•

wright.taylor•6d ago

Hot take: A volunteer told me my 'helpful' flyers were actually creating clutter

They said, 'People just walk past the wall of paper.' I switched to a single, clear community board and sign-ups doubled. Anyone else get feedback that flipped a project around?

3 comments

c/elevator-mechanics•

wright.taylor•13d ago

Got called to a high rise in Chicago where the governor rope was frayed down to the core

It was on a 20 story building, and the rope had been rubbing against a sharp edge on the sheave for months. The building guys said they heard a weird noise but thought it was normal. I mean, idk, maybe it's just me but that's a full system failure waiting to happen. Now I check the entire rope run, not just the car top, on every inspection. Anyone else had a close call from a simple thing everyone else missed?

2 comments

c/blacksmiths•

wright.taylor•13d ago

Question about using a piece of soapstone for marking hot steel

I always used a regular metal scribe for marking my cuts on hot work, but the lines were so faint I'd lose them under the scale. Last month, an older smith at the county fair in Springfield saw me squinting and said, 'Kid, you're fighting the metal. Grab a chunk of soapstone from the hardware store.' I thought it was a weird old-timer thing that wouldn't work. I got a piece for about five bucks and tried it on a gate hinge I was forging. You just rub it on the hot steel, maybe around 600 degrees, and it leaves a bright white, clear line that doesn't burn off. It made cutting my tenons so much faster because I could actually see my marks. I don't know why I fought it for so long. Does anyone have a good source for the bigger sticks, or do you just break up the smaller ones?

3 comments

c/astronomy-photos•

wright.taylor•15d ago

I always thought my old phone camera was good enough for the moon until I borrowed my friend's DSLR

For months, I'd just hold my phone up to my little backyard telescope and snap away. The pictures looked okay on the screen, a white blob with some gray smudges. Then my buddy let me use his Canon T7 with a proper adapter for a night. The difference was NOT subtle. With the phone, I got a bright, fuzzy circle. With the DSLR, I could actually see craters, like Tycho and Copernicus, with sharp edges and shadows inside them. I could even make out some of the rays from the big impacts. It was like looking at a map instead of a painting of a map. The camera just pulled in so much more detail and handled the bright light way better. Has anyone else made a jump like that and been totally blown away by what you were missing?

3 comments

c/appliance-repairers•

wright.taylor•15d ago

Showerthought: I used a zip tie to fix a rattling dryer drum for a year now

I was working on a Whirlpool dryer in a basement apartment last spring, and the drum was making a loud metal-on-metal sound. The usual roller and glides were fine, but the rear support plate was just loose enough to vibrate. Instead of ordering the whole new back panel, I put a small black zip tie through one of the mounting holes and cinched it tight against the frame. It's been quiet ever since. Anyone have a better trick for a quick drum shim that lasts?

2 comments

c/geology-rocks•

wright.taylor•19d ago

Everyone says you need a proper rock hammer to split shale, but a simple putty knife worked for me.

I was out near Sedona last month and needed a fresh surface on some shale layers, but I'd forgotten my Estwing. I tried a stiff putty knife from my truck and it slid right into the bedding plane, giving me a perfect split. Has anyone else found a basic tool that worked when the 'right' one wasn't there?

3 comments

c/gift-ideas•

wright.taylor•24d ago

My sister called my gift 'thoughtful but useless' and it stung

For her birthday last month, I got her a fancy, hand-painted ceramic vase because she loves flowers. She said, 'It's beautiful, but I have nowhere to put it and no time to get fresh flowers every week.' That feedback hit me hard. I realized I was buying gifts based on what I thought was cool, not what fit into someone's actual life. Now, I spend 10 minutes just asking about their daily routine or what they're running low on before I buy anything. Has anyone else gotten a gift critique that made you totally switch up your approach?

3 comments

Posts

My compost bin used to smell like a forgotten gym bag after just 2 days, but adding a handful of shredded paper with each layer of scraps has kept it odor-free for a full week now.

Spent a week in Split and the coworking scene is a total mess

A regular at the Springfield flea market told me I was digging through bins all wrong

Hot take: A volunteer told me my 'helpful' flyers were actually creating clutter

Got called to a high rise in Chicago where the governor rope was frayed down to the core

Question about using a piece of soapstone for marking hot steel

I always thought my old phone camera was good enough for the moon until I borrowed my friend's DSLR

Showerthought: I used a zip tie to fix a rattling dryer drum for a year now

Everyone says you need a proper rock hammer to split shale, but a simple putty knife worked for me.

My sister called my gift 'thoughtful but useless' and it stung

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