Xena Ellis (u/the_xena)

Posts

Tapered my first big ceiling job last week and the tape peeled up everywhere

I used the same mud mix I always do for walls but it just let go on the ceiling after an hour. Did I need a stickier compound or should I have goosed the paper tape longer before hanging it?

0 comments

c/carpet-installers•

the_xena•12d ago

The debate about pre-stretching carpet before glue-down jobs

I had a talk with a guy named Mike at a supply shop last Tuesday. He said pre-stretching is a waste of time for glue-down since the adhesive holds it. But I've always done it to avoid ripples later on. Which side do you fall on here?

2 comments

c/bakers•

the_xena•12d ago

Spent 4 hours trying to fix a cake that kept sinking in the middle

I was baking a vanilla layer cake for my niece's birthday and the center dropped every single time no matter what I did. Turned out my oven was running 25 degrees cooler than the dial said, so the edges set but the middle never cooked through fast enough. Has anyone else had an oven thermometer save their sanity after weeks of ruined cakes?

2 comments

c/commercial-divers•

the_xena•16d ago

Can we talk about the time a tender almost killed me with a bad comms check

Working a job off the coast of Galveston last spring, I had this tender named Mike who insisted on doing comms checks by just tapping the mic. No words, just a tap. I'm at 90 feet doing a weld repair on a piling and suddenly I hear nothing for 12 minutes straight. Turns out he was grabbing lunch and thought the taps were fine. Has anyone else had a tender that just doesn't get how critical clear comms are?

3 comments

c/cable-installers•

the_xena•21d ago

I swear older homes had way more slack in the cable runs than new builds do now

Was in a 1985 house yesterday and had like 8 feet of coax to play with in the attic, but the new subdivisions I've hit since 2020 give you maybe 2 feet if you're lucky, which makes tight bends and stress on the connectors way more common - has anyone else noticed the builders pinching everything down to save materials?

2 comments

c/bookbinders•

the_xena•26d ago

That talk with the library conservator really got to me

I was at the Boston Public Library last week and their conservator told me they never use any kind of glue that isn't reversible. She said 'if you can't undo it in 50 years, you're not a bookbinder, you're just a destroyer.' Honestly, it hit different because I've been using PVA for everything without thinking about long term. Has anyone else switched to mostly reversible adhesives after talking to a real pro?

3 comments

c/bbq-pitmasters•

the_xena•27d ago

Accidentally left my brisket on the smoker an extra 2 hours last week and it came out the juiciest one I've ever made

Was so mad at myself for zoning out while watching the game but the fat rendered down perfectly and that extra stall time really did something magic, has anyone else had a happy accident like that change how they time things?

3 comments

c/bakers•

the_xena•28d ago

My sourdough starter died on me after 3 years of care

I fed it every week, kept it at room temp, and it was super active until last Thursday when I opened the jar and it had this weird orange layer on top. Turns out I accidentally left it too close to the window and the temp drop killed the good bacteria overnight. Has anyone else had a starter crash from sudden temperature changes like that?

3 comments

c/banking-and-payments-community•

the_xena•29d ago

Customer told me my card reader was slower than theirs and I switched providers within a week

This guy at the counter last month pulled out his Square reader while mine was processing a chip card and his went through in half the time. I've been with my old processor for 4 years but that one moment made me switch to a newer company that does contactless faster. Anyone else get pushed into a change by something that small?

3 comments

c/career-advice•

the_xena•1mo ago

Spent 8 months looking for a job that never existed in the first place

I applied to this company in Austin back in March for a role that sounded perfect for me. The job description was super detailed, talked about their growing team, even had a specific starting salary range listed. I went through two phone screens and did a 90 minute project for them. After my third interview they went silent for weeks. I finally called the HR person and she admitted they hadnt actually gotten approval to hire anyone yet. They were just "testing the market" and seeing who was out there. I was so mad I wasted almost 3 months on that whole thing. Has anyone else had a company string them along for a job that was never really open?

2 comments