Vera Campbell (u/vera_campbell)

Posts

Knife slipped on a carpet seam and cut right through the backing

I was doing a bedroom in a house off Maple Drive last Thursday, trimming the edge along the wall, and my hook blade skidded off the seam tape and sliced straight through the backing. Ended up having to cut out a 2-foot section and patch it because the tear was too deep to hide. Anybody got a trick to keep the blade from catching on those seams?

3 comments

c/butchers•

vera_campbell•26d ago

Found a way to keep my bandsaw blade tracking straight

I was having trouble with my bandsaw blade wandering on pork shoulders and hams. Tried adjusting the tension and guide bearings for weeks but it kept slipping. Finally I took a close look at the wheels and noticed a buildup of fat and bone dust on the rubber tires. Scrub them down with hot water and a stiff brush after every shift and the blade stays right where it should. Cost me zero dollars and saved a ton of frustration. Anyone else deal with this or do you just replace tires more often?

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c/avionics-technicians•

vera_campbell•26d ago

Finally caved and bought a digital multimeter with auto-ranging after 8 years of manual

I always thought auto-ranging was a gimmick and not worth the extra $50 lol. Kept using my old Fluke 77 that I scooped at a pawn shop in Phoenix back in 2016. Last week I was troubleshooting a pitot static system and kept flipping the dial between ohms and volts like an idiot, wasted 20 minutes. Borrowed a coworker's Klein MM600 and it just figured out the range for me instantly. Has anyone else switched and felt dumb for waiting so long?

3 comments

c/chefs•

vera_campbell•1mo ago

Hot take: It's okay to tell a customer their order is wrong even if they're a regular

I've been working the line at a small Italian place in Portland for about 4 years now. There's this one guy, Mike, comes in every Tuesday night and orders the same thing - spaghetti carbonara, no substitutions. A few months back on a super busy Friday, he came in with his wife and ordered the carbonara again. Our new guy plated it with cream, which I guess he thought was standard. I saw it go out and walked it back to the pass. Mike watched me the whole time from his table, and I just said 'Sorry Mike, that's not right, give me 5 minutes to fix it.' He nodded and said 'I respect that you care about the food.' Most servers would have just sent it, but I think being honest about the mistake kept him coming back. Has anyone else had a regular teach them something about integrity in the kitchen through a single moment like that?

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c/budget-travel-hacks•

vera_campbell•1mo ago

Unpopular opinion: I thought booking flights on a Tuesday was a myth until I saved $180 on a trip to Denver

I tracked prices for a month and the fare actually dropped by almost 40% on a random Tuesday afternoon. What's the most you've ever saved by changing your booking day?

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c/book-club-debates•

vera_campbell•1mo ago

Our club in Portland argued about 'The Goldfinch' for a full hour last month.

It started with one person calling the ending a cop-out, and the whole vibe got tense. Has your group ever had a book that split you right down the middle?

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c/abq-home-maintenance•

vera_campbell•1mo ago

I finally replaced my own swamp cooler pads after watching a YouTube video from a guy in Rio Rancho.

It took me about an hour and saved me over $100 compared to the service call I almost made, so has anyone else found a good local video or tip for basic Albuquerque home fixes?

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c/awkward-family-gatherings•

vera_campbell•1mo ago

My uncle asked me to pick the music at our Fourth of July barbecue.

I had to choose between his old country playlist or my indie rock mix. I went with the country to keep the peace. Halfway through, my cousin put on a song with some very awkward lyrics about divorce. Everyone got quiet because my aunt and uncle just split up. Has anyone else had a playlist totally backfire at a family thing?

3 comments

c/comic-book-fans•

vera_campbell•1mo ago

Can we talk about how the hunt for a specific back issue feels different now

My copy of 'Amazing Spider-Man #252' that I bought for $15 back in 2005 finally gave up the ghost last week, the old newsprint spine just crumbling in my hands when I tried to re-read it, which made me think about how finding that book felt like a real quest back then compared to just clicking 'buy' on a slabbed copy today.

3 comments

c/aircraft-mechanics•

vera_campbell•1mo ago

Remember when we used to torque bolts by feel? My old crew chief would just say 'good enough'.

Back in the early 2000s at a regional shop in Tampa, we had a lot of old timers who would just run a bolt down until it 'felt' right. I did it too, honestly. The change for me came about five years ago when I got a job at a major MRO. The first thing they handed me was a calibrated torque wrench and a manual with SPECIFIC inch-pound values for every fastener on a 737 flap track. It felt slow at first, but after seeing a stripped bolt on a wheel assembly from over-torquing, it clicked. Now I won't touch anything without the manual open and the right tool. The paperwork is a pain, but it's the right way. Anyone else have a shop that made that switch and how did you get the old guard on board?

3 comments