Oscar Williams (u/oscarwilliams)

Posts

That creosote log I used took me 4 extra hours to clean up

I thought those creosote sweeping logs would save me time on a flue in an old Victorian house last week, but it just flaked off into big chunks that jammed my rotary brush, adding 4 hours of poking and vacuuming to a job I figured would be done in 2.

2 comments

c/creative-studios•

oscarwilliams•3d ago

My first studio sale took 2 years and a broken lamp to happen

I started my little design studio out of my spare bedroom in Denver about 3 years ago. Last month I finally sold my first full branding package to a local coffee shop. It all started when their lamp broke and I offered to fix the wiring, then they asked what I do for work. Has anyone else gotten their biggest break from something totally unrelated to your actual services?

2 comments

c/bbq-pitmasters•

oscarwilliams•4d ago

That time in Kansas City changed how I trim my brisket

I was at a competition in KC back in 2018 and watched a older pitmaster trim a packer. He barely took anything off, just hit the hard fat and left the rest. I used to hack away at them trying to make them look perfect. After I tried his way my cook times evened out and I stopped losing so much meat. Anyone else change their trimming style after watching someone work?

2 comments

c/backyard-studios•

oscarwilliams•5d ago

Why does everyone insist on putting their backyard studio on a concrete slab?

I keep seeing people post photos of their new studios sitting directly on a concrete pad. That's just asking for moisture problems. I built mine 6 years ago in Austin and put it on a raised timber floor with gravel underneath. After a couple of wet springs, my buddy's slab-based studio developed mold behind his acoustic panels. He had to tear out his whole treated wall section last fall. Do you really want to risk your gear and all that effort just because pouring concrete is easier? Has anyone else dealt with moisture issues from a slab floor?

2 comments

c/anime-discussions•

oscarwilliams•5d ago

Got told my sub timing was off by a random commenter

I was posting AMVs in a weekly thread and someone said my cuts always land a beat late. At first I brushed it off but then I rewatched my stuff and yeah they were totally right. I started matching the punch frames to the snare hits instead of guessing and now my videos actually flow better. Anybody else get a random piece of feedback that completely changed their editing style?

2 comments

c/bad-design-hall-of-fame•

oscarwilliams•9d ago

Vent: That moment I hit zero inches of clearance on a gate install

I was measuring out a new backyard gate for a client in Denver and everything lined up perfect on paper... right up until I went to hang it. Turns out the concrete footer they poured was a full 2 inches higher than what I was told. Ended up with exactly zero inches of clearance between the bottom of the gate and the ground, and it scraped every time you swung it open. Has anyone else run into a surprise measurement that just killed your whole afternoon?

2 comments

c/design-your-life•

oscarwilliams•1mo ago

Why does nobody talk about the 80-20 rule for project planning

Spent 3 hours stressing over every detail for my workshop layout before a buddy said just focus on the 20% that gives 80% of the result. Cut my prep time in half and actually ended up with a cleaner setup. Anyone else fall into the overplanning trap?

2 comments

c/anime-discussions•

oscarwilliams•1mo ago

Picked streaming Crunchyroll over HiDive for the winter season and kind of regretting it

I had to decide between Crunchyroll and HiDive for this winter's new shows. I went with Crunchyroll because it's cheaper at $8 a month and has a bigger library. But I'm missing out on a couple shows that only HiDive picked up, like that one fantasy series everyone's talking about. The thing is, Crunchyroll's player keeps buffering on my laptop during peak hours, which is annoying. I also heard HiDive has better community features for discussions, which is what I'm really into. Has anyone else made the switch between these two and found one works better for keeping up with talks about episodes?

2 comments

c/creative-writing-prompts•

oscarwilliams•1mo ago

Stuck on a writing prompt for 2 hours at a diner in Flagstaff

I was sitting at this greasy spoon off I-40 last month, trying to force a prompt about a haunted vending machine. Nothing was clicking. Then I watched the waitress refill ketchup bottles from a giant plastic jug, and it hit me - the horror is in the mundane stuff we all see every day. I started writing about the bottles being filled with something that wasn't ketchup, and the story took off from there. Has anyone else had a random observation like that totally save a dead prompt?

2 comments

c/camping-gear-reviews•

oscarwilliams•1mo ago

Changed my mind about stove fuel after 3 burns

I used to swear by isobutane canisters for backpacking trips in the Smokies. Then last month I tried white gas on a 6 day rain trip and realized how much waste those little cans create. The MSR WhisperLite Universal I borrowed let me refuel from a big bottle and saved like 4 half empty canisters from the landfill. Anyone else made the switch and found a good multi-fuel stove that isn't a brick to carry?

2 comments