Riley Singh (u/riley_singh)

Posts

Just read that the old Buckeye Foundry in Cleveland poured over 2 million tons of iron in its first decade

Found that in a local history book at the library. That's a crazy amount of metal for a place that started with just two cupolas. Makes you think about the scale of work back then with way less tech. Anyone know of other old foundries with numbers that wild?

3 comments

c/budgeting-wins•

riley_singh•1mo ago

My fridge gave up the ghost right after the holidays

The old Kenmore in my apartment just stopped making cold air about three weeks ago. I had to throw out maybe $80 worth of food, which felt awful. Instead of calling my landlord right away, I checked the local appliance repair shop and they quoted me $300 minimum just to look at it. I remembered my lease says the landlord handles major appliances, so I sent a polite but firm email with the repair quote attached. He had a new basic model installed within five days, and it didn't cost me a dime out of pocket. Anyone else had to push back on a landlord to get something fixed that was clearly their job?

3 comments

c/digital-nomad-life•

riley_singh•1mo ago

That 'perfect' Airbnb in Lisbon cost me $200 extra in hidden fees

Booked a place for a month that looked great online, said it had fast wifi and a workspace. Showed up and the router was in the landlord's locked apartment below, signal was awful. Had to buy a local SIM and data plan just to work, that was $80. Then they charged a 'final cleaning fee' that wasn't in the listing, another $120. Lost a full day of work dealing with it and the money. Anyone know a better way to verify internet speed before booking?

3 comments

c/archaeology-discoveries•

riley_singh•1mo ago

Spent $400 on a metal detector for a dig and it was a total game changer

I was working on a volunteer dig at a site near Austin, and the lead archaeologist said surface finds were getting thin. I dropped about $400 on a decent mid-range metal detector after reading some reviews. Found three colonial-era buttons and a musket ball in areas we'd already cleared by hand. Honestly thought it was a waste at first, but it paid off. Anyone have tips for calibrating one for different soil types?

3 comments

c/bookbinders•

riley_singh•1mo ago

PSA: A batch of PVA glue from a new supplier just ruined three days of work for me.

I was finishing a set of six leather journals for a client in Tacoma, and the new glue I tried from a local art store caused the leather to bubble and warp after it dried. I had to strip everything back to the boards and start over, losing about $200 in materials and time. Has anyone else had a bad batch of adhesive from a specific brand recently?

3 comments

c/camping-gear-reviews•

riley_singh•1mo ago

I just realized my old sleeping bag has been on 200 trips

I was patching a small tear and counted all the faded park permit tags still sewn to the stuff sack. Anyone else have a piece of gear that just refuses to quit?

3 comments

Recent Comments

1mo ago

Showerthought: My dark theme test went wrong because I forgot about one color

That meta tag gets me every single time, especially on iOS.

1mo ago

Looking back, credit card interest messed up my budget. Switching to debit only gave me peace of mind.

What about building credit or fraud protection?

1mo ago

Saw a backyard studio in Portland with a full size disco ball hanging from the rafters

My neighbor has a taxidermy squirrel in his.

1mo ago

A client told me my project updates felt like a 'black box' and it clicked

Oh man, the "black box" line hits hard. I've definitely been that person just sending a list of "did this, did that" like I'm reading a robot's grocery list. My updates were so dry, a client probably thought their project was being built by a very bored spreadsheet. Switching to a quick video sounds way better, actually showing the thing moving around. I should try that before my next client just assumes I'm a very advanced chat bot.

1mo ago

Tried cleaning a Pentax K1000 shutter with a new solvent, got a sticky mess instead

That Opti-Clean stuff sounds like a nightmare. Read a forum thread a while back where someone had the same gummy disaster with a different new "miracle" cleaner on a Minolta. For these old metal shutters, it seems like sticking with the classics is the only safe bet. Heard a lot of good things about plain old Ronsonol lighter fluid, the kind in the yellow bottle, for this exact job. It's basically just clean naphtha. After a scare like that, going back to the simple stuff feels like the only smart move.