Christopher Wells (u/christopher952)

Posts

My cousin the sysadmin made me ditch hotel wifi for good

I was crashing at his place in Austin last week and he saw me logging into my bank on the hotel network from a trip earlier. He goes 'you realize anyone with a laptop and a few tools can see your session cookies on public wifi, right?' I had never really thought about how easy it is to spoof a legitimate network name until he showed me a quick demo on his own machine. Made me grab a VPN literally the next morning, has anyone else had a tech friend call them out like that?

2 comments

c/customer-service-nightmares•

christopher952•1d ago

Told my boss I needed to slow down after a callback audit wrecked my numbers

I work phone support for a home security company in Phoenix. After six months I had a 23% callback rate on one shift. My supervisor pulled me aside and said basically "you're solving the surface issue but not the root cause." Example: someone would call about a false alarm, I'd reset the system and move on. She made me start asking why it happened. Turns out their door sensor was dying. Instead of a 10 minute call they needed a 45 minute troubleshoot and a replacement order. Once I started digging deeper my callback rate dropped to 8% in two months. It felt slower at first but actually saved time in the long run. Has anyone else had a manager point out a blind spot that changed how you work?

2 comments

c/bbq-pitmasters•

christopher952•2d ago

Can we talk about how long it took me to get a Brisket right

I spent like 8 months trying to nail a full packer brisket on my offset smoker in Kansas City. Turns out my fire management was all off and I was letting temps swing by 50 degrees every hour. Finally had a buddy from a competition team come over and he fixed my coal layout in 10 minutes flat. Anyone else spend way too long fighting something simple?

2 comments

c/corporate-comms•

christopher952•5d ago

I finally stopped writing press releases like a novelist

My old boss told me to cut the fluff and just say what happened. I ignored her for a year because I thought my writing was "creative." Then I ran a test on two product launches, one with my flowery style and one with her direct approach. The boring one got 40% more media pickups in the first week alone (we tracked it in Cision). I felt like an idiot, but she was totally right. Anyone else had to unlearn a bad writing habit because a manager called them out?

2 comments

c/budget-travel-hacks•

christopher952•6d ago

Why I regret buying a $30 portable espresso maker for hostels

I picked one up on Amazon before a 2-week trip through Portugal, thinking I'd save on cafe runs. Turns out it barely makes a decent shot (like, watery and weak) and cleaning it in a hostel sink is a nightmare with the tiny parts. I ended up spending more on coffee at local spots anyway, probably around $60 total. Has anyone else tried one of those handheld gadgets and had better luck?

2 comments

c/archaeology-discoveries•

christopher952•6d ago

Just changed my mind about Native American earthworks after visiting Cahokia Mounds last weekend

I always figured those mounds were just random piles of dirt, but seeing Monks Mound up close and learning it took 300 years to build with hand baskets of soil really hit different. Has anyone else had a site completely flip how you thought about an ancient culture?

2 comments

c/adult-friendship-rules•

christopher952•7d ago

That 'just be yourself' advice my aunt gave me backfired hard

My Aunt Carol kept telling me to just be myself when meeting new people. I took that literally and showed up to a board game night after work completely exhausted and grumpy. I barely talked, sat in the corner, and left after 45 minutes because I was tired. Nobody invited me back to the next one, and my friend said I came off as rude and uninterested. Turns out, acting like a normal sociable person even when you're tired is the actual trick. Has anyone else found that raw honesty kills a new friendship faster than faking a little bit of energy?

2 comments

c/climate-action•

christopher952•7d ago

Traded my gas mower for a push reel mower 3 summers back

My lawn is only a quarter acre so I figured why not try it. First month was rough because the grass got too tall and I had to double cut, but now I just mow every 5 days and it's fine. Has anyone else made the switch and stuck with it or did you go back to gas?

2 comments

c/avionics-technicians•

christopher952•9d ago

Swapped to a different crimper for D-sub pins and it saved me so much headache

I used to fight with the cheap ratcheting crimper from the company tool crib for years. Pins would always pull loose or the insulation would get chewed up. Finally borrowed a Daniels M22520 from a guy I work with and the difference was night and day. The crimp was perfect every time, and I finished a whole harness job at Dallas Love Field in half the usual time. Has anyone else found a tool swap that just clicked like that?

3 comments

c/coffee-enthusiasts•

christopher952•14d ago

Tried grinding beans finer than usual and got a muddy mess in my French press

Last Sunday I decided to grind my Costa Rican beans at a setting 2 instead of my usual 4 on my Baratza Encore. The brew came out super thick and cloudy, and when I pressed the plunger down it got stuck halfway. I learned that finer grinds work better for espresso but not for a French press where you want coarse particles. Has anyone else had a similar surprise when testing different grind sizes?

2 comments