Yeah it's like everything slowly gets worse and we just accept it.

My old foreman on the Gulf would tell us the same thing about Code vessels. I've seen inspectors fail a cap that was smoothed over because they couldn't verify the weld profile was sound underneath.

That $20 alternator story is exactly why I keep a spare belt tensioner and idler pulley in my trunk. Parts like that are small enough to toss in a bag and they always fail at the worst time. If you ever pull one at a junkyard, grab the bolts too, stripped bolt holes in the middle of nowhere will screw you just as fast as a broken part.

Funny you mention that, I did the exact same thing around my bird feeder stand last summer. The chalk line was about an inch wide and I swear it worked better than any spray or granules I've ever tried. I even tested it on a little ant trail near the driveway one time, they hit that line and turned around like they hit a wall. Makes me wonder what's in the chalk that messes with them, but honestly for five bucks I don't even care. Just gotta remember to redraw it after a good rain though.

Saw a piece on the news about this stuff. They said a lot of places are calling it a "bonus adjustment" when it really hits your take home pay the same way. Like if you were counting on that extra cash for a car payment or vacation, you're suddenly short. Makes you wonder how they get away with the word games, right @the_ben? Feels like a cut no matter what they call it.