I finally realized I was stripping wire insulation wrong for years. A guy on a job in Phoenix saw me and just said 'you're gonna nick the copper doing it like that'.

Checked out the new cafe on 5th and saw they have a full shelf of obscure eurogames for customers to play

Hot take: The new 'vibe' at that old Corktown deli after the rebrand is just confusing

Went in for my usual corned beef last month and the whole place had these weird neon signs and a $15 avocado toast special, which felt like a totally different business from the spot I knew for 20 years.

Pro tip: don't cheap out on load charts like I did

Back when I first started, I thought I could save cash by using a bootleg, out of date load chart for an old truck crane. The thing was off by a good 15 percent on the radius numbers. I tried a 5 ton lift that should have been fine, but the chart was wrong and I almost tipped the rig. Cost me about $1200 in repairs and a full day of lost work. I felt like a total rookie. Now I only use the factory charts or certified digital ones. Anyone else get burned by bad info before?

Appreciation post: Hit 500 bottom bracket overhauls this year

I was cleaning my bench last night and counted the old cartridge bearings in my scrap bin. There were over 500 of them, which means I've done that many BB jobs since January. It surprised me because our shop in Tacoma doesn't even specialize in that. It made me realize how much of our work is just basic maintenance that people put off. What's your most common 'put-off' repair that you end up doing constantly?

My aloe vera plant just had 47 pups and my kitchen looks like a tiny green army invaded

I bought it as a single pot from a garden center in Tucson three years ago, and yesterday I counted 47 separate baby plants crowding the original. I had no idea they multiplied like that, and now I'm giving them away to anyone who will take them. Has anyone else had a plant suddenly decide to take over their whole house?

My neighbor said I should try a rain barrel and it actually cut my summer water bill

Last spring, my neighbor Mark insisted I set up a rain barrel for my garden. I was skeptical, thinking it wouldn't collect enough to matter. I bought a basic 55-gallon barrel and connected it to my downspout. Over the summer, I tracked it and it saved me about 30 gallons a week for watering. My July water bill was $15 lower than the year before. Has anyone else tried this and found a good way to keep mosquitoes out of the barrel?

Tried a new edge tool on a garage slab and it changed my finish

I always used a basic magnesium float for edges, but my buddy lent me his groover with a radiused shoe for a job last week. The control was way better and it left a cleaner line without tearing the concrete. Anyone have a favorite brand for that kind of tool?

PSA: I found a weird trick for stuck damper plates in old brick chimneys

Last month in a 1920s house in Pasadena, the damper was completely seized with rust. I tried the usual penetrating oil and gentle tapping for an hour with no luck. On a hunch, I mixed a 50/50 solution of white vinegar and water in a spray bottle, soaked the hinge area, let it sit for 15 minutes, and it broke free with minimal force. Has anyone else tried a homemade solution like this, or do you stick with commercial products?

Just read that air fryers can cut cooking oil use by 75% compared to deep frying. Found that stat in a cooking magazine at my dentist's office.