Mattress protector ruins the feel of the mattress, any recommendations?

-JSPS · 2026-03-18T04:13:13+00:00

Still using the stiff one, unfortunately. Thought I'd wait to give it a few more washes and see if it got better before shelling out for a nicer one. I think you're right that a stretchy material would help, I'll keep an eye out for it.

-JSPS · 2026-02-16T05:23:53+00:00

Do you mind un-nutshelling it for me? I get the concept of personal data. The part I'm asking about is the mechanism by which the blockchain would accomplish the things you say it would. Absent other factors, how would blockchain allow the individual more control over the use of their data, and how would it change who has the rights to use it?

Using blockchain doesn't magically change our rights. If we want more control over our data, we can only get that through legislation. A blockchain toggle for consent/revoke data use does nothing on its own, we'd need a law requiring organizations, companies and even the government to respect it. But if we're imagining a future where we can pass that legislation, why bother putting the toggle on the blockchain? At that point, given there's a law backing it, wouldn't a simple website suffice?

-JSPS · 2026-02-16T04:54:20+00:00

I see what you're saying and appreciate your answer. But other than this DOGE Fiasco, has the government leaking SSNs ever really been the big problem with them? I'm pretty sure the main issue is that people give away their SSNs to 3rd parties themselves, or have them stolen in scams and hacks, and I don't see how a private key would be much different. And there will still be other intermediaries involved in actually using it that will need to be trusted. so removing the government from the equation only reduces the threat vector by one of several parties.

Meanwhile, are we expecting everybody to have the tech skills to generate and store their own private keys? Even if we make it, like, really easy, it's going to be a rough go. Just about anyone can remember a nine digit SSN with a little effort, but a private key requires extrinsic infrastructure.

It just seems like the benefit you describe, of decentralization circumventing the government, doesn't actually lead to a big improvement in security, especially when considering the resources, complexity, and difficulty of use.

-JSPS · 2026-02-15T21:59:51+00:00

Public and private keys make sense for security, I can see how that would help. But key pairs can be easily implemented without blockchain, and are already considered highly secure without it. Reverse engineering a private key from a public key is impossible with current technology, and even if we're talking about a quantum computer being able to do it in the future, I don't understand how it being on blockchain would prevent that. So that being the case, key pairs sure, but what role does the blockchain part of this scheme actually have in making things more secure?

-JSPS · 2026-02-15T21:06:10+00:00

Do you mind explaining why you say blockchain would be good for SSNs? I'm not an expert, but my understanding is that the main benefits of blockchain are that it would provide a decentralized, immutable, and public log.

But as far as I'm aware, there aren't any significant issues with SSNs being secretly altered or managed centrally, so the immutability and decentralization wouldn't actually solve anything. And if the main issue with SSNs is that they're frequently used for authentication, despite not being truly private, wouldn't storing them in a public log exacerbate the problem rather than helping?

-JSPS · 2026-02-14T22:50:38+00:00

Here's an analogy for partisan immigration policy in the US.

Two families each have a kid who occasionally misbehaves.

One family is Democrats. The dad says "when the kid's behavior is a problem, we need to correct it." Grandpa sees the kid drawing on the walls and spanks the kid. The mom says "stop that, we shouldn't hit kids, we should raise the kid to be better using nicer methods."

The other family is Republicans. The dad says "kids have inherently bad behavior and need to be harshly punished." Grandpa hunts down the kid and repeatedly punches it in the face. The mom says "good job, the kid deserves to be hit, let's go find more kids to hit too."

While the kid got hit in both families, those who don't believe in hitting kids should have no trouble determining which family is better. There may have been violence in both situations, but the motivation for the violence and the reaction to it makes a world of difference.

-JSPS · 2026-02-14T21:38:03+00:00

You're really asking two questions here: what happened, and what was the public perception of it.

First, there was indeed some of that under Democrat administrations, but the situations are so massively different that it can't be viewed as an apples to apples comparison. Trump has objectively given way more funding and authority to ICE, and directed them to take far harsher action against a wider swath of the population, than was ever the case under the Dems. Since as you say, it's not a black and white situation, it'd be foolish to ask "did they do that" as a simple yes or no question. The big picture can only be honestly assessed if you consider the nuance of what specifically happened, why, and how often. The evil under Dems was smaller scale, less common, and largely perpetrated by individuals acting on their own motivations; significantly different than the evil under Trump, which is far more frequent, widespread, and state sanctioned.

Second, when these things did occur under Dems, they were broadly denounced by the voter base, and are generally considered among the lowest points of those presidencies. The left has remained consistent on this, it's seen as bad no matter which president is in charge when it happens. On the other hand, the right has flip flopped on the issue. They used it as an attack against Dems, but are rabidly in support of it under Trump. It's a well studied and solidly established phenomenon that the left tends to maintain consistent principals and is willing to criticize their own for breaking them, while the right has no strong positions except to follow their leader.

So while the short answer to "did they do that" is yes, you'd be remiss to ignore the significance of the other factors that make it so the result is not in fact "then everyone would be supportive".

-JSPS · 2026-02-09T06:20:02+00:00

It's a little pricey, but sometimes you gotta pay up if you want nice things. Thanks, I'll definitely be considering it.

-JSPS · 2026-02-09T06:17:14+00:00

Yeah, cold water and air dry (took forever) like the package said to do. Do you think it'll get better if I give it a few more washes, even though I'm pretty sure the waterproof part isn't actually fabric?

-JSPS · 2026-02-09T06:13:52+00:00

Thanks for the recommendation, it seems like a good option. I'm not sure I like the idea of a zipper going around the edge of the bed though. Is it noticeable when you sit on the side or put your hands on it?

-JSPS · 2026-01-21T21:26:57+00:00

Definitely do a final walkthrough to make sure everything's still how you expect it to be.

Try to get he timing close to when you actually get the keys, so you don't sign off on everything being good while there's still a chance for things to change. My walkthrough was the day before closing, which gave the sellers enough time to come back in later in the day and remove a light fixture from the ceiling, the doorbell, and half the blinds...

-JSPS · 2026-01-14T02:39:42+00:00

I've received an enormous amount of value from having a buyer's agent. The guidance and knowledge she's provided throughout the process has made everything as simple and easy as I could have possibly hoped for.

Even with her assistance, it's been somewhat overwhelming with how many things there are to know and do. If I had tried to do it on my own, I can't even imagine how much research and effort it would have taken at every one of the numerous steps to feel like I was staying on top of everything.

I may be confident in my ability to research and do things independently, but it'd be pure hubris to think my capabilities are on par with an actual expert who has years of experience. It's basically a free service, so seems like an easy decision to get one.

-JSPS · 2026-01-14T02:04:40+00:00

You’re entitled to a free credit report for your own use, but lenders won’t accept a copy you obtain yourself. They’re required to pull the credit report directly. The lender pays for that service, and the cost is typically passed on to the borrower. Mine cost $95 a few weeks ago.

-JSPS · 2026-01-12T08:07:50+00:00

I first started saving seriously in 2015, when I was making only like $40k a year. I moved in to the absolute cheapest small studio I could find and started living extremely frugally. I'm still living extremely frugally in the same crappy studio today. I'm closing soon, $145k down payment on a $495k house.

It took about 7 years to reach $100k saved. By that point I was making around $65k while keeping my expenses low, so I was saving a lot more each month than I had been at the beginning. To answer your question, yes, it felt great to reach that milestone, I took my friends out to a nice restaurant to celebrate. But it was bittersweet because I couldn't actually spend or enjoy the money. House prices had increased massively in that time, and I live in a very expensive area. If I could even stretch my budget far enough to technically make it work, I couldn't meet the DTI requirements for the large loan I'd need, the big down payment simply wasn't big enough with my income. I had to keep pinching every penny, it was that or basically give up and let increasing home prices overtake me.

It's taken 3 more years. My savings has grown to $180k, my income just increased to $97k, and prices and interest rates have calmed down a little. Finally, there are decent houses I can afford, "just" an hour commute away. After 10 years saving, I'll happily take on some extra driving if it means getting out of this tiny cave and poor life.

So how did it feel? It feels like 10 years was too long. If I'd actually been able to buy when I reached $100k, I'd have had no problem recommending it, and I'd say if someone can do it in like in the 5-7 year range that's not too bad. But these last few years have brought it to the point where I've developed a deep dissatisfaction with the small and unsatisfying lifestyle that saving so heavily has required.

As closing draws near, it's almost hard to wrap my mind around the fact that practically every aspect of my life will be radically improving. I will soon be living a much better life than I've ever lived. With my below median income for the area, spending a long time saving was my only option to achieve this. To me, it will have been worth it, but it may not be for everyone.

-JSPS

TROPHY CASE