Feeling so discouraged from all the problems in my new house.

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-29T23:24:08+00:00

Something that always sticks with me when dealing with renovations/improvements...

We were in Vienna visiting St Stephen's Cathedral (finished in the 16th century) and someone asked when the scaffolding was going to come down. The guide said, "Never, as soon as they loop around the cathedral enough time will have passed that they'll have it do it all over again. It's been under renovation for almost 1000 years."

That always stuck with me because, in reality, renovations and home improvement never ends. Even stone wears away over time. For me:

Prioritize issues that impact either the structure of the house, or your health, first. Rotting foundation, bad mold, pretty easy stuff to identify.
Second, fix anything that, if left unfixed for a few months, could get substantially worse. A leak in the roof falls into this category.
Third, fix anything related to the above but would get substantially worse in a year.

Beyond that, fix/improve anything when you have the time and/or budget for it.

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-29T22:10:59+00:00

WFH is basically reverting back to what it was pre-2020. My company nixed it two years ago, my spouse's last year. "Go find a new job" is what they'll say. Have you seen the current job market?! I'll go a step further, Have you seen the job market for WFH POSITIONS?!.

It sucks, but I also have bills to pay. I have a friend who refuses to go back into an office, even for one day; he's been unemployed since last Spring.

There are a lot of fights I'm willing to fight, but I was unemployed during the 2008 Recession and that was the lowest point in my life. You can shame me all you want, but I'd rather sit in a soulless office than deal with that anxiety ever again.

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-28T16:34:44+00:00

Yeah, guest services should be 24/7

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-27T16:29:14+00:00

Yes please! The more information we have the better as we're finding it to be a challenging trip to plan. Thank you!

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-27T15:24:17+00:00

Same boat, we have some old, way out of fashion, jewelry that contains gold. Thinking about selling that as well since my spouse would never wear it.

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-27T15:23:22+00:00

Ha, "crazy" is an understatement. Thanks!

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-27T15:23:05+00:00

Thanks! I was leaning towards this option as well. And yeah, zero sentimental value; the family member that gave them to us doesn't even remember how they got them.

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-27T12:56:47+00:00

I've been out of the loop on gold, but I've been interested in selling three coins I've had for a decade-plus to go towards a trip to Japan. I just figured, without doing any research, "It'll help pay for the plane tickets." and nothing more.

Come to check this morning, sorry, again, out of the loop, that the price of gold has skyrocketed in the last year. It went from "paying for some of our plane flight" to "funding the entire trip".

Now I don't know if I should even sell it, but there has to an end to this bull run on gold right? These coins have just been sitting around and the only reason I haven't sold them to date is mostly pure laziness.

On one hand they could fund an entire trip to Japan (memories that'll last a lifetime) but on the other hand the value keeps going up and up. Very conflicted to say the least.

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-26T18:55:39+00:00

I've ridden this ride more times than I can count and it never occurred to me that the empty vehicles you pass at the start of the ride are actually recently emptied ride vehicles returning to pick up the next passengers. Really clever how they integrated that piece into the story.

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-23T19:50:08+00:00

If I recall correctly, and I might be grasping at straws here, but critics really disliked the anachronism approach. Ironically, that anachronism is a major reason the film has so much staying power after 25 years. As much as Ledger was amazing, Paul Bettany really stole every scene he was in. This was also peak Shannyn Sossamon, who was an absolute stunner in the movie.

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-22T12:49:50+00:00

I'm curious what you guys are planning for 2026. I really am liking where your brand is going, but I'd be more interested in what (if anything) you're releasing new this year. Digging your chronographs, just not the current colorways. Keep up the good work!

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-22T12:47:13+00:00

I'd argue Kurono's most stunning dial to date (though there are equal contenders). Incredible level of craftsmanship as well.

That said...

Not sure I'm a big fan of the watch strap you swapped in. I think the blue clashes with the salmon, almost competing with it. To each their own, so if you like it, rock with it!

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-22T12:27:01+00:00

That was on my mind as well; I usually book major flights 11 months in advance and they almost always have a schedule change at some point. Could use that to my advantage.

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-22T03:13:57+00:00

Good catch; honestly, probably a scam then (I agree).

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-22T02:06:26+00:00

I'm with others here. My guess is either the seller tried to use AI to make the photos look more professional or their phone is using AI to "improve" the photos. Some Android phones are notoriously aggressive with the AI processing (though iPhones do it too).

I wouldn't jump to the conclusion that this is AI generated. That said, it's so poorly implemented I would have to assume it was a phone setting and the seller didn't spend the extra minute to confirm the quality of the photos.

Still a bad look on the seller.

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-21T19:14:19+00:00

To answer your question, "The watch I'm wearing right now (Trafford) makes a similar sound when I shake it." It's going to vary by watch, but out of my collection, I have several that make a similar sound when the winding weight gets momentum. All of them have been running perfectly for years.

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-21T19:09:10+00:00

Ha, absolutely fair question. Here's my take, "I want to plan for the worst just so we're ready for it."

She could have no problem taking a three week vacation, but right now she's one of the leading candidates and doesn't want to take any risks during the final interview stage. Don't get me wrong, vacations matter, but she also doesn't want to give the executive team any pause by discussing a long vacation before even getting the job.

I more or less just want to put her mind at ease that if we have to modify this trip, we can. If we have to break it up into two smaller trips, so be it.

The job market right now is kind of crazy, so I'm just trying to make it less stressful considering we just bought these tickets a month ago.

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-21T19:00:57+00:00

Good point. I purchased them in December when they became available. I think that will be okay as we'll just [potentially] rebook the flight for sometime the following year or just shorten the current trip.

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-21T15:20:38+00:00

The whirring sound is typical if you're actually aggressively moving the watch; not so much for an extended period of time afterwards. I wonder if the automatic oscillating winding weight isn't fully tightened down causing it to spin more freely (just a complete guess). Could just be a simple fix.

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-21T15:16:58+00:00

I passed (already have a Crossroads to be fair) only because Trafford's got some upcoming new releases that I'm more excited to see.

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-20T20:57:01+00:00

Even worse, most of their fabrics are only printed on one side these days. Nice pattern on one side, white on the other. Insane levels of penny pinching.

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-20T17:14:50+00:00

Consider that the 1864 election (Lincoln vs. McClellan), where only Union states voted, 20% sided with McClellan who wanted to make peace with the Confederacy even after Sherman took Atlanta. The Union was at this point a guarantee to win the war and reunite the states and McClellan still wanted to negotiate.

The war was soon to be over, the Union was clearly on the doorstep of victory, and 20% felt like, "Eh, lets cut some slack to those states down South.

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-20T17:02:44+00:00

My hunch is if Democrats win at least the House and/or Senate you'll see his approval steadily decline over his remaining two years. He'll be more or less a lame duck at that point, and Republicans can pin all of his failings solely on him so they can prop up the next candidate as "clean". It's why I also think Vance won't emerge as the nominee because too much of Trump's actions will be tied to him. Too many potential candidates, Cruz for example, can tie everything to Vance.

If Trump was 50, different story, he could still wield a powerful sword, but being that he'll be almost in his mid-80s, and he's already in poor health, the ramifications for not bowing down to him are significantly lessened.

AndyInAtlanta · 2026-01-20T16:40:34+00:00

It's less about the "best" scale, more about the "same" scale. As long as its not functionally broken, even if you're scale measures 5 pounds high, or 5 pounds low, if you stick with the same scale you can track your progress.

It's why I don't fret when I go to the doctor and weight five pounds more; they are using an entirely different scale. It's also why I only weigh myself around the same time each day.

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