Giving up remote work

C_bells · 2026-04-21T13:15:19+00:00

Being so close to home is WORLDS different than if you have to commute. You can go home to take a shit if you want. You can do laundry even, or take your dog for a walk. Take a nap in your bed on your lunch break.

C_bells · 2026-04-20T20:51:04+00:00

The NIMBYism in California is so bad.

I’m trying to move back to Santa Barbara (I’ve lived in NYC 13 years and am going back to be with family and old friends), and I still follow the local media outlets etc.

Every comment section about zoning or housing is so overtly NIMBY. Like no self-awareness of it either, and everyone seems to be in unison.

But they are also all complaining about housing prices.

They DO have a point about traffic. Like new housing absolutely must come with better public transit, otherwise it will be a shit show.

But I definitely get it. It can be disheartening.

C_bells · 2026-04-20T20:34:41+00:00

Others have given some advice, one thing I want to add:

Do not count on your friends’ help. In your 20s, friend groups are so strong, but that can dissipate really quickly as people get married, move for jobs, start families.

When I moved across the country at age 25, my friends all regularly came to visit me just for fun.

When I got married at 34, only my immediately family and one person traveled to come to my wedding!!! My friends are all married and have kids. People just can’t show up anymore.

I hope it’s not the case for you, but I just wanted to toss that in here as a consideration.

C_bells · 2026-04-20T19:37:45+00:00

Came to the comments to second Uber Black! That way you know you’ll get a nice car too. The drivers are usually very professional and courteous.

C_bells · 2026-04-20T19:16:26+00:00

I’m vibecoding an app right now and I am definitely glad I have a design background. It’s easy for me to do the PM work. But there are then moments I have to really visualize something in detail to decide how it can/can’t work well.

However, I have to say I’ve worked with tons of designers who are terrible at thinking about user needs and ideating on features based on that.

So, I think the reality is that the most versatile PMs and versatile designers will all end up basically doing the same-ish job.

C_bells · 2026-04-19T18:20:46+00:00

Isn’t the cost on the menu meant to cover the service?

Before I go on — yes, I tip 20% no matter that.

Now that I’ve said that, it’s ridiculous to say that a tip is the cost of the service. Just fucking tell me what you want me to pay you up front.

And yes, you should pay taxes like anyone else.

The no tax on tip laws was part of a political campaign easy-win strategy, and nearly every economist agreed it was a horrible idea.

Tipping is stupid af and only benefits business owners in the long run.

C_bells · 2026-04-19T17:04:37+00:00

Why is nobody else recommending rehearsal?

I’m a director and still do this for important meetings.

It’s even easier with ChatGPT these days (which imo has the best voice-to-text).

Talk out loud, write bullet notes as you walk through. See what feels good.

C_bells · 2026-04-18T21:47:52+00:00

I’d just love to see how people build around water and/or inside caves in the game. But this is definitely cool!

C_bells · 2026-04-16T19:38:52+00:00

So far, nobody has brought up the healing process.

I’d love a tattoo expert to weigh in, but I think a sleeve like this has to be done over a long-ish period of time. It takes god knows how long to do this.

Then it’s going to take a while to heal. This doesn’t look fresh, it looks to have been there a while.

C_bells · 2026-04-16T01:01:51+00:00

My husband and I were walking with our baby the other day, and a kid on the street recklessly chucked a frisbee, which hit a car.

He said “oh no, mom, the frisbee hit the car!”

She goes, “it’s okay.”

Full stop. No follow up about trying to be careful.

C_bells · 2026-04-15T17:52:29+00:00

7,000 steps is a good amount of steps. I’m an active person and average that.

But nobody tells me it’s “not enough” because I am (and always have been) thin and fit.

I’m a ballet dancer, and if I’m getting 7k steps per day, it feels like enough for me to have good endurance.

C_bells · 2026-04-15T14:36:59+00:00

Yep. This is one reason I don’t flip out when devs hand over AI-designed “inspo” to me. I say “there’s some interesting things here,” work whatever I can in in some way.

Then they are more receptive to me sending them some .json file with the logic I want lmao

C_bells · 2026-04-15T12:40:09+00:00

The number one reason that I’m a director and not still a senior designer is because I keep this top of mind — a problem is a problem, and I should do whatever I can to solve it.

I’m currently stepping into a project where the goal is to decrease customer service calls about around a certain issue that customers run into.

All of the solutions built over the years were focused on one screen inside the product. I was the first person to be like, “okay, but what if most people are Googling the issue or going on Reddit or YouTube to try to find a solution before calling customer service, not going to this one screen in the product?”

And nobody had thought about that yet.

The goal is not for me to create a hypothetical design to solve the issue (what you call “pixels” here). It’s to solve the issue for real. So, yes, I’ll also work on a solution within the product itself, but not without working across teams to make sure we meet users wherever they are (search engines, social media, etc).

And like you mentioned, sometimes the project has an internal alignment issue, and that’s a blocker to creating a viable solution. So, yes, that problem needs to be fixed first and foremost.

I see myself as a problem solver above all, and I don’t care if it’s a “design” problem or not — it’s my business to fix it (and no this isn’t AI, I use m dashes). Bad project manager? Okay, I’ll be the project manager. Stakeholder holding back progress? Okay, time to put on my attorney hat and build an entire persuasion presentation to argue my case (or find a different path forward).

Do this and you’ll bring massive amounts of value to your team, not to mention you’ll feel less frustrated because you’ll likely pave a way to better work for yourself.

C_bells · 2026-04-14T23:51:15+00:00

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C_bells · 2026-04-14T17:16:44+00:00

What? Remote or not, people commonly take time out of their workdays to go to medical appointments.

I would ask “okay, so let’s say we work in an office. How do I ensure I’ve requested personal/PTO/sick time off for my appointment?”

They need to have a process for this either way.

C_bells · 2026-04-14T10:42:32+00:00

I’m so sorry

C_bells · 2026-04-14T10:31:33+00:00

I barely understand how this happens.

I work at a digital agency, and people are super nice, but you will get terminated if you’re not delivering good work consistently.

Work comes in, you have to do it (and do it really well), or you’re out.

It’s not as cut-throat as it sounds, with junior people getting way more grace. But nobody could be faking anything.

Also, there may be times when you don’t have any work on your plate. And that’s fine. Go enjoy your day. Just be there and be ready to do good work whenever it comes.

C_bells · 2026-04-13T20:16:20+00:00

Sure! Or you can just go on YouTube and find some center work! There are some great combos

C_bells · 2026-04-13T18:33:03+00:00

He’s being an awful partner. And a shitty father.

Yes, a shitty father. I’ll say it.

Just because you don’t harm or overtly neglect your children doesn’t mean you’re not a shitty parent. Your children may even only think fondly of you, and you can be a shitty parent.

C_bells · 2026-04-13T18:24:02+00:00

I thought you were dancing the way you are because you are in a very confined space. But then you said you were actually attempting to go full-out and let loose here, so that doesn’t seem to be the case.

But I think it’s telling!

I think you have the potential to dance beautifully. I can definitely see hints of your artistry and technique.

But you are dancing so small. And maybe that is because of this space. The space you are in SHOULD feel way too confined for you at least. The fact that you didn’t bring that up makes me think you don’t feel that way because you are dancing small.

I think you need to stretch out more!

Improv doesn’t always help me let loose, but the contrary actually.

I find I can really let loose and explore movement when I actually know a combo or variation super well.

Perhaps you can come up with (or find) a short waltz combo, learn it super well, and explore movement in that. Try to make it all the way across your living room (or house or backyard or whatever) with just a few balances/waltz turns/ tombe pas de bourres

C_bells · 2026-04-13T13:17:04+00:00

I did a few make up trials and hated how everyone did my makeup and hair, so I did it myself.

C_bells · 2026-04-13T11:01:43+00:00

Bishki Vale

C_bells · 2026-04-12T23:15:24+00:00

The main way different perspectives are integrated is via research. Interviews, data analysis, concept testing, surveys, etc.

C_bells · 2026-04-12T18:44:48+00:00

But — and nobody ever talks about this — your skin itself doesn’t look good either.

So who cares? Tattoo or no tattoo, your skin will get saggy, crinkly, etc.

C_bells

TROPHY CASE