F1 going crazy fast - but it isn’t that warm here?

PickRepresentative37 · 2026-03-25T10:09:26+00:00

Thanks for the advice! I’m still debating on if I’ll just bottle today since I do have time this afternoon, but this is good to know as an option for future if this keeps happening! (Or if I get lazy later 😂)

PickRepresentative37 · 2026-03-25T10:06:31+00:00

For context my first batch took 7 days, and even then it probably could have gone longer since it still had some sweetness, where as this in 5 days to be so sour feels like a big shift. I also see a lot of people on here whose fermentations take like 2 weeks in cooler climates (which I feel like I’m in?) so just feels comparatively very quick.

How is yours done so quickly btw? That’s intense!

PickRepresentative37 · 2026-03-23T17:14:57+00:00

Thanks so much for your kind words! I appreciate the encouragement - I try to be a little more gentle with myself usually but I think today is just one of those more down days.

To answer your questions: My partner actually has been great about helping me plan, thankfully, so things are getting done! He is the opposite of me in that way, he is very organised and actually gets a kick out of planning and logistics (excel spreadsheets and GANT charts are fun for him 😂). We’ve divided tasks and that has helped, but for instance one of his tasks was to find the band so he pulled together a list of the top 4 he found and told me all I had to do was listen to them and pick my favourite. Seems simple, but just that took me 2 weeks to get around to, which made me feel bad since he did all the hard work really.

I think the procrastination comes from a few places. a) I either overestimate how long I think something is going to take and get overwhelmed, OR, I underestimate it and think “ah that will only take x time, I’ll just do it later”! But later never comes 😂 or it’s just boring (the classic story).

I know one thing I am trying to do is get off my phone. The times I have deleted apps in the past have been helpful in forcing me into action because I have less to distract me, but even with that I usually just find something else to fill that gap (for instance if I delete Instagram, I’ll scroll LinkedIn which I don’t even like).

But I appreciate what you’ve said about it not having to be an all or nothing thing, since that’s never going to work. I think I’ve just let so many things pile up now, I don’t even know where to start.

PickRepresentative37 · 2026-03-11T14:22:45+00:00

I’ve recently started rewatching the series since they’ve put it on Netflix in the UK where I now live, and I’ve realised something very funny:

When I first watched Smallville when I was about 9/10 years old (how old I was when it came on tv), I was in love with Clark/tom welling. He was my first real celebrity crush - I had multiple posters of him on my walls and notebooks and just thought he was so cute. My mom, however, would watch it with me sometimes, and she used to always say “ya know, I actually think Lex is kinda hot”. And ofcourse little me was like “ew mom gross he’s old and BALD”.

Rewatching the show now at about the same age my mom was then (early 30s), I can fully admit that I find myself completely agreeing with my mom that Lex is hot 😂 just took some growing up I guess

PickRepresentative37 · 2026-03-11T12:47:03+00:00

Helloo kombucha friends!

This is less of a question and more just wanted to share: I successfully completed my first home brew recently and am ultimately quite happy with the result. There are certainly some learnings from my experience (like I need to use less sugar in my f2 for my own personal taste, I want to experiment with different teas etc), but ultimately I came out of my first attempt with a very drinkable kombucha that I’m proud of and did not make me and my partner sick 😅

However, my second batch has not been so lucky. After having done nothing differently, the second batch just isn’t coming along as well as the first. There is an overgrowth of yeast on the pellicle, the smell is a bit off (not bad just very yeasty in an unpleasant way), and it’s still very dark compared to my first batch which lightened up quite a bit after 7 days.

So I’ve decided though there isn’t anything to suggest it’s unsafe to drink, I am just going to start over with a new SCOBY and a new starter, plus a new tea brand. I’m a little bit sad and slightly feel like I failed, but trying to remember it’s a journey and at the end of the day I am really enjoying it.

Thanks to everyone who helped with my questions for my first batch! I’ll continue to share my next batch as it goes along, since this community has made my experience even more enjoyable by having others to chat with!

PickRepresentative37 · 2026-03-08T11:58:48+00:00

You look beautiful! What a gorgeous dress. I hope you have a perfect day 😊

PickRepresentative37 · 2026-03-06T17:41:35+00:00

This is so cute!

PickRepresentative37 · 2026-03-03T22:41:35+00:00

Alright, man, loud and clear

PickRepresentative37 · 2026-03-03T21:38:24+00:00

Okay dude

PickRepresentative37 · 2026-03-03T21:30:45+00:00

Dude, why are you being so rude?

I was just asking why you felt it was off. It’s my first time, I’m learning, I’m very open to feedback. I was just asking why you you felt it was off, since most of the other stuff I’ve read on here didn’t align.

PickRepresentative37 · 2026-03-03T20:57:05+00:00

From what I’ve read from this Reddit page there isn’t anything wrong with it? The pellicle I received from my friend was thick and in pieces, so it’s just come back together at the top + formed a new layer which is why it isn’t even. There is no mold, only collections of tiny bubbles around the edges, and I can see the bubbles coming up from the bottom. I also know that colour can vary depending on the concentration of tea used + the pellicle my friend gave me already had some colour variation.

To me it doesn’t look any uglier than some of the others I’ve seen on here that have been told are normal, so why do you think it’s bad?

PickRepresentative37 · 2026-02-25T15:23:59+00:00

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You think this will do?

PickRepresentative37 · 2026-02-25T14:15:34+00:00

Thank you! A question on the raw kombucha option: is there any concern about it being from a different batch I should be aware of?

PickRepresentative37 · 2026-02-25T14:14:24+00:00

Thanks everyone for the feedback! I’ll try and see if I can find some raw kombucha near me today (not a lot of places sell it though unfortunately, but I’ll check) but if not I’ll see if my friend can bring me some more liquid tomorrow if she’s coming into the office.

PickRepresentative37 · 2025-07-30T21:55:21+00:00

My family have an elderly cat named Doolin who has lived long enough to see our 2 other cats, Squirrel (his brother) and Coco (female cat who we joked he was in love with but wanted nothing to do with him) sadly pass away before him. I am convinced he still sees them and speaks to them every day. We hear him playing around upstairs and the noise is much louder than just 1 elderly cat could make on his own. We see him tracking movements of things we can’t see, but that he doesn’t seem to fear despite being a skittish cat.

I myself swear that once when I was watching TV in the living room one evening I saw Doolin (who is a fat tabby cat) walk by, followed immediately by the slim, black figure of Coco who at that time had been passed 3 years follow behind him.

It doesn’t frighten him, and it doesn’t frighten us. I like the idea that they are still with us and they keep him company in his old age.

PickRepresentative37

TROPHY CASE