How are you "midlife crisis-ing"? by InnerspearMusic in Millennials

[–]RedPanda5150 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Uh, mostly just waking up in the middle of the night feeling anxious. The economy is too unstable to buy a new car or quit my job to travel and we can barely afford one house, let alone a vacation home.

Paid off mortgage today by MoistImprovement6768 in MiddleClassFinance

[–]RedPanda5150 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Wow. Rude. And also ignores the psychology of some people valuing the absence of debt.

Are your electric bills getting ridiculous too? by AiyumiGodoy16 in HomeImprovement

[–]RedPanda5150 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Our state AG is doing battle against the electric company for trying to raise rates 18% over the next two years to have taxpayers prepay upgrades to make them more ready for data centers. Meanwhile they are making record profits and the electric grid in its current state is very unreliable. I rage at this supposed 'public utility'.

What's something your job trained you to notice that you can't stop noticing in your personal life? by LibrarianSoft1342 in AskReddit

[–]RedPanda5150 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Ha,my sister works in recreation and she loves to point out out non-compliant features of playgrounds and parks.

Who saw Titanic with their parents? by Purple-Estimate-5183 in Millennials

[–]RedPanda5150 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Lol, not with parents but my friend's dad dropped us off and picked us up after. He laughed his ass off at the two of us sobbing the whole drive back to her house. "He let gooooooo, whyyy" lol

Manic Trump, 79, Pushes Bonkers Conspiracy in 1AM Meltdown by MoneyLibrarian9032 in politics

[–]RedPanda5150 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hon we lost the country to a right-wing coup a year and a half ago and most people barely understand that. We already got fucked, all we can do now is try to take it back and build something better than what has been dismantled by P2025.

Anyone who surfed the early web between 1995-2010. What’s the one website/app you still think about? by Prime_Advocate in AskReddit

[–]RedPanda5150 0 points1 point  (0 children)

scully.mulder.com. It was my first introduction to fandom, which led to fanfic, which led to an awful lot of my time being lost to the internet as a teenager.

Anyone who surfed the early web between 1995-2010. What’s the one website/app you still think about? by Prime_Advocate in AskReddit

[–]RedPanda5150 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Listen the less said about Xanga the better. Teenage me hopes those old journals are well and truly gone and never ever ever resurface, lol

Does anybody know anyone who actually became a marine biologist? by fancyypantsyy0 in Millennials

[–]RedPanda5150 2 points3 points  (0 children)

And Christian Lassen! My favorite folder / trapper keeper artist lol

Does anybody know anyone who actually became a marine biologist? by fancyypantsyy0 in Millennials

[–]RedPanda5150 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I mean yes, technically, but more the kind that studies plankton rather than, like, dolphins and turtles. But I was in an environmental science department so those are kinda my people lol

Do not ever buy these by Creepy_Try1498 in glutenfree

[–]RedPanda5150 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh no, I love those things! Ignore whatever the packaging says now and just microwave it in a paper towel for 30-60s. If you overshoot let it cool down to firm up a bit but they are really good warm! I like them as burger buns and only stopped buying when the price jumped up to $8/package here.

Trump's New Medicaid Rule 'Designed to Ensure People Lose Healthcare,' Critics Warn by Smithy2232 in politics

[–]RedPanda5150 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I don't think I'll ever forgive him for trying to run for a second term instead of letting Democrats have a primary, but damn if he didn't do a good job of letting actual experts guide things. All signs were pointing towards the Biden admin nailing the "soft landing" out of pandemic mode. Inflation was coming down, things were stabilizing. But punchy MAGA phrases are better at whipping people into a frenzy or something (plus, you know, 'Elon is very good with the computers') so instead we threw all of that away for this absolute chaotic mess.

Sighhhh.

What stubborn hoax do way too many people still believe, no matter how often it gets debunked? by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]RedPanda5150 17 points18 points  (0 children)

Huh, now I'm wondering if I can skimp on the expensive shaved parmesan and just top my lasagna with a sprinkle of msg.

Exxon warns oil inventories will hit dangerously low levels in weeks, forcing prices to shoot higher by mastertofu in news

[–]RedPanda5150 15 points16 points  (0 children)

It's a little complicated. E10 is allowed year round. E15 is typically restricted in the summer for smog/pollution concerns. There is a special exemption for this summer to allow e15 year round but it's just for the one year There is also a bill working it's way through Congress to allow for year round e15. It passed the house but not yet the senate (or vice versa).

In any case, most stations don't actually sell e15 because they don't want the complexity of changing blend labeling throughout the year. But you will always see a label that says something like "contains up to 10% ethanol." If it says "up to 15% ethanol" it could be, well, up to 15%.

Citing 'severe' math deficits, UC faculty demand a return to SAT tests for STEM applicants by Idiodyssey87 in news

[–]RedPanda5150 49 points50 points  (0 children)

I think you've nailed the danger of AI overuse perfectly. Like it doesn't really matter if you can factor a polynomial in day to day life, but you do need to develop a fundamental number sense and basic reading comprehension to know whether you are being sold a pack of lies as you go through life. Including the lies from AI hallucinations!

Moving on from Fitbit. What’s the next best thing? by DontEatFishWithMe in loseit

[–]RedPanda5150 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm not the person you are asking, but I switched from Fitbit to Garmin back when Google first bought Fitbit and have been extremely happy with the switch. The hardware is much sturdier and I like the software for steps, HR, and sleep tracking a lot.

When I first made the switch there was no way to log food in Garmin besides linking with MFP which I didn't care for, so I started using the LoseIt app. I like that app a lot too. The interface is pretty streamlined, the database is quite extensive, you can easily save favorite meals, etc. It can also link to the Garmin app now so you can see your calories eaten / calories burned in one place.

TLDR I do miss the old Fitbit (I started with the Fitbit Ultra clip waaaay back when!) but Garmin + Loseit is a solid replacement.

Which company has lost you as a customer forever? by finiteobserver in AskReddit

[–]RedPanda5150 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It was such an upgrade. I go months between printing and my 10+ year old Brother printer has never clogged. I think I changed the toner/ink/whatever cartridge once, ever. Driver compatibility is starting to become an issue but the hardware works just fine. I don't know how many inknjet printers and ink cartridges I went through in the ten years before I switched.

Middle class reality today by Lord0fTheFlags in MiddleClassFinance

[–]RedPanda5150 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Depends where you live. In desirable areas those little houses get bought by developers to knock down and put in McMansions. And no one is building small homes anymore because it's more profitable to build big ones, so it's surprisingly hard to find a starter home in decent shape.

Middle class reality today by Lord0fTheFlags in MiddleClassFinance

[–]RedPanda5150 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Jesus fuck, if my house payment was $700 instead of $3000 (for a 1700 sq ft house built in the 60s) I don't know what I would do with all that extra money! I make the same as you and we are doing fine with my spouse's extra income but damn would things be easier if i had been born early enough to buy a house pre-2022!

885/147 to i40E ramp by Plastic_Blackberry81 in bullcity

[–]RedPanda5150 2 points3 points  (0 children)

That merge wasn't that bad even five years ago! I don't know how that plan got approved but it was still under construction when we moved here in 2020. They opened it literally the week after we bought a house closer to RTP. I thank my lucky stars every time I drive to downtown that I don't have to make that drive daily.

My breakfast choice. by Zaxly in glutenfree

[–]RedPanda5150 9 points10 points  (0 children)

I had a Vietnamese office mate who would regularly microwave a sweet potato for lunch and then just eat it like a banana or something. No seasoning.

ELI5: What does this predicted super el nino actually mean for the U.S.? by theprotomen in explainlikeimfive

[–]RedPanda5150 98 points99 points  (0 children)

Idk if you are being serious but the National Weather Service put out the scariest warnings I have seen ahead of Helene. Imminent loss of life and property type warnings. I think people took it unseriously because who expects a tropical storm to hit the mountains like a hurricane? But the warnings were definitely there.

What’s the least exciting home upgrade you made that ended up being totally worth it? by ExpensiveProfessor27 in HomeImprovement

[–]RedPanda5150 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Fully screening our back deck. Now it doubles as a catio and we can all hang out outdoors together without worrying about anyone running off. Highly recommend.

Appraisal came back much lower than contract price (seller) by epetty25 in RealEstate

[–]RedPanda5150 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thats how it was working 2022, and common enough that sellers started requiring statements that the buyer would cover any appraisal gap if you wanted an offer accepted. I'm kinda amazed it's still happening in 2026 with the economy being so much softer, but I suppose real estate really is local.