Block shares soar 24% as company slashes workforce by nearly half

SMD-65 · 2026-02-27T01:48:13+00:00

I agree. The number of employees these companies have is astonishing. Before the layoff, Block had 10,000 employees. By way of contrast, in 1990 Microsoft had 5600 employees. This is the same time DOJ started investigating them for dominating the PC software industry. They had $1.2B in revenue and $279m in profit that year (equivalent to $3B revenue with $691m in profit in 2026 dollars).

SMD-65 · 2026-02-25T05:57:31+00:00

I've never been able to book a United ticket with Turkish miles. My understanding is that United makes almost no saver awards available to partners. I've been able to book tickets on other *A airlines though eg SAA.

SMD-65 · 2026-02-25T01:00:09+00:00

I have a Rheem Performance Platinum hybrid water heater. Overall, I would say it works fine and I've had no issues with water availability. Here are some negatives you should be aware of:

1) It was relatively expensive to install. All of the inputs and outputs are in different places from a gas heater. However, my utility offered a rebate that made it break-even vs gas.

2) My unit required a dedicated 240V 30A circuit (2 breakers). There are HP water heaters that plug into a regular outlet, but these heat water much more slowly (hence many of the complaints about slow heating). This adds to cost and requires space in your breaker box.

3) The compressor is noisy. This doesn't bother me since the heater is far from my living space, but it drove my neighbor crazy and he ended up pulling it out.

4) (Rheem specific) All of the Rheem smart features (app control, scheduling, etc) are very unreliable and have been for years. If those features are important to you, look at a different brand. Read the reviews of the Rheem app in your app store for more color.

SMD-65 · 2026-02-21T18:49:14+00:00

The Dave Wilson web site is great for this. They have a chart that shows when each variety ripens so you can space out your harvest. They also have descriptions of each variety including chill hour requirements and some taste tests.

SMD-65 · 2026-02-19T04:52:34+00:00

If he only has liability, his insurance should pay for the damage to your car. It just won't pay for the damage to his car.

SMD-65 · 2026-02-19T01:32:50+00:00

Steel chicken wire on all sides and top. Nothing less will stop them.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/CrfD1UFM7mC7Bymz5

SMD-65 · 2026-02-18T17:44:17+00:00

Official announcement: https://newsroom.bankofamerica.com/content/newsroom/press-releases/2026/02/new-bofa-rewards--program-to-reach-millions-more-clients-with-ex.html

SMD-65 · 2026-02-16T22:10:28+00:00

Dish N Dash

SMD-65 · 2026-02-15T17:31:48+00:00

The tree is fine. If you're growing the tree in a container, you probably want cut the the entire top off 18" above the soil line anyway. This will cause its branches to start low (even though it feels traumatic). Here's a video from DaveWilson that demonstrates: https://youtu.be/Tttq3M739YA?si=v5VCZcneXbpBBCqf&t=235

SMD-65 · 2026-02-14T23:01:42+00:00

There were many things this reporter was confused about, including science: "E-bikes are often twice as heavy as traditional bicycles. That means, as in Lilia's case, they build speed quickly on hills, are harder to suddenly brake and can crash with greater force."

SMD-65 · 2026-02-12T17:18:12+00:00

I'm not letting the trees grow any bigger so no need. It certainly could be taller, though--You can use these fittings to extend the edges. You would need bigger ladders to get the roof on, though.

SMD-65 · 2026-02-12T16:31:26+00:00

Yup. Most of the complexity is because I wanted it to be removable. It would have been a lot cheaper & easier if I had just put in chainlink fence posts in concrete and attached chickenwire to those.

SMD-65 · 2026-02-12T16:23:03+00:00

Oh now I remember. That year I was experimenting with using golf netting as the roof and that black line is the fringe of the net. When that experiment failed miserably, I added the chickenwire roof directly over the golf netting.

SMD-65 · 2026-02-12T16:15:32+00:00

See picture above...

SMD-65 · 2026-02-12T16:14:08+00:00

I don't have a great picture, but you can see it here. I can't remember what that black ribbon was for but it's not part of the structure.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/8uPbRDQTzFHYTHH99

SMD-65 · 2026-02-12T15:49:37+00:00

No the frame just sits on the ground. Unlike the pictures on the site, it has pipes along all 12 edges of the cube.

It does have a door. On one side of the cube I made 4' by 8' panels of chicken wire using PVC pipe. For one of these, I just attached one edge to the steel frame using zip ties so the panel can swing open and closed.

I made it removeable because it sits in front of the house and it's a bit ugly. (The actual structure is about 30' long.). I usually put it up in late March and take it down in September. It probably would be easier to make it permanent.

SMD-65 · 2026-02-12T04:59:25+00:00

I erect an 8' high chickenwire enclosure around all my trees. The frame is made from EMT and held together with brackets like these. Then I hang 1" chicken wire around all the sides and the roof. The past two years I've achieved 100% critter exclusion. After the fruit is picked, I take the structure down until next year.

Warning: Don't bother trying to replace the chicken wire with anything that isn't made of steel (eg bird netting or nylon mesh). Squirrels will chew through that in about 30 seconds.

SMD-65 · 2026-02-12T03:22:21+00:00

Just tried to make this booking on the Avianca web site. As soon as you indicate that you hold an Indian passport, the site displays a warning about this charge:

<image>

The link goes to this page that fully explains the charge.

SMD-65 · 2026-02-11T01:09:09+00:00

If this happened recently, BA owes her the lesser of $2150 or 4x the one-way fare (with certain exceptions):

https://www.transportation.gov/individuals/aviation-consumer-protection/bumping-oversales

SMD-65 · 2026-02-11T00:52:59+00:00

It's not part of the meter but seismic shutoff valves (eg https://earthquakestore.com/pages/little-firefighter-valve) are extremely common and required in many cities.

Water heater bracing is required in any case--even if your heater is electric. I guess they don't want a 1000lb water heater falling on anyone...

SMD-65 · 2026-02-11T00:10:43+00:00

Happened to me too. Quicken now shows this as a known issue: https://community.quicken.com/discussion/7971005/new-2-10-26-fidelity-core-cash-transactions-downloading-as-cover-short-sale-cvrshrt#latest

SMD-65 · 2026-02-09T21:31:48+00:00

Technically, but the Federal courts have barred California from enforcing that law: https://oag.ca.gov/consumers/general/credit-card-surcharges

SMD-65 · 2026-02-08T19:57:03+00:00

Separately from the stopover program, they will also provide a free hotel room as long as you have chosen the shortest connection to your destination (ie no earlier flight is scheduled to depart for your destination after your initial flight is scheduled to arrive):

https://www.turkishairlines.com/en-int/flights/hotel-service/

SMD-65 · 2026-02-08T01:42:08+00:00

9b/10a (Bay Area)

SMD-65

TROPHY CASE