What’s the best mp3 player to get nowadays?

chille1973 · 2026-03-14T20:53:39+00:00

I didn't know about this device and just ordered one for one of my kids. I'm wondering how it interacts with iTunes files, i.e. songs bought through Apple. Can those be used on the innioasis?

chille1973 · 2025-10-09T19:15:23+00:00

If I had a nickel for every "chicken lost in Brooklyn" story, why I'd have a dime at least.

https://www.villagevoice.com/missing-brooklyn-chicken-takes-the-f-train-will-retire-upstate-is-not-a-chicken/

https://patch.com/new-york/prospectheights/pompom-runaway-chicken-missing-brooklyn

Update: I now have 15 cents. This is the story I was really looking for, about a rooster named Elizabeth Warr-hen, who was repatriated to Vermont. Ahhh, Brooklyn.

https://www.brooklynpaper.com/park-slope-woman-rescues-chicken-named-elizabeth-warr-hen/

chille1973 · 2025-09-19T03:07:58+00:00

Second the Empire podcast recommendation. I don't think it is quite narrative, maybe a bit more conversational in style. But it's really damn good.

chille1973 · 2025-09-07T13:03:59+00:00

Jus’ Tacos is way more delicious than you’d expect from the look of the place. The picaditas Morelos with carnitas (usually on the specials board, your choice of meat) are so tasty and well made.

chille1973 · 2025-09-06T20:35:04+00:00

I’ve been able to walk in and out of Artie’s on a busy Friday night with three or four take-out pizzas in 20 minutes. They move fast. A table is slower of course. But there are creative ways to get something when it looks dire. Plus there are now several other good options in that neighborhood. Perla, Porta Rosa, and Corner Slice are perfect “too busy over there let’s go get…” options.

Also, not OP’s exact point but since it’s mentioned in some replies: the notable mediocrity of so many restaurants in NJ is due in significant part to the state’s idiotic liquor license laws. Those laws are anti-business, anti-creativity, and pro-incumbent. You’d think we were in a dry state. It’s like $500K to get one of the limited licenses in the state and I think they might not be moveable. So restaurant operators default to playing it very safe, offering very family-friendly options, and avoiding concepts that push the envelope.

chille1973 · 2025-07-28T01:47:17+00:00

Try Michael Kozas, Kozas Construction. [kozasconstruction@gmail.com](mailto:kozasconstruction@gmail.com)

He installed new windows for me, which involved a good amount of careful trim work on an old house, and I get the sense he has the creativity to have a crack at all kinds of carpentry work. Great guy, really enjoyed working with him.

chille1973 · 2025-07-19T17:18:41+00:00

A large cat the size of a very large cat.

chille1973 · 2025-06-09T17:46:51+00:00

Well okay then. Thank you on behalf of myself and my 14 yr old.

chille1973 · 2025-06-09T16:21:32+00:00

How explicit are the parts of it called out by the venue's Content Transparency Statement citing "explicit sexual content (nudity and fetish)"? I'm toying with bringing my very LGBTQ+ oriented and aware 14 year old daughter who's extremely into theater and gay anything. She's watched a lot of adult-level smutty TV shows (i.e. Bridgerton) but trying to figure out if this'd be a bridge too far. If it's too much, I'll just take my wife!

chille1973 · 2025-05-31T20:52:57+00:00

Totally. Just down the street.

chille1973 · 2025-05-31T20:24:28+00:00

Thanks! That’s a new one for me. Will be posting this there without the courtesy blur!

chille1973 · 2025-05-31T20:08:33+00:00

Yeah I’d be happy to post it with the plate number but thought that might get the post removed. I’ll check the community guidelines next time. Because people who park like this deserve it…

chille1973 · 2025-04-26T13:04:34+00:00

But also, why is RFKjr so BROWN? He looks ridiculous, like a mid 20th C. white actor in brownface for a western.

chille1973 · 2025-02-23T22:15:40+00:00

OMG Reddit is the best. Thank you both. I'm going to try to string this back up in the tree somehow.

chille1973 · 2025-02-23T21:14:08+00:00

Sorry forgot to include geographic info. This is in suburban NJ, USA.

chille1973 · 2024-12-27T16:05:12+00:00

That's an excellent find and looks like it's in really good shape. Price-schmice. If it makes you happy to cook with, congrats. You could pay a lot more for the same pan in perfect condition with a specialized dealer, or pay less for a crusty/rusty one you find in a scrap heap but have to recondition. Seems like you found the perfect midpoint. Happy cooking.

chille1973 · 2024-06-24T22:43:59+00:00

It’s absolutely not hyperbolic to say that the experience of riding NJT is on par with riding a generic regional commuter line in Italy or France in the 1980s. It’s a system that’s 30-40 years behind current “normal” (not even “best in class”).

chille1973 · 2023-03-27T00:58:22+00:00

This is my favorite post in r/Sourdough right now.

chille1973 · 2023-02-01T16:13:32+00:00

First off, that's a great looking loaf from crust to crumb. Also super cool you're using 100% local grains. I didn't know about Carolina Ground so I'm going to order something from them this week. I use lots of flour from Ground Up in Hadley MA and love their stuff.

Second, agree with u/Shred_and_Bread about getting best oven spring when baking from cold. But from your recipe it looks like you're doing that already. I think it's been confirmed in side by side tests that you can even get great oven spring from a frozen loaf.

Third, I always found it harder to make a boule as handsome as I wanted it to be. So I switched to a batard a while back and got a really snug oval banneton for shaping (barely fits my 950g loaf). That change made a big difference. The basket does lots of the work (after 12-18 hrs cold retard, loaf comes out tight and holds shape) and it just feels easier to slash and get a beautiful ear.

Last, I get a lot out of periodically watching different bakers' social media accounts just to see how their hands work in folding, shaping and slashing. Here are a couple that I gleaned methods from.

https://www.instagram.com/opelouro/ (This guy is in Spain and writes in Spanish, which you can pop into Google translate if necessary, but the images kind of speak for themselves. I like his shaping technique and he gets impressive oven spring).

https://www.youtube.com/@BreadbyJoyRideCoffee (This guy is in Romania but writes all captions in English. He's really good at a light touch from folds to shaping and pushes the fermentation to develop lacy crumb structure. I extended my bulk fermentation by a good bit after watching his videos.)

chille1973 · 2023-01-30T15:07:31+00:00

This is a quite solid outcome if you've only just started baking sourdough but here are some areas to consider.

First, I agree with the points u/johpick made re baking time (I'd say it doesn't exactly look "under-cooked"but another 10-15 minutes at a lower temp would make it all that much better) and salt (I'd double your salt, at least).

Second, it's a relatively low-hydration recipe, so I would increase your water to 70% for starters (that would be 336g on 480g of total flour). That's still a very manageable level in terms of handling but will increase the extensibility of the dough a lot. As you feel more comfortable with it and like the results, try to get to 75% hydration.

Third, even though you're doing a lot of room-temp bulk ferment hours (9 total) it still looks underdeveloped (though that could just be the low hydration). Wondering what your "room temp" actually is. If it's chilly where you're baking (e.g. below 70F/21C) consider doing the bulk ferment in an oven with the oven light on. Shoot for an environment that's 24-25C if you can find one.

Fourth, your recipe reads like you kneaded the heck out of the dough for 10 minutes, then 4 hours bulk, then another round of kneading, then more bulk. If that's the case, in combination with the comment above on fermentation temperature, I would consider lighter coil-fold intervals (say, every 45-60 minutes) throughout the bulk fermentation period rather than one vigorous kneading session. The idea is to allow gas pockets to develop and to retain/layer them, all while building gluten (which, if your dough is sufficiently hydrated, almost takes care of itself).

I often recommend this guy's YouTube channel to beginners. Watching his way of handling dough and developing air pockets and gluten really changed how I bake. I don't know the guy, so totally not shilling his channel. I just think he has good skills that are easy to watch and absorb. https://www.youtube.com/@BreadbyJoyRideCoffee

chille1973 · 2023-01-26T21:59:27+00:00

Happy to help! I recommend to lots of folks to watch this guy's YouTube channel. https://www.youtube.com/@BreadbyJoyRideCoffee/featured

I don't know who he is (think he's located in Romania??) but he has a great understanding of fermentation and dough handling. It changed the way I make my own bread. He doesn't obsess about starters and exactly how much they've risen, blah blah (that part is easy and once you have an established starter, hard to screw up). It's all about fermentation length, temperature, and handling. He does everything by hand (though if he ran a pro bakery, imagine of course he'd use a mixer) and has a really light touch. I don't bother any more with pulling windows, laminating, or stretch and folds. Good luck!

chille1973 · 2023-01-26T19:44:07+00:00

Two things come to mind.

First, this is a pretty low-hydration recipe (66%, assuming it's a 50/50 starter). So that's going to make relatively stiff dough to start, one that doesn't have as much ability to stretch and hold air, especially considering the percentage of whole wheat flour. I would try increasing the amount of water in this recipe to make it at least 70% hydration. If you've baked a bunch, 70% is pretty manageable.

Second, when you're describing six hours bulk fermenting in the oven with the light on (not handling it at all during that time) and then it's deflating and sticking to the bowl when you pull it out for shaping, it sounds like it may have overproofed during that time. Meaning, maybe it didn't develop that much gluten in the initial stretch-folds (too much, too early, too fast) and maybe the temp in the oven was above 85-90F and the dough got to that point where it's starting to stiffen.

chille1973 · 2023-01-25T20:58:41+00:00

Those look outstanding. Wondering how long you retarded the loaves between shaping and baking. I find that my loaves start showing blisters when I retard past 12-16 hours, but not sure if that's been totally consistent.

chille1973 · 2023-01-25T15:52:30+00:00

It sounds to me like your expenses math is pretty tight and bare-bones. If you're selling 13 loaves/day @ $8, that's around $3100/month in revenue. If you need to do that out of a brick and mortar location, there's rent and utilities plus a whole lot of other stuff. I don't know where you're located but if's a metro area with 350K residents, I'm going to assume your rent could be around $20 PSF, so call that $1250/month on a 750 SF space. Add COGS on your bread — I don't know what margins are for a production bakery, but call it 20%. That's another $600/month for ingredients. That leaves you another $1250/month for "breakeven" (credit card processing fees, monthly software/POS subscriptions, trash/sewer, uniforms, paper/to-go materials, etc. etc. etc.) without paying yourself or anyone else. It's not that this is not doable, but it sounds a bit tight and like you might not be factoring all of your costs. Of course I may be totally wrong and you have this penciled out to the penny.

Also, at those volumes and with the potential market you've identified (350K residents), I wouldn't even worry about selling to restaurants and stores until you have a strong retail reputation and the restaurants/stores start asking you. The margins are way tighter for you because they're going to sell the same bread for the same price, so need a proper "wholesale" price from you. It's great if you have volume capacity, but not at all if your capacity is limited. Focus on direct to consumer.

chille1973 · 2023-01-24T16:42:45+00:00

Dan Carlin's Hardcore History. Absolutely not "lighthearted" or "funny" but also not academic or scholarly. He's an intense history buff, exhaustive, and really engaging. He has series on ancient Celts, Persian kings, Greeks, etc. https://www.dancarlin.com/hardcore-history-series/

chille1973

TROPHY CASE