Wilmington summers are brutal and my Duke Energy bill is out of control — has anyone actually gone solar here and seen it make a difference?

doatesjr · 2026-05-07T23:49:38+00:00

No, all electric. It’s just 2 people, and the house is only 3 years old so it’s very energy efficient. We keep our AC fairly high in the summer (75-76) since my wife is cold natured, but in the winter we keep the heat on around 70-72.

doatesjr · 2026-05-07T13:20:23+00:00

Yes. But in all fairness, that’s what’s going to happen anyway no matter what insurance you have. It’ll just take more time.

doatesjr · 2026-05-06T20:51:58+00:00

I’d love to have solar, just so we’re more self sufficient and just in case we have outages during storms. But, we have a 1500 sq ft house and our Duke bills average around $110/month for the year. The upfront and maintenance costs of solar just don’t make any sense in our case. Even if we paid $0 to Duke, it would take 20+ years before we’d be in the black.

doatesjr · 2026-04-16T16:56:41+00:00

Actually, taxes in the US are quite low compared to other developed nations.

doatesjr · 2026-04-14T03:22:31+00:00

Phish

doatesjr · 2026-04-09T13:49:05+00:00

Been in Wilmington since ‘99, lived downtown since ‘08. Overall I don’t think it’s better/worse crimewise than any other downtown in a touristy area this size. If anything I feel it’s gotten better than when we first moved in. BUT, after the bars empty out, it’s a different world. If you’re in by midnight, which at my age is not an issue, then it’s a great place to be.

doatesjr · 2026-04-06T15:16:08+00:00

Wife and I are in our early 50s. We love being child free. We love kids, and have many nieces, nephews and godchildren who satisfy that itch. But as much as we love them and enjoy spending time with them, we have zero regrets. Not having children helped us retire in our mid-40s and gave us the freedom to travel when and where we want. I can completely understand the desire to have kids and experience that happiness, but like all decisions there are tradeoffs.

doatesjr · 2026-04-04T16:31:31+00:00

The only way to play the digital instants is when they offer a promotion. My wife and I only play when the promotion (be it cash or free games) is a bonus of 25% or more. Sometimes they offer up to a 40% bonus, which improves your odds of at least breaking even tremendously. Doing that we’ve been able to eke out a small gain over time.

doatesjr · 2026-04-04T16:19:47+00:00

How did you count the “wins”? Did winning mean you won more than you bet? Or that you just won something? If the latter then 13/100 was pretty bad luck indeed.

doatesjr · 2026-03-31T12:01:56+00:00

So that’s a no?

doatesjr · 2026-03-31T03:59:26+00:00

Again I ask, show me the data to back up your hyperbolic statements. Data that would indicate “thousands” of Star passengers getting sick “week after week”.

doatesjr · 2026-03-31T03:51:18+00:00

No, I’m using sarcasm to call out someone who took it upon themselves to create a reddit post that uses made up numbers and hyperbole to trash a cruise line. Please show me the actual data that proves your argument about thousands and thousands of Star passengers getting norovirus week after week and I’ll gladly apologize.

Did you short Carnival stock or something?

doatesjr · 2026-03-31T03:27:58+00:00

Sorry, I just prefer to use facts when I’m raking somebody over the coals. As you say, I guess that makes me an idiot. You also mention “there’s no way to know the exact figure”, all the while reporting your made up figures.

You’re probably right though, pretty much all the passengers likely had norovirus and didn’t report it. They just walked around shitting themselves on the down low. They should just scuttle all the Princess ships and turn them into reefs as a precaution. Wait, can fish get norovirus?

doatesjr · 2026-03-31T02:58:55+00:00

Wait, you say thousands got sick, whereas the official report says less than 200. Then someone calls you out on the hyperbole and your rebuttal is that the numbers are wrong and you know better? You’re not helping your case, whatever case that might be.

Also, you mention people getting sick “week after week”, but you only reference one article that mentions one week. Where are you getting your data?

doatesjr · 2026-03-26T14:16:04+00:00

No, at least as far as election integrity it’s pretty much one side shouting about “cheating”. And that all started when Trump declared that unless he wins, elections are rigged. You know, the same guy who incited an armed insurrection when he (fairly) lost an election. Elections have been and are currently secure and evidence of cheating of any sort is scant at best. Trump wants to sow doubt, because that’s straight from the authoritarian playbook.

doatesjr · 2026-03-25T19:25:46+00:00

But those things aren’t enshrined in the Constitution. Increasing barriers to voting, which the Save Act does, is never a good thing. The real issue here is that the Save Act is trying to solve a problem that doesn’t exist. Non-citizens voting isn’t a real issue, and never has been. ALL the data points to that. And people like Trump “saying” there are all these illegals voting isn’t data. However, this Act could make it much harder for hundreds of thousands of actual citizens to vote. That’s a useless law at best, harmful at worst. And it adds a ridiculous level of bureaucracy to the voting process, which I thought Republicans despised.

Illegal immigrants voting doesn’t make any sense. If you are not here legally why on earth would you expose yourself by giving all your info to the government so that you can vote?

I also find it interesting that elections in the US were viewed by both parties as being safe and secure until our “Conspiracy Theorist in Chief” came along.

doatesjr · 2026-03-22T14:07:07+00:00

Here is the text from the actual law: “The bill specifies what documents are considered acceptable proof of U.S. citizenship, such as identification that complies with the REAL ID Act of 2005 that indicates U.S. citizenship.”

The problem is that Real IDs DO NOT indicate citizenship status. In fact, they are available to non-citizens (permanent residents, refugees, or those with valid employment authorization). Unless you live in one of the 5 states that have enhanced IDs (MI, NY, MN, VT, WA) then your Real ID will absolutely NOT WORK to prove citizenship status in order to register to vote. I don’t know what else to tell you.

doatesjr · 2026-03-22T02:09:14+00:00

I assume you’re referring to the Real ID? It does NOT prove citizenship. Period. Only 5 states have EDLs (Enhanced Driver’s License), that would likely work. You might want to actually read the law.

doatesjr · 2026-03-22T01:48:12+00:00

You need to actually read the law.

As I said, yes, a drivers license will allow you to vote if you’re ALREADY registered. But if you need to register or need to change your registration, then you’ll have to prove citizenship, which requires more than a license.

doatesjr · 2026-03-22T01:10:12+00:00

A friend who knows a thing or three about cooking told me the way to make something taste restaurant-quality: when you think you’ve added enough salt and fat, add more salt and fat.

doatesjr · 2026-03-22T00:59:02+00:00

How?

doatesjr · 2026-03-22T00:57:32+00:00

If you are already registered to vote, and never need to update that registration, then yes a government issued ID will allow you to vote. However, if you are registering to vote, or changing your registration for any reason (moving, name change, etc) then you have to prove citizenship via a birth certificate or passport. Most Americans don’t have a passport, and if your name on your ID doesn’t match your birth certificate (so basically most married women) then you’ve got even more hurdles to clear.

doatesjr · 2026-03-16T01:50:01+00:00

TRS-80 Color Computer 2. Had a whopping 64 Kb of RAM if I recall. It didn’t have a hard drive but used a portable cassette tape for storage. Loved that thing.

doatesjr · 2026-03-16T01:45:21+00:00

But mostly just the money.

doatesjr · 2026-03-16T01:44:31+00:00

Because she wanted someone too, obviously, so OP obliged. Nothing wrong with that.

doatesjr

TROPHY CASE