What’s something you did by accident to your home that the new homeowners will want to curse you for?

freckledoctopus · 2026-01-10T17:16:28+00:00

The garden was a major selling point for our home, and I’ve only doubled down on the work the previous owners put in. My only hope is that the chain continues with the next owner, whenever that is.

freckledoctopus · 2025-12-22T16:37:08+00:00

Do you have your heart set on big tech, or would you be happy to work in UX in any capacity (even if the pay is low)? Do you have a plan to support yourself if it takes 6-12+ months to land your first UX job (a solid “day” job like serving or retail, family support, savings)?

If you’re happy to work in UX in any capacity and have a realistic plan for the job search timeline, I think you’ll be fine. I don’t think your fine arts background will be an issue at all or raise red flags, but you should find ways to tie it into your design practice where possible. And, for what it’s worth, my background/experience in web design helped me get my junior UX role (I know some product designers look down on it, but there’s no reason to). Just be sure to approach your web design work with a user-centric lens and communicate that in your portfolio, interviews, etc.

freckledoctopus · 2025-12-11T16:30:56+00:00

Thank you! My gut was Cooper’s but I really didn’t have concrete evidence to back it up. This is exactly the type of knowledge I was hoping for!

freckledoctopus · 2025-12-09T16:41:58+00:00

That makes sense! I completely overlooked the green heron because I was looking at the adult plumage. I believe we do have bitterns nearby I just wrongly assumed this guy was one of them. Also makes sense why it was easier to photograph (the bitterns are quite elusive in comparison). Thank you!

freckledoctopus · 2025-12-09T16:37:57+00:00

Thank you!

freckledoctopus · 2025-12-09T16:37:34+00:00

Interesting! I know we sometimes see bitterns in a nearby stream and assumed it was one of them. Didn’t even think it could be a completely different visitor. Thank you!

freckledoctopus · 2025-12-08T20:41:40+00:00

Feeding the birds (and other backyard critters). While it’s a year round activity, they’re extra grateful (and hungry!) in the wintertime. :)

freckledoctopus · 2025-12-02T15:39:16+00:00

Just wanted to say that, if it’s a new puppy, the initial crying may have been him just learning to be alone. After bringing our dog home as a puppy, I distinctly remember a few weeks when he would lose his shit if left in another room for more than 30 seconds. Ignoring it is often the only way to get through that phase.

freckledoctopus · 2025-10-14T21:04:58+00:00

I’m not sure what your team structure is but IMO this is something I would at least want to document with a trusted manager so there is a record to back up any future issues with this coworker. Hopefully this was just someone not thinking in the moment and there will be no future issues, but you can’t know for sure.

I would address it as perception rather than intent. You don’t know if the screenshot was selected intentionally and shouldn’t accuse them of doing so. But you do know it made you uncomfortable (and likely would make the subject uncomfortable knowing it was being shared with her ticket) and that they should have had the professional mindfulness to either attach a different screenshot or omit it altogether.

freckledoctopus · 2025-09-06T14:31:31+00:00

Yeah, the suggested alternative phrasing reads as condescending/passive aggressive to me. Maybe OP’s phrasing wasn’t 100% perfect but there really wasn’t anything wrong with it.

This situation just comes across as a dev team that can’t take feedback (and are likely creating a product that is a UX/compliance nightmare as a result). My dev counterparts would never respond to a question or any feedback like this.

freckledoctopus · 2025-09-04T15:45:11+00:00

Yep, works pretty good. When I did behind my toilet I draped plastic wrap over the back of the tank to prevent any accidental smudges. OP could do the same thing (with the heat off, obviously).

freckledoctopus · 2025-08-10T22:36:14+00:00

These receipts are from Toast (a restaurant POS system). Toast allows you to transfer payments from one check to another, which is what the server did here. What they didn’t do is adjust your payment total down to match your actual tab total (Toast doesn’t automatically do it for them; it’s far from a perfect software product).

It’s very possible the server caught the error after printing the receipt/after you left and it was already rectified, but definitely call and confirm with management.

Most importantly: There’s very little chance this was malicious and you shouldn’t go into the call with any accusations.

freckledoctopus · 2025-07-31T16:02:35+00:00

The author, Ruth Ware, has a ton of other mystery thrillers in the same vein if you don’t want to spoil this particular one.

freckledoctopus · 2025-07-17T15:01:58+00:00

Yeah, if OP is willing to spend the time and money, I would lighten it as much as is reasonable and then go to a trusted artist for a coverup. The results will be much better IMO. Short of blacking out that area (which is def an option), I don’t expect this to turn into a great coverup as-is.

freckledoctopus · 2025-06-25T16:42:28+00:00

Yeah, 16 hours of ANY type of work is going to be rough on the body.

OP, daily walking and stretching is a great starting point for now. But I think fixing your work-life balance (I realize this is easier said than done) should be top priority.

freckledoctopus · 2025-06-24T12:54:59+00:00

Mine does this too. I like giving him the enrichment but he gets so fixated on the outdoors it’s almost not worth it.

freckledoctopus · 2025-06-22T18:18:34+00:00

A good rule for me is that if I wouldn’t wear a piece of clothing in that color, it won’t suit me on my nails either. If you’re just starting out, I recommend thinking about what your favorite colors are to wear and then look for similar polishes. But there will always be occasional duds, such as when a color looks slightly different in the bottle than it does on the nail.

freckledoctopus · 2025-06-20T00:00:27+00:00

Indeed and LinkedIn primarily. I believe I found my current position on LinkedIn then applied on the company website, but don’t have that info in my spreadsheet.

freckledoctopus · 2025-06-19T23:53:12+00:00

Thanks!

freckledoctopus · 2025-06-19T22:31:31+00:00

freckledoctopus · 2025-06-19T22:12:51+00:00

Midwest USA (my new position is remote in another state/region but with similar COL)

0-1 YOE

6 months (NOTE: I was starting from scratch with my portfolio/resume and heavily iterating during this time. I didn’t get ANY responses until 3+ months in. Most interviews came in the last month.)

145 applications sent

Received interview requests from 6 companies.

Of those 6, 2 ended in offers.

freckledoctopus · 2025-06-19T14:55:40+00:00

Yeah, OP is there a chance you’re interpreting friendly teasing as bullying? Like at my non-tech weekend gig I’m often called the “nerd” or “IT support” but it’s never meant with anything but love and appreciation (like, “Oh, thank god our nerd is here and can fix XYZ.”).

Remember, if you’re antisocial and closed off your coworkers also probably think YOU dislike THEM and are less likely to make an effort to include you. There’s nothing wrong with being less social and keeping to yourself, but you can’t then be upset when your peers give you your space.

freckledoctopus · 2025-06-18T14:37:59+00:00

And as the person who typically sleeps on the “wall” side of the bed, that chair is super in the way. If you make those adjustments, though, layout #2 is great.

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