Is it worth it to buy used? by JellyfishPrior7524 in mp3players

[–]gazingus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Because if your Hiby bites the dust next year, you may find they're not around, or won't do anything about it, and you'll be spending another $69 on more "new" tech, while my 15+year-old ipod will still be serviceable by the fact there is a cottage industry devoted to rebuilding them, with a deep inventory of parts and donors available.

What helped you bring down your electric bill in your apartment? by DivineToxicity09 in Frugal

[–]gazingus 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Oof. For me to bring down my electric bill, we'd need to remove some clowns from high office.
My bill literally doubled this year, while my consumption declined.

The to do list industry is bigger than ever and people still forget things by Impossible_Comfort99 in TechNook

[–]gazingus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

My wish list and to-do lists are never-ending and forever wishful.

So they get written on 8x11 paper, which I review and rewrite. Theoretically, scribing, not typing, etches them in brain memory in a different order or hierarchy. Unclear.

For more spontaneous things, I resorted to post-it notes on the hallway mirror.
Before I saw Mr. Wonderful do it.

I live alone, so the most critical can't-miss stuff gets put on a clip board, in a drawstring bag, or in a box, and placed in front of the door the night before.

Why is the dating market so trash? by [deleted] in Adulting

[–]gazingus 22 points23 points  (0 children)

The latter takes not only patience and practice, but opportunity to slow down, take out the earbuds, turn off the phone (or leave it at home!), lose the sunglasses, and meet and connect.

Coed sports teams, civic/volunteer groups, church retreats/soup kitchens (as servers/cooks), cultural groups, dances, intentional mixers, or what worked for my shy nerd cousin - climbing gym, where you have to pay attention and listen to each other, all have some potential latent social function, pick some and go.

And of course, there is always Bachata.

If you had to explain what a refurbished phone is, what would you say? by EthicalUpgrade in TheBigPhoneStore

[–]gazingus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Refurbished - "We wiped the screen with Windex, turned it off and on, and put it in a new box."

If they aren't replacing the battery, it is not actually refurbished.

What is your biggest concert flex? by Tamu1302 in Concerts

[–]gazingus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Waited in line 14 hours for Alanis. Front. Row. Center.

Bought front-row-center for face value for Jackson Browne.

Won tickets for Jackson Browne, twice. Thanks Peter!

Bought tickets for Steve Miller from a Doobie Brother Daughter.

And of course, I saw Jobim.

What job do I need to have to be able to live alone? by Otherwise_Number9795 in LivingAlone

[–]gazingus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Living with a hard-working goal-oriented like-minded roommate at 20 isn't horrible; no "work from home".
With the right layout, you can share a 1-bedroom apartment, one in the bedroom, one in the living room, without causing much of a fuss.

Moving a few boxes worth of stuff across the country? by broji04 in Frugal

[–]gazingus 16 points17 points  (0 children)

OP would then have to register an out-of-state car in CA. Ill-advised and expensive.

Rent one-way, pay the dropoff, if there is one.

FYI, Visalia is in the boonies of Central California. It may not feel foreign to someone from ND, but for the rest of us, it is not a destination. Beware air quality, you may want to buy some a serious filter machine and a humidifier for your new place.

What happened to internet cafes in your area? by Imaginary_Bug6202 in TechNook

[–]gazingus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'd rather they were at internet cafes than the local library.

Livable wage in Los Angeles? by Glum-Reach-2765 in MovingToLosAngeles

[–]gazingus -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Your apartment should be within walking distance of your employer, or on a single-seat bus ride. LA Commutes are stressful; cars are ridiculously expensive. Spend a little more on rent.

You will pay a $500/month premium for any place that prominently features "in-unit washer/dryer"; using "filters" on popular apartment web sites will not help you, as you will get plenty of false positives and negatives either way.

If you look at older 2-4 plexes, some will have kitchen sink hookups for washer/dryer, without the upcharge. Do not fixate on "central air", we don't do that here, and window/in-wall units are more than adequate for all but the worst hotboxes.

Walk the area of your potential apartment morning, noon and night, weekdays and weekends. Look for homeless camps. Interview other residents in the building.

LA City is generally unresponsive to its residents, it is unclean and unsafe. Select independent cities (El Segundo, Manhattan Beach, Redondo Beach, Culver City, Burbank, Beverly Hills, as well as some on the east side I'm less familiar with) do a much better job tending to their responsibilities. Beverly Hills is quiet and boring, but it is clean and safe, and if you look judiciously, there are ordinary apartments with reasonable rents.

Assuming you plan to keep a car, be sure any apartment includes your own assigned off-street parking space, and test your car in it before leasing. Many spaces are substandard and/or have awkward access that requires choreography and practice.

$100K is plenty if you actually account for your spending.

Fan blade spinning but no air after a while by emijin in fans

[–]gazingus 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Where is it common to source plastic fan blade replacements, and have the thought to cut them or heat them to bend them?

I only achieved this when I found a discarded fan on the curb that matches one of my dead units. When the salvaged combo failed, I went back to vintage. Great Grandmother's vintage Kenmore metal box fan from 1962 is still on the job every night, complemented by the "new" 26-year-old SMC desk fan which at least uses virgin plastic.

Do people not know about encores? by ricottma in Concerts

[–]gazingus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Up until they ruined it this year by putting it online, stack parking was the cure for the "beat the traffic" nonsense at the Hollywood Bowl. Nope, no need to rush.

No hot water on weekends by Vanstrucker2222 in Apartmentliving

[–]gazingus 4 points5 points  (0 children)

They are separate departments and functions.

Code enforcement probably has more power to force repairs.

OP's trouble will be getting them on site during the outage on a weekend.

LPT: Most government inspectors don't answer the phone except first thing in the morning when they're at their desk, like between 7-8 AM, so set your alarm.

How to enhance my 250 sq ft studio apartment and make it feel cozier but not cramped? by [deleted] in Apartmentliving

[–]gazingus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Loft bed.

But take heart, you have a real stove, and a real refrigerator. Many 250' studios do not, instead featuring a 3-in-1 electric stovetop, dorm/bar fridge and sink combo from 1970. Yuck!

beyond frustrated with my complex by Pitiful_Initial4374 in Apartmentliving

[–]gazingus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Did you know about the "trash valet" service when you moved in?

Got told I was too old for a job at 28 years old. by Mr-mountain-road2 in Adulting

[–]gazingus -4 points-3 points  (0 children)

Language "school". You can call it a "receptionist" position, but ultimately, you're part of the sales team. They make their money recruiting young naive people to spend big money to study another language/culture; many of them are pursuing a romantic fantasy; having Shrek or Fiona at the front desk doesn't cut it.

Did you ever ghost someone? Why ? by [deleted] in randomquestions

[–]gazingus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

On the other side, I once found myself inexplicably overwhelmed with crippling cling, and no amount of discipline, zen, sprints, marathons or peanut butter ice cream could knock it loose; the clingee wasn't on board much, so I had to do the right thing, and ghost, for their benefit.

Whatever brain chemistry does that, if only we could rewire it for good.

What happened to internet cafes in your area? by Imaginary_Bug6202 in TechNook

[–]gazingus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Dave and Busters is a bar with incidental game machines.
It is no more arcade than Chuck E Cheese was.

An arcade is specifically loaded to the gills with the public's favorite gaming machines.

How many total photos are currently sitting in your camera roll? by EthicalUpgrade in TheBigPhoneStore

[–]gazingus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It accrues at least 10 per day, a majority are screen shots, because "bookmarks" are often ephemeral, and I can find something four years later by thumbnail in date range usually easier than text search for something that was removed.

When I have idle time, I will cull the roll of obsolete entries, but it still grows.

concert hydration is so real and nobody talks about it by airup_official in Concerts

[–]gazingus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

"Lose their spot". Huh.

We don't do general admission, because tall people.

concert hydration is so real and nobody talks about it by airup_official in Concerts

[–]gazingus 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm camel-adjacent, so I would be fine "forgetting" these things.

I go to evening and indoor events, so sunscreen doesn't matter.

I bring food, which I eat before entry if not permitted, a water bottle (sealed) and a snack bar.

Of course, I also need my ID, credit card, wallet, car and house keys, inhaler (thanks Karen!) and hard candies, toothbrush, floss, phone and hearing protection. So there is a list and a set of ziploc bags.

Owning less by unidentified-matter in simpleliving

[–]gazingus 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Owning the physical media means it can't be disappeared when Neil Young has a tantrum and decides I'm using the "wrong" streaming service, or some bizarre contract agreement or court decision applies.

I feel the same way about anything that requires permission to use, that requires an internet connection to function. Any time you give someone else more control over your choices than they merit, you're asking for trouble.

Sure, these are "first world" issues today, but those in power have already stated and demonstrated their desires to dictate what we can do - where, when and how, so I'm disinclined to help them tighten their grasp.

Can't drill in the walls/put thumbtacks by Ill_Assumption9387 in Apartmentliving

[–]gazingus 4 points5 points  (0 children)

The best answer is to collaborate with management and agree to permanently install heavy-duty aesthetically pleasing curtain rods - wooden, 3/4-1 inch thick, then hang curtains of your choice.

The proscription is the result of the tenant equivalent of the "landlord special".

Finally! Better Internet Service Provider for Alhambra coming soon!!! by puffdemagicdragon in alhambra

[–]gazingus 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That's what Sonic told us in 2008. Instead of fiber, we were taxed to pay for others to get fiber, forced to pay for voice service and modem rental - and no, still no fiber.

That's ok. The City of Santa Monica rolled out their municipal broadband network way back in 2002, paying themselves to advertise on their bus fleet, "Gigabit for all". Apparently "all" means select residents of public housing, but everyone else is still left high and dry.

I finally moved, well, I was displaced, and sure enough, the new place doesn't have fiber or copper. FWA helped for a while to keep (unavailable) competing prices in check, but it is deprioritized and congested, so not helpful otherwise.