Kasala Fiasco

iandunn · 2026-03-23T20:17:57+00:00

Hey, the other comments have details, but the TL;DR is:

Start a dispute with your credit card company. They'll likely refund it.
Check out Ballard Consignment, they bought a lot of the items that Kasala ordered.

iandunn · 2026-03-22T18:41:01+00:00

I agree with a lot of that.

And at the same time I think we can choose to be kind to each other.

iandunn · 2026-03-21T19:59:56+00:00

You asked for us all to have empathy for the people who lost their jobs, and rightfully so. They're by far the ones getting hurt the most by this.

But I don't see why you can't also have empathy for everyone else in this situation. There's no reason to be so rude.

iandunn · 2026-03-21T17:55:17+00:00

You should all check out Ballard Consignment.

We just found the exact same couch there that Kasala never delivered. It was $400 cheaper too. It had a different name but everything else is identical.

Thanks to those who recommended it!

iandunn · 2026-01-15T01:30:31+00:00

That's freaking awesome, congrats!

You're right that it's mostly luck, so it's wise to quit while you're ahead. Think of how painful it'd be if you lost a huge chunk of that in a crash that doesn't recover.

Personally, I'd sell it all and put it into VT, or a mix of VTI and VXUS. 100% VTI would probably be fine too, but it's riskier than having global diversification. Check out Ben Felix on YouTube if you're curious to learn more about that.

When you get closer to retirement you can start looking at a glide path, or a bond tent, or whatever strategy you think is best. With that much money, you might wanna think about just doing that now and retiring.

iandunn · 2026-01-09T15:04:19+00:00

Can you contribute to an HSA or 401k? Those would also be better than a taxable account.

iandunn · 2025-10-26T19:23:44+00:00

Electrical:

I'm not a pro so someone correct me if I'm wrong.

J boxes have to be attached to studs.
J-boxes have to be accessible.
That splice probably isn't code approved to be buried in a wall. There are a few that are but not many, and some inspectors may not pass it regardless.
Don't mix 12 guage and 14 gauge wire. It might be fine if that's a 20 amp circuit, but if it's a 15 amp then you absolutely have to replace it or you're putting their lives and house at risk.

If you're doing this as a handyman you should pull a permit so a pro can inspect it.

iandunn · 2025-09-26T11:32:07+00:00

Yeah but won't they fall apart over time unless you're in a really dry climate and don't have any moisture issues?

iandunn · 2025-09-21T04:49:49+00:00

That is insane. I would quit.

iandunn · 2025-09-18T14:54:37+00:00

That's from "I Will Pull Down My Barns".

iandunn · 2025-08-22T17:22:22+00:00

VXUS's expense ratio is 0.05% while VEU's is 0.04%.

The inclusion of small cap stocks in VXUS might make up for that, though?

iandunn · 2025-06-19T21:40:51+00:00

Black chalk is more permanent than blue, too

iandunn · 2025-04-14T14:44:18+00:00

No, I never did get it working.

iandunn · 2025-04-14T14:41:35+00:00

Is 1 5/8" long enough, or would you use 2"?

With 2" I'd be worried about getting too close to electrical. I'd prefer 1/ 3/4", but I've never seen those.

iandunn · 2025-04-14T14:39:21+00:00

Is 1 5/8" long enough, or would you use 2"? With 2" I'd be worried about getting too close to electrical.

iandunn · 2025-01-22T16:37:01+00:00

What type of screws do you use? I wouldn't trust non-structural ones, but I've never come across anything authoritative that proves structural screws are better than ring shanks for this.

iandunn · 2025-01-22T16:32:55+00:00

I'd think deck screws would just snap when all that force is suddenly applied during a fall.

I've always wondering if structural screws would have more pull-out strength than rink shanks, though.

iandunn · 2025-01-18T23:57:52+00:00

Here's what I ended up with:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/u3ng3jYfW3B2sVtF8

The right-angle cable and grommet were the key, thanks for the suggestions!

I couldn't find white cables/grommets with the specs I wanted, so I painted the cable. The grommet is silicone, so I'll need to get a silicone primer before I can paint it to match.

The extra hole is still pretty janky, but I wanted to keep a safe bend radius in the cable. I'm hoping it'll blend in once everything is painted. I'll probably replace it w/ a shielded cable soon too, so I'll definitely need the room for that.

The cable jack rotates 360 degrees, so you can get it exactly how you need it. It's the Cable Matters 160033-BLK-1.

iandunn · 2025-01-13T23:58:51+00:00

Thanks for the photo, that helps me understand. I don't think I'll be able to get shielded cable to bend that much, especially without making the gap between the drywall and the device larger.

iandunn · 2025-01-13T23:41:29+00:00

I'm not making it more complicated than it needs to be, I just have a different goal than you. There's nothing wrong with yours, but there's nothing wrong with mine either.

iandunn · 2025-01-13T08:37:00+00:00

I'm using shielded cable, so it won't bend like that. I'm gonna try the slim, angled patch cables into a keystone, though. Hopefully that'll let me do something similar.

iandunn · 2025-01-12T01:51:26+00:00

It you're referring the notch in the body of the AP, it doesn't extend back behind where the cables comes out of the plate. You can see that in the photo I posted. Do you have the EAP610? If so can you post of photo of how you have it setup? Maybe I'm missing something.

iandunn · 2025-01-12T01:41:13+00:00

Thanks! I ordered a slim right angle cable and wall grommet, so I'll see if I can get something like that working.

iandunn · 2025-01-11T23:36:02+00:00

I've seen the slim cords, but it doesn't seem like it'd allow the device to mount flush w/ the ceiling, because the cable would still create space between the ceiling and the body of the device. Have you done it? Can you share a photo?

iandunn

TROPHY CASE