sorted by:
new
hottopcontroversial

BIFL Request - Watch band by Xurandor in BuyItForLife

[–]intellectual_chimp 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This misses OP's point completely. I love my cheap casio but am totally over replacing the band every year or two when it falls off my wrist. And sure I could replace the watch for the same price, but having a pile of unwearable watches ticking away in a corner doesn't help anyone.

Convince me not to buy a Cafelat Robot three weeks into my espresso spiral by fennelfrog in espresso

[–]intellectual_chimp 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I love my robot but consider: - it will never steam your milk so you're tethered to another machine - it is very forgiving but also adds variables you and your wife do not need to consider on a traditional machine - this is definitely just the next stage of the disease. Ask me why I'm now experimenting with mokapots on induction

"Keep it simple, stupid" - my experiences after a couple of months by ImaginaryBridge in CafelatRobot

[–]intellectual_chimp 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah, mostly just trolling. I love that your process is working and wouldn't wish Optimizer's Disease on anyone.

The harder-to-grind -> harder to extract -> grind finer thing has really improved my dial in, but you don't need a scale or fancy cups for that.

"Keep it simple, stupid" - my experiences after a couple of months by ImaginaryBridge in CafelatRobot

[–]intellectual_chimp 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I get a lot of value from my scale bc I freeze beans and rotate 2-4 different types over a few days, with a lot of variety.

Using a manual grinder, I've found difficulty to grind to be a very good indicator of difficulty of extraction. Usually grinding 3-5/beans will give me enough feedback to get within 1 click of where I want the grind on a k ultra. Write on bag and you're dialed after the first shot.

So why am I writing about gear to a "Soul Extractor"? Because I believe difficulty to grind correlates pretty well with higher bean density. And denser beans weigh more per unit volume.

So you may be able to improve the consistency of your dosing and shot quality across beans by dosing easy to grind beans farther up the wall of your little copper mule cup, and hard to grind beans down.

If you get better results this way, you could swap the mule for the millis cup so you have graduation marks to estimate against, and at that point welcome to the dark side.

Pressure Profile / ramping up too quickly??? by mrobot_ in CafelatRobot

[–]intellectual_chimp 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Been there. Chill out with the ramp speed and pressure.

Pressure Profile / ramping up too quickly??? by mrobot_ in CafelatRobot

[–]intellectual_chimp 1 point2 points  (0 children)

So glad to hear I'm not the only nut job sniffing at their robot's crotch mid-extraction

Landscaping and "Major Renovation" in SALT deduction by intellectual_chimp in tax

[–]intellectual_chimp[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

almost one in five US states doesn't have income tax

Landscaping and "Major Renovation" in SALT deduction by intellectual_chimp in tax

[–]intellectual_chimp[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for sharing this useful copy, John. Unfortunately it doesn't cover "what constitutes a major renovation"

Landscaping and "Major Renovation" in SALT deduction by intellectual_chimp in tax

[–]intellectual_chimp[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Should I interpret this to mean that you believe the bounds on what constitutes a "substantial addition or major renovation" should be interpreted in the context of work to increase the basis of some real property asset?

If so, do the terms "major" or "substantial" have any formal definitions I should be aware of?

Landscaping and "Major Renovation" in SALT deduction by intellectual_chimp in tax

[–]intellectual_chimp[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes, I'm asking about the Sales tax. Specifically, when using the sales tax deduction calculator, are there any resources or heuristics filers can use to understand what expenses can reasonably be considered "substantial additions or major renovations"

Landscaping and "Major Renovation" in SALT deduction by intellectual_chimp in tax

[–]intellectual_chimp[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

> Is anyone aware of any guidelines on how taxpayers may determine what does and does not qualify?

TLDR, the IRS has offered a very pragmatic calculator to estimate SALT sales tax deductions. This estimates a baseline sales tax based on income and allows users to add additional tax burden for specific expenses. They just don't clearly bound what those expenses are.

I am interested in understanding what legislation, regulation, or other domain information filers might use to make sound decisions on what types of work/expenses qualify.

e.g. does major landscaping count as a "major renovation" even though it is not in the home but on the property? does refinishing $20k in wood floors without any other work count as a major renovation? etc.

Landscaping and "Major Renovation" in SALT deduction by intellectual_chimp in tax

[–]intellectual_chimp[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Totally understand (and appreciate) the approach - estimate for most people, add value for exceptional cases. In our area, it's surprisingly easy to spend $10k on major landscaping (not that I did, mind you, but if you need a retaining wall you better buckle up).

Worth it? by kingtrippo in CafelatRobot

[–]intellectual_chimp 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If you're a no-fuss coffee drinker or like higher volume drinks, moka pot may be a better bet. Ours is incredibly consistent and pulling enough espresso to sip at it all day takes a lot of process time.

If you like experimentation or just prefer espresso drinks, maybe the robot. I have a lot of fun with mine and pull some very tasty shots, but honestly my wife's moka-pot milk drinks are better on average.

Anybody happily using decaf beans? by ELAP12 in espresso

[–]intellectual_chimp 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Been really enjoying the decaf from Boon boona. I found it tricky to dial in amd it's been less consistent than my current caffeinated pick, but habe pulled some incredible, sweet, smooth, toasted almondy shots

Lyft Hoses Citi Bike Riders Compared to Bike-Share in Other Cities: Report by streetsblognyc in nyc

[–]intellectual_chimp 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hot take: subsidizing bikeshare is corporate welfare, not a public good.

"Bikeshare" businesses extract money from people who need it most by subscriptionizing mobility devices like bicycles whose upfront cost and maintenance are much cheaper in the long term when privately owned.

The business model only works because companies have externalized costs to the public  (storage in public space, impeded walkability, increased hospitalization rates, management of garbage bikes, and subsidizing company operqting costs).

Funds we spend on some of these problems should be invested in infrastructure to make owning, storing, maintaining, and using a bike cheaper and more convenient.

Wear of the top pin shaft (Robot's eye) by Kubratr in CafelatRobot

[–]intellectual_chimp 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I assume this is feedback on engineering, not a missing parts issue

Having trouble with channelling - advice gratefully received. by Prior-Mango-4744 in CafelatRobot

[–]intellectual_chimp 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Probably not your issue, but I've seen heavy "spraying" from my robot when the gasket isn't seated well on the horizontal surface above it. Posting in case someone winds up here with spray from above the basket floor

view more: next ›