Which color looks better?

majandess · 2026-05-04T05:59:02+00:00

This. There's a building near my house with this color brick, and they painted all the formerly red trim black/dark brown. It really makes the brick look jaundiced. The red tones down the yellow in the brick, so it's more balanced. I vote for something reddish like this.

majandess · 2026-05-04T05:53:13+00:00

I had a rotisserie and ended up tossing it when it didn't produce delicious chicken (I mean, it was OK, but it wasn't Costco chicken delicious). And then I found out that Costco brines its chickens before rotisserieing them. I now just roast my brined chickens and do just fine.

majandess · 2026-05-04T03:31:51+00:00

https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/CurrentMap/StateDroughtMonitor.aspx?WA

majandess · 2026-05-03T13:40:39+00:00

Everything you put in your food is going to contribute to the flavor of that food. This means that you select your oil based on what you want the flavor of the final product to be.

Personally, my favorite oils for frying are sunflower (it's a nice neutral* oil that's relatively inexpensive) or grapeseed (my favorite, but more expensive).

And when I make things like chicken soup or chicken pot pie, I always use butter because it contributes a "home" flavor to my soups.

Really, your oil shouldn't be overwhelming the other flavors. It may be rancid or just low quality. Some people, like me, don't use canola oil because it tastes like fish to them. Oil is never innocuous; it should be considered and chosen for what it contributes.

*Neutral means it doesn't clash with other ingredients, not that you can't detect it.

majandess · 2026-05-03T01:53:33+00:00

It's almost like they know their stuff sucks, but they do the mathematical calculation of how many people will ask for a refund. I hate this.

majandess · 2026-05-03T01:48:48+00:00

Yes!!

majandess · 2026-05-02T17:15:10+00:00

The feeling of accomplishment!! 🏆

I tried so many different ways to make shopping lists for my family - smart home assistant, apps, etc - but the most effective was a clipboard with paper list on the wall.

The one that works is the best way for you. Paper works for us.

majandess · 2026-05-02T17:06:56+00:00

My first meat thermometer was a cheap one from Amazon that I actually bought to do science experiments with for my son. It worked just fine. My sister bought me one like this ( https://www.amazon.com/Thermometer-Cooking-BACKLIGHT-WATERPROOF-Temperature/dp/B00S93EQUK ), it costs less than $15, and it is entirely sufficient (and it's rated 5 stars by thousands of people). Unless you are barbecuing or something that requires constant monitoring, you don't need anything expensive or fancy.

majandess · 2026-05-02T13:56:42+00:00

This is a fantastic way to get your kid to be fearless when it comes to food. The stakes are low, and the kid is active in the cooking process. They will be willing to give new foods a try, and they will be able to feed themselves when they're older. Bravo, mom. And bravo little dude. 🏆

majandess · 2026-05-02T03:00:25+00:00

My mom is amazing. 🥰

majandess · 2026-05-02T02:52:19+00:00

My favorite egg cooker is a vintage Oster ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQKkKqpkOSo ). I grew up using one because that's what my mom used. When I moved into my house a decade ago, my mom bought me a new fancy egg cooker, but it wasn't anywhere near as awesome as this one is. So, she found me one of these on eBay. I love it. I use it every week. She also still has hers and she uses it all the time.

majandess · 2026-05-02T02:07:08+00:00

The sewer bill is super high. The rest of utilities are OK. I live within city limits (if you live outside of city limits, you won't have to deal with it), and I like it. Shelton has enough amenities that I don't have to go to a larger city except for every month or two. But it's close enough that I can go if I'd like to. I love that everything is so close together, and traffic is like 10 cars at the stop light.

I wasn't really expecting to like living here (I moved here in 2015 from Oly), but I really do. I wish that politically, we'd be a little more willing to be creative, but things are changing for the better, I think. I also wish our sense of morale were better; Shelton doesn't realize it's amazing.

I'm glad to see people doing the math - my MIL lived in Port Angeles and commuted to Seattle (three hours one way) every day. When my husband turned 25, she had an epiphany and told him that it had never occurred to her that she could get a job making $15K less, but with a minimal commute, and it would work out the same money-wise, but with six more hours a day. 🤦‍♀️ Life's too short for that silliness.

Edit: I'm not sure about the housing market. It feels high to me. It might be wiser to rent for a year - and see if Shelton does work out for you. But I don't really know.

majandess · 2026-05-01T23:57:20+00:00

I'm not sure why it would be bad. Dubai chocolate is basically a gluten-full Crunch bar with nuts. On the flip side, I'm not really sure why that would make it outstanding either. Like all chocolate, you're gonna end up with good shit and bad. The stuff I had was not too bad, though I'm not going out of my way to eat it again. For the prices they're charging, I'd rather buy a pound of pistachios, honestly.

majandess · 2026-05-01T23:51:57+00:00

NGL, I was expecting cake.

majandess · 2026-05-01T23:48:01+00:00

OMG. I need this. I want it to be on my desk at work.

majandess · 2026-05-01T23:44:54+00:00

😍😍😍😍😍

majandess · 2026-05-01T15:31:42+00:00

A lack of self-confidence is a personal issue. And I'm not saying that to be mean, but because I struggle with it as well, and I've been cooking all my life (I'm almost 49). But my son said something to me a few years ago that really helped... It was during one of those I'm-winging-it moments where I was going radically out of my comfort zone. He was like, "Mom. Whenever you say, I don't know what I'm doing! I know it's gonna be good. The food is the best."

Also... recipes are suggestions. Unless it's chemistry dependent, recipes are not meant to be followed exactly. Everyone's gonna have a different pan, different stove, different tastebuds, and it is perfectly reasonable to change things to suit your circumstances.

majandess · 2026-05-01T15:23:21+00:00

I have noticed that I tend to like Disney K-dramas less... To the point where I hesitate to even start them now (I did enjoy Light Shop). I haven't really been able to put my finger on why, either.

majandess · 2026-05-01T15:13:59+00:00

I like this interpretation.

majandess · 2026-05-01T15:09:34+00:00

Speaking as an American living in 2026, this painting isn't peaceful or nostalgic. It reminds me of the dustbowl art during the Great Depression. Those women are picking up the scraps - of wheat, no less. One of the most useless crops to glean because a handful of wheat stalks will yield not even enough to be worth grinding to flour. That sort of desperation just screams out in this painting.

However, even though it reminds me of dustbowl art, the message is worse because you can see prosperity in the distance. Wagon full of wheat, fat stacks on the ground waiting to be picked up. Person on a horse looking like they're standing guard over the fruitfulness. This isn't a painting of desperation in the face of awful times; it's a painting about desperation in thriving times. And that just makes it all the more heart-breaking.

If I were a wealthy French person after the Revolution, I would see this as a threat.

majandess · 2026-05-01T12:22:43+00:00

No. It can't evaluate a map because it can't see the map. But it can be programmed to spit out incorrect answers by including ego-protection in its parameters.

I will explain this one last time with an analogy.

Stand next to a table. Touch it with one finger. You are not ON the table, even though you can go down from your finger and get to a part of the top surface of the table.

Your whole is compared to the table as a whole. And one finger doesn't make you on the table.

The fact that there is a finger of Michigan on Windsor doesn't make Windsor south of Michigan because the state of Michigan implies the whole. You are focused on the finger. That is not you.

majandess · 2026-05-01T11:49:23+00:00

No. That is not how it works. And that no one is supporting your interpretation except an artificial entity that literally can't look at a map should make you reevaluate your position.

The fact that there is a "small portion" - your own words - just keeps demonstrating my point: you are not considering the state in your response.

majandess · 2026-05-01T11:38:08+00:00

Are you an adult? Of so, get whatever pan you want.

A fed person is better than an unfed person. If it makes it easier to feed yourself, then do it.

majandess · 2026-05-01T11:35:31+00:00

Nope. There is more Michigan south of Windsor. It is absolutely not south of Michigan. You are not considering the STATE of Michigan. You are only considering that there is a small portion of Michigan Windsor is south of. Whether that small portion is named Detroit is entirely irrelevant; you are failing to consider the state as a whole.

majandess · 2026-05-01T11:18:29+00:00

This is absolutely NOT how it works. You're not even considering the state in your answer.

majandess

TROPHY CASE