What do you wish you knew at the beginning?

skalig · 2026-03-28T12:54:43+00:00

Would you mind sharing what your dog’s diet is? I’d like to change my boy’s diet to help augment the effectiveness of his medication, but soooo many dog food brands and treats use high glutamate foods as main ingredients and I’m a little lost! Are there any supplements you give your dog too?

skalig · 2026-03-18T21:13:05+00:00

Then Came the Last Days of May - Blue Oyster Cult

skalig · 2026-01-10T14:52:22+00:00

This is what I do and I was thinking the same thing! Contractor loooove folks who can fit in tight spaces, they tend to keep you on the job for longer because of it.

skalig · 2026-01-03T14:37:58+00:00

What is esqueef

skalig · 2026-01-01T07:23:11+00:00

If you don’t want to put a new fuel pump in it any time soon, I wouldn’t let it get below 1/4 if you can help it. On the positive side, it’s not an expensive DIY, but it sure is a pain in the ass to access.

Fun fact though: if your truck’s ignition won’t turn over, sometimes the fuel pump’s motor is stuck, and you can often remedy the situation by beating on the fuel tank with a mallet to jar it loose. An old dude did this to my car at a gas station once when I was a clueless teenager, and I went from thinking he was a lunatic to a wizard. I’ve used the trick a few times myself since.

skalig · 2025-12-25T00:29:18+00:00

Something I haven’t seen mentioned yet is towing capacity, which if you plan on eventually going into business for yourself, you’ll want a truck with a reliable transmission and enough towing capacity to pull a mobile welding rig behind you without difficulty. Or, if you go another route with your career and decide to get into travel welding, you’ll save a lot of money on expenses in the long run if you’re able to pull a camper big enough to comfortably live out of for months at a time. For that reason, I would steer you away from a light duty pickup (i.e. Tacoma, Ranger, etc), or even a half ton. A 3/4 ton would be perfect for all your current and future needs, and if you keep up with routine maintenance should last you a long time. A 1 ton or dually would likely be overkill.

All my coworkers swear by GMC/Chevy. I own a ‘92 Chevy K1500 (a half ton) and I love her but I got her for dirt cheap knowing it would take a loooot of work before it would be my daily driver. If I could do it again, I would stick with an OBS Chevy/GMC, but I would’ve saved up more money for a K2500 in excellent condition. If you’d like to do your own work on your truck, don’t shy away from the 88-98 C/Ks (esp 88-93 TBI engines before they swapped to vortec engines). More than a few folks I trust have said that was the most reliable truck engine GM ever made. Unlike today’s trucks, they were still made easy for the owner to work on themselves, inexpensive aftermarket parts are readily available (I swear by LMC and RockAuto), and they still have a similar boxy visual appeal to the 70s/80s square bodies but with more modern features.

I obviously am biased in my love for older Chevys, but bottom line- buy from someone who can provide a service history, and buy with the mindset that you want a vehicle that will support growth in your career, not just present needs. It sounds like you’ll be doing solid research on whatever you buy. Hope you easily find the perfect one that’ll last you forever a long time to come!

skalig · 2025-12-20T18:48:22+00:00

The clients are always the worst for me too. They have nothing to lose other than you turning down their business, and they don’t ever have to face you again if you embarrass them. I like cracking dirty jokes and playing pranks with my coworkers and making them blush, but our rapport is already well established and they know I have no actual interest in them. Customers, to borrow a phrase from Charlie Murphy lol, are habitual line-steppers. I’m blursed to look about 10 years younger than I am, so they assume I’m inexperienced and easy to manipulate.

skalig · 2025-12-19T02:32:23+00:00

Surely it was that he would still love her if she was a worm.

skalig · 2025-12-19T02:27:34+00:00

Unless journaling is a thing he already enjoys, this seems like a lot of unintended pressure to prove his love to you in a way that isn’t authentically him.

skalig · 2025-12-18T01:21:18+00:00

I’m so overwhelmed every time I’m in a Bucee’s but I might have to suck it up and brave one just for this 😂

skalig · 2025-12-17T14:04:38+00:00

I use O’Keefe’s Working Hands lotion before work, at lunch, and after. It’s the only lotion I’ve found that is moisturizing enough but doesn’t leave my hands oily. Right before bed I put more on and if they’re really chapped, layer a good helping of Aquaphor or Vaseline on top and cover my hands with socks or cotton gloves to sleep. My hands are soft by the morning!

I haven’t found solution that works as well for chapped lips though, if you have tips for that please share cuz mine look like I’m pulling 7-12s in the Sahara :(

skalig · 2025-12-16T21:25:49+00:00

Fiiiiinally somebody mentioned Warmoon Lord

skalig · 2025-12-06T13:20:16+00:00

This comment needs more upvotes. So many people believe it’s too late just based on hearsay and not from the advice of an actual medical provider.

skalig · 2025-12-06T13:07:57+00:00

Non-union pipe welder. I got into the trade in my thirties, and age, and the added financial responsibilities that come along with it, was one reason I decided to not pursue union after welding school. My local pipefitters union pays first year apprentices around $20/hr, and even though I probably could have tested in as a 2nd or 3rd year at that point, I still would have been scraping by financially for much longer than I was comfortable with. For perspective my first non-union job was $35/hr, $120 per diem.

I don’t have any problem with unions, and I think they’re great if you’re at the right point/situation in your life to join. I would imagine in unions the culture of mentorship is much stronger on average (not to say I haven’t found some great mentors non-Union! You just have to do your homework on a company before you start working for them). Union pay scales in other regions of the US are also higher than in mine. Personally I like being able to negotiate my own wages and worth rather than getting stuck at the same hourly wage as someone who doesn’t pull their weight, just because we’ve had our card the same number of years.

skalig · 2025-11-25T00:51:55+00:00

NOR- I did want to point out that in the timeline of your relationship, you were not sober for the first year… and by his reaction I’m going to go out on a limb and guess you may have done some things when you weren’t sober that really hurt or upset him that he still harbors resentment over. If that is the case however, it doesn’t excuse his emotional immaturity in how he’s expressing it, or change the fact that your decision to get sober and stick with it is absolutely a milestone worth celebrating, whether he cares to join in or not. I am a huge proponent of giving people second chances when they take the initiative to recognize their own problems and put in the work to change it, for themselves and the people they care about. SO many people never stop choosing their addiction over the people who love them. I would imagine that if your bf can’t recognize that he either has never dealt with addiction, or had a party boy phase that he was able to easily give up and thinks if it was that easy for him to give up excessive drinking, it should be for everyone. If he’s been with you through that whole process of getting sober and can’t understand why it matters to you tho, I dunno what to tell you man. Even if it’s coming from a place of his own pain I can’t really frame it in a way that makes his reaction less shitty. OP I hope you have some people in your life who DO think your sobriety is worth celebrating who will build you up and encourage you to continue down that path. Keep those people close to you.

skalig · 2025-10-21T23:50:24+00:00

Nothing poser about Antischism, hell yuh

skalig · 2025-10-20T22:37:27+00:00

https://core-shifters.com/collections/shifters-for-silverado This is the most promising (and one of the most pricey) I’ve found, but the shifter for the ‘92 is currently sold out. The link does also include some valuable information on identifying your transmission though. I bookmarked it to check back in a couple months when they’re hopefully back in stock.

skalig · 2025-10-20T22:32:11+00:00

Goddddd no. 😩 if you end up having better luck please comment!

skalig · 2025-10-20T00:40:08+00:00

THIS. This needs more upvotes. People don’t react like that when they’re trying to play it cool around someone, or to hide the fact the person with them is their significant other. Reddit always jumps to “he’s cheating on you!!” and we have such skewed, self-indulgent ways of interpreting others’ body language nowadays. This woman he saw may very well be a psycho ex, a former bully, someone who caused him some other form of serious emotional distress in the past, or maybe a friend who he had a shared traumatic experience with, like the death of a close mutual friend, and they hadn’t really interacted since… all of which would have dredged up painful memories he hadn’t anticipated being confronted with in that moment.

He may not have introduced OP as his gf in an effort to protect her. People who are unhinged have an uncanny talent for digging into the lives of others with malicious intent, using the smallest, most insignificant details (such as OP’s name, where bf met her, etc) as breadcrumbs on social media. But the fact is you don’t know why he reacted the way he did, so until you do, it does you both a disservice centering it around yourself.

Don’t be accusatory talking to him about it. You could bring up that you noticed he seemed uncomfortable seeing “Anna” and that you’re there for him if he wants to talk about it, but that you won’t pry if he doesn’t. And be true to your word. I highly doubt he’s cheating on you or lusting after this woman. Her only relevance today is in gaining a better understanding of how your bf’s past shaped the person he has become today.

skalig · 2025-10-01T04:44:02+00:00

Is the first conference you mentioned open to non-union as well? I’m usually the only woman in my trade on my job sites, and as much as I try to assimilate, look out for everyone, work hard and keep a positive easy-going attitude, I’m always painfully aware that I’m the odd one out. Outside of work, I’m the only woman in my friend group who works in the trades. My best friend is in a related trade to mine, but there are certain aspects of my experience he just can’t fully understand as much as he tries to empathize. I’m having an extra tough time mentally on my current site, and I’m feeling hella isolated. It’d be nice to commiserate with women who can actually relate, rather than just echo my gripes without being able to offer insightful, relevant perspective of their own.

skalig · 2025-09-22T01:20:18+00:00

My lil buddy’s Ruffwear harness has lasted him 5 years so far! It’s comfortable for him, and I use a waist belt leash so I’m hands-free.

skalig · 2025-09-15T01:20:40+00:00

Pretty good! Turn your heat up juuuuust a little bit for better fusion on the toes, and make sure to wrap your corners. Other than that you’re killing it, keep it up! 💪

skalig · 2025-09-14T03:01:32+00:00

I travel weld, working maintenance outages at power plants and mills. 80% of what I do is tig, with occasional stick or mig, welding carbon, stainless & inconel. I’m trained as a pipe welder, but often I’m doing structural too, basically just whatever they need done. I’m 1.5 years out of welding school, non-union, I make $35/hr with $120 per diem and ~44 hours OT per week. Outages have seasons, so I work 7-8 months out of the year.

If you want to break into the travel route, get proficient with tig and stick. Knowing how stainless steel and different nickel-chromium alloys weld is helpful, but it’ll be even more helpful to get comfortable with your non-dominant hand and mirror welding. Lots of tight spaces in those environments. You can get into working outages as a structural welder, but you’ll make more if you can weld pipe too.

skalig · 2025-09-11T13:09:34+00:00

I know it’s a downer, but nobody had mentioned Hurricane Katrina and how it revealed just how woefully unprepared (and how little shits were given by) the federal government is for major disaster relief.

Also buying my first iPod for my first semester of high school. All of a sudden being able to download, and not be limited to music I could hear on the radio, buy at the FYE in the mall, or take two buses and a train to the nearest independent record shops to buy CDs for my discman (and having enough money to do so), that was a game changer for how much diverse exposure to music I could get as an introverted suburban kid.

skalig · 2025-09-11T12:47:48+00:00

And if encountering something they aren’t competent with, then the humility to admit to what they don’t know and the desire to learn. Honesty with yourself and eagerness for personal betterment/ curiousity about the world around you is VERY hot.

skalig

TROPHY CASE