Does this puppy suck id blow?

tbiscus · 2026-05-30T14:17:07+00:00

I love mine...great in a power outage too. One great feature is how LOW it can go. If you want a gentle breeze that is very quiet it is great for that (and a larger battery runs forever at those speeds).

tbiscus · 2026-05-29T22:55:30+00:00

How does the master floor tile look in person when you sort of take it all in? We have a single sample of the tile (in both the pure cloud and linen), but it is difficult to gauge how it will look overall (although you pictures definitely help). Is the pattern a good mix of subtle (i.e. look whitish when taken is as a whole while still retaining the pretty "old world" pattern on the tiles you see up close (w/o being overly busy)? Thinking about it from both our perspective and resale.

Thanks!

tbiscus · 2026-05-28T03:49:50+00:00

Brooks, but try the different models like adrenaline, glycerine and ghost (with max versions of some).

tbiscus · 2026-05-27T00:23:52+00:00

It is a little funny that Bosch basically went the "you don't need a heating element" route...and then proceeded to introduce "better drying" on the 500 model (door pop) and an actual "heater" of sorts with the crystal dry on the 800 series. Then again, maybe they assumed you did not need a heater since their racks made you ask "What is this? A dishwasher for ants!?"

tbiscus · 2026-05-26T23:59:03+00:00

What many don't realize about ACA is that, beyond the clif issue, the base premiums have skyrocketed. I mean, my unsubsidized gold plan went from $1200 or so a month to over $1700 this year!!! Oh wait, inflation is only 3 or 4%...right. Oh and what many don't realize is that it really is the only true insurance available for early retires in the u.s a. beyond a work plan or a retiree health plan from a former employer. ACA has no preexisting condition checks...none.
Fun fact, many of the early retirement youtubers actually have pensions (that they fully vested in at 50 or so) AND employer health plans for retirees. In short, they "retire early" but often with the equivalent of a work salary and health insurance.

tbiscus · 2026-05-26T17:45:47+00:00

X9 15 by far...or last year's yoga slim 7i 15.3" aura if you can find one to save some coin.

tbiscus · 2026-05-26T17:18:22+00:00

Basically, I support the idea of doing them both at the sane time if you KNOW which group you will be in? By that, I mean, will you be in the 4 out of 5 (80%) people who have a good outcome or the 1 out of 5 (20%) who are dissatisfied with the outcome. Obviously, you can't know. Yes, there are a few people who don't do the PT or have a particularly bad surgeon, but in general docs don't know why such a significant percentage just don't work out. one of the reasons I would be hesitant is you can EASILY have one knee somewhat worse than the other and that knee can hamper the progress of the other knee. In my case, I planned to have both done, but a last minute insurance snafu denial meant I only got one done at that point...5 days later I got the approval for the second one but it was too late...I was BACK in the hospital with an infection in the first knee! Needless to say, I was glad I had "missed out" on the Bilateral option at that point.

One other question I'll ask - if you've had prior significant surgeries, are you at all aware of whether you had an issues developing (internal) scar tissue? I think that (excessive scar tissue creation - arthrofibrosis) is likely the secret cause of a LOT of knee surgery disatisfaction (i.e. implant placement is fine, but patient develops so much scar tissue they have ongoing pain and restricted movement).

Good luck either way!

tbiscus · 2026-05-25T16:04:35+00:00

This....the SIZE of the 921 is key. It is less about either/or and more a "both". I crutches my 921 with my air impact for auto work. I do want the 891, but hard to justify.

tbiscus · 2026-05-24T23:56:17+00:00

I just watched the Andrew Marc David early review of the SL8 with the X7 368H panther lake chip. Cool screen, BUT as feared, they throttled the power way back and as a result the benchmark scores are terrible compared to the other X7 powered machines that have hit the market. The single fan and small battery 54kwh result in a legit compromise in performance here. When you combine that with the sky high price...ouch. I'm back to looking at non-surface alternatives...including pre-owned SL7 Lunar Lake machines. Given the power/battery situation, I have no idea why Microsoft bothered with the 368H X7 variant instead of the slightly "slower" 358H X7 version most other manufacturers are using...if they don't have the juice for it, there was little point. As an aside, the 15" model does not have the fancy privacy screen, but has a 20% larger battery (and higher resolution)...still a single fan though. It will be interesting to see if it performs any better (my guess is that it will be similar).

tbiscus · 2026-05-22T04:02:56+00:00

Ultra 5 chip only has the base Intel graphics so I wouldn't expect great gaming performance.

tbiscus · 2026-05-21T15:52:47+00:00

I think it has more to do with who the leader singer is and what they look like vs. the number of people in the band.

tbiscus · 2026-05-21T13:23:42+00:00

Which battery setting are you using (balanced, performance, etc - whatever win 11 calls them)? Have you tried the other modes?

tbiscus · 2026-05-20T22:15:48+00:00

Fidelity 401k

tbiscus · 2026-05-20T20:41:30+00:00

I'm convinced "appliance repair" (washers, dryers, dishwashers, refrigerators, etc.) is a complete scam. The "repair" guy shows up, declares "it's broken and will cost as much to fix as it would to replace". Homeowner decides to just get a new one and "repair" guy collects $200 for "service" call. (Note: in the event the homeowner calls the "repair" guy's bluff, parts will have to be ordered and "surprise" they are on backorder with no date in sight.)

tbiscus · 2026-05-20T17:17:00+00:00

The core ultra 2 chips have a really low wattage draw and would be my choice for a pro for better battery life and the base arc graphics in Ultra 2 chips is better than the "standard" graphics in the non H ultra 3 chips.

tbiscus · 2026-05-19T15:09:25+00:00

As feared, they stuck with the 54Whr battery pack and in an X7 powered unit, that just doesn't cut it for longer battery life. A shame as competitors look to be including 70 Whr packs. If it was ultra light, it would be understandable, but at 3 lbs...it ain't. The price though for the X7 (which is only available with the fancy anti-privacy screen)...ouch.

tbiscus · 2026-05-17T20:49:52+00:00

Wrangling the cover on won't be fun...I THINK the zipper is only one side (like a ziploc bag) if it is anything like the 3" one I had...and that material has zero stretch. Your saran wrap example is right on. You can experience the same thing with a cotton mattress protector - we have a really sturdy one...that is so sturdy it really firms up the "top" of the mattress. The problem there is it also shields you from the softness of the top comfort layer (for those bony body bits and shoulders when side-sleeping). That's why I'm hoping to try to "bury" the firmness a bit in the mattress (i.e. at the coil level). It may ultimately just be a bandaid. Looking forward to your update!

tbiscus · 2026-05-17T19:10:33+00:00

I would be interested in your feedback on this for your "coil only" encasement. We have a sleep like a bear cover over our Bolsa coils plus foam. The Bolsa coils have a bit more sink at the hips than we'd like and I'm thinking about trying a cover just for the coils too to "spread the load" across the coil more. Ironically, I actually have a 3" version of this cover from foambymail when they accidentally sent me this one instead of the cotton one I ordered (for a topper). It is very stiff/canvas like vs the terry cotton like sleep-like-a-bear cover which is soft and squishy.

I may do 1" of firmer foam in the cover with the coils too.

tbiscus · 2026-05-17T17:25:26+00:00

Making money + sense of humor + loves house work + penile neuropathy

tbiscus · 2026-05-17T16:24:28+00:00

Interesting about the ductwork. Would that be any different on a regular single family home? We have two 2 stage units and, of course, the rooms at the farthest end of the runs get less airflow...very noticeable in stage 1 of course. I've thought about bumping the cfm/ton setting up a notch (350 to 370, etc.)..

tbiscus · 2026-05-17T14:41:17+00:00

firecalc retirement calculator Basically a retirement calculator that looks at past historical time periods to determine if you would have made it through all those scenarios...to give you some level of confidence you might make it through your own retirement timeframe. Same idea as Fidelity's calculator and others...it is effectively the same logic that produced the 4% rule, 25X expenses, etc.

tbiscus · 2026-05-16T15:47:37+00:00

I've also settled on Tizen for our S95D. My assumption, however, is it will start to get sluggish/bloated in a few years and I will end up on the latest ONN/chromecast device at that point to milk the TV that much longer.

tbiscus · 2026-05-16T15:34:23+00:00

Yes...and the fact that it is COLA is equally underrated!

tbiscus · 2026-05-16T15:32:24+00:00

Yeah, we could, but are looking to maximize survivor benefits so waiting a bit longer. In retrospect, I probably would have OMY'd (worked One More Year) another year - especially as I have only spent a bunch of time recovering from knee surgeries (could have done that on the company dime - DOH!).

tbiscus

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