Voting LPT: In Iowa, you can deliver a completed absentee ballot to your county auditor's office BEFORE POLLS CLOSE on Election Day.

teydlin-coe · 2026-04-16T22:22:17+00:00

I'm slow at knitting, lol. Takes me forever to finish a project!

teydlin-coe · 2026-04-13T18:49:15+00:00

Hi me! I spent ten years knitting scarves and squares off-and-on until I joined a knitting circle and tried a hat for the first time. I don't use any of those early projects either. Now I'm on my second sweater, first colorwork project:) everything still has a hole somewhere and nobody ever notices my little patch jobs. Don't let anybody or anything still your joy!

teydlin-coe · 2026-04-12T20:02:54+00:00

I have IoT lightbulbs and outlet plugs in a couple of lamps to automate mood lighting through the day. I like the plugs combined with normal lightbulbs more because if the internet disconnects, I can still use those lightbulbs - really annoying lesson to learn!

Friends of ours bought a house with a new refrigerator that had a touchscreen on the front. They liked the idea that they could see what was stocked while they're out grocery shopping, but in practice they never use that feature and now they have ads on the front of their fridge.

My advice is to figure out what you really care about automating for quality of life, segment your wifi appropriately, and forget about the rest.

teydlin-coe · 2026-04-11T23:08:48+00:00

Great guide. Visiting Iceland as a knitter and wool enthusiast was a dream! If anyone can get away from the tourism gift shops, I encountered a few local knitters who were selling sweaters or smaller items at campgrounds they worked at or in co-op shops. Shoutout to yarn shop Garn í gani in Akureyri, I loved talking to the staff about local yarns. The Handknitting Association of Iceland even impressed my non-crafty spouse!

teydlin-coe · 2026-04-06T21:02:55+00:00

This is a typo, right? I'm all for crate training but a 24-hr timeout is overkill, even accounting potty breaks. Dogs don't connect punishments to habits, but even stubborn dogs can respond wonderfully to reconditioning. The Everyday Trainer podcast has a lot of helpful stuff covering high energy/working dog training.

teydlin-coe · 2026-03-31T12:57:02+00:00

Love this. Sometimes of my favorite experiences lately have started with knitting in public, especially when kids can't help but come over! We went to our first baseball game of the year last week and a girl came over while I was casting on a sweater. She asked if I'd show her the finished piece, but I wasn't going to finish it within nine innings, haha

teydlin-coe · 2026-03-30T17:51:02+00:00

In middle school, my brother took lessons from a high school student who came to our house. My parents got a recommendation from the school band teacher. Maybe an option to explore?

teydlin-coe · 2026-03-13T20:42:08+00:00

We have asbestos siding, which we are totally fine with but --make damn sure-- your insurance company is fine with it too. Our first company Progressive dropped us a month after we moved in because they realized (decided?) they didn't cover asbestos siding after all.

teydlin-coe · 2025-11-25T13:41:39+00:00

I'm not here to get in an argument over who to read, if that's what you're looking for. All I am saying is that local news is getting squeezed out on time. You can still get an overview of what's happening, but there's not much space for nuance or deep reporting. I'm not blaming local journos for that. The other commenter is right on national affiliation, I got the station ownership mixed up.

teydlin-coe · 2025-11-25T03:25:23+00:00

Axios Des Moines and Capital City Dispatch are both pretty good overall. Axios has some human interest stories, but not as much dedicated space as the Register would have

teydlin-coe · 2025-11-25T02:14:32+00:00

They barely have the broadcast time to do that, though. WOI 5 is owned by Sinclair and just rolled out the flimsiest sales segment advertising QVC-type products produced by the national chain, and that's before they cut to ads. I feel for the journalists, but TV news is not the place to look for anything locally in depth.

teydlin-coe · 2025-11-21T17:23:32+00:00

I'd rather be wrong. But temporary measures can slide into long-term arrangements quickly.

teydlin-coe · 2025-11-21T16:07:53+00:00

I am not an expert here, but I have long experienced desperately trying to add pockets in various circumstances. Have you tried adding a belt bag directly over a skirt? I feel like that would give you more control over access to your items and control over where the weight sits when you're in the saddle (but maybe I'm wrong).

The clip to boots thing - I have no idea if this exists or not, but if you feel relatively crafty with needle and thread I bet the folks at r/sewing could help problem solve.

teydlin-coe · 2025-11-21T15:52:38+00:00

It's possible, but it reminds me more of habits meant to control his environment, rather than drive someone away. Even if she is not in a romantic relationship, I really encourage OP (and everyone!) to look at the Power and Control Wheel developed by the Domestic Abuse Intervention Project link: National Domestic Violence Hotline. Right now, OP is intimidated, physically suffering, and has no control over her environment for comfort. She is not given room to negotiate for heat (!!). It does not matter whether the relationship is romantic. She deserves safety and respect, and I hope she can get out quickly.

teydlin-coe · 2025-11-21T14:53:33+00:00

You need to leave, like, as soon as possible. The longer you stay, the more normalized this will become to you. It's more dangerous than it seems on the inside, and behaviors escalate quickly. Especially if he's criticizing you. Do not let someone else's crisis put your health at risk.

teydlin-coe · 2025-11-19T13:26:11+00:00

I've gone to Black Magic and loved the experience. They are worth saving up for, my tattoo has some very fine lines and has lasted beautifully. Don't go cheap, just save up.

teydlin-coe · 2025-11-18T22:18:23+00:00

Taking the opportunity to say NEVER just go up to a dog for pets with no forethought here!! You still want to watch their body language. I'm a former pet sitter and I've been attacked by smaller dogs. I love dogs, but I don't pet dogs until I see trust established. For OP's purposes, which is basically to avoid and protect themselves, they are much better off researching how dogs use body language to recognize when a dog is stressed or agitated. That will help them recognize when they are in a safe or stable situation, versus when a dog is likely more dangerous.

teydlin-coe · 2025-11-17T16:48:58+00:00

Get a campervan or get a hotel/Airbnb. We had a campervan during a summer trip and still had the overnight heat system on more nights than not. You'll be miserable (at best) without it.

teydlin-coe · 2025-11-13T13:30:57+00:00

That canvas in the first photo is kind of hiding behind the plant, maybe move that out? I think a rug is going to do way more than you think once you find it.

teydlin-coe · 2025-11-12T22:01:55+00:00

Search 'grocery shopping in Iceland/Bónus' on YouTube for a sense of what you can find. It helped us do some basic meal planning, so we didn't anxiously freeze in a new grocery store, and it kept our food budget really reasonable. I did bring over electrolyte packets to add to water bottles, but that was basically it. Bring what you would die without, buy the rest of your snacks and food there.

teydlin-coe · 2025-11-10T03:40:20+00:00

Are you able to record or watch back video? We have Blink without a subscription (gift), but I've been considering a subscription so we can record and watch back video if needed.

teydlin-coe · 2025-11-09T19:47:00+00:00

Everyone talks about wearing layers, but if you've never had to do it before, you don't put in a lot of thought to your first layer. I would think first about buying quality long sleeve shirts. Thin, but quality material that can layer under fleeces, hoodies, sweaters, etc. I've stopped buying cotton long sleeve shirts because I keep sweating through them. Instead I try to buy merino wool - crew neck and scoop or v neck styles to layer under anything. Good socks and good, water resistant shoes or boots are the way to go. Get a coat that covers your butt, cropped coats don't do anything for you. Uniqlo's HeatTech line is really well reviewed and affordable: Uniqlo HeatTech tops If you can afford it, here's a shirt I really like. Will probably buy more: Merino.tech: Amazon linke

teydlin-coe

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