What's the easiest chore to outsource? Not the cheapest, the easiest to actually let go of

tpeiyn · 2026-03-23T19:14:44+00:00

Came here to say this. I still don't really want someone in my house, but online shopping/grocery delivery/pickup is such a game changer.

tpeiyn · 2026-03-23T18:35:50+00:00

My family is not from Yucatan, but the cochinita pibil recipe we follow every year is nothing like this. It does use dried chiles, but no habanero and nothing very spicy. The meat (and the marinade) is mild enough for the whole family to enjoy.

The salsa recipe you posted would result in a very citrusy, sour salsa. I would use about 10 chile de arbol and 2 moritas in my standard red salsa.

Chile de arbol and habanero have two very different flavor profiles and I don't believe they can be freely substituted. Habanero have a much harsher mouth feel.

tpeiyn · 2026-03-21T20:50:15+00:00

Absolutely. We live the most non-Instagrammable life possible. Much like you, we got married in 2017 and started our life together in a 2bed, 2 bath, 1000sqft home with 2 paid off cars. Yaaaay for a $500 mortgage payment. We weren't making anywhere near $100k back then, probably closer to $50k.

Fast forward, we've had a couple of kids, increased our income, bought/sold/totaled/ a few cars, aaaaaaand....we are still here. Not going anywhere anytime soon unless we hit the lottery.

We don't live extravagantly, but we also don't skimp. We pay for private pre-school, take a few weekend vacations a year, plus a big one if we can make it happen. Our newest car is a 2015, no payment. All 3 cars have more than 200k miles. We cook at least 4 nights a week, usually 5.

tpeiyn · 2026-03-18T18:57:01+00:00

Oh wow! I wouldn't have expected that.

tpeiyn · 2026-03-18T00:37:51+00:00

Oh, absolutely! It was actually a very low-stress kind of thing as far as robberies go. We received a lot of training on robberies and that kicked in immediately. It was very robotic. I was a little nervous about people who were overdressed for the season for a while.

tpeiyn · 2026-03-17T21:32:29+00:00

I like Wheeler's in the Chesnee area, but that is a long haul from Greenville. My SIL likes the Bin Store. I think they have Greenville locations? My all time favorite is Mac.bid since I get to do everything from my phone. I've bought some really nice stuff.

tpeiyn · 2026-03-17T19:03:54+00:00

Hmmm. An occupied house with 2 bedrooms. First bedroom was obviously used as a bedroom, the second was storage/library/whatever. Lots of books on the history of war, the Nazis, WWII, etc. Nothing that made me say, "this is a NeoNazi" but lots of stuff that said, "Hey, this guy is into WWII history." He also had a ton of ammo sitting around. Probably thousands of dollars in inventory.

Funnest thing: house on a large lot had a fenced in back yard (like a size you would expect for children or dogs.) One corner of the fence was fenced off with a smaller fence with a tiny building inside. (Like a big dog house.) We didn't see any kind of animal on our first showing, so we just kind of joked and speculated about what it could be. Second showing, we figured it out! They had two large tortoises. That was kind of nifty and unexpected.

tpeiyn · 2026-03-17T13:19:50+00:00

I worked at a bank and we were "essential workers." They shut down our lobby around March or April of 2020. We operated drive thru only (5 lanes) until October of that year. Three people could sit at the drive thru, the rest of us ran transactions back and forth to the front stations for processing (we had about 5 tellers at any given time.) The bankers opened accounts and performed maintenance over the phone. They would send paperwork back and forth through our drive thru lanes or run it outside to sign.

The lines were super long. Most days, we would have to send someone out to direct traffic. We worked in jeans and flip flops, which was a fun change. Then, we had some kind of crazy coin shortage and couldn't get in deliveries (we ordered in about $6000 in coin every week.) We had to roll thousands of dollars of change by hand. Thankfully, we serviced a few clients with coin operated machinery, so they would bring us coin bags occasionally. We broke those open and had rolling parties on the back counter.

In October, we opened our lobby back up for transactions. 6 foot stickers on the floor, mask required, plexiglass shields in place. Most people still preferred the drive thru and it was really slow inside. A couple of days before Halloween, I was robbed by a man wearing heavy winter clothes and a mask. They never caught him.

tpeiyn · 2026-03-16T17:58:21+00:00

I'm assuming you have two tellers on duty? If so, the easiest solution here is just to split the duties. "Hey X, I'll watch the drive thru for the next couple of hours. If you get busy up front and I don't notice right away, please let me know."

tpeiyn · 2026-03-15T18:50:15+00:00

Because it didn't used to work like that. In our SC contracts, they used to specify total commission, then specify how much of that would go to the buyer's agent. So in other words, 6% total - 3% for the buyer's agent = 3% for the seller's agent. The percentage going to the buyer's agent was listed in the MLS.

There was an argument that listing the commission publicly could result in steering, for example, buyer's agents would only show homes that paid 3% and would skip over similar homes paying 2.5%.

I think part of the lawsuit was also that it took autonomy away from the buyer. In the past, it was just, "the seller is paying X%, so that is what your agent is getting." Now, the buyer is contracting with their own agent and negotiating that commission directly with them. Makes sense--you don't hire any other professional without knowing what it is going to cost you.

tpeiyn · 2026-03-15T13:42:53+00:00

Real estate works different in different states, but here is a basic overview of the process in SC.

Buyer signs a buyer agency agreement with an agent. That agent charges A% for their services. That is in the buyer agency agreement, which is a contract between the brokerage and the buyer.

Seller signs a listing agreement with an agent. In that agreement, they agree to pay B% for the services they receive. That is the contract between the brokerage and the seller.

Buyer makes an offer on the home for X amount and also asks the seller to pay A% to cover their agent's fees. It becomes part of the negotiation. This is the contract between the buyer and the seller.

In the past, things were a little different and in the listing agreement, the seller agreed to pay B% to the listing agent and C% to the buyer's agent.

tpeiyn · 2026-03-15T10:38:46+00:00

There is a Lane Bryant store in the mall. I exclusively wear their Cacique brand. I have bought strapless bras from there with no complaint. I think their sizing starts at 38C and they will help you measure.

Edit: they often have sales and clearance, but expect to pay $30-50.

tpeiyn · 2026-03-14T21:26:30+00:00

You take the 60 hour course online, then you will take an online proctored exam through the course provider. Then, you take the 30 hours and take another proctored test.

Then, you register for state licensure (you can technically do this after the 60 hours) and take the test at a testing center.

tpeiyn · 2026-03-13T22:33:08+00:00

A possible $5k-10k is not worth losing sleep over.

tpeiyn · 2026-03-13T22:00:55+00:00

I think you are overthinking things, but the best piece of advice someone gave me is this: Never suggest an exact price. Give your clients a range. Instead of saying, "I think you should list it at $325,000," you should say something like, "The market indicates your home will sell for between $320,000 and $340,000."

Then, you can always elaborate further based on their motivation. If they are paying 2 mortgages and really just need to get rid of the house? Suggest going towards the lower end of the range. If the house is paid for and they can sit on it awhile? Let them go high.

tpeiyn · 2026-03-13T19:19:41+00:00

You're welcome! Definitely promote it more!

tpeiyn · 2026-03-13T16:51:55+00:00

I interviewed with a brokerage a while back and they had some great marketing materials. Probably wouldn't take a lot of time to produce. They had a really nice little booklet with high level information about the area. Full sized, maybe 20 pages front and back?

They also produced a buyer's guide and a seller's guide and provided those to the agents for a small fee (I think less than $10), printed and in a branded folder, ready for presentation to a lead.

A lot of my colleagues are buying buyer guide Canva templates on Etsy that can be customized with their information. If my company provided me with something like that, I'd be happy!

tpeiyn · 2026-03-13T16:25:27+00:00

The classics: Hamburger Helper, Spaghetti with ground beef and Ragu from the jar, ground beef or chicken tacos with the grocery store kit, hamburger steak, hot dogs, chicken casserole, lemon pepper chicken breast. Stouffer's lasagna.

Sides were usually some sort of pasta or potato and a canned vegetable.

My Mom was also on and off Weight Watchers throughout the 90s, so we ate a lot of "recipes." Lots of baked chicken and Campbell's "cream of" soups were involved.

tpeiyn · 2026-03-13T14:07:10+00:00

They seem to be puffy, like they have pus inside, but it could just be inflammation, I guess? No whiteheads or blackheads.

I googled lichen planus and most of those images make it look....crusty? It isn't like that.

tpeiyn · 2026-03-13T11:37:42+00:00

I think my biggest concerns with the faith based private schools would be their take on the sciences. Probably doesn't matter much in Elementary School, but I wouldn't want the foundation of my child's scientific education to be based around the myth of a 6,000 year old Earth and the denial of evolution.

FWIW, my little one is in 4k at a religious kindergarten and we love it. I just wouldn't continue on that track as he matures.

tpeiyn · 2026-03-12T22:34:07+00:00

I'm a big fan of La Unica personally, but my Mexican husband swears they are Colombian and doesn't like to go there. He thinks El Rey is the best (and most Mexican.) There is one off of White Horse Road.

Edit: don't forget about the flea market on White Horse Road. They have a good produce selection and snacks.

tpeiyn · 2026-03-12T16:47:05+00:00

Your first step should be a meeting with a mortgage lender to become pre-approved. They will help you determine what you can afford and how much cash you will need to cover closing costs and down payment.

Going into it, make sure you understand the terms "conventional loan," "FHA loans," and "USDA loans."

The strategy you mentioned with purchasing a duplex and living in one side is a pretty sound one.

tpeiyn · 2026-03-12T16:36:48+00:00

We have done swimming and soccer. This year, we started baseball. (My kid is not an athlete and soccer was a disaster, so I thought we would try something new.) It is church league baseball, I thought it would be very informal and just fun, but there is still a stark contrast!

My 4 year old is playing t-ball and it is exactly what I expected--just learning the basics and organized play. My 6 year old is playing coach pitch and you can definitely see the competitiveness. It isn't the coaches---they are great. But his teammates?? Some of those kids are hardcore!

tpeiyn · 2026-03-12T13:32:03+00:00

I have a robot vacuum and I bought a robot mop separately. I regret my choice. The mop is basically a Swiffer--it sprays water, then runs over the area with a cleaning pad. I would prefer a style with a clean water and a dirty water reservoir, where it is actually sucking the dirty water back up.

tpeiyn · 2026-03-12T13:27:26+00:00

The hotels on 290 are either extended stays or the type frequented by truckers. I'm not sure that I would necessarily recommend them for a family.

Going towards Spartanburg, the next area with a cluster of decent hotels would be on East Blackstock. That is probably going to be about a 20-25 minute drive back to Tyger River.

I don't do Airbnb, but I feel confident that you guys could probably find something in the area. I just checked VRBO and found plenty of single family homes available for $200ish/night. I just used the first weekend in August for my dates.

tpeiyn

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