25 years ago I bought an IKEA printer cart to hold a computer tower and a UPS and stuff. It was like a billy line, so it was particle-board (aka beaver chow) but at least 20-odd years ago it wasn’t the hollow-core shit like so much of their stuff. I could screw in a mount for a switch and stuff.
Fast forward 25 years. I’ve moved-house 10 times, three of them coast-to-coast moves, and this thing is festooned with old cable-tie mounts, two switches (hp1810 and er-x) some test-rig APs for a project, a work laptop on top and its 4th APC unit (movers beat the hell out of them).
Good as new. I’m amazed that the beaver-chow actually held together, but I’ve kept it safe from its kryptonite: water. I’ve rolled it out and around to work on a tower on the top as a workbench l, and I’ve loaded server after server into it as they lifecycle out.
Actually ended up meeting someone in vrchat. She moved to my state and we’ve been together since. Started with a Quest 2. Got a Pico 4 a year later. Looking to get a Pico 5 next year.
They (I actually bought two) are some no-name chinese scooters off Amazon. I’d link them but they’re no longer available.
Basically, wide deck, dual shocks for each tire, headlight, tail light, break lights, horn, twist throttle, 500W motor, folds down to easily fit in an RV storage compartment/trunk. Get around 12 miles on a charge at 20mph.
Perfect for small grocery runs, short trips, exploring areas where traffic/parking is shit.
Often times my gf and I will take the RV somewhere, use that as home base and travel the area on scooters. Great way to visit tourist traps without the hassle.
Bought a cheap AU$40 pair of generic hiking poles. Use it for the entire Camino de Santiago. Friend borrowed for her Camino walk as well. I later used it for the first half of the Coast to Coasthike in UK. Earlier this year i used it for my Kumano Kodo hike. Still going strong.
A bicycle with a full chain case. They’re hard to find in the U.S. Bike mechanics say it’s because they’re a pain to work on, but the cool thing is that you hardly ever have to work on them. When riding in the winter, I’d have to clean the gears and chain every couple of weeks, and then replace the drivetrain almost every year. With the chain case, so far my maintenance has consisted of oiling the chain a handful of times in three years.
Bedjet. I have constant nightmares which make me soaking in sweat. This thing keeps you and your sheets dry all night. Keeps me cool in the summer and warm in the winter. And the quality is something I have never seen before
sometimes knocking yourself out when you have sleep issues/night terrors can just leave you trapped in the nightmare. 0/10 would not recommend. there’s also a non-soporific med for nightmares that can be prescribed, but its original purpose was a blood pressure med, so it can cause fainting and dizziness :/
Never tried. I have nightmares all my life, got used to it. When I was younger I was scared to fall a sleep, I tried to stay awake as long as I could. I am still sleep deprived though. Some weekends I sleep 15hrs straight.
Yes it is good, that’s why I put it in this topic. But only if you don’t bother a little breeze going over you. You can set the fan very low, you won’t feel it but it still works.
I occasionally have to change the temp. But that is user error, when you’re cold going to bed, you tend overcompensate to warm up and fall a sleep.
There are buttons with different built in timers. Max hot only runs for 10min at 45c. That’s a good thing.
They are expensive, but I would buy again.
You can also make temperature curves when it automatically changes temp over a set period of time.
Yes. I have used it. It is only necessary when not set to heating so you don’t get cold feet. Otherwise it will blow on your feet. I currently use it without the sheet.
Never had that issue and I’m not even remotely precious with my pans. Just wash and dry with a bit of oil on the stovetop, and they’re ready for tomorrow’s fried egg
In the last two years, its gotta be our air fryer/ convention oven. No preheating time for anything that needs to be cooked in the oven, exceptional heat distribution due to the convection and super consistent. If I cooked something at 400f for 15 minutes it will always come out the same way every time. I never use our big oven anymore. I love it.
We have the one that the Wirecutter recommends which is the Cuisinart Chef’s Convection Toaster Oven TOB-260N1.
I don’t eat hash browns so I can’t say for certain but I’ve made fries, onion rings, calamari and chicken nuggets in it and they all came out perfectly crunchy so I’d image hash browns wouldn’t be a problem.
I’ve held off because that’s the best recommended one I’ve always landed on but it doesn’t use a basket. My stove also has a small top oven already but I know the air fryer would be awesome. The only people I know that have them have basket models and I’m worried I will have buyers remorse if I end up with just a third oven that sits on my countertop.
We purchased it as both a counter top oven and air fryer all in one sort of deal so it was worth the purchase for us since we didn’t have a counter top oven prior to it. If you already have a counter top oven then the purchase may not be worth it as much. The reason why this purchase was excellent for us is because it’s an extremely good counter top oven and it can air fry.
SAN SERO Vented Microwave Cover. I was just thinking about this the other day. I’ve owned this thing for over 9 years and use it nearly every day. At the time I think I paid like $20 for it (it’s $34 now). And I thought that might be silly for what is basically a piece of plastic.
But holy crap, it’s got to be my highest value-to-dollar ratio item EVER.
With it, I hardly ever have to clean my microwave. It keeps splatters to the cover itself, which is trivial to wash out.
And it helps with energy efficiency too, keeping heat close to the food, instead of it being lost as waste heat.
It comes with tiny vent holes at the top, so it won’t steam up much or pop off.
And it has a nice handle built into the top middle of it, so most of the time you can grab that without burning yourself.
It also fits perfectly onto your typical round dinner plate. I mean perfectly.
This thing has been with me through four different homes/house moves, and hundreds of times of cooking or re-heating items on bowls and plates.
It’s easily the best thing I’ve bought in my life.
Am I getting this right, you paid 20 USD for a plastic cover for plates in the microwave? I mean, yes, you should have one to avoid splatters, but I once upgraded from a 2 USD one to a 5 USD one due to better usability, I can’t imagine paying 20 USD for it
I can’t imagine using a microwave for anything other than popcorn!
Oh, melting butter
This is why I never believe the hype about air fryers. Most of the reviews come from people who’ve been using a popcorn machine to cook god knows what 😂
It’s not cheap but if you Cook daily a control freak induction burner. The precision not only allows for super reliable results it allows you to focus on other steps while cooking.
Sweating onions at 110c without worrying they will burn if not watched. Or getting a nice sear on meat at 163c for 3:15 on repeat is such a game changer.
Doesn’t help that the official one is on aliexpress with a bunch of knock offs. But the actual pinecil works really well with the same 60w charger I use with my pixel 4a.
I can use the same wall plug or portable battery for my laptop, phone, and soldering iron, and it has a bunch of nice qol features.
There’s an accelerometer built-in so it can detect when you put down/pick up the iron for sleeping the heater and also for orienting the display. The new version also has Bluetooth so you can monitor/control the iron from your phone/PC.
The heating element is in the tip so you are less likely to burn your fingers and it’s also far more efficient so it’s able to heat up very quickly and handle large pads for its size.
It can draw up to 85W through a barrel jack or USB-PD.
I paid $25 for it and have gotten a ton of use out of it.
I put away my expensive soldering iron and use this one exclusively now because it’s just more convenient to use.
I would definitely recommend it for new or experienced users, it’s a great value for the price.
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