Evan Dixon (u/evan_dixon67)

Posts

Spent $150 on a cheap tile saw and got exactly what I paid for

Bought a no-name tile wet saw off Amazon to do my kitchen backsplash and the blade wobbled so bad after 20 cuts it was useless. Ended up renting a proper one from Home Depot for $45 a day and finished the whole job in an afternoon. Has anyone else tried to cut corners on tile tools and regretted it?

2 comments

c/drafters•

evan_dixon67•15d ago

That fancy drafting pencil I swore was a gimmick actually saves me time

I bought a $30 Pentel Orenz Nero after a coworker swore by it for tight tolerances. Figured it was just hype until I spent a week doing tiny detail work on a commercial set. That auto-feed feature kept me from stopping every 5 minutes to click, and I finished the job 2 hours faster. Anyone else been proven wrong by a tool they thought was overpriced junk?

2 comments

c/coding-for-beginners•

evan_dixon67•25d ago

Talked to a 12-year-old at the library and it changed how I learn coding

I was at the local library last Tuesday waiting for my daughter's reading club to finish. This kid next to me was building a little game in Python on a school laptop. I asked him how he learned it and he said he just watched YouTube and copied things until they worked. Made me realize I've been overthinking everything with tutorials and courses. Has anyone else found that just building random stuff teaches you faster than structured lessons?

2 comments

c/banned-for-speaking•

evan_dixon67•25d ago

Finally got un-shadowbanned from that local news comment section after 6 months of appeals

I sent 14 support tickets over half a year just for posting a link to a city council meeting transcript, so has anyone else dealt with a platform that won't even tell you why you're muted?

2 comments

c/backpacking-routes•

evan_dixon67•25d ago

Ran into an old guide on the John Muir Trail last month

He said the section near Evolution Valley has changed more in 5 years than in the previous 20... more downed trees and the creek crossings are way different now. Made me wonder how much of my old route notes are still valid for next season. Anyone else notice trails shifting faster than they used to?

2 comments

c/donald-john-trump•

evan_dixon67•25d ago

Had to pick between a Trump rally or a county fair last Saturday, chose the fair

My buddy wanted me to go see Trump speak in Des Moines, but the county fair had a pie contest and a tractor pull. I went to the fair, ate a whole apple pie by myself, and watched a guy flip his tractor. Kinda regret not going to the rally though. Ever make a choice like that and wonder what you missed?

2 comments

c/cultural-taboo-topics•

evan_dixon67•27d ago

Debate: is covering your face in public a freedom or a restriction? Had a talk with my Moroccan friend that switched my view.

She said in her country some women wear niqabs by choice. But tourists think it's forced. I always thought it was oppression. Now I'm not sure. Where's the line between culture and control? What do you all think?

2 comments

c/binge-worthy-shows•

evan_dixon67•1mo ago

I finally stopped skipping the intro of The Leftovers after episode 6

I always fast-forwarded through the opening credits because I thought they were boring, but then I caught the lyrics on a rewatch and realized the whole theme was setting up the show's core mystery. Did anyone else miss something obvious because you were impatient about getting to the story?

2 comments

c/electricians•

evan_dixon67•1mo ago

That Tuesday last month where I nearly fried myself on a live busbar

I was swapping out a 200 amp panel in a basement in Arlington, and this homeowner had scribbled a note on the cover saying 'power off.' Usually I double check everything myself, but I was running late and stupidly trusted it. Opened it up and saw 277 volts still humming on the main lugs - my meter pegged right as I pulled my hand back. Scariest 10 seconds of my career so far. Anyone else ever trust a homeowner's note and regret it?

2 comments

c/drafters•

evan_dixon67•1mo ago

I was putting dimensions on the wrong layer for a full year...

I was working on a big set of shop drawings for a steel fabricator in Tacoma, and the checker sent back a redline with a note that just said 'DIMS ON 0?'. I had to open my old files and saw I'd been putting all my dimension strings on the default layer since I started this job. It made the whole drawing a mess for anyone else trying to plot or edit. Has anyone else had a layer setup habit that came back to bite them?

2 comments

Recent Comments

12d ago

That Tuesday nearly cost me a whole room of carpet

Felt that stomach drop just reading it, man.

12d ago

Stopped at a junkyard in Nashville and found a 1987 Volvo with a note taped to the steering wheel

My 88 Volvo taught me the hard way that a snapped belt means zero running.

13d ago

Banned from a college forum for asking a simple question about textbook prices

Wait they actually banned you for 30 days over that?

13d ago

Had a librarian in Ohio tell me something I still think about

...and that actually reminds me of something that happened at my local library a few years back. I was just checking my email on one of their public computers, nothing weird, and a librarian came over and whispered "just so you know, the filters here log everything, even your personal stuff if you don't log out." I thought she was being paranoid until I later found out they had to hand over records to some lawyer for a custody case. Made me think twice about using those terminals for anything personal. Did you ever go back and talk to Carol again about what else she knew?

14d ago

Stop using the wrong whistle signals on a lattice boom crawler

Stick a laminated signal card to the wall where everyone can see it before they even get their boots on. We had a guy who kept mixing up "stop" and "emergency stop" and that cleared it up fast. Saved us from a couple close calls and a whole lot of arguing about who was waving what.