I have about 20 unfinished projects. I am excellent at starting. I am poor at finishing. The practice I am developing: no new projects until one existing one is…
Costs are lower than equivalent US cities. The food is exceptional and inexpensive. Everyone speaks English at a working level. Time zone works for morning call…
A Raspberry Pi Zero 2W running Pi-hole acts as a DNS sinkhole for my entire home network. All devices benefit including smart TVs, phones, and IoT devices. Bloc…
My neighbor dragged me out on a walk with binoculars. I saw a Painted Bunting in the wild and something genuinely clicked. Eight months later I have a life list…
Apple Certified Refurbished is essentially buying new with a cosmetic discount and the same warranty. Third party refurbished varies widely: check seller rating…
Chose shoulder season, booked everything at least six months out, used points for one flight, prioritized one nice dinner over fancy hotels, chose one expensive…
Instead of 8 countries in 14 days I now spend 2-3 weeks in one place. Rent an apartment. Shop at local markets. Find a neighborhood cafe. Learn a few phrases an…
Started with brush pen calligraphy rather than dip nib because the tools are more forgiving and cheaper. The alphabet takes a few weeks to learn in a basic styl…
Gross pay, federal withholding, FICA, state withholding, pre-tax 401k reduction, post-tax Roth contribution, health insurance premium, HSA contribution. Each on…
Started with a guided foray through a local mycological society. Learned three species with no dangerous lookalikes before expanding. Always use multiple identi…
A container is like a shipping container for software. It includes everything the application needs to run: the code, the runtime, the dependencies, the configu…
We lost 11 offers before getting a house. Lessons learned: get fully underwritten pre-approval not just pre-qualification, find an agent who is also an investor…
Five gallon buckets work for most things. Tomatoes, peppers, herbs, lettuce, and dwarf beans all do well in containers. Full sun exposure is the main limiting f…
Rates dropped enough to make it worth it. Total closing costs were $4,200. Monthly savings of $340 means I break even in 12 months. Staying in the house longer …
The Finnish sauna studies are legitimately impressive. Regular sauna use is associated with reduced cardiovascular mortality, improved recovery, and better slee…