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1d ago
inHad to pick between a pole pruner and a handsaw for clearing backyard oaks
So why is it that we always reach for the tool that looks faster instead of the one that actually works better? I notice this same thing when I'm cooking - everyone grabs a food processor to chop vegetables but sometimes a good knife is quicker because you don't have to clean a million parts. My uncle is a mechanic and he says the same thing about air tools versus hand wrenches on old cars. There's something about a simple tool that forces you to slow down and pay attention to what you're doing. I think we've all been trained to believe that any power tool is automatically better, but real control comes from having a direct feel for the cut. Your buddy was right, the pole pruner was just getting in the way of the actual job.
2d ago
inMy neighbor Bob, who grows prize-winning orchids, told me to talk to my plants every morning and I laughed at him until my sad fern sprouted three new fronds in a week - has anyone else had a plant respond to being talked to?
Yeah, telling my peace lily "nice roots" is a step too far for me. I draw the line at plant compliments that sound like I'm hitting on it. But I did try just reading the news out loud to my snake plant for a week and it put out like three new leaves, so maybe they just like the company. Or maybe they're judging my life choices. Hard to tell with plants.
3d ago
inTalked to an old timer in Portland who made me rethink how I clean my lenses
Wow, I was totally buying the expensive stuff too but this honestly makes way more sense.
3d ago
inAppreciation post: My feeder tally hit 15 different species this morning
Same here. Mine only come for the sunflower seeds.
5d ago
inBack in '98 at the old Johnson Foundry, we'd eyeball the pour temperature with a glance at the molten stream, but now my station has a digital pyrometer that beeps if it's even 10 degrees off spec.
Oh man, @hugo_grant, you totally nailed it. That line about "the feel for the place is gone" hit me hard. My dad was a music teacher and he could walk into a room and tune a piano just by tapping a key and listening to the ring. Now they use these digital tuners that spit out a number and it's dead perfect every time. I tried learning the old way from him and I'm useless at it. The app tells me the exact aisle for something and I just follow the dot on the map, but I can't tell you where the batteries are if my phone dies. It's like we traded our senses for a shortcut that works great until it doesn't. You lose that gut feeling that comes from years of just paying attention, you know?