Barbara Davis (u/barbaradavis)

Posts

Found a treasure trove of old repair manuals at a library in Tacoma

I was visiting the main library in Tacoma last week and stumbled on their special collection room. They had a whole shelf of original service manuals from the 1970s and 80s, things like the Canon AE-1 and the Nikon FM2. I spent about two hours just looking through them, and the detail is amazing compared to some PDFs you find online. The binding on the Nikon F3 manual was falling apart, so I showed the librarian how to use archival tape to fix it. It felt good to help preserve a resource like that. Has anyone else found a good public source for old paper manuals?

3 comments

c/freelance-finances•

barbaradavis•5d ago

My tax guy told me to track every single mile for three months

So I bought one of those little mileage log books and tried to write down every trip, even the two blocks to get coffee. After three months, I had a notebook full of scribbles and my tax guy just laughed. He said I could have used an app on my phone that does it for you, and my handwritten mess was basically useless because I forgot half the trips. I spent maybe 20 hours total on this, and for what? The lesson was clear: don't make simple things hard. Has anyone found a mileage app that actually works without killing your phone battery?

3 comments

c/commercial-divers•

barbaradavis•5d ago

A salvage diver in Mobile Bay changed how I feel about old gear

I was working a job near the old shipyard last fall, and my backup light failed at 40 feet. This guy named Carl, who's been diving since the 80s, saw me fumbling with it topside. He said, 'Kid, you're trusting plastic that's newer than your boots.' He showed me his light, a big metal one from the 90s he's rebuilt three times. He said he knows every part and it's never left him dark. I used to always want the newest stuff, but now I keep my old reliable light as my primary. Has anyone else had a piece of gear they just won't retire?

3 comments

c/fermentation-station•

barbaradavis•7d ago

My sauerkraut turned pink and fizzed over the counter

I was in my kitchen in Austin last Tuesday, checking a batch of sauerkraut that was on day 5. I lifted the lid and it erupted, spraying pink brine all over my counter and floor. I realized I'd used a red cabbage leaf as my follower weight, and the pigment had leached into the whole jar. I quickly moved it to a bigger bowl, skimmed the top layer, and added a fresh cabbage leaf. It actually fermented fine for another week and tasted great. Has anyone else had a color disaster from using red cabbage in ferments?

3 comments

c/podcast-recommendations•

barbaradavis•1mo ago

Vent: My woodworking project was a mess until I heard about a podcast on basic techniques

I was building a small table and everything kept going wrong. Listening to 'Carpentry Corner' gave me the confidence to fix my mistakes and finish it. What podcasts have you all used for hands-on hobbies like this?

4 comments

Posts

Found a treasure trove of old repair manuals at a library in Tacoma

My tax guy told me to track every single mile for three months

A salvage diver in Mobile Bay changed how I feel about old gear

My sauerkraut turned pink and fizzed over the counter

Vent: My woodworking project was a mess until I heard about a podcast on basic techniques

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