I was stuck on a simple loop for hours at the library coding meetup

I went to the free beginner coding meetup at the downtown library last Thursday. We were working on a basic Python exercise to print numbers. I wrote a for loop, but it kept printing the same number over and over. I stared at my screen for what felt like forever, getting more frustrated. A guy named Mark, who was just there to read, leaned over and said, 'Hey, I think your variable name inside the loop is wrong.' I had typed 'i' in the range but was trying to print a variable I called 'num'. It was such a tiny mistake, but I was totally blind to it. How do you guys catch your own simple errors when you're just starting out and stuck in your own head?

I finally got a stubborn sand mold to release clean every time

We kept getting broken castings on a small gear pattern, and the sand was sticking in the teeth. My foreman in Toledo said to try a 50/50 mix of talc and isopropyl alcohol as a parting dust, sprayed lightly. I brushed it on with an old paintbrush last Tuesday, let it dry for a minute, and rammed up. The mold came apart perfect, no tearing. Has anyone found a better mix for really fine detail work?

Just hit 500 hours logged in my home office this quarter

I keep a simple time tracker on my desk. I checked the total yesterday. It said 512 hours. That's just for April, May, and June. I work from a converted spare room in my apartment. It's not fancy. I was shocked. It made me see my space differently. It's not just a room anymore. It's where I earn my living. I spend more time there than anywhere else. Has anyone else had a number make them rethink their setup?

Hot take: I spent $250 on a 'networking' event that was just a sales pitch

Honestly, I'm still annoyed about this. Last month I signed up for this 'exclusive Atlanta business mixer' downtown, thinking it was a real chance to meet people. It was $250, which is a lot for me, but they promised 'high-level connections' and 'industry leaders'. I got there and it was just a room full of people like me, all looking confused, while the organizers gave a two-hour presentation trying to sell us a $5,000 mastermind program. The 'networking' time was maybe 20 minutes at the end where everyone was just trying to leave. I felt so stupid for falling for it. Has anyone else been to one of these scammy events around here and actually found a real one that's worth the money?

Heard a guy at the coffee shop say he got a $200 fine from his coworking space for a rule he didn't know about

Am I the only one who bought a $500 'SEO course' that was just a bunch of free blog posts?

I found out the guy just copied everything from Moz and Ahrefs guides. Has anyone actually found a paid course that was worth it?

Got burned on a 'bargain' mortar mixer that cost me a whole day's pay

Saw a used mixer for sale online, a 'SturdyBuilt 300' (sounded good, right?) for about half the price of a new one. The guy said it just needed a new plug, easy fix. Well, I drove an hour to pick it up, spent $40 on a heavy-duty cord, and got it back to the job. It ran for maybe ten minutes mixing a small batch before the motor started smoking and just died. Completely seized. Ended up having to rent one last minute for $120 to finish the foundation pour we were on. Between the gas, the 'bargain' price, the cord, and the rental, I was out over $300 and lost a bunch of time. That's a day's wages gone. I should have just tested it with my own generator on the spot. Anyone have a good brand for a small mixer that can actually handle regular site work without falling apart?

Update: My keychain shop sat empty for half a year before getting noticed.

When I first started selling handmade keychains online, I went months without any orders. I almost gave up, but then a small blog featured my work and sales slowly started coming in. Has anyone else faced a long wait before their side hustle gained traction, and how did you keep going?