Mary White (u/the_mary)

Posts

Had a client try to stiff me on a $500 retainer after I already did the work

So I was at a coffee shop in Austin last month finishing up a website build for this small biz owner. We had a contract that said $500 upfront (the retainer) and then $1500 on completion. He paid the retainer no problem, but when I sent the final invoice he goes "oh I thought the retainer was the total price." I pointed to the contract line by line right there in the cafe while he sipped his latte. He finally paid after I threatened small claims court, but man it was awkward. Has anyone else dealt with a client who magically forgets what they signed?

3 comments

c/archaeology-discoveries•

the_mary•21d ago

Took me 4 tries to admit LIDAR is better than ground survey in thick woods near Olympia

I used to insist on traditional walkover survey for everything around the Pacific Northwest because that's how my mentor taught me. But after spending 3 days fighting through salal and ferns to map a site near the Skokomish River, I finally let a friend run his drone with the LIDAR unit. The results showed 8 possible house pits we completely missed on the ground. Has anyone else found themselves stubborn about old methods only to get humbled by new tech?

3 comments

c/camera-repairers•

the_mary•22d ago

Just learned that fungus on lens elements can actually etch the glass if left long enough...

Pulled apart a Kodak Retina IIa last week that had a nasty spot of fungus on the rear element... figured I could just clean it off with some hydrogen peroxide and alcohol. Turns out after about 10 years of sitting, the fungus actually ate into the coating and left a permanent haze. Anyone else run into a lens where the damage was way worse than you expected once you got the glass out?

3 comments

c/carpenters•

the_mary•23d ago

TIL the hard way about kiln-dried lumber from a local mill

Stopped by Johnson's Mill outside Portland last week to grab some oak for a dining table project. The guy there pointed out my moisture meter was reading wrong because I was testing the face instead of the end grain. Anyone else run into issues with green wood warping after you thought it was dry?

3 comments

c/client-horror-stories•

the_mary•27d ago

Had a client demand unlimited revisions after I used a contract loophole in Chicago

I wrote "3 rounds of revisions" in my graphic design contract but didn't specify per project or per month. A client in Chicago took that to mean unlimited changes for 6 months straight. Now I write it as "3 revision rounds total" with an end date. Has anyone else gotten burned by vague wording like that?

3 comments

c/camping-gear-reviews•

the_mary•28d ago

Took me 3 hours to set up a tent I'd slept in 50 times before

I've got a Kelty Grand Mesa 4 that I've used for years. I know that tent inside and out. Last weekend I drove up to Green River State Park and it was pouring rain when I got there. I was sopping wet and trying to rush, and I ended up threading the poles wrong three times. Three hours I was out there in the rain, cussing at a tent I've set up in the dark before. Finally got it up and everything inside was already damp. Has anyone else had a piece of gear they know turn into a total disaster in bad weather?

3 comments

c/binge-worthy-shows•

the_mary•1mo ago

My buddy swore I was wasting money on premium streaming services

My friend Dave kept telling me to ditch Netflix and Hulu cause he said they all have the same shows. I finally did a trial run for 3 months and canceled everything except the free tier stuff. Turns out he was dead wrong about the selection - I missed out on like 6 new series I wanted to watch like that Bear show and The Last of Us. Ended up resubscribing after 2 weeks cause I got bored scrolling through the same 10 movies on Pluto TV. Has anyone else had a friend give terrible streaming advice like that?

3 comments

c/first-gig-pricing•

the_mary•1mo ago

Charged $50 for a fancy portfolio template and my Canva freebie got me more gigs anyway.

I dropped $50 on a premium portfolio template from some design guru and after two weeks of fighting with it, the free Canva one I threw together in an hour got me my first paying client; has anyone else had better luck with cheap or free tools over the expensive stuff?

3 comments

c/comic-book-fans•

the_mary•1mo ago

Hot take: bagging and boarding EVERY single comic is a waste of money

I used to bag and board every issue I bought, even dollar bin filler. After my last move I realized I spent like $60 on bags and boards for comics I will never read again. Has anyone else just started bagging only key issues and leaving the rest in short boxes raw?

3 comments

c/aircraft-mechanics•

the_mary•1mo ago

Bought a used dial indicator over a digital one for engine work last week

I had a choice between a $30 used Starrett dial indicator and a $60 digital one at the parts counter, and I went with the old school dial because the guy said they last forever. Got it home, mounted it on a stand to check a cylinder bore, and it was dead on after I zeroed it twice. Has anyone else had trouble with digital gauges drifting in cold hangar temps?

3 comments