lostwax's recent activity
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Comment on Survey: The temperature in my room now is _____ and it feels _____ in ~talk
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Comment on What’s a must-buy item you get when traveling internationally? in ~travel
lostwax LinkDuty free gin. OTC painkillers with codeine in them if I happen to be in a chemist. There are things I love and kind of miss from places I've been and lived but I'm coming around to the idea that...Duty free gin.
OTC painkillers with codeine in them if I happen to be in a chemist.
There are things I love and kind of miss from places I've been and lived but I'm coming around to the idea that I mostly want them to stay there, not here. If those things are available everywhere there's a strange dilution and flattening of memory and experience that happens.
This doesn't quite answer your question because you aren't talking about permanently making them available at home but I think it's adjacent.
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Comment on How do you live simply/save money? What does your lifestyle look like? in ~talk
lostwax Link ParentI had an eye opening conversation with a friend that worked in retail timber tools. Those companies that supply to hobby, particularly retired, woodworkers, bank on a very large proportion of what...There is a certain satisfaction to researching options, comparing features and buying stuff, to the point where I've caught myself rather do that than to engage with the hobby itself.
I had an eye opening conversation with a friend that worked in retail timber tools. Those companies that supply to hobby, particularly retired, woodworkers, bank on a very large proportion of what they sell, sometimes over half, never getting used. It's how they work out warranty terms, what they'll issue a recall for and how they determine what quality to aim for. Hoarding without using is incredibly common.
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Comment on DNA tests are uncovering the true prevalence of incest (gifted link) in ~health
lostwax Link ParentI can't comment on whether or not it was more common in the past, I don't know, and I hope it is falling now. But why would you wish misery on your ancestors?I'd like to believe this number is at an humanity all time low and falling.
I can't comment on whether or not it was more common in the past, I don't know, and I hope it is falling now. But why would you wish misery on your ancestors?
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Comment on How do you live simply/save money? What does your lifestyle look like? in ~talk
lostwax LinkIt seems like you are doing pretty well honestly. I have a similar approach to you and the biggest single help has been teaching myself to notice and acknowledge the goodness of the moment I'm in....It seems like you are doing pretty well honestly.
I have a similar approach to you and the biggest single help has been teaching myself to notice and acknowledge the goodness of the moment I'm in. Nothing has cut down the capitalist craving for more as much as working on that skill.
It's as simple as noticing a moment of beauty or connection and paying attention to it. It seems simple but it's not how many of us work, we're looking to the next thing instead. It's a central bit of Buddhist thought and some writing around it I found very helpful but you'll find the idea turn up all kinds of places, from Kurt Vonnegut's writing to some Christian thought. I'm only half a Buddhist, the rest is disorganised, but it still works.
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Comment on I need to make a wooden box to ship something delicate. Could I please get some pointers? in ~life.home_improvement
lostwax Link ParentThere's a little point I want to make, as gently as possible, having read this and your other comments. I am fairly well unequivocally one of your mountain men, I build things for a living, then...There's a little point I want to make, as gently as possible, having read this and your other comments. I am fairly well unequivocally one of your mountain men, I build things for a living, then do it on the weekends for fun and have the big black beard and everything. But me and everyone else in this scene, we're just people, same as you. I can sense your intimidation, both of the job you have in front of you and your perception of those who do this kind of work and while you can find a dickhead anywhere if you look hard enough, most of us are OK and are happy to teach anyone wanting to try. Most likely, no one is going to laugh at you or think less of you. And if they do, screw em, there's five or ten others that won't. You will be fine.
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Comment on I need to make a wooden box to ship something delicate. Could I please get some pointers? in ~life.home_improvement
lostwax (edited )LinkGenerally no one will laugh at you if you walk in and say hey I don't know what I'm doing and need help. We all start somewhere. Bluffing and pretending you know more than you do runs a greater...Generally no one will laugh at you if you walk in and say hey I don't know what I'm doing and need help. We all start somewhere. Bluffing and pretending you know more than you do runs a greater chance of annoying people.
Is it okay to go to the hardware place and ask them to cut my pieces to size?
It's completely OK but a rarely (not never) offered service here at least. A conversation or two would point you in the right direction though.
Good luck, you'll be fine.
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Comment on I need to make a wooden box to ship something delicate. Could I please get some pointers? in ~life.home_improvement
lostwax Link ParentEven more grateful if you circle the ones that take the lid off with a marker. Also, if customs might want a look, use screws.I think the people receiving the crate will be greatful they can open it by unscrewing a lid.
Even more grateful if you circle the ones that take the lid off with a marker.
Also, if customs might want a look, use screws.
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Comment on Geo-tech? What kind of professional do I call for evaluating safety of a home? in ~life.home_improvement
lostwax (edited )LinkI'm not in Canada, I'm not even next door, so take this with the requisite grain of salt. I have done perhaps 20 or 30 pre sale building inspections for friends and family. A building inspector or...I'm not in Canada, I'm not even next door, so take this with the requisite grain of salt.
I have done perhaps 20 or 30 pre sale building inspections for friends and family. A building inspector or sometimes a builder (general contractor in your language?) would do these professionally, I do it the same way they do but my day job is adjacent and I have no desire to do it for a living.
It's very unusual to be able to do anything other than a visual inspection. This means that if, say, I'm looking at moderate cracking from footing movement all I can say is "that's moved, it's moderate, and you may need to do something about it". Next step would be monitor for a year and go from there. It's impossible to give more concrete advice unless you can somehow get some idea of historical movement and while sometimes things about the building will tell you, the current owners won't and you probably shouldn't believe them if they do. Digging a footing probe might be valuable too, but you can't do that.
Moisture is easier to advise on, it's almost always bad and you almost always need to fix it.
It's very easy to get a building to present a blank canvas. I don't know how many places I've walked into that had all the doors skimmed so they shut properly, the windows bogged and were then painted in and out last week. If they are brick they had the outside rendered. I can tell you that's been done but was it done to make it look fresh or to hide moisture and movement? It can be very hard to tell and often the only way to work it out is to pay attention for a year or two.
For any big defect I always get asked how much the work will cost. Professional building inspectors will often know more than me, particularly if they do QS or cost estimation as well as inspections but there is huge variance in prices and if you can't afford to do the work when you move in the answer is probably irrelevant anyway. Cost estimation was certainly kind of impossible during covid and it's pretty fun now with Trump's idiocy. Add a two year delay to the work...
Do you have anyone like me in your life? Architect, draftsperson, carpenter, builder, engineer of (almost) any kind? Make it clear that you are looking for opinion only and pay them in beer and noodles. I've worked with friends where I've been the first opinion, going to a few houses, pointing out what I see and a couple of times simply forbidding them from buying it ("Well I've never seen that done, I wonder how much beer was involved") and going to dinner instead. If they like a place and I like it they then pay for someone with insurance to take a look and write a report. In the meantime they learn a lot about buildings from shadowing me around.
I need to finish this floor but happy to keep typing if it's valuable.
Edit. I should add that our housing market is 100% caveat emptor. There is all the incentive for sellers to hide issues and none to disclose them. That's legal and expected. Straight up lying by estate agents is completely normal and generally we don't have agents acting for the purchasers. If that's different for you then the assumptions implicit in what I wrote above won't apply.
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Comment on Share your fav environmentally-friendly building tech! in ~enviro
lostwax Link ParentI shouldn't say I've heard of them all, I certainly haven't heard of each initiative, but many are new ways to implement very old tech - borated timber is a long standing treatment, but I couldn't...I shouldn't say I've heard of them all, I certainly haven't heard of each initiative, but many are new ways to implement very old tech - borated timber is a long standing treatment, but I couldn't tell you any companies doing it, for example. I've never heard of carbicrete but I'm broadly aware of efforts to decarbonise concrete. Etc.
The ply on ground would have very low deflection but don't muddle up deflection with load bearing capacity. They are usually related but aren't the same thing. In a workshop not being built under a permit I'd consider trying something like it for the hell of it. Getting a permit for it would essentially be impossible.
Acetylated timber is actually quite common here in windows and doors, it is extremely durable. It's also very expensive, which is why that's all it's used for. The brand name is Accoya.
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Comment on A philosopher’s one-word theory to explain why the world feels so weird: uni-context in ~humanities
lostwax LinkA very interesting article that brings together several things I have been mulling on. I was chatting with an artist friend about social media a few weeks ago, particularly in regard to...A very interesting article that brings together several things I have been mulling on.
I was chatting with an artist friend about social media a few weeks ago, particularly in regard to homogeneity. He outlined how, if you'd like to sell art, an artist essentially has to be on social media, particularly Instagram. That's not a one way street and artists will find like minded people, follow each other and take influence from each other, even if theoretically they are there to promote their own work. It means that local movements in art might be withering because the context has become global and a painting produced in Bogota could be more influenced by an artist from Sydney than anything else.
This glosses over a heap of nuance and local context that does still exist, it's definitely an exaggeration. But we can see the same effect in architecture, furniture, urban landscapes and anything else humans create. It means to travel is, at least in terms of the human aspect of travelling, becoming more and more like not going anywhere much.
I think some of the richness that comes from difference is being taken from life through these little context collapses, the world gradually getting more to be a puree than a stew. I have a suspicion it feeds superficiality somehow. I'm still working out how.
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Comment on Is it possible to not want to be happy? in ~talk
lostwax LinkI've certainly met people who sabotage their own happiness, usually for complex reasons that they have semi or no awareness of. I don't recall meeting anyone who did this in a clear eyed,...I've certainly met people who sabotage their own happiness, usually for complex reasons that they have semi or no awareness of. I don't recall meeting anyone who did this in a clear eyed, deliberate fashion.
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Comment on What kind of contractor do I call to evaluate another contractor's work? in ~life.home_improvement
lostwax LinkDid you need a permit to do the work? If so, talk to whoever issued it, as a first step. If you needed a permit but didn't get one, this is why you needed a permit. If you have a contract with the...Did you need a permit to do the work? If so, talk to whoever issued it, as a first step.
If you needed a permit but didn't get one, this is why you needed a permit.
If you have a contract with the builder the contract should have drawings and specs attached or a good description at least, naming what standards were to be achieved etc. They should give you clear criteria to argue about and threaten court.
If no permit was needed and you have no contract a structural engineer would be the person to inspect and say if it meets relevant codes and standards etc.
That's as much as I'm sure of, your language indicates I'm not where you are in the world. For more specific advice you'll need someone local.
Edit: trust those who say you need a geotech, not structural.
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Comment on Share your fav environmentally-friendly building tech! in ~enviro
lostwax Link ParentOf these the concrete free slab on ground is the most novel (and the only one I haven't heard of) and from my point of view over here, the most nuts. At first glance I can't understand why they...Of these the concrete free slab on ground is the most novel (and the only one I haven't heard of) and from my point of view over here, the most nuts. At first glance I can't understand why they are spending so much effort avoiding a standard lightweight timber framed floor with vented space under. It has some of the disadvantages of a concrete slab on ground, such as the difficulty of later moving things like plumbing and electrics, combined with some new disadvantages, such as the vulnerability of the membrane, only 38mm under the top of the "slab". The article indicates that they believe they get better thermal performance than with a normal ventilated lightweight floor but I have trouble immediately imagining why this would be.
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Comment on Share your fav environmentally-friendly building tech! in ~enviro
lostwax Link ParentBear in mind the temperature here gets below freezing, for about five minutes, roughly once a decade. Our code is generally performance based and an energy simulation of the building is used to...Bear in mind the temperature here gets below freezing, for about five minutes, roughly once a decade. Our code is generally performance based and an energy simulation of the building is used to generate the build requirements but R2.5 to 2.7 is a common wall value.
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Comment on Need advice about work in ~life
lostwax Link ParentYou didn't say why you thought celibacy was a bad idea but mentioned the lack of a stable income. I can charitably see one or two other interpretations but LukeZaz's certainly looks like the...I agree this is the worst thing one can do. Good thing that not what I said.
You didn't say why you thought celibacy was a bad idea but mentioned the lack of a stable income. I can charitably see one or two other interpretations but LukeZaz's certainly looks like the shortest stretch.
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Comment on Share your fav environmentally-friendly building tech! in ~enviro
lostwax Link ParentLet's say you've got an old solid 230 or 350mm brick wall that needs to hit the usual R2.5 ish value in a renovation. (My R values, probably not yours and not European u values either. Why can't...May I ask why it'd help for it to be insulating?
Let's say you've got an old solid 230 or 350mm brick wall that needs to hit the usual R2.5 ish value in a renovation. (My R values, probably not yours and not European u values either. Why can't we standardise this?) If you've got any sense you'll bear in mind the need for such a wall to breathe and not put foam on it. If I could put some stand-offs on the wall, pin any services to it and then just stand up a panel that was both insulation and wall lining, with no battening or other structure needed, I'd be very happy indeed.
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Comment on Share your fav environmentally-friendly building tech! in ~enviro
lostwax LinkThanks, there's a bit of interesting reading I'll be doing as a result of your list. I may have more to say later but here's a quick couple: Micropile footings Put a little steel plate on the...Thanks, there's a bit of interesting reading I'll be doing as a result of your list.
I may have more to say later but here's a quick couple:
Micropile footings Put a little steel plate on the ground and jack hammer pins through it. Call it a footing. I've used them, they work well, are very stable and are cheaper than bored piers. They work quite well on sites with a moderate level of floaters, unlike things like screw piles. There's more than one manufacturer, I've just linked to one product.
Straw building panels These are old tech, they used to be called Stramit panels here, I think the tech came from Sweden or something originally? Good for partitions and some other things. I wish they were more insulative.
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Comment on Readers rate poems worse when they believe they're written by AI, despite their ability to detect AI being no better than chance in ~humanities.languages
lostwax Link ParentI disagree I think. It is (or was) often said in a kind of by the by way "also, it's a bit shit", kind of thing, but I don't normally hear it as the primary reason for dislike. The dislike I think...Actually, one of the main reasons for AI hate is the fact that people simply use it incorrectly and then get nonsense in return.
I disagree I think. It is (or was) often said in a kind of by the by way "also, it's a bit shit", kind of thing, but I don't normally hear it as the primary reason for dislike.
The dislike I think comes from the speed of the changes it's imposing, its environmental costs and the fact that it's completely unnecessary. Turn it off, walk away, the world would be better off minus some billionaires not being quite as wealthy. Sorry, I repeat myself.
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Comment on Readers rate poems worse when they believe they're written by AI, despite their ability to detect AI being no better than chance in ~humanities.languages
lostwax Link ParentMeaning, is my first thought, given that a LLM doesn't ever mean anything. Human expression would be my second.On the other hand, if someone were to write half a poem, and decided they want to delegate the rest to ChatGPT, what could be lost?
Meaning, is my first thought, given that a LLM doesn't ever mean anything.
Human expression would be my second.
18C ish/no idea in F. It feels fine though the pub down the road with an open fire is occupying a place in my desires.