Got caught in a lightning storm on the JMT near Muir Pass last August

I was hiking the John Muir Trail last summer and got pinned down near Muir Pass when a freak storm rolled in around 2pm. No trees, no shelter, just me and my aluminum poles on a big exposed stretch. I remembered some guy on a forum saying to ditch your poles and crouch on your pack to get off the ground. So I sat there for 45 minutes with hail hitting my face, counting seconds between flashes. That storm changed how I plan my daily altitude gains now. I check weather reports way more carefully and I always aim to be below treeline by noon. Has anyone else had a close call with lightning on a high route?

Crucible lining cracked mid-pour on a 200 lb bronze melt yesterday

I was running a batch of silicon bronze around 1100C and heard a pop, then saw a hairline crack running down the side of the crucible. I shut the furnace off, let it cool slow, and now I'm trying to figure out if I can patch it with refractory cement or if I need to just bite the bullet and buy a new one. Has anyone had luck repairing a cracked crucible liner without it failing again?

I finally figured out why my steaks were drying out during aging

I kept losing too much weight on my dry aged primals in the cooler, like 15 percent in 3 weeks. Turns out my fan speed was too high and the humidity was dropping below 70 percent. I cut the fan down to low and added a pan of water, now I'm getting consistent 8-10 percent loss with way better color. Any of you guys dealt with humidity issues in your aging cooler?

Our book club debate on character arcs crashed hard last night

We were supposed to argue about whether the main character in 'The Night Tiger' actually grew or just stayed stubborn, but nobody showed up except me and Linda. She brought wine so we just vented about our jobs instead lol. Has anyone else had a meeting totally flop like that?

Stuck on a job in a crawlspace with a bad ladder made me rethink my whole setup...

I was in a crawlspace last Tuesday in Portland and my old 6-foot fiberglass ladder kept sliding on the wet concrete. Has anyone else found a better way to secure a ladder on slippery surfaces without carrying extra gear?

Hit 10,000 sheets of drywall hung last week and my shoulder is screaming at me

I was just counting up my old job logs for fun and realized I've personally hung over 10,000 sheets since I started in the trade back in 2015, which is a wild number considering I still can't seem to avoid those little corner cracks everyone complains about... anyone else ever add up their lifetime count?

Switched from power stretcher to knee kicker for tight hallways and never looked back

Tried doing a narrow hallway in a 1920s house last month with the power stretcher and fought with it for an hour before switching to a knee kicker and finished it in 20 minutes clean, anyone else find certain tools just don't fit certain spaces?

My vacuum hose kept collapsing, so I shoved a wire coat hanger inside it

Last month I was trying to vacuum under the couch and the hose just kept kinking shut every few seconds. I took a wire hanger, straightened it out, folded the ends over so it wouldn't poke through, and slid it down the hose. Has anyone else tried something like this for a floppy hose?

Just saw a hawk take one of my hens and realized my coop run was way too open.

It happened yesterday afternoon in my yard in Boise. I always thought the chicken wire on top was enough, but the hawk just swooped right through the big gaps. What's the best wire to put over a run to stop birds of prey?

A homeowner in Austin asked me why I was setting posts with concrete instead of gravel, and I had to stop and think.