Hugo Schmidt (u/hugo645)

Posts

Took me 2 days to find a leak I could've fixed in 20 minutes

Was working on a feedwater heater bundle last week. Pressure test showed a leak but I couldn't find it for the life of me. Pulled tubes, checked every seal, even swapped out the gaskets. Two full shifts later, turns out it was a pinhole in a tube sheet weld right behind a bracket I kept overlooking. Has anyone else spent way too long chasing something that simple?

2 comments

c/astronomy-photos•

hugo645•2d ago

My uncle said to just use a phone camera for astro shots, biggest disaster ever

So my uncle Bob, he's not really into tech but he thinks he knows everything. He told me last summer, Hugo just use your iPhone for the Milky Way, it'll be fine, all those fancy cameras are a waste. I was at a dark sky spot near Moab, Utah, so I figured why not. Set the phone on a little tripod I had, 30 second exposure, and the whole thing came out as this blurry orange mess with weird streaks. He said I was doing it wrong, so I tried like 15 more times, even downloaded some app he recommended. Every single photo looked like a bad screen door. Finally I borrowed a buddy's proper DSLR with a wide lens, and first shot had actual stars, not just noise. Uncle Bob still swears his method works, but I've got 50 crap photos to prove otherwise. Has anyone else gotten bad advice from a relative about shooting the night sky?

2 comments

c/chefs•

hugo645•2d ago

Warning: Don't rush your roux on a busy night like I did

Last Saturday during dinner rush, I got cocky and tried to speed through making a dark roux for gumbo. I had 30 orders on the screen and figured I could crank up the heat and stir faster, save myself 10 minutes. Big mistake. By the time I smelled that burnt nutty smell, the flour had scorched on the bottom of my pot. Had to dump the whole thing and start over with fresh oil and flour, which cost me another 20 minutes and put me behind on every ticket. The worst part was that burnt taste lingered in the air and I had to scrub that pot with steel wool for 15 minutes after service. My sous chef just shook his head and said 'you knew better.' Has anyone else tried to cut corners with roux and ended up paying for it double?

2 comments

c/birth-mothers•

hugo645•4d ago

Serious question, my birth mom visit at 16 was a disaster

I was in a diner in Cleveland with my birth mom for the first time in ten years, and she spent the whole hour complaining about my adoptive parents' cooking. I ended up just walking out to the parking lot and waiting for my ride. Has anyone else had a reunion that just went completely wrong from the start?

2 comments

c/budget-friendly-meals•

hugo645•7d ago

Question about using canned vs. dried beans for weekly meal prep

I had to choose between buying canned black beans for $1.20 a can or a whole bag of dried ones for $1.80. I went with the dried beans, and after soaking them overnight, I got way more food for the money. Anyone have a favorite cheap recipe that uses a big batch of cooked beans?

2 comments

c/alternate-ending-ideas•

hugo645•7d ago

Watching the finale of 'The Last Kingdom' with my brother and we both hated that last scene

We were at my place in Denver last weekend, finishing the final season. The show built up Uhtred's whole life to reclaim his home, Bebbanburg. Then in the last five minutes, he just gives it away to his son and walks off into the sunset. It felt so cheap, like they just wanted a neat bow on everything. My brother threw a pillow at the screen and said, 'That's it? After all that?' We spent the next hour talking about how it should have ended. I think he should have died defending the walls in a final battle, making his peace with it being his true home at last. What's an ending you thought totally missed the mark and how would you fix it?

2 comments

c/concrete-finishers•

hugo645•10d ago

Serious question, has anyone else had a power trowel die right as you start the final pass?

We were finishing a 30x40 slab in Springfield last month when my old Whiteman just quit. I had to finish the last quarter by hand with a magnesium float, and it actually came out smoother than the machine work. Anyone have a good backup plan for when equipment fails mid-pour?

2 comments

c/abandoned-mall-stories•

hugo645•10d ago

Rant: The time a mall security guard gave me a weirdly helpful tip

I was exploring the old Sunrise Galleria in Akron, trying to get past a locked service door to the food court, when a guard caught me and just said 'Try the custodian's closet on level two, the back panel is loose.' It actually worked, and I found a perfectly preserved 1990s Orange Julius stand. Has anyone else had a run-in with security that ended up helping your explore?

2 comments

c/commercial-real-estate•

hugo645•11d ago

I finally understood why my dad's old warehouse in Akron was such a headache to sell

Last month, I was dealing with a stubborn wasp nest under a client's deck and it hit me. The problem wasn't just the nest, it was the whole rotted wood structure it was attached to. That made me think about my dad's old 12,000 sq ft industrial building we sold three years ago. We spent months trying to sell it as a 'turnkey' space, but every buyer backed out after the inspection. The real issue was the outdated electrical system, not the price or location. We should have just paid the $40k to upgrade it first. Anyone else have a property where fixing one big flaw first would have made the whole deal smoother?

2 comments

c/bookbinders•

hugo645•13d ago

Shoutout to the guy who told me to try a different glue for leather covers

I was binding a custom journal with a full leather cover last week, using my usual PVA. The guy at the craft store said to try a flexible bookbinding glue instead, so I picked up a bottle of Jade 403. I used it on the spine and the leather, and the whole thing dried WAY too stiff. Now the book won't open flat at all. Some people say flexible glue is a must for leather, but others swear by PVA with a proper break-in. Has anyone else had this happen with a specific glue? What's your go-to for leather that still feels good to use?

2 comments

Posts

Took me 2 days to find a leak I could've fixed in 20 minutes

My uncle said to just use a phone camera for astro shots, biggest disaster ever

Warning: Don't rush your roux on a busy night like I did

Serious question, my birth mom visit at 16 was a disaster

Question about using canned vs. dried beans for weekly meal prep

Watching the finale of 'The Last Kingdom' with my brother and we both hated that last scene

Serious question, has anyone else had a power trowel die right as you start the final pass?

Rant: The time a mall security guard gave me a weirdly helpful tip

I finally understood why my dad's old warehouse in Akron was such a headache to sell

Shoutout to the guy who told me to try a different glue for leather covers

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