Mia Perry (u/mia638)

Posts

mia638•2mo ago

Had a new guy ask me if the coolant pump was a coffee maker.

This was at the shop in Akron about a month ago. Kid walks in on his first day, points at the Haas with the coolant tank running and says, 'Whoa, that's a fancy coffee machine. Where's the cup holder?' I just stared for a second. He was dead serious. I had to explain it was for cutting metal, not brewing a latte. He got real red. What's the weirdest thing a trainee has ever said to you?

3 comments

c/archaeology-discoveries•

mia638•2mo ago

Working at the Ness of Brodgar dig made me stop trusting old textbooks

I was on site in Orkney last summer when we found a polished stone axe head in a layer dated to 3200 BCE... but the textbooks said that style didn't show up for another 400 years. The whole site team had to sit down and basically throw out the old timeline for Neolithic tool development in the area. Has anyone else had a find that just broke the accepted story for a region?

3 comments

c/farriers•

mia638•3mo ago

Just wasted $200 on a 'universal' hoof stand that wobbled like crazy on my first trim job

I figured a stand from a big catalog would be fine, but the base was too light and the clamp wouldn't hold a draft horse's hoof steady, so what's a good heavy-duty brand that won't tip?

3 comments

c/balcony-veggie-gardens•

mia638•3mo ago

Serious question, why does everyone say to water your balcony tomatoes every single day?

I lost three plants in Chicago last July because I overwatered them, and my soil meter showed they were still wet an inch down. Has anyone else had better luck watering only when the top inch is dry?

3 comments

c/budget-travel-hacks•

mia638•3mo ago

Someone told me my 'free walking tour' tip was actually pretty rude

I used to always tell people to just join a paid walking tour group in Rome and then slip away after the first stop to explore on your own. A friend who used to be a guide said that's basically stealing from guides who work for tips, and it really hit me. I've started just looking up the routes online and doing them myself for free instead. What's a better way to get that local history without being a jerk?

3 comments

c/farriers•

mia638•3mo ago

Changed my mind about using a rasp on a really hot shoe

I mean, I always thought you had to let the shoe cool way down before you touched it with a file, especially on a big draft horse. But last week at the Fairfield County draft pull, this older farrier named Bill showed me his trick. He dips the hot shoe in his water bucket for literally one second, then rasps it right away. The steel is still hot enough to be soft but the quick dip stops it from wrecking the file's temper. I tried it on a Percheron's hind shoe and it saved me like 10 minutes of waiting around. Anyone else do something like this, or is it just asking for trouble?

3 comments

c/forgotten-recipe-box•

mia638•3mo ago

My great aunt's vinegar pie recipe from 1952 is a total family fight starter

Cleaning out my grandma's house in Peoria, I found a stained card for 'Depression Era Vinegar Pie' in my great aunt Clara's handwriting. I made it, and it's this weird, tangy custard thing. My mom says it's a sad memory of hard times and we should let it go. But my uncle insists it's part of our story and we need to keep making it, even if it's just once a year. He got real quiet and said, 'Throwing this away is like saying their struggle didn't matter.' Where do you draw the line between honoring a tough past and just holding onto food that makes you feel bad? Do you have a recipe like that?

3 comments