Vent: My shop's pork shoulder waste hit 18% last quarter

I was doing our usual trim and scrap count for the quarter, just going through the logs. When I added up the pork shoulder numbers, the waste came out to 18% of the total weight we processed. That's a jump from our usual 12-14%. I think the new supplier's cuts are coming in with way more excess fat caps than before. Has anyone else seen a sudden spike in trim from a specific cut?

My old car finally died and I had to pick between a used gas truck for work or a hybrid sedan

I got the hybrid, and even though I was worried about hauling tools, I just rent a small trailer for $50 a day when I need it. It's cut my fuel bill in half and I feel way less guilty idling in traffic. Has anyone else made a switch that seemed tough for their job but worked out for the climate?

Remember when a celebrity messing up just meant a weird interview on Letterman? I was thinking about that singer from the early 2000s who got caught saying something awful at a club in Austin.

Back then, the 'apology' was maybe a short quote in a magazine, or they'd just kind of disappear for a bit. Now, it's a whole video production with the sad piano music and the 'taking time to reflect' line. I had to choose between watching one of these new, super polished apology videos or going back to find the old, messy news clip from the actual event. I picked the old clip. It was way more telling. You could see the real shock, the bad lighting, the reporter shoving a mic in their face. The new video just felt like a script. It makes me miss when the mess wasn't so cleaned up, you know? Has anyone else gone back to compare an old scandal to the new apology video and felt the same way?

Bought a $300 drawing tablet and it completely changed how I make art

The quarter panel dent that fought me for two whole days

Got a 2012 Civic with a small crease on the rear quarter, right above the wheel. Figured it was a simple pull and fill job, maybe four hours tops. The metal kept springing back no matter what I tried with the stud gun and slide hammer, like it had a mind of its own. Spent the next day trying to get it perfect, ended up being a full 16-hour fight over two days. Anyone else have a simple dent that turned into a huge battle?

My bullet journal saved my sanity during a crazy work trip

I had a three day trip to Chicago last month that turned into a mess of changed flights and mixed up meetings. I was ready to lose it, but my journal's travel log page kept me straight. I had a simple spread with columns for flights, hotels, and appointments, and I just kept updating it as things fell apart. By the end, I had crossed out and rewritten about half the entries, but I never missed a thing. How do you guys set up your journals for trips that go off the rails?

Rant: A 3-inch weld on a Pittsburgh header tank cracked after a pressure test

We were finishing up a job at the old steel plant here, and the new guy ran the bead a bit too hot (I think he was rushing). The whole seam split during the hydro, spraying water everywhere and setting us back a full day. What's your go-to method for checking weld temp on thin gauge before a test, besides just watching the puddle color?

Bought a 'rare' thunder egg online for $75 and it was just a painted river rock

I saw this listing from a seller in Tucson that said it was a genuine Oregon thunder egg with agate inside... but when it arrived, you could see the paint flaking off the outside. I tried to cut it open with my tile saw and it was just plain gray stone all the way through. Has anyone else gotten burned by a fake mineral listing, and how can you tell the real ones?

PSA: Tried a new tagline setup on a 200-ton crawler and it nearly tipped

We were lifting a big concrete panel in Houston, and I extended the boom an extra 10 feet past the chart because the load felt light. The whole rig started to lean before I could even swing. Learned you can't trust your gut over the load chart, ever. Anyone else had a close call from eyeballing a lift?

That time a guy at the convention insisted 'One Piece' is better binged, not watched weekly

He argued in line for coffee that the weekly format kills the pacing, but I've loved the slow build for over 800 episodes. Do you think some shows are actually worse when you can watch them all at once?