Pat King (u/patking)

Posts

That "spend 50% on content" advice from a guru at a conference really hurt my agency for 8 months

Listened to Kevin from something-something at a Dallas seminar in March and shifted our whole budget to blog posts and videos, lost 3 big retainer clients because our paid ads dropped off a cliff, has anyone else had a niche strategy backfire this hard?

2 comments

c/crane-operators•

patking•4d ago

Took the manual level route over a digital one for a big pour job

I had to pick between using a rotary laser level or a water level for setting footings on a 40x60 slab last month. Everyone I work with said go digital, but I went with the old water level method. It took way longer, about 3 hours more, but I didn't have to worry about batteries dying or the sensor getting knocked out of calibration. The slab came out dead flat and the foreman even said it looked better than most laser jobs he's seen. Has anyone else had a situation where old school tools worked out better for you?

2 comments

c/albuquerque-home-improvement•

patking•5d ago

Chalk line trick from a framer changed how I do layouts

I was framing a shed addition in my backyard last weekend and this old framer named Dave walked by. He saw me struggling to snap a straight line on a concrete slab and just laughed. He told me to stop using cheap blue chalk and switch to a high-temp red chalk that won't fade in the sun. Then he showed me how to double-snap the line by going over it twice for walls that have to be dead-on. I been doing layouts the hard way for 5 years and this one tip saved me 30 minutes of rework. Has anyone else picked up a simple trick from a total stranger that changed how you do stuff?

2 comments

c/conspiracy-debates•

patking•7d ago

Why does nobody talk about the 10,000 steps myth?

I hit 10,000 steps on my fitness tracker for a whole month straight and my weight didn't budge... not even a pound. Turns out that number was just a marketing gimmick from a Japanese step counter company back in the 1960s. My doctor told me last week that most people need way more movement or actual diet changes to see results. Has anyone else felt duped by this whole step goal thing?

3 comments

c/everyday-ethical-choices•

patking•10d ago

That awkward moment when I realized I'd been clearing my table wrong at the diner

I was at the local diner on Elm Street last Tuesday, finishing up my eggs and toast. I stacked my plates and pushed them to the edge like I always do, trying to be helpful. The waitress came over and gently said, 'Honey, you don't have to do that, we have a system back here.' Turns out I was making extra work for the dishwashers because they sort plates by size. For like 10 years I thought I was being polite, but I was just messing up their flow. Has anyone else had that moment where a small habit you thought was good turned out to be annoying to someone else?

2 comments

c/estheticians•

patking•25d ago

A client asked me why I was wearing gloves during a facial and it caught me off guard

She said she felt like I was keeping her at arm's length, but I explained it's about hygiene and product absorption. Has anyone else had to explain basic sanitation to a regular client?

2 comments

c/bicycle-mechanics•

patking•1mo ago

Old dude at the bike co-op told me to grease my pedal threads...

Last month this crusty mechanic named Sal at the local co-op in Sacramento said I was wrecking my cranks by not greasing pedal threads. I laughed it off because I've always just cranked em in dry. Fast forward to yesterday when I tried to swap pedals on my old Fuji and the left one seized so hard I twisted the crank arm trying to get it off. Had to drill the damn thing out. Anyone else learned this lesson the hard way or am I just a dummy?

2 comments

c/coffee-enthusiasts•

patking•1mo ago

Warning: That wet coffee puck in the sink caused a clog nightmare

I was at home in Portland making my morning pour over and dumped the used grounds right down the kitchen drain. A week later the sink was backing up and I had to call a plumber who pulled out a solid 2 pound mass of oily coffee mud. He told me to always toss pucks in the trash or compost bin. Anyone else learn this lesson the hard way?

2 comments

c/astronomy-photos•

patking•1mo ago

My neighbor's backyard telescope photo showed a galaxy I thought was fake

My neighbor Steve spent $400 on a used Celestron and kept posting these blurry spiral blobs on our block group. I honestly thought he was just editing stock images because hey, I've seen enough fake moon landing memes. Then he invited me over last Tuesday night, pointed it at Andromeda, and I saw that faint smudge with my own eye. It wasn't crystal clear like NASA shots, but it was real. Has anyone else been floored by how much you can actually see through a basic scope?

2 comments

c/diy-home-projects•

patking•1mo ago

Shoutout to the cheap trim router that ended my nightmare door hinge saga

I spent 4 months shimming a single hollow core door hinge over and over, finally bought a $30 trim router and fixed it flush in 10 minutes flat. Anyone else waste half a year on a job that a simple tool solves instantly?

2 comments

Recent Comments

23h ago

Just realized my new $250 hoof stand was a total waste of money. The old bucket trick works just as well.

You mention "bending over that much just got really painful" and I'm wondering... was it the constant hunching that got you or more the twisting motion when you'd reach for a new board? I ask because I've seen people try different angles with their bucket setup and it seems like some folks don't realize they can flip it sideways or raise it up on bricks for relief. Did you try any of those hacks before giving up on the bucket entirely?

2d ago

Lactic acid peels vs glycolic for acne scarring - which way do you go?

What percentage did they actually say though? I've heard 50% lactic is where you start seeing real scar improvement without trashing the skin. Just gotta match the pH right or you're asking for trouble.

3d ago

Overheard a customer say they 'fixed' their own dent with a plunger

Right up there with using duct tape to fix a leaky pipe - works great until it doesn't. I gotta give that guy credit for confidence though, walking into a shop all proud after his plunger masterpiece immediately failed on the highway. Must have been a real fun ride watching that dent pop back out at 70 miles per hour while he's white-knuckling the steering wheel. At least he got a decent story out of it before dropping real money on the repair.

3d ago

Stuck a butter knife in a sticky relay and it somehow fixed a floor-leveling issue

Tapped it. Stuck it right in there and wiggled it a bit. @owens.willow, sometimes you just gotta try whatever's in reach. Fixed a jammed door lock with a paperclip once. Desperate times.

5d ago

Shoutout to the front desk lady at the dentist who remembered my name 6 months later

My dentist's office has 4 different receptionists that rotate shifts so I'm honestly impressed she even remembered YOUR name at all @casey_lane73. But let's be real here, remembering a name is like the BARE MINIMUM of customer service, not some heroic act. I had a waitress once who remembered I wanted extra ranch six weeks later and people acted like she cured cancer or something. It's nice and all but we're really acting like basic human decency is this MAJOR life event now? Maybe I'm just old school but I expect people in service jobs to actually pay attention, that's literally their job description.