It is cheaper to buy a corded Bosch hammer drill than a new battery for the Bosch drill I already have.
I did have reservations when buying this battery drill second-hand…knew I had enough batteries to deal with already.
Won auctions last week for 4 bookshelf speakers (Celestion F1) and a Yamaha RX-V373 receiver. Thought it would be a fun change from the monitors I've been using for the last 5 years (which are still being shipped).
Speaker wire arrived today and I spent an hour cutting and stripping them etc. to install the 2 front speakers.
Now, since the TS–RCA cable that will link my USB audio interface to the receiver won't arrive till tomorrow, I've just been listening to BBC Radio 3 and Classical FM all day. Headphones aside, this is the first really decent audio I've had in months, and I've really missed it.
2 speakers remain unused for now: I'm thinking I'll buy some ceiling mounts for them and install them as a quadraphonic setup when my shipment (with the sorely missed hammer drill) arrives.
Having a lot of fun doing all this. The funny thing is that I'm still sleeping on a stack of yoga mats because the "essentials" — in the shipment — have yet to arrive.
@matigo I had wondered, during the protests in HK, if anyone would come up with an "anti-strobe strobe": a flashlight that would sync its strobing to the "off" moments of the ambient strobing, such that when both strobe and anti-strobe ran there would just be consistent light.
// @variablepulserate
@variablepulserate Well it depends on how you define "normal domestic" I suppose. My HK apartment (studio) has windows on 3 of the 4 walls and I'm used to having daylight 12 hours a day, including blindingly bright sun shining in around lunchtime; UK is certainly dim by comparison.
A flashlight with strobe is always in my backpack — really just in case I get stuck on an unlit bike route after sunset, but I have wondered if the strobe would ever come in handy.
@variablepulserate It is. I use light extensively throughout the day to focus (or not) — I have it turn on automatically in the morning before my audio alarm; it changes to a warmer tone automatically at sunset, etc.
I found when I was living in Edinburgh that the lack of light (UV, mostly, but just general light as well) had a serious effect on my mood and also eyestrain.
Though actually the tool I'm most keen to have access to again is my hammer drill…haven't been able to hang proper curtains yet as this battery drill just can't get into the concrete, and hanging 10kg off screws just going an inch into plaster doesn't work, I concluded after a few hours of trying.
Ordered a couple of 3600 lumen bulbs yesterday. It just won't do to get so little light in a day. Should be able to reach 8200 lumens in the living room without buying any more lamps and just over 10000 if I get another 2 bulb holders.
Really need my big shipment to arrive. Got a lovely wall lamp that I need to rewire to a plug, amongst other things, and there's just so much I can't do without my tools. Don't want to end up with duplicates so have avoided buying anything so far.
Received a handwritten letter from a Jehovah's Witness couple.
I was quite touched at first.
And then I read the first paragraph:
Dear neighbour,
hi we hope your well.
and then decided it mustn't have been intended for me as I don't have a well.
@variablepulserate Yes I'm quite used to buying in bulk. Have done it for years. Every few months I'll take a suitcase over for a big sack of rice, or 10L of oil, or something along those lines; otherwise it's the biweekly shop for 5kg sacks of potatoes and onions etc. on my bike.
Sometimes it can be had cheaper on Amazon and that's always convenient. I bought 6kg of tapioca pearls a few days ago, which should be a good year of bubble tea.
// @matigo
@variablepulserate Hm maybe the ones near me are just not that desperate. I almost exclusively shop at Asda and Lidl, in terms of Western supermarkets; the Asian ones are far better value, I find, for the staples like 5kg sacks of potatoes and onions (which I buy about every 2 weeks), huge bundles of garlic, and 20kg bags of rice.
Then for sauces, herbs, and canned/dried goods like pasta and tomatoes I just use Amazon and save myself carrying everything. Better selection too.
// @matigo