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Ask HN: Something you’ve done your whole life that you realized is wrong?

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Re: Ask HN: Something you’ve done your whole life that you realized is wrong?

#81

Post by hkpack »

RobertRoberts wrote: post #39
mtlynch wrote: post #33

Staying warm. In the winter, I used to stay warm by turning up the thermostat. Then I discovered (via HN) the Low-Tech Magazine article, "Insulation: first the body, then the home." [0] The article argued that it's much more efficient to focus on heating yourself rather than your whole living space. I invested in high-quality wool clothes that I wear in layers and warm slippers. Now, I keep my home about 5 degrees F…

Add moisture to the air also as it conducts heat better and the same temperature will "feel" warmer. (especially important in some climates more than others)

This is probably a bad advice - As it simultaneously makes cold air feel colder.

Also, I'm not sure if there is an easy way to actually increase humidity without reducing the temperature. From my experience, increasing humidity while keeping the overall temperature at the same time requires additional energy.

Also, less humid air may allow you to actually wear less cloths as it is more difficult for the air to get energy off your body.

Re: Ask HN: Something you’ve done your whole life that you realized is wrong?

#83

Post by thyrox »

Worrying and arguing about things in the future.

I wasted so much time and energy on this but as I get older I've realised there is so little of what we can actually control vs what we think we can do. Most of the time just saying Yes and waiting for things to actually happen is so much easier. A lot of time what you worry about never happens and if it does it isn't always as bad as you make things out to be in your head. A lot of times it turns out to be actually good and it would've been a shame to avoid it.

Also when you say yes to people, a lot of time the other person never actually follows through the thing you didn't want. Otoh if you would argue or say No beforehand it always has the opposite effect.

I guess for most people this is common sense but I did this wrong for a large younger part of my life.

Re: Ask HN: Something you’ve done your whole life that you realized is wrong?

#84

Post by yamtaddle »

number6 wrote: post #53
mabbo wrote: post #35

My father said to me: "I like a shower better than a bath, but ugh, that first blast of cold water when you turn it on is always a bit shocking." Me: "Why don't you turn on the shower, wait for it to get warm, then get in?" Him, realizing he'd been using a shower wrong for over 6 decades: "... huh."

I like your dad's way better; also don't turn on the warm water

But that would ruin the best waking part of 95% of my days.

Re: Ask HN: Something you’ve done your whole life that you realized is wrong?

#85

Post by WithinReason »

daRealDodo wrote: post #41
hgomersall wrote: post #13

A common one is the tying of one's shoelaces. It's pretty common to tie the knot in an unbalanced way. https://www.fieggen.com/shoelace/grannyknot.htm

Worthy of the best TED talk ever: https://youtu.be/zAFcV7zuUDA

That is now outdated:

https://www.fieggen.com/shoelace/ianknot.htm

Another view:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6cBtqhq5P28

Re: Ask HN: Something you’ve done your whole life that you realized is wrong?

#86

Post by maushu »

jethkl wrote: post #8

I thought colorblindness tests were designed to be tricky and subtle, so I always passed them through very close inspection. I'm just colorblind.

You should try a reverse colorblindness test like this: https://www.colorlitelens.com/color-blindness-test/secret-of...

Re: Ask HN: Something you’ve done your whole life that you realized is wrong?

#87

Post by gtf21 »

Putting a teaspoon handle-down into a bottle of champagne when putting it in the fridge in order to "retain the fizziness" which I did unquestionably as something we just "did", until I had to tell someone else to do it a few months ago and realised that there was no reason this should work and, lo and behold, it makes no difference whatsoever.

Re: Ask HN: Something you’ve done your whole life that you realized is wrong?

#89

Post by pmarreck »

hgomersall wrote: post #13

A common one is the tying of one's shoelaces. It's pretty common to tie the knot in an unbalanced way. https://www.fieggen.com/shoelace/grannyknot.htm

I’m a full fledged adult but I also appreciate efficiency so I recently invested in these things and so far so awesome:

Orange Elastic No Tie Shoe Laces... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07PK2N1PD?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_shar...

Re: Ask HN: Something you’ve done your whole life that you realized is wrong?

#90

Post by sedeki »

prometheus76 wrote: post #21

This is for people who lift weights. Do you get calluses along the pads of your hand, just below your fingers? You are probably gripping the bar incorrectly. This also applies to pull-ups/chin-ups grip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OK-S3ZJZxQ . TL;DR: grip the bar across the joint at the bottom of your fingers instead of across the middle of your palm. This doesn't apply to bench pressing (a push), but applies to…

I recently started lifting weights. I just bought gloves. I like this tip though - thanks.
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