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On Having Enough Socks (2019)

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Re: On Having Enough Socks (2019)

#101

Post by [deleted] »

ubermonkey wrote: post #71
Jedd wrote: post #18

There's a few comments - seemingly from our American friends - that seem to suggest that left / right socks are a thing. I'm hoping I'm parsing those comments poorly, but ever since the revelation that Americans don't have kettles , I'm prepared for the worst. I got fed up with poor socks a few years ago and embarked on a project to try to find the best, or at least consistently decent, work socks. That's work in the…

Is it really so surprising that we don't (as a rule) have electric kettles? I think the reasons are pretty clear. First, Americans are mostly coffee drinkers, not tea drinkers. The coffeedrinkers are mostly using coffee machines that heat the water for you, so you don't need a kettle to do it. This is true from the low-end $30 drip machine to multi-thousand-dollar espresso machines. Second, America is on 110, not 220…

[deleted]

Re: On Having Enough Socks (2019)

#102

Post by jefftk »

jerf wrote: post #77

> be gwern > notice I don't have socks > write 10,000+ words on not having socks > four years later > still haven't bought socks I believe there's a sci-fi/fantasy novel by Alan Dean Foster in which he writes about a trap in a standard dungeon on a mountain which is a path that just very slowly gets steeper and steeper. At first, you don't think you need anything to deal with it, so you're not in mountaineering gear,…

> still haven't bought socks

Am I missing something? The intro paragraph includes that he "immediately went on Amazon & bought a pack of 30 pairs".

Re: On Having Enough Socks (2019)

#103

Post by crooked-v »

JohnFen wrote: post #84
TeMPOraL wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How do you do wear-leveling? The socks may start as 20 identical pairs, but in a few weeks to few months, they will be all shades of grey.

This hasn't been a real problem for me. I'm not sure why. Some of it may be that I buy black socks, not white, and some of it may be that I mix freshly laundered socks into the clean sock collection, so every sock gets used about the same amount overall.

Washing with only cold water helps substantially with color bleed.

Re: On Having Enough Socks (2019)

#104

Post by crooked-v »

FredPret wrote: post #28

How to solve socks: 1. For each type of sock you need, find only one you like best, perhaps on Amazon or at Costco 2. Get a container for each kind - I have the soft shell travel zipup kind. 3. Buy en masse and stuff each container. 4. Don’t let anyone in your house discover your sock nirvana You never have to match pairs again

I generally stick with Darn Tough (https://darntough.com) for comfortable, sturdy, all-weather socks that will last for years and years of heavy use.

Re: On Having Enough Socks (2019)

#105

Post by crooked-v »

willcipriano wrote: post #67
jtbayly wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"for homeless" socks. I never knew such things existed. P.S. You aren't, by chance, homeless, are you?

No, they are just the cheapest socks I could find.

Buying the cheapest socks you can find is a great way to pay more in the long run than buying higher-quality socks.

Re: On Having Enough Socks (2019)

#106

Post by AlecSchueler »

yamtaddle wrote: post #87
throwaheyy wrote: post #75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’m Australian, it is mildly surprising. America is the land of convenience, and I’ve found an electric kettle even at 120v is still faster than boiling water on an electric stove, and much faster than boiling on a gas stove.

They're a waste of space if you don't make tea much, or one of the fancier and more-manual coffee-making methods. Most people in the US don't make tea much, and just use an automatic drip machine or a keurig for coffee, so of course they don't have a kettle. We have one, but it's because we drink more tea than most Americans, and since we have it for that, it's space-saving for me to also use it for pourover coffee (…

It's the "don't drink tea much" that is surprising!

Re: On Having Enough Socks (2019)

#107

Post by msisk6 »

yamtaddle wrote: post #93
rawgabbit wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Try Vermont darn tough. Made in USA. Lifetime guarantee. https://darntough.com/

I bought three or four pair of Darn Tough seven or eight years ago, and have picked up an average of another pair about every year since. I've yet to discard any of them, though one of the pairs from that first year is juuuuust about shot and probably needs to go. My only other socks are a pack of cheap white athletic socks (only worn for... doing athletic things, not counting stuff like hiking) and a pair or two of…

I've been wearing nothing but Darn Tough for the last decade. They last awhile. After a few years a few get small holes or the elastic wears out. I save them up until I get 6 or so pair and send them back to Darn Tough. They send back a store credit for new socks. Highly recommended.

Re: On Having Enough Socks (2019)

#108

Post by JohnFen »

crooked-v wrote: post #103
JohnFen wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This hasn't been a real problem for me. I'm not sure why. Some of it may be that I buy black socks, not white, and some of it may be that I mix freshly laundered socks into the clean sock collection, so every sock gets used about the same amount overall.

Washing with only cold water helps substantially with color bleed.

Ah, that might be the difference. I use cold water for all of my laundry.

Re: On Having Enough Socks (2019)

#109

Post by officeplant »

Jedd wrote: post #18

There's a few comments - seemingly from our American friends - that seem to suggest that left / right socks are a thing. I'm hoping I'm parsing those comments poorly, but ever since the revelation that Americans don't have kettles , I'm prepared for the worst. I got fed up with poor socks a few years ago and embarked on a project to try to find the best, or at least consistently decent, work socks. That's work in the…

>Americans don't have kettles

As a weird American I have a 1970's electric water boiler I still use that is incredibly fast at boiling water. Passed down to me from my grandparents because I enjoy tea and hate coffee. I really hope it never dies because it works way better than the plastic modern one I had in college.

But on the topic of socks: Hitting my 30's pushed me to finally invest in nice longer lasting socks. Spending $120 over the last few years on bundles of various wool socks until I found ones I like was completely worth it. Although learning to properly care for wool socks was a process. They probably aren't for everyone, but for people that like thick longer songs I love my People Socks. [https://www.peoplesocks.com/]

Re: On Having Enough Socks (2019)

#110

Post by DoreenMichele »

jefftk wrote: post #102
jerf wrote: post #77

> be gwern > notice I don't have socks > write 10,000+ words on not having socks > four years later > still haven't bought socks I believe there's a sci-fi/fantasy novel by Alan Dean Foster in which he writes about a trap in a standard dungeon on a mountain which is a path that just very slowly gets steeper and steeper. At first, you don't think you need anything to deal with it, so you're not in mountaineering gear,…

> still haven't bought socks Am I missing something? The intro paragraph includes that he "immediately went on Amazon & bought a pack of 30 pairs".

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