A splash of white vinegar right in the bottom of the machine before starting the load worked pretty well for me, when I was living with hard water.

Robert Hackerman still at it, I see.

www.smbc-comics.com?id=2526 via @zachweinersmith.bsky.social (from 2012!)

PS: some of my colleagues have made it abundantly clear to me that two-factor authentication was invented by and for a demographic who usually wears pants with pockets...

I'm a fan of two-factor authentication as a rule, but the whole "update your password/enter your code/answer a security question/update your backup email/oh if you want THAT feature enter your password again" tango is for the birds.

I happen to be listening to David Yeager's "10 to 25: The Science of Motivating Young People" right now and it seems relevant to this kind of challenge. The difference between "welcome to the club" and "didn't anybody teach you this" is the difference between success and failure...

But the choice is not "spend the money or set the money on fire". It's most likely "spend the money with Vendor A or with Vendor B"... who also desperately needs it.

Or give the money to charity... who desperately needs it.

Or leave it in the bank, who lends it out to someone who needs it.

That tone on "fools/cool"... like a bell!

And oh look it's Bandcamp Friday at the end of the week...