Ask Lemmy

• A good ergonomic office chair.
• A sit/stand desk.
• Heavy duty wire shelves from Costco.

And because I drink coffee and I'm a total klutz...

• Contigo Auto-seal travel mug. These things are practically bomb-proof and prevent spills!
• a stainless steel double-walled french press. Also bomb-proof and retain heat really well.

1. My horses and dog have brought me so much happiness and fortune over the years. I’m so glad I got through having my horse when I was young and poor and didn’t wait until later to adopt one.

2. A vacation to Europe (specifically the southern Netherlands). It radically changed my outlook on life that I got out and lived with my internet friends for a few weeks. As an American who grew up being told how bad it was outside the country, it was mind blowing to see and meet people outside my bubble. I now want to move to the EU (have my eye on Marseille and Seville).

3. AirPods Pro 2 (specifically the 2nd gen because of the improvements): before having these, wired earbuds were a pain in the ass to use. Transparency and ANC have changed my life because I can pop on ANC while vacuuming and not be bothered to crank up a stereo to hear over the vacuum. Also for riding my horse: I got some accessory ear huggers that you slip on so they literally cannot fall out. I can ride for hours while listening to tunes.

4. A very bright ceiling light in the kitchen. Self explanatory.

5. A chef’s knife. I personally only spent 40$ and it’s been great so far.

6. A dog door. I cannot tell you how amazing it is to just let the dogs shit outside on their own and they come back in. No more worrying about leaving them home because of the anxiety induced when they don’t shit on the morning walk.

The first thing that comes to my mind is an e-reader: always having my books with me encouraged me to read more. Following its purchase I read more books than I ever did since my teenage-hood (I'm close to 30).

My home. Bought it back around 2013. It was a short sale so I got it for cheap and at a great rate. Home prices in my neighborhood are now more than twice what they were back then and during COVID I got my rate even lower while keeping the term the same (so not resetting it back to a 30 year term). So much winning!

Laser eye surgery $3500 -getting rid of the glasses was a life changer, at work they fogged up all the time and got dirty, at home it was great to see my partner and they weren't blurry during fun times.

CPAP $1100 - sleeping properly was literally a lifesaver. The amount of times I got home from work and couldn't remember the 35 km commute was scary. Also helped me out of an abusive relationship.

Tiger 5 liter water heater $200 - always having as much hot water as I want is amazing for making tea or hot beverages. I keep it just below boiling all the time and use it multiple times a day even in summer. The 5 liter model is great because it is taller and even my 750ml thermos mug fits under it.

A display unit LG C1 that only had 36+ hours total usage for like $650. It's true that once you go OLED, every other screen looks mediocre.

Ski goggles. I got them one year when the windchill was strongly in the negatives. Now my glasses don't fog up, my eyes don't hurt from the cold, and I don't get glare-blinded by the sun. Best $40 I ever spent. Probably more like $50+ in today's money.

$20 rice cooker back in 2020. It’s no longer made unfortunately. It makes rice perfectly every time. The best part is that I don’t have to worry about lining up the timing of other things I’m cooking. The rice cooker keeps the rice warm for 2 hours if necessary, so there’s plenty of wiggle room if I completely underestimate how long something else will take to prepare and cook.

Logitech G502 for all the programmable buttons. I’m left handed and use a drawing tablet for work and having all my hotkeys accessible on my right hand keeps my work flow consistent.

Roland TD-07KV electronic drum kit. I've played 15 years of death metal on this thing and it's still going strong!

Home, Education, Full 6" latex memory foam mattress, Quality sheets, Blackout Curtains, Thinkpad laptops (T series and X1 series; don't game), WD red drives, VPN access (port forwarding; needed for hosting), FIOS (1gb asynchronous; no data cap; they don't care), Brother laser printer/scanner, Email account on secure server (they take care of business)

• Toyota RAV 4 ($18,000)
• 2013 Apple Macbook Pro (still looks and works like new $3,700)
• Rancilio Silvia ($450)
• 2001 Chevy Prizm (at >200k miles, I actually had to scrap it even though it still ran perfectly due to sensor issues $1800)
• iPhones (absolutely flawless hardware which keeps getting better with each iteration (~$1,000)
• Canon 5D MKIII ($3,000)
• Kemper Profiler (still getting free software updates 12 years into its lifespan $1,800)
• Fluke 87V (the best meter on earth $400)
• Synology NAS (though I hear they have been enshittified $2,000)
• Airizer Argo (still going $300)
• Nvidia Shield Pro ($300)
• Aeropress ($30)
• Orphan Espresso LIDO 2 (will outlast me $195)
• Warmoth guitars ($5,000 for five guitars)

1. B&W DM601 loudspeakers brought with me from the UK, now nearly 20 years old and still sounding excellent (with a cheap Polk subwoofer to fill out the bottom end down to 25Hz maybe).

2. Monitor Audio Bronze 2 loudspeakers (current main system) - again, with a subwoofer to extend the bottom end.

3. Stents (still alive 8 years later)

4. My computer - initially in 2013, upgraded until now - runs all my media (Music, TV and movies) living in Thailand. Also, I must add, 4.1 channel class-D amplifiers (ZK-TB21 for 2.1 channels front, plus another 2 channel amplifier for the rear - together costing around $25 and running off an old laptop PSU, now driving those old B&W DM601's VERY nicely indeed).

5. Casio Tough Solar watch - the cheapest I ever bought, and likely the one that'll last me until I die (goes in shower and swimming with me, still running perfectly after 9 years, needs adjusting 2 seconds each year, never changed a battery...)

6. Kindle Paperwhite in 2018 - the best version (better contrast than newer models) - infinite supply of books at Annie's Archive (like The Book Thief)