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What is something really stupid you purchased that turned out far better than expected?

I bought a piece of 1.5 inch stiff foam to try to fix a sag in a bed. It didn't work but having that thick piece of solid foam around has been a life saver.

Need something flat to put a laptop on? Throw it on the foam. Going to be doing something that requires you to be on your knees for a while? Get the foam!

It went from stupid purchase to something I'd gladly replace if it broke.

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  • Custom-made ear plugs. Even if you only wear ear plugs occasionally (I do when in a noisy hotel, or when a neighbor goes a bit too crazy), they are so worth having.

    Basically you go to an audiologist and they put something kinda liquid in each of your ears to take a mold of your ear canals. A couple of weeks later, you have plastic earplugs that have the exact shape of your inner ears.

    Upsides: • They work, always. I would typically use wax or silicon disposable ear plugs before that, and sometimes in the middle of the night they might move and let the sound in; those don’t. Also, foam disposable ear plugs don’t stay in my ear, don’t ask me why. • They never hurt. Since disposable ear plugs get shoved into your inner ear until they take the shape, they continuously push against the walls of your ear canals. I would often feel kinda bruised after using them for a long time. • They are crazy comfortable. Put your ear on a pillow, and you barely feel them at all. • But do they block too much sound? That’s up to you. Basically, you choose the level of noise you want to keep out, which I believe is achieved by using different kinds of plastic.

    They’re not a trivial purchase (I think mine cost $150), but then you use them for decades, so it’s definitely worth it. It was a stupid purchase in my case, because I bought them on a whim out of anger against my neighbor’s party one night; but they’ve followed me everywhere since!

  • Scooter. Not an electric one. I had a thought once "hey I did ride one in childhood, maybe it can be a bit of nostalgic fun from time to time". Got myself the cheapest Chinese thing I could find, "no point investing too much into a fad".

    Turned out a scooter is absolute peak urban mobility. Short distances become much shorter. Mid-long distances become short. Granted, for a longer trip somehow the time gains diminish, probably because it's not as efficient as a bike. But a scooter isn't a long-hauler. It's there to zip through an empty mall. It's there to be folded up in a second and brought into a bus or a shop without being a hassle. It's like 3-4 kg, not too fast for sidewalks but fast enough for bike roads, extremely easy to stop, doubles as a cart when carrying bags of groceries home.

    The chinese one broke after 1 season because I was riding it everywhere. Then I got myself one from a better company, I chose it for small weight and portability. It's technically children's thing but I'm well below weight tolerance and also smol so it's easy to handle. It's already like a 5th year and whenever it's not raining or too cold I ride it for shopping, errands, leisure walks, to work... Almost daily.

  • An ebike: I don't even really drive anymore most of the time and it beats the hell out of being stuck in traffic. Getting around is fun again.

    I always enjoyed cycling and still ride my MTB, but for getting around town quickly, ebikes are hard to beat.

  • Wireless headphones. The original goal was working out and I didn't want to carry my cellphone on the hand. I never went to work out, but it turns out to be very convenient when my neighbors are being loud, since it has noise cancelling, and also for chores.

    Also, some better clothes. For context, I'm FtM. My sister and mother are vain and buy chic clothes like every month, so I always had a surplus of hand-me-downs. I didn't want to buy more clothes because I already have perfectly serviceable unisex clothes on my closet, but when I donated out all my feminine-cut clothes and shoes I found myself lacking clothes so, yeah, I went and bought the stupid clothes. I fucking love them and wear them on every opportunity I get. They make me feel so much better :)

  • I bought an Ember mug because I thought it was silly. I ended up really liking the temperature control. I don't rush my coffee/tea. Now every sip is as hot as the first one.

    The new Ember costs, I think, half again as much as the first iteration. It's a cute gimmick but I certainly wouldn't pay what they're charging now.

  • My wife got me a fitbit. I resisted a little bit because I didn't want to have yet another device to monitor, charge, and maintain etc. I've been really surprised and impressed and how effective it has been in subtly encouraging me to make some small improvements in my habits. Not a bad deal for $100.

    • This one really shocked me, too! I got a Fitbit to monitor my heart rate because of a genetic condition, but fast forward a couple years and I'm running a mile and exercising multiple times a week.

      Didn't see that coming, but a nice result!

      Tbh, I hate the Fitbit though. I hate that it's owned by Google and they charge me to see my own data. I'd love to switch, but I can't find alternatives that check all the boxes from a Charge 5....

      Edit: if you're looking to get a Fitbit and wanna save some money, thrift stores often have electronic sections full of em! My bf got his charge 5 for 50$ from a goodwill. Same one 100$ more in the target across the street.

      • Albeit a bit more pricey I love the Garmin Forerunner Smartwatches. There is a very wide variety at many different price points, no subscription and access to all data, integrates well with other services. Not sure about the OLED versions but I love the non OLED ones. Touch display, color (although not as vibrant), smartphone connectivity (e.g. notifications) and even payment (credit card on the watch, no phone needed).... with all that the battery still lasts about 2 weeks.

        Sorry for shilling. There was a time when I hated Garmin. But their watches have come a long way.

  • A long shoe horn.

    I got it cause my formal shoes are a tight fight. It has been a game changer, it is a whole new experience wearing shoes, even the normal ones.

  • Pizza Scissors. Great for frozen pizzas so you can cut it up right out of the oven without waiting for the cheese to cool off. It's also great for cutting dough and just having a 2nd pair of kitchen shears if your normal pair was used to cut raw meat.

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