So am I. I've been writing software for a living for almost 20 years, so when I wanted to make a slightly more complicated box to 3d print openscad was my first choice too. Then I tried freecad and hated it with passion. Eventually I ended up making it in solidworks - it sucked the least of the tools I've tried.
It's great when what you are designing is best described as code, but I find it absolutely not worth the hassle otherwise, because even basic things like chamfers/fillets are extremely hard to execute.
I've built a 50m2 (550 ft2 ) greenhouse from polycarbonate I bought online and timber I bought from a local sawmill.
I've had no prior carpentry experience and neither my education or work experience (software engineering) was any help. The design and how to was a result of several weeks of evenings spent watching YouTube.
On the other hand the 5 step long staircase I've added to the porch because I was feeling cocky is so bad I'll be fixing it the 4th time next weekend..
Greenland gets about that much per person in subsidies every year, so gl with that.
As much as I hate the guy I hope he isn't killed. The last thing we need is republicans having a martyr, especially before they find out how bad for them he is.
With tariff fallout there are decent chances they will not have a majority for a long time. After the tariff act of 1930 they went from having 14 seats more than democrats to a low of 16 seats out of 96 In senate in just 8 years. After that they had a senate majority once and congress majority twice in the next 50+ years.
See 2nd half of the post for some tips.
I'm going to echo what some others said: medication is usually effective and often so much so it feels like cheating. I know you've mentioned it's impossible to get it where you live, but it's very likely you are wrong about it:
Several years ago I moved back to my home country (Poland) only to learn that according to local regulation there is no such thing as an adult with ADHD. They reluctantly admit that ADHD exists, but only as a childhood condition. On top of that most doctors don't like or straight up won't prescribe anything psychoactive, even antidepressants. It took me a while to find a doctor that would prescribe me the meds I need, only to learn that what I was taking for years was not available in the country, so every 3 months I've had to go through entire target import procedure to get 90 days worth of pills.
It's hard to get those meds in many countries, but people who need them and manage to get them share their experiences. Do some searching and you might find some help.
General tips:
- try to do small tasks immediately when you learn you have to do something
- if you can't do something immediately write it down. anything not done or written down immediately has been cast into the void ;-)
- always carry a notepad and something to write on you
- increase friction of switching to something else. Sit down at an empty desk to do work, so you have to get up to do something else. Keep your phone in a pocket with a zipper, so you have to unzip it to take it out
- minimize impact. I tend to put down whatever I'm holding if distracted and completely forget where I put it, so I put an easily accessible catch-all bowl in every room. Most of the time I only have check the bowls
- routine is your friend, it makes it harder to get sidetracked and increases the part of your life that happens on autopilot
- if you see you are getting things done keep the flow going. don't reward yourself with a break until you are ready do nothing productive for the rest of the day
Working at a desk/on a computer:
- remove absolutely everything from your desk that you can. ideally it's mouse, keyboard, monitor. avoid having any snacks on the desk too.
- if you have people walking around you or behind your screen move or try to block them. A cubicle is surprisingly ADHD friendly
- block sound distractions. listening to regular music might not be a good fit here, but myNoise or focus@will works great for me
- phone in a pocket/purse. notifications off. if it has to be on the desk put it as far to the side as possible and screen down
- if you have people at work who are constant distractions have a serious conversation with them. after that conversation every time they interrupt what you are doing make sure to remind them: "I told you it's going to take me half an hour to focus again, please be more mindful of that"
- disable all notifications and if you have to have them enabled set up filters to minimize what you see. Surprisingly in most workplaces checking you email 1-3 times a day is more than enough
The Amazon one.
Live action Tick.
I've got enough seedling to fill 2 racks like this and then some - it was using way too much space around the house, so I went vertical
Permanently Deleted
That I have to confirm access to all websites and services ran by my employer is blocked from there because of sanctions. I'm reminded of that every time we do a compliance check.
LEDs might emit much more energy as light compared to incandescent lights, but that light will get absorbed by plants and surrounding and will eventually end up mostly as heat, no matter what light you have. This rack has 24x18W = 432W worth of lights, which is equivalent of a small space heater running on low.
2 of those racks in a small room in the basement is enough for me to have 24C (75F) in that room while the rest of the basement is closer to 12C (45F). The fanciest of growlights may have saved me 1-2C, or not.
Nothing fancy - T8 LED tubes, cool daylight (6500K). IIRC some are Philips corepro 865, some are Osram equivalent - I used whatever I had left from installing new lights in garage. Brands you recognize, but their value product lines.
Are those as good as "real" grow lights? Hell no. Do they get me 80% there for 20-30% of the price? They sure do!
I've done something similar just not with a nicely maintained lawn but an overgrown meadow. And I did half an acre at once because I'm a glutton for punishment. Random notes/observations:
- get soil tested ASAP. It's cheap and it will tell you what you are missing. Small amounts of targeted fertilizer (a single 10kg/22lbs bag for half an acre in my case) of missing microelements pretty much doubled my yields in second year. I wish I've done it earlier.
- grass is very resilient and will consider 6 weeks under a tarp a friendly challenge. You will be weeding it constantly for the first year. The only areas that ended up grass-free for me were covered with a tarp for a full year after being tilled. Tarp outside of vegetation season does nothing.
- it might be too late for wood chips this year, especially if you are adding 4 inches of them - it's best to add them at the same time as cover crop
- raised beds are an easier option for a small area. Despite all the space I have I still have half a dozen large ones for herbs and plants that aren't very compatible with the heavy clay I have here
I don't care for microgreens at all, so it's going to be a storage rack.
Tomatoes are moving to greenhouse second half of next week - I don't expect temperatures outside to drop much below freezing after that, at least not beyond what an electric heater or two can salvage in an emergency. Peppers will have to wait until temperatures outside don't drop below 5C (40F) even during the night - it's going to be 6, maybe even 8 weeks. 6b zone..
All plants have been started within a couple of days 6-7 weeks ago.
I've added list of materials and total cost to the post.
Fixed height. Being able to adjust light distance per tray is better when you have different height plants on a single shelf. It's also less work when building it.

Making a seedling rack with grow lights was a good idea


Materials:
- 10x 2.4m ( 8ft ) 2x4s
- 1x OSB sheet 240x120cm ( 8x4 ft )
- 12x two led light fixtures for 120cm (4ft) LEDs, 24 cool daylight 18W led lights
- 3x double light switches - one per shelf, half of each switch controlling every other light fixture
- Some screws, wiring, wagos
- Bonus: tapo p110 or other smart plug to turn the lights on/off on schedule
Total cost under $200
Is cops being evil/lazy/incompetent a USA specific thing, or is it the same everywhere in the world?
Mandatory training to become a police officer:
- US: 600-700 hours on average, much of which is gun and combat training and not policing
- Canada 2080 hours
- Spain 2880 hours
- Germany 4000 hours
With that little time spent training and heavy combat focus a US cop might get as little as 2-4 weeks of training on everything that a cop does that doesn't involve guns. People get shot by US cops because they weren't taught anything else. People don't get help from US cops because they were never taught solving problems that don't involve shooting a minority.
Cartman yelling respect my authoritah!
is not far off from what a rookie US cop knows about being a police officer.
Search for Anti-Coercion Instrument, the one that came into effect in December 2023
EU regulations that can be triggered in response to tariffs include an option to make that completely legal
Edit because I'm getting asked for a source: EU Anti Coercion Instrument that got passed in 2021 and came into effect in December 2023: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=OJ%3AL_202302675
Specifically Annex I, paragraph 7:
ANNEX I
Union response measures pursuant to Article 8
[...]
- The imposition of restrictions on the protection of intellectual property rights or their commercial exploitation, in relation to rightholders that are nationals of the third country concerned, which may amount, as necessary, to the non-performance of applicable international obligations with respect to trade-related aspects of intellectual property rights.
This applies to copyright and patents, but not trademarks as far as I know.