JBCASL

I build simple websites for local businesses on the Oregon coast. Also a small water system circuit rider, so expect some water tips too.

[JBCASL @JBCASL]

Unpopular opinion: milky tap water isn't scary. It's your pipes doing a soda impression.

Cold water under pressure holds extra air. Pour a glass and wait. Clears from the bottom up? Harmless air bubbles, per @USGS.

Still cloudy or smells off? Call your water system.

[JBCASL @JBCASL]

Hot take: "Passionate about excellence" is not a business.

Paste your About page into @grok. Ask for one sentence: what you do, who it's for, which town.

If a stranger can't tell in five seconds, neither can @Google.

[JBCASL @JBCASL]

Hot take: a locked door on Veterans Day with "Open" still on @Google is worse than just being closed.

Wed, Nov 11. Set special hours on @GoogleMyBiz. Put the same plain line at the top of your site. Same words. Both places.

[JBCASL @JBCASL]

Hot take: that rotten-egg shower smell usually isn't the water plant.

Only the hot tap reeks? The water heater's magnesium anode often turns sulfates into hydrogen sulfide gas.

A plumber can swap it for aluminum or zinc. Cold tap too? Different problem.

[JBCASL @JBCASL]

Hot take: your fridge is not a museum. Thanksgiving needs shelf space.

Snap the shelves tonight. Ask @grok what to cook, freeze, or toss so a turkey and two pies fit.

Keep it at 40°F or below per @USDA. Don't overpack; cold air needs room.

Weirdest thing in there rent-free?

[JBCASL @JBCASL]

Hot take: brown water after hydrant flushing isn't a boil notice. It's your pipes getting a power wash.

Crews open hydrants to scour rust and sediment out of the mains. @EPA calls flushing routine maintenance.

Skip laundry until the cold tap runs clear. Keep the hot tap off.

[JBCASL @JBCASL]

Hot take: lumpy gravy isn't a family tradition. It's a flour problem.

Dump flour straight into hot broth and it clumps. Cook it in the fat first, or whisk it into cold liquid, then add.

Already lumpy? Strain it.

Ask @grok for a gravy game plan. Team lumps or smooth?

[JBCASL @JBCASL]

Unpopular opinion: a pop-up begging for an email before anyone's seen your menu is a stranger asking for a hug at the door.

On phones, let people read first. @Google's search docs flag intrusive pop-ups as a bad page experience.

Worst pop-up you've hit?

[JBCASL @JBCASL]

Hot take: your toilet might drink more water than your family.

A leaky one can waste about 200 gallons a day, per @EPA.

Test: food coloring in the tank, wait 10 min, don't flush. Color in the bowl? Leak, often a worn flapper. Flush after to avoid stains.

Your color pick?

[JBCASL @JBCASL]

Hot take: fried rice made with fresh rice is just wet rice with ambition.

Cold leftover rice is drier, so the grains fry instead of steam.

Snap your fridge and ask @grok for a 15-minute fried rice plan. Hot pan, small batches.

Leftovers: eat within 3-4 days, per @USDA.

[JBCASL @JBCASL]

Unpopular opinion: "Call for pricing" on a website is a restaurant menu with the prices torn off.

Plenty of people won't call. They quietly check the next shop.

Fix: post a "starts at" price or a range, plus what moves it up or down.

Do you show prices or hide them?

[JBCASL @JBCASL]

Hot take: that pink ring in your toilet is not your water company's fault.

It's Serratia marcescens, an airborne bacteria. It moves in where tap water sits long enough to lose its chlorine, then snacks on soap scum.

Fix: scrub, bleach cleaner for 10-20 min, rinse, keep it dry.

[JBCASL @JBCASL]

Thanksgiving doesn't fail at the oven. It fails the Monday before, when the turkey is still a 20-pound ice brick.

Tell @grok the bird's weight and dinner time. Have it build a backward timeline.

Fridge thawing takes about 24 hours per 4-5 lbs, per @USDA.

When does yours thaw?

[JBCASL @JBCASL]

Unpopular opinion: your website isn't slow because of your web host.

It's that giant chowder photo uploaded straight off your phone.

Shrink photos to about 2000 px wide before uploading, then test your homepage free in PageSpeed Insights from @Google.

What's your score?

[JBCASL @JBCASL]

"There's nothing to eat" is a lie your fridge tells you.

Snap it, send it to @grok, ask for a 30-minute dinner using what goes bad first.

Chef move: limp veggies, a screaming-hot pan, a squeeze of lemon at the end. Back from the dead.

Weirdest thing in your fridge right now?

[JBCASL @JBCASL]

Hot take: a homepage slideshow is a screensaver for your business.

Slide 1 says hello. Slide 4 has your hours. Nobody waits for slide 4.

Swap it for one still photo, one line saying what you do and where, and a big Call button.

Worst thing you've seen hiding on slide 4?

[JBCASL @JBCASL]

Unpopular opinion: your kitchen tap has better paperwork than a warehouse of bottled water.

Town water systems test on an @EPA schedule and send you a yearly report on what's in it. Bottled water falls under @FDA as a food. No yearly report.

Team tap or team bottle?

[JBCASL @JBCASL]

Hot take: Halloween candy peaks on Nov 1, chopped up and baked into cookies.

Snap a photo of the leftover pile and ask @grok what to bake. The trick: chop the bars and freeze them 30 minutes first, so they stay chunks instead of melting into the dough.

Which candy wins?

[JBCASL @JBCASL]

Happy Halloween. The scariest thing on the coast is a shop website that blasts music the second it loads.

People check you from a phone in a waiting room or in bed. Kill the autoplay sound. Got a video? Start it muted with a play button.

Worst website jump scare you've hit?

[JBCASL @JBCASL]

Hot take: the scariest thing in October isn't a ghost. It's a mystery light on your dashboard.

Snap a photo and ask @grok what it means. Rule of thumb: red means stop safely and check now, amber means get it checked soon. Your manual has the final word.

Worst one you ignored?