Currently have two projectors, both from secondhand stores. One is new-ish, one vintageāboth were under $20. Our go-to of the pair for movie night is the old office projector, probably a decade old but itās so good. 2000 lumensāfor comparison, a movie theatre projects with 50K lumensāand we plug a firestick in to make it āsmartā (an old firestick, my tech-savvy partner says a newer one might not work). The more recent projector (VivImage, not sure what model but they go for about $100 new) doesnāt have the same oomph but for watching the game or an occasional movie it works just fine. All of which is to say you can probably find something way cheaper than $500 to get a sense of what works for your space and adjust accordingly, particularly if you check out used options.
I personally love it. For gatherings and low-tech nights itās nice not to have a big screen taking over the room, and for watching movies itās awesome to have a screen the size of our wall. You do need to figure out where the projector will sit and arrange around it, and a pro or con (depending on how you look at it) would be that you really will only be able to watch things in pitch darkness.
Best of luck with your new setup!
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This is the best purchase I made in 2024 by far. Itās a portable smart projector so it has all the apps and some cable channels built in (I donāt know the technical terms Iām not THAT savvy). I love it because I can easily move it room to room, it connects to Bluetooth, and you can adjust the size of the picture based on where youāre watching.
Full price is a bit muchāI got mine 50% off for Labor Day and Iāve seen nice refurbished ones. Now I never have to buy a tv again.
Dec 28, 2024
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epson projectors in general are so good. i had a little shitty $50 one but finally made the investment and it was very worth it. you can search for reburished/renewed ones which is what i did it was much cheaper but still seems to be in perfect condition
i have the epson home 880 and i love it! it plugs into my roku soundbar and is straightforward theres no annoying set up stuff or over complicated technology
May 6, 2024
Projector>conventional TV. Roku plugged in on projector was a huge advancement. I get a plain white wall during the day and a massive screen by night! Also you fully cannot watch TV unless itās a rainy day or night because the lighting wonāt work
Mar 7, 2024
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From the Atlantic: āThere is no statistical record of any other period in U.S. history when people have spent more time on their own.ā
I donāt know anything about youāhow funny is that? I couldnāt even begin to guess what your life looks like. I couldnāt spot you in a crowd. If I were a friend, Iām sure I could give better advice. Perhaps suggest joining a local groupĀ Ā I know of, or a class at the gym that always puts me in a good mood. Perhaps introduce you to someone Iāve always thought youād get along with.Ā
The beautiful thing about the internet is that you can ask this question to the void and the void speaks back. Itās so much easier this way, but so much worse.Ā
Geography, family, shared interests, shared labor. Community used to be inescapable. We still depend on each other for everything, but we do it all at a distance. Iāll chat for an hour with a friend across the country, but I know nothing about the people across the street. Itās a selling point if the grocer can name the farmer who grew your food. I could have been writing this to send to a distant family member, who I want to reconnect with, or an old friendāinstead Iām writing to you, a stranger. Itās easier. Our community ties have been broken.Ā
So: what do you, an individual, do? You may find more success if you develop individual friendships tied to a placeāseveral articles about the loneliness epidemic talk about the gymāor a group that meets regularly. Apparently, the best way to beak down peoplesā walls is just to see them constantly. This is true for new friends and for deepening relationships. For those friends and acquaintances youād like to be closer to, keep inviting them to shit. Set your boundaries, but keep trying. The thing about people is that everybody is interesting and confusing and stupid and wise and mean and wonderfulābut itās safer to spill all that on the internet, where no one can spot you in a crowd. Let people know that youāre around and interested no matter what, and see what happens. It will take a long time, but itāll be worth it. Not just for you, but for them. For everyone, if we all put the effort in.Ā
Iām sorryāit shouldnāt be this way. But we have to try. Weāre all counting on each other <3
Apr 23, 2024
Whatever life you envisioned for yourself, your 20s are when you find out if itās viableāor what you really want. Money and time matter way more (in my experience), and your friends live further away. You get to do whatever you want, which is amazing and awful.
Expect to hear about peers working their dream jobs while living in inhumane conditions, discovering lifelong passions and quitting their ambitions, and re-making all the choices that seemed permanent at the time. Maybe by 35-40 you can expect consistency, but in the next twenty years your peers will go through a lot and change even more.
Just remember that only having a kid and back issues are forever. When in doubt, find a mentor or a role model. Focus on the present if you can, and journal if you can find the timeāit helps.
Leaving you w/ this pic of sandāa symbol of the passage of time which is most beautiful when observed closely.
Apr 27, 2024
This morning I brought my car to the mechanic first thing. Didnāt have anywhere to be for the rest of the day, so challenged myself to enjoy a slow walk homeācould have been 40 min, ultimately took 4 hours.
I stopped to smell my neighborsā flowers, to buy a new pencil at the art store, and to read in a park for a while (big shoutout to the Libby app and city parks). Iāve been talking to a therapist about how I wake up every morning worried about whatever I have scheduled, and tend to ruminate on failures towards the end of the day. Today I didnāt dwell on the future or the past, just lived in the present.
10/10 experience.
May 10, 2024