u/Sufficient-Year4640

I'm thinking of buying in Watford I'll need to commute to central Lon often. (4/5 a week)

I currently live in Colindale. As reliable as the underground tube, I dislike the experience during peak hours - it's hot, crowded and generally unpleasant.

What is the commute like on the overground mainline? Is there air conditioning? Does it get too crowded? Are there many delays?

Anyone commuting to central london for work? How much does a return ticket cost on average?

I've looked around but I cannot find a definitive source for the life of me. I know the cost can vary but I'm looking for a rough average estimate.

I work at a FAANG. I simply cannot AI effectively.

Without giving identifiable details, I am working on an open-ended optimisation problem. I don't know how to solve it but I have some hypotheses.

Some hypotheses are fairly challenging to implement and require cross-team efforts, some are easier. Testing each hypothesis takes close to an hour, which makes it extremely difficult to use AI interactively. The context window fills up quickly and it starts hallucinating and/or my devserver just randomly crashes.

One thing not to note is that I have very little context on said optimization problem. But the expectation is that I should be able to "just use claude" to ramp up.

In general, I just feel like I'm learning very little and making no progress, all while my actual critical thinking skills are atrophying...

To be honest, even for smaller tasks - I just can't use AI effectively. Maybe part of the problem here is that I'm in a team that's extremely horizontal - we own nothing but are expected to contribute to other systems in our area. I have a very superficial of said system and that could be a reason.

I'm doing interview prep on the side to get out. But curious if anyone else was in the the same boat and managed to turn things around? How did you do it?

I'm just sick and tired of wading through "load-bearing" hallucinations.

I'm 28. Don't have anyone trustworthy to talk to. I'm in a bit of a funk and could use some help. A little about me.

• I work at a big-tech company for the last 5 years, and I'm probably burned out.
• I have a crippling sense of self-doubt because I grok things much slower than others. I'm really bad at thinking things through during meetings.
• Also I struggle to speak. I don't speak a lot for days so sometimes words come out strange. I often myself using AI to "fill" things out for me when writing (I didn't do it for this post though!)
• I'm also very sensitive to reactions. At work when I spend time raising visibility on my work and I don't get a positive reaction, my self-esteem takes a hit. I also feel envious / jealous when I see others getting positive reactions to their work. I'm trying to numb these feelings out.

Recently as I was going out on a walk, I asked myself - would I want to live more than 50? My answer: Not a chance, I'd be so sick and tired by then! I'd want out ASAP.

I feel depressed that that's my reaction. I've got such a short time time on the planet and I'm wanting for things to end things so quickly...

The only thing I have going from me is weights - I like going to the gym and the endorphin rush. It doesn't last too long though.

I've thought about what I really want. Above all I really like the idea of pouring myself into work. I want to work on deep technically satisfying projects, with a small group of people. I'm putting my efforts to find another job.

Any advice on how I can get through this funk?

I'm 28. No friends, no relationship. I'm in a bit of a funk and could use some help. A little about me.

I work at a big-tech company for the last 5 years, and I'm probably burned out.

I have a crippling sense of self-doubt because I grok things much slower than others. I'm really bad at thinking things through during meetings.

Also I struggle to speak. I don't speak a lot for days so sometimes words come out strange. I often myself using AI to "fill" things out for me when writing (I didn't do it for this post though!)

I'm also very sensitive to reactions. At work when I spend time raising visibility on my work and I don't get a positive reaction, my self-esteem takes a hit. I also feel envious / jealous when I see others getting positive reactions to their work. I'm trying to numb these feelings out.

Recently as I was going out on a walk, I asked myself - would I want to live more than 50? My answer: Not a chance, I'd be so sick and tired by then! I'd want out ASAP.

I feel depressed that that's my reaction. I've got such a short time time on the planet and I'm wanting for things to end things so quickly...

The only thing I have going from me is weights - I like going to the gym and the endorphin rush. It doesn't last too long though.

I've thought about what I really want. Above all I really like the idea of pouring myself into work. I want to work on deep technically satisfying projects, with a small group of people. I'm putting my efforts to find another job.

Any advice on how I can get through this funk?

Does anyone commute to Euston 3-4 times a week on West Midlands Railway? What is it like, especially at peak times? I used it on the weekend and it was comfortable, but I am not sure how reliable it is during the week.

Are delays common? How reliable is the train?

I've seen flats of roughly same size, built in same building, but one has pictures with modern furnishing, the other doesn't. The modern is 100k more expensive.

Given that furnishing are typically not included as part of the sell, is this just a strategy to duplicitously increase the value of a flat?

How do you estimate the quality of a flat?

Yes, I'm aware of service charge, ground rent, and lease. I'm asking specifically about quality, which I know can be subjective, but still looking for some insights. Do you look at flat size? Floor plans?

I'm looking at a flat that fits my bill for location + price, but I don't like its interior.

I figured that I can pay to get it remodeled and the overall cost would still be fine.

Is this a common pattern or am I underestimating the hassle of remodeling?

I'm looking at buy a leasehold 2bed flat in Watford. It comes with two private parking spaces.

Q1: Can I rent those out, and if so how does that work? Is it a hassle?

The flat is a good location, about ten minutes from Watford Junction, which is convenient for trips into central London. The service charge is around £260 a month, but there are no communal facilities such as a cinema, gym, or pool, so I'm not sure what I'm actually paying for. I need a way to offset that cost.

Q2: For a place in Watford with no typical amenities like gym/concierge/cinema etc, does a service charge that high make sense?

I'm planning to buy a house in Watford and need to commute to Euston. I'm wondering about the reliability of the West Midlands Railway service that would take me to Euston. How frequent are the delays/cancellations?

Also, how crowded is at peak times? Is it worse than the underground tube?

I will have to commute three to four times a week, and although the tube is a fallback, it would take too long.

I’m looking at a house in Watford and trying to confirm train fares. One source suggests a single is about £13.40

https://www.westmidlandsrailway.co.uk/train-times/watford-to-london-euston

I understand a single ticket is just a trip from Watford to Euston (i.e. without the return from Euston to Watford)

But others say a return (i.e watford -> euston + euston -> watford) is around £17.80, which doesn't make sense as it's only marginally higher than the single??

Can anyone share reliable evidence? What is the current return fare from Watford to London Euston?