Running Bear's July 2023 Coffee Shop

[bnsf971]

This just came across my desk:

 

[Sirfoldalot]

Speaking of the brother-in-law, who is 8-9 years my junior: He had radiation a couple years back which "burned" him and the spot inside of him will not heal - doctors have tried everything - and he is flat out living on massive amounts of pain pills. I really feel bad for him ... it is not a pleasant life!

 

[TLOC]

I will wade into the pond.

Well work ethic is a learned thing. So look in the mirror and you may see the cause for the lessening of said work ethic. Most of it started with less discipline for our own kids and then of course they handed it down to their kids. I also believe television has had a hand in the preceived lessening of the work ethic. Every generation of bosses have complained about the lessening. IMO we are (baby boomers) the cause of the major generational change producers. I know my mom and dad taught me to get ahead, was to work hard. I taught my kids if you want to have money work hard by being your own boss.

I have worked in Union and non-Union work environments. I have been the road warrior and the guy in the office as a worker bee and the boss. It’s hard when folks want good pay but do not want to put in a full effort. I want to blame the unions along with the guy in the mirror but I really cannot. I have seen in a couple non-Union environments where management just ran over the employee, not good either. Look at the railroads now a days and see what happens to weak unions.

My son had a Crew leader he just let go this week, with 2 weeks severance. This crew does high rise window washing and installations of bird control. They start at $30 per hour plus per job bonuses. The son says this guy had run through his PTO of 6 days and 3 weeks (15 days) vacation and there was still 1/2 the year to go. Wanted a raise, another week vacation and wanted to know if his crews are earning bonuses how come he wasn’t. Son said he tried to explain about the bonus system. You have to be to work on-time for 21 straight days. No unexcused last minute time off unless a family emergenvy. completing a job in a safe, no injury manner and all tools be returned. Not hard to accomplish but this guy was getting $45.00 per hour with a minimum of 32 hours guaranteed each week year round. It wasn’t good enough. Said as he left I will sue you for discrimination as he was the only white guy in a crew of 6. The son said while he’s not looking for a legal battle, he’s up for it.

Both the son and the daughter laugh at me and ask how out of college(1974) I could take a job for $150 a week salary. Trying to explain differences in liveable wages always made for strange conversations. Now that they both have employees working for them, they both tend to understand.

My brother had a merit system and a commission system to ensure his staff worked. The more you bring in the better your commissions. That’s rare now a days and was changed a month or so after he sold the business.

 

[PRR Modeler]

Afternoon All,

I slept in a bit this morning and started out with some chores. After that I made and "planted" 46 trees with another 20 trimmed and painted waiting for vegetation. Tomorrow, I have a cardiac stress test (treadmill) at the VA. Should be fun...not. Not sure what's on the agenda after I survive that. Eldest grandson is having his 18th birthday on Thursday, how time flies.

Mac- Great photos.

Troy- Very nice detail painting.

Terry- Funny cartoon. Is it from the Far Side?

Joe- Interesting histories. IMO the education system is broke based on things my daughter tells me. The policy of everyone is dumbed down to the lowest level is killing us. Add to that everyone passes and everyone gets a trophy it's no wonder that we have the issues we have. I think a lot of it stem from Dr. Spock and his child rearing ideas coupled with parents not doing their jobs as parents.

Louis- Reading your post this morning I wonder if there are any jobs you haven't had?

Tom- Nice size garden.

Guy- Very nice 1:1 shots. I hope the new loco works out for you.

I hope everyone has a good night.

 

[kbkchooch]

I will wade into the pond.

Well work ethic is a learned thing. So look in the mirror and you may see the cause for the lessening of said work ethic. Most of it started with less discipline for our own kids and then of course they handed it down to their kids. I also believe television has had a hand in the preceived lessening of the work ethic. Every generation of bosses have complained about the lessening. IMO we are (baby boomers) the cause of the major generational change producers. I know my mom and dad taught me to get ahead, was to work hard. I taught my kids if you want to have money work hard by being your own boss.

I have worked in Union and non-Union work environments. I have been the road warrior and the guy in the office as a worker bee and the boss. It’s hard when folks want good pay but do not want to put in a full effort. I want to blame the unions along with the guy in the mirror but I really cannot. I have seen in a couple non-Union environments where management just ran over the employee, not good either. Look at the railroads now a days and see what happens to weak unions.

My son had a Crew leader he just let go this week, with 2 weeks severance. This crew does high rise window washing and installations of bird control. They start at $30 per hour plus per job bonuses. The son says this guy had run through his PTO of 6 days and 3 weeks (15 days) vacation and there was still 1/2 the year to go. Wanted a raise, another week vacation and wanted to know if his crews are earning bonuses how come he wasn’t. Son said he tried to explain about the bonus system. You have to be to work on-time for 21 straight days. No unexcused last minute time off unless a family emergenvy. completing a job in a safe, no injury manner and all tools be returned. Not hard to accomplish but this guy was getting $45.00 per hour with a minimum of 32 hours guaranteed each week year round. It wasn’t good enough. Said as he left I will sue you for discrimination as he was the only white guy in a crew of 6. The son said while he’s not looking for a legal battle, he’s up for it.

Both the son and the daughter laugh at me and ask how out of college(1974) I could take a job for $150 a week salary. Trying to explain differences in liveable wages always made for strange conversations. Now that they both have employees working for them, they both tend to understand.

My brother had a merit system and a commission system to ensure his staff worked. The more you bring in the better your commissions. That’s rare now a days and was changed a month or so after he sold the business.

I'll join in too Tom.

With the end of compulsory armed services we had a generation who either had to be smart enough to get into college, or have no framework for success. The military breaks the "holier than thou" or the non conformist types down to dirt, then remakes and molds them into better people. I've seen it with my own eyes. A friend of mine was a real piece of when he was younger. 4 years in the Marine Corps and he came out a better man, with a trade and a future. Left to his own devices I'm certain his life would eventually lead to incarceration. His kids are doing fine, since daddy runs the house like a boot camp.

The other think that is killing us is a system that rewards kids for trying, but not succeeding. Kids need to know failure is necessary for success. Thomas Edison was right when he said “I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.” Whether it is school work, little league ball, music or any other skill. They need to know that the successful people are the ones that never quit, and dont care about "participation trophies". Life is not a dress rehearsal, and there is no such thing as a free lunch!

Off my soapbox now.

YMMV

 

[Bruette]

Louis- Reading your post this morning I wonder if there are any jobs you haven't had?

When I tell my wife "I worked there" she says "Where didn't you work?"

I could not accurately say how many jobs I've had. Maybe if I spent a day trying to think of them all, I know I would forget something.

I started working as a Baltimore Sun paperboy at age 11. At age 15 I was a bouncer in a bar. Other than illness I have never been unemployed for more than a week. I usually had a job the next day. Most of my early years I had two, sometimes three jobs at once. Seventy to one hundred hours or more per week was normal for me.

I only had three jobs that lasted more than two years. Offer me more money, I'll probably take it! I worked almost four years as a paperboy. For four years I did draft beer service at Memorial stadium. I spent three or four Christmas seasons working part time for Toys-R-Us. The rest are blurry. Lanscaping, working in a liquor store, security guard, exterminator, full-service fuel attendant. Coal sampler, truck and off the highway tire service, later sales, and management. I also played semi-pro baseball and football, I never made more than $50/game.

I started working for myself in 1995 and I still do. Even when I was self-employed, I normally did two or three different things. From an independent Industrial mechanic at Bethlehem Steel and many other places to computer manufacturing, service, and sales. Bruette Computers was the most lucrative and the easiest, but the profit dried up. I've bought and sold on the grey market and still do occasionally. Consulting sounds easy, but I don't do much of it anymore because it's not as easy as it sounds.

I'm ashamed to say, but that is just some of the legal things. I was in "wholesale distribution". I was never a part of any "organization" or gang. I was always an independent contractor/hood. I was never a thief and I never hurt anyone that did not try to hurt me first. I gave all that up when I learned I would be a father. Daddies are not supposed to duck and run when they see the flash of red and or blue lights. When I married my first wife she said, "you became a pu$$y". I endured that kind of nonsense for almost 16 years. She fell in love with the thug. The real me was boring.

I've had an eventful life. That is just the business side of my life. The personal side was busier and even more colorful when I was single.

Work hard, play hard, but always go all in.

 

[Bruette]

Good night, Everybody!

MLB Gameday: Twins 1, Orioles 2 Final Score (07/02/2023)

Follow MLB results with FREE box scores, pitch-by-pitch strikezone info, and Statcast data for Twins vs. Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards

www.mlb.com

 

[westtexjohn]

Th.ere are fewer competent people, and fewer of them are willing to perform those tasks.

In dealing with the younger set ...... "I find that common sense is not so common these days".

 

[Boris]

One final thought. When we came up here, my oldest was in Kindergarten...He responded well while in Harford Co.Md. schools, but once here in Jersey, he suddenly became less responsive. He repeated first grade, because his teacher thought he was a "Hick" from "Down South" and needed a fresh start...we reluctantly agreed. (Mistake). Second year, of first grade, some Special ed teacher, took him out of class for "remedial education" We said no, argued that repeating the grade was itself remedial, and threatened to go to the State, before the school district backed down...Imagine what would have happened if we hadn't fought the authorities on his behalf. Second son was a tad fidgety, so his teacher diagnosed him with ADD, and insisted we put him on Ritalin. That is, "Zombify" him so her job was easier. A trip to the Pediatrician and a referral to a Neurologist, confirmed that the teacher was full of . Principal, and Superintendent of Schools sided with Teacher, until I asked him if the Teacher was a licensed physician, or if his doctorate, was in Medicine or Neurology? Suddenly, we the parents were on the right track, and he was reassigned to another class / teacher. Imagine if we would have co-operated or were compliant? (My wife's degree is in Early Childhood Education). I was running South Kearney, and had access to some very nice people with the New Jersey Public Schools.
We fought the K-8 district tooth an nail, so my kids got a good education. We couldn't relax until they were both in the High School District. Wish we could have afforded private school... Our story, just scratches the surface...

 

[CGW121]

In dealing with the younger set ...... "I find that common sense is not so common these days".

Common sense was rare when we were young also.
Mike CGW

 

[KriegslokBR52]

One final thought. When we came up here, my oldest was in Kindergarten...He responded well while in Harford Co.Md. schools, but once here in Jersey, he suddenly became less responsive. He repeated first grade, because his teacher thought he was a "Hick" from "Down South" and needed a fresh start...we reluctantly agreed. (Mistake). Second year, of first grade, some Special ed teacher, took him out of class for "remedial education" We said no, argued that repeating the grade was itself remedial, and threatened to go to the State, before the school district backed down...Imagine what would have happened if we hadn't fought the authorities on his behalf. Second son was a tad fidgety, so his teacher diagnosed him with ADD, and insisted we put him on Ritalin. That is, "Zombify" him so her job was easier. A trip to the Pediatrician and a referral to a Neurologist, confirmed that the teacher was full of . Principal, and Superintendent of Schools sided with Teacher, until I asked him if the Teacher was a licensed physician, or if his doctorate, was in Medicine or Neurology? Suddenly, we the parents were on the right track, and he was reassigned to another class / teacher. Imagine if we would have co-operated or were compliant? (My wife's degree is in Early Childhood Education). I was running South Kearney, and had access to some very nice people with the New Jersey Public Schools.
We fought the K-8 district tooth an nail, so my kids got a good education. We couldn't relax until they were both in the High School District. Wish we could have afforded private school... Our story, just scratches the surface...

Looks like the school wanted to indoctrinate him, which is what i believe is being done in schools on a large scale.

 

[troyphoto]

as for work ethic, my daughter reminds us that it's a two-way street.

She's got a good work ethic, as long as her boss does. Even longer in most cases.

She was an ophthalmology tech... and the doc didn't earn her respect. Early in the pandemic, HE came in coughing and hacking... she wonders how many patients he infected. Most of his three doc office went out sick for 2 weeks or more with C-19 early on. She was one of the first down with the coof thanks to him.

Give her a bad boss, and you'll get exactly what the job description calls for. If she respects her boss, she'll go 120%

She's 30, btw... no military, about half a bachelor's degree is finished. Purdue's Math requirements did her in... she couldn't get better than a D in college algebra, despite us sending her to a religious private school from K to 11th grade. She takes after me in math.

 

[troyphoto]

In other news, played my new favorite wargame today vs ma friend's "Empire of Dust" force (loosely based on Egyptian mythology).

His model case toppled in the back of his SUV, and some units sustained damage. Let's just say the bone giant was very into yoga based on his constant bend at the hips.

My dwarves face about half of the undead horde...

^ His chariots charge my Shieldbreakers (miners)

^His giant skeleton employs the seldom-used French Knights favorite attack... farting in their general direction...

My ironwatch rifles prepare to face the other half of the undead horde....

A grudge has been entered in my Dwarven book of grudges... My enemy shall pay when the dwarves regroup after this setback!

 

[Boris]

Looks like the school wanted to indoctrinate him, which is what i believe is being done in schools on a large scale.

They received grant money from the Federal Government for each "Classified" child in their enrollment. All Public Schools do. It pays for the supposed increased cost of providing a "full and equal education" for the "disabled". The more they classified, the more $ they get.

 

[santafewillie]

As some of you are aware, I am not a baseball fan, but that didn't keep me from going to Texas Ranger games in the 90's when the IRS was more lenient about complimentary tickets from vendors. I was reminded of this when I grilled a rib-eye steak from Nolan Ryan's Angus Beef farm tonight. I don't think that his brand is available much out of the state of Texas. Anyway, I saw two eventful moments in his career in person back then. One was a no hitter against Toronto I believe in 1991, his record setting seventh. I was also present at the infamous game in 1993 when he pummeled Robin Ventura of the White Sox, who had charged the mound.
I also recall seeing The Dixie Chicks, early in their career singing the Star Spangled Banner to open the game several times. The vendor's season tickets were about 10 rows behind the first base dugout where I saw and met George Bush a few times in the 90's when he was the majority owner of the Rangers and after he was elected governor of Texas. The vendor who attended several games that I went to was one of those who liked to "rub shoulders" with the rich and famous. He also paid for the beer.
My father-in-law was from Alvin TX and saw Nolan pitching in high school in the late 50's. At least he said so.

 

[Boris]

The more I thought about my response and the current lead topic, I see somewhat of a correlation between what we experienced, and what we see from our youth today... The other side of this is that there are a lot of young motivated people out there who thrive in the Public School Atmosphere, and advance through higher education. But many others flounder, and are lucky to make it through high school, if they get that far...they are the problem, and the answer is illusive. It's not a matter of getting into an Ivy League or compatible school. it's knowing you're driving on a flat tire. Education is broken, but it's not the only thing broken.
I don't have answers, just questions, for which, no one has answers. Maybe that's why the politicians / powers have everyone at each others throats, so that they don't have to address real issues that affect everyone, regardless of Gender, Race or Ethnicity.

This is probably not the place to discuss this subject, so I'll put my soap box away. What happened here to my kids shouldn't have happened, but it did. We managed to get through this and move on. The boys are doing all right and are going about their lives, while the wife and I are still here...Nothing bad happened, but it still scares me to see what's going on with our younger generations, especially what happened during C-19, and wonder why?

 

[Bruette]

My sister fought Harford County to keep my nephew off ADD drugs. It was a prolonged battle and she needed help from lawyers to win. My nephew now has a master's degree in computer science. He and his wife recently bought 160+ acres in Allegany County, MD. He owns a computer service company and mostly works from home.

When I coached youth baseball, I was the coach that ADD kids were assigned to. I'm no expert, but to be successful as a coach you must always come prepared. Never keep the kids waiting, move from one drill to another quickly. In other words, lazy coaches can't get along with these kids. I loved those kids; their energy and enthusiasm made them good players and great to be around.

I think drugs are an easy way out for teachers, coaches, and administrators. I was unaware of the financial incentives.

 

[bnsf971]

Good morning. It's 78 and mostly clear.

 

[CambriaArea51]

Good morning....Rain and muggy today. Can't pick the weather when you take off, but I always say a rainy day at home is better than a sunny day at work.

 

[KriegslokBR52]

The more I thought about my response and the current lead topic, I see somewhat of a correlation between what we experienced, and what we see from our youth today... The other side of this is that there are a lot of young motivated people out there who thrive in the Public School Atmosphere, and advance through higher education. But many others flounder, and are lucky to make it through high school, if they get that far...they are the problem, and the answer is illusive. It's not a matter of getting into an Ivy League or compatible school. it's knowing you're driving on a flat tire. Education is broken, but it's not the only thing broken.
I don't have answers, just questions, for which, no one has answers. Maybe that's why the politicians / powers have everyone at each others throats, so that they don't have to address real issues that affect everyone, regardless of Gender, Race or Ethnicity.

This is probably not the place to discuss this subject, so I'll put my soap box away. What happened here to my kids shouldn't have happened, but it did. We managed to get through this and move on. The boys are doing all right and are going about their lives, while the wife and I are still here...Nothing bad happened, but it still scares me to see what's going on with our younger generations, especially what happened during C-19, and wonder why?

This entire "pandemic" was BS, was made up and the fact how many panicked shows how dumb general public is. How easy it is to manipulate peoples feelings. All c19 is, just a flu, flu makes a cycle around the world and it transforms on each cycle. Real epidemic is when people start dying by the millions and no one really knows why. So the fact that the gvt. already "knew" it's coming from China should have made thinking people suspicious. The education, lack of faith (in God) throwing out 10 commandments from city squares for example shows that the public in general has lost its mind and can't tell good from the bad. If the issues on TV news is the so called "pride" (everyone knows what i'm reffering to) and not real problems, like falling appart of infrastructure; shows where peoples minds are. But all that should start at home, not preschool or school or college. Solid fundations are not enforced by blue hair parents...because why would they? It's easier to scream on the street than picking up a shovel or hammer or cook in the kitchen.