What You've Done Today - Don't do today, what you can get someone else to do tomorrow

[Gromnir]

17 minutes ago, ShadySands said:

Took my son to the aquarium for the first time and he really liked it but got freaked out when trying to feed the stingrays. He pulled his hand back too quickly and scared them and he got splashed. Also mowed the back yard and now about to go eat some marinated red and green chili pork tacos.

 

you already got the tyke pushing a lawnmower to earn his keep? am shocked and impressed. who knows, by this winter you may have free snow removal service for your driveway. 

kidding. even archie bunker probable waited until meathead's eyeballs reached lawnmower handle height. 'course back then as often as not the hardest part were getting those briggs and stratton mower engines to turn over. 

HA! Good Fun!

 

[ShadySands]

He pushes me while I push the lawnmower. He's the kickstand to my peg leg.

[Gromnir]

2 hours ago, ShadySands said:

He pushes me while I push the lawnmower.

'cause in our head, everything has a 1960s or 70s movie soundtrack accompaniment.

HA! Good Fun!

[Gorth]

Just got a letter from Immigration an hour ago... getting invited to the interview part of the citizenship process next month. I better make sure I have any old Danish documents translated by the officially approved translators

[uuuhhii]

couldn't delete folder with space at the end of their name

why is win10 such garbage

[Gfted1]

I laid new flooring in the master bathroom. Note to self; buy kneepads. My knees are sore! Anywho, it was my first try at laying flooring and it was easier than I thought it would be. Turned out awesome and my wife is much pleased.

[melkathi]

What flooring did you do? Laminate is relatively easy, though of course with time errors might show. Especially in warmer climates.

Any flooring is tough on the knees. I guess kneepads can make you a bit more comfortable, but they won't change the fact you are kneeling for hours

[Gfted1]

Yep, a vinyl laminate. This exact one: Silver Fan Gray Rigid Core Luxury Vinyl Tile - Foam Back | Floor and Decor

It snaps together really snugly and Im so anal about things that I was tapping the seams with a rubber mallet until my fingernail would slide smoothly across.

[LadyCrimson]

Co workers bringing hubby an inversion table they're not using, so I spent the weekend moving stuff/clearing space in one room for it.

Also, ate too many (slightly sweetened) cashew nut clusters.

[Raithe]

Easing that Friday feeling into a planned fairly quiet weekend with no rushing around if it can be helped.

Finding myself semi-distracted with creative urges for a second Mando kit. I still haven't finished my first completely, but the explorations I've been doing on the leatherworking side of crafting has gotten me pondering on doing some Early Crusader style Mandalorians (aka, all that leather, bone, carapace styling from The Great Sith Wars).

Hm, also my graphics card looks like it's starting to randomly glitch. Then again, it is a 2060 that's about 4 years old now. Playing some games and suddenly my monitors go blank and stop receiving any signal, while the pc in general is happy.  Since it's not the monitors or the cables, it's looking like the card.  Now I'm pondering on picking up a 4070 as a replacement.

[Hurlshort]

My wife and I had an interesting week taking part in an Educators Workshop for the Marine Corp. They flew us down to San Diego for a week. On day 1, we stepped on the yellow footprints, got yelled at by a drill instructor, and then took part in a combat fitness test. We spent that day at the Marine Corp. Recruit Depot and got to observe a lot of training and speak to the Chief of Staff.

On day 2 we went to Camp Pendleton and took part in Range training and a 12-stall obstacle course, which were basically team puzzles. You had to do things like evacuate a team member over terrain without touching the ground. It was like a souped up version of the floor is lava. My team did a lot of casualty laps, as we did not succeed. I was surprised they let us fire rifles. The recruits spend a week just learning how to hold the rifle. We got about 10 minutes of instruction and then we fired 10 rounds at 100 yard targets. I was pretty mediocre at it. My wife is a better shot.  

Day 2 also had us observe a group finishing the Crucible and receiving their Eagle, Globe and Anchor. They spend 58 hours out on the march and get pushed to their physical and mental limits on week 10 of boot camp, and this is the culmination of that. We got to eat with them afterwards at the Warriors breakfast and talk to the recruits. They were extremely wiped out, but everyone I talked to was proud of the accomplishment. That was a pretty powerful moment.

Day 3 sent us to Miramar, where we got to see the Flight Line and talk to Marines on active duty. It was pretty crazy having the jets take off and land right next to us.

My wife and I also had dinner with one of her former students at Stone Brewing in Liberty Station. The student is in the Navy and is stationed there, and it was great to catch up with her. She used to watch our little kids at sporting events in High School, and now she has her own son, so it was a very neat moment.

On Day 4 we watched the Morning Colors and a graduation ceremony, and then flew home. It was a very unique experience and gave me a much better feel for the process of boot camp. There was a lot of emphasis placed on the educational opportunities available for Marines, and I was impressed by that. 

The leadership speakers like the Chief of Staff were very well spoken. They were all 30 years into the job and passionate. They were also surprisingly progressive in they way they answered our questions. There was an emphasis on the idea that the Marine Corp is not the same as it was 20 years ago. They focused on accountability a lot. A good example of this is when a teacher asked about transgender recruits. First, he said it isn't really an issue at the MCRD. It is an issue for old people, and the MCRD is filled with young people who are much more fluid in their thinking. They handle it simply. Your physical testing scores are based on biological sex, but you bunk with your identified gender. That was interesting to hear.

We were surrounded by recruiters and a few drill instructors through the week and they were great. It was a very unique experience. 

[Keyrock]

@HurlshortDid you get to fire any rifle (M16?) in full auto? If you go by movies then everyone fires assault and battle rifles full auto all the time (from the hip for extra accuracy ), however they are generally more effective when fired in semi auto. Full auto has its uses, for example suppressive fire, but semi auto is used a lot more than full auto. That said, full auto is SUPER fun to shoot. 

Edited July 1, 2023 by Keyrock

[Malcador]

2 hours ago, Hurlshort said:

My wife and I had an interesting week taking part in an Educators Workshop for the Marine Corp. They flew us down to San Diego for a week. On day 1, we stepped on the yellow footprints, got yelled at by a drill instructor, and then took part in a combat fitness test. We spent that day at the Marine Corp. Recruit Depot and got to observe a lot of training and speak to the Chief of Staff.

On day 2 we went to Camp Pendleton and took part in Range training and a 12-stall obstacle course, which were basically team puzzles. You had to do things like evacuate a team member over terrain without touching the ground. It was like a souped up version of the floor is lava. My team did a lot of casualty laps, as we did not succeed. I was surprised they let us fire rifles. The recruits spend a week just learning how to hold the rifle. We got about 10 minutes of instruction and then we fired 10 rounds at 100 yard targets. I was pretty mediocre at it. My wife is a better shot.  

Day 2 also had us observe a group finishing the Crucible and receiving their Eagle, Globe and Anchor. They spend 58 hours out on the march and get pushed to their physical and mental limits on week 10 of boot camp, and this is the culmination of that. We got to eat with them afterwards at the Warriors breakfast and talk to the recruits. They were extremely wiped out, but everyone I talked to was proud of the accomplishment. That was a pretty powerful moment.

Day 3 sent us to Miramar, where we got to see the Flight Line and talk to Marines on active duty. It was pretty crazy having the jets take off and land right next to us.

My wife and I also had dinner with one of her former students at Stone Brewing in Liberty Station. The student is in the Navy and is stationed there, and it was great to catch up with her. She used to watch our little kids at sporting events in High School, and now she has her own son, so it was a very neat moment.

On Day 4 we watched the Morning Colors and a graduation ceremony, and then flew home. It was a very unique experience and gave me a much better feel for the process of boot camp. There was a lot of emphasis placed on the educational opportunities available for Marines, and I was impressed by that. 

The leadership speakers like the Chief of Staff were very well spoken. They were all 30 years into the job and passionate. They were also surprisingly progressive in they way they answered our questions. There was an emphasis on the idea that the Marine Corp is not the same as it was 20 years ago. They focused on accountability a lot. A good example of this is when a teacher asked about transgender recruits. First, he said it isn't really an issue at the MCRD. It is an issue for old people, and the MCRD is filled with young people who are much more fluid in their thinking. They handle it simply. Your physical testing scores are based on biological sex, but you bunk with your identified gender. That was interesting to hear.

We were surrounded by recruiters and a few drill instructors through the week and they were great. It was a very unique experience. 

US military marketing is interesting

[uuuhhii]

didn't sleep for 35 hour again

lasted more than 50 last time

not sure can break that record without some torture device

[Sarex]

40 minutes ago, uuuhhii said:

didn't sleep for 35 hour again

lasted more than 50 last time

not sure can break that record without some torture device

Any occasion?

[uuuhhii]

19 minutes ago, Sarex said:

Any occasion?

no bishoujo mangekyou are involved in any prolonged period of wakefulness

[Bartimaeus]

The longest I ever went without sleeping was just a little over 80 hours. No special occasion, my brain just decided it didn't want to be in anything but a very wakeful state anymore, and I just couldn't do much about it. At about 30 hours, I already felt like a total zombie and it was completely awful, so you have my sympathies - but at 70 hours, the walls and ceilings started to spontaneously manifest writing upon their surfaces, so that was pretty cool. I don't think I'd do it again if given the choice, though.

Edited July 1, 2023 by Bartimaeus

[Hurlshort]

5 hours ago, Keyrock said:

@HurlshortDid you get to fire any rifle (M16?) in full auto? If you go by movies then everyone fires assault and battle rifles full auto all the time (from the hip for extra accuracy ), however they are generally more effective when fired in semi auto. Full auto has its uses, for example suppressive fire, but semi auto is used a lot more than full auto. That said, full auto is SUPER fun to shoot. 

I suppose we could have switched it form semi to full, but I think the range instructors were just trying to make sure we hit our targets.

3 hours ago, Malcador said:

US military marketing is interesting

Military recruiting is a pretty massive machine. The days of the draft are long gone, so now they need to focus on the High Schools and Colleges and convince young men and women it is a good option. They also have a surprising amount of restrictions. For example, if you take Adderall, you are ineligible. Obviously there are a fair amount of Americans that can't meet the physical requirements as well. Really they seem to be targeting kids with potential that lack either purpose, discipline, or means. As an educator, it's usually pretty easy to tell who those kids are after a year or two in the classroom, so it makes sense that they want us to be on board.

Am I now basically a Marine mouthpiece in the classroom? No. I'll be honest if I have a student interested in military service. They are going to spend 3 months breaking you down in order to make you a Marine. It isn't for everyone. It's also an infantry organization first and foremost. Other branches are probably safer. But we met with Marines at all levels and none of them sounded the least bit regretful. Was that just a clever show for us? On some levels, I'd say yes, but those Marines at the Warriors breakfast were pretty raw and honest. 

[Malcador]

What motivated you to attend the event in the first place ?

[Gfted1]

What the recruit scores on the ASVAB has a foundational bearing on their careers: ASVAB, What is ASVAB Test | Military.com

[Hurlshort]

7 hours ago, Malcador said:

What motivated you to attend the event in the first place ?

A week in San Diego with my wife on the government's dime?

It sounded like a fun challenge. Most of my vacations revolve around exercise, so training with the Marines seemed up my alley. My wife is the one who got us on board. She teaches PE and interacts with her local recruiter regularly, so he set us up. Teachers don't get a lot of chances to get flown places and spoiled for a week, either.

[Gromnir]

1 hour ago, Hurlshort said:

A week in San Diego with my wife on the government's dime?

were abnormal cool and wet in san diego this winter, but is generally one o' our favorite towns in california. is also one o' the better destinations for dining in california, although is tough to beat the bay area for food options. furthermore, usd and point loma nazarene college is two o' the most gorgeous campuses we has ever visited... though point loma calls self a university as 'posed to college these days. we never turned down opportunities to visit either destination.

HA! Good Fun!

 

 

[Keyrock]

I went to a BBQ yesterday. The weather was spectacular, save for the fact that it was hot as ****, but it's July in Cackalacky, it comes with the territory. My friend Thiago is the grill master. We bring him the meats and he grills them; my dude is a freakin' magician on the grill, plus he makes amazing chimichurri. An utterly obscene amount of food, meat and otherwise, was consumed. I brought kielbasa from the Polish store, there was steak, wings, pork belly, and the surprise hit from the previous cookout, chicken hearts. After I got home I was in a food induced coma on the couch for several hours. Good times!

[Malcador]

12 hours ago, Hurlshort said:

A week in San Diego with my wife on the government's dime?

It sounded like a fun challenge. Most of my vacations revolve around exercise, so training with the Marines seemed up my alley. My wife is the one who got us on board. She teaches PE and interacts with her local recruiter regularly, so he set us up. Teachers don't get a lot of chances to get flown places and spoiled for a week, either.

Ah ok, fair.  Does the recruiter interact with her officially  ? If so, US recruiting is impressive!   In Canada the Forces here are underfunded so I assume they lack the ability to do that kind of stuff so is outside of my experience.

[Bartimaeus]

Only tangentially related, and I don't know if they still do this now, but many years back, they would once or twice a year send one of their manly man reps to try to recruit people straight out of high school. Never understood why people seemed to gravitate towards them - always thought they were right nasty creeps, so I avoided them like the plague. I remember the very last one I ever saw before graduating had apparently been told specifically to look out for me and ended up following me around and hounded me into filling out and signing some kind of form. Don't remember exactly what it was for, but he tried to sell it to me as some kind of "we have an active interest in you and we would very much like for you to reciprocate that interest". I did and returned it to him, but he didn't notice that I had printed and signed a completely bogus name, . As if I would ever do well in any kind of military setting...don't know what the bloody school staff (or whoever responsible) was telling them for him to have specifically sought out me, but the whole idea was utterly ludicrous.

Edited July 4, 2023 by Bartimaeus
forgot an "and"