What did you do today?

[highup]

I had a bit of high gloss sealer loaded up in my gun when I was done spraying so I decided to give my miter saw bench a new coat. Apparently the money tree likes it so much it has sprouted some new buds

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I need to do that with my old foldup tablesaw table. I made it 100 years ago.
Ok, maybe 25. It fits my 1993 or 97 Makita table saw. I put some orange shellac on it just once when I made it. It's full of abuse.... drill holes, holes and pokes from awls and drywall screws. The edges of the plywood top were never protected with an edge banding of solid wood.
If I fixed it up all nice and purdy...... any new abuse would show, so I'm not sure what to do to spruce it up.

 

[C.J.]

That’s patina. Nothing a coat of gloss can’t make beautiful.

 

[highup]

Patina good. Maybe I should add some artfully placed burn marks and a spritz of overspray from a misplaced stencil.
Maybe instead of a regular clear coat I could use some minwax wood hardener for a finish. I just used some of that on my recent bathroom job where I replaced the rotten floor and stud area. Interesting stuff and it sure dries fast.

 

[C.J.]

Patina good. Maybe I should add some artfully placed burn marks and a spritz of overspray from a misplaced stencil.
Maybe instead of a regular clear coat I could use some minwax wood hardener for a finish. I just used some of that on my recent bathroom job where I replaced the rotten floor and stud area. Interesting stuff and it sure dries fast.

That’s the thing about work bench’s n such, they get used for work so of course they’re gonna have gouges and overspray. Then they get a coat of whatever you have layin around to seal all that goodness in.

 

[zannej]

I've calmed down but am still annoyed with how corrupt the system is here. They had people in for stuff that had already been dealt with in court previously. They were trying to re-charge some of them even though they had already had their days in court over it and paid the court fees. Charged them for more court fees for having to show up again. Their system is so disorganized. Nobody knew what had already been handled. I've talked to people who, despite having receipts showing their cases had already been handled & all fees paid, were re-tried again and forced to pay fees and accused of failure to appear when they never received notice and had already appeared for the matters. I was told that happens a lot here. They recently changed laws to have higher court fees and to charge a monthly fee for probation which inspires them to give probation for things that they never used to give probation for. Its all about $$$.

My brother's ankle is healing up. No bruising. So he was able to come with me to the store. We ate at Panda, got groceries at Sams, picked up a 10ft pole from Lowes for the satellite mount. I need to spray it with rustoleum to weather-proof it. It's conduit but was sturdy and if fit in the mount perfectly.
I'll have to paint it later. I know I have enough cardboard to lay it on and spray it. Don't care if bugs or dirt get on so long as it get good coverage. I cooked for Mom and am relaxing.

My friend had gone to the neurologist the other day (paid with his tax return) and got some tests run. His blood clots shrunk a little and moved to his frontal lobe. It's affecting his judgment and impulse control. He said he's had a very short fuse.

His ex-stepfather passed away a few weeks back (guy was a complete scumbag) and my friend's half-sisters gave him the flooring that they found in the closet. Some kind of laminate. I didn't see the boxes but friend sent me a picture of before and after. I went over to get pics (while dropping off a bidet attachment) and found his ex left a mess. He had to to work to fix something that broke.

 

[Floorist]

Helped the Girl Scouts with their cookie booth. Sold 205 boxes in 3 hours. $1,025.

 

[highup]

You didn't buy em all did you?

 

[highup]

Bought spark plugs for my S10 at O'Reilly's today. I've used Autolite in my rigs over the years. Decided to go with "genuine" AC Delco this time. That's what the factory installed, so I figure it's good enough.
Sad part is, they're made in China.
....what isn't?
I bought a spark plug thread chaser at AutoZone because the threads are gummed up a bit.
......yeah, China too.

 

[Floorist]

You didn't buy em all did you?

I bought 8 boxes.

 

[zannej]

Honestly, some of the stuff made in China is better quality than stuff made in the US because nowadays a lot of stuff made in the US is made in prisons. I may have mentioned this before. And at some of those prisons the good workers suddenly find drugs planted in their cells or get bogus accusations of fighting or something to extend their stay and they end up doing longer sentences instead of shorter because the prison wants to keep them around. So they will deliberately do crappy work so the prisons will want to be rid of them as fast as possible. They are also allowed to make the inmates work for free or way less than minimum wage.
Ironically, stuff made in Japan is higher quality now (when it used to be absolute junk) because culturally they take pride in doing good work.
Of course, there are prison inmates making stuff in China too. So it's a crapshoot either way and China is known to lie about the materials in things.

I did very little today. Slept, wrangled puppies, and cooked for Mom. I am thinking of cooking something for myself in awhile. I'm hungry and didn't have much to eat today. Pretty sure Mom already went to bed or I'd make shepherd's pie. I need to do some cleaning tomorrow.

 

[Steve079]

Well, its been 2 weeks since I quit the job Id been at for the last almost 8 years, out of utter frustration over the the day to day stuff, and started a job with the guy that I worked for back in 85 when I first got my Contractors license. I feel like I've died and gone to heaven, it wasn't 2 days after I quit when he just happened to run into me at the grocery store. We talked for a few minutes about stuff, then the next day called me to see if I was interested working for him again. Sat down with him and his general manager, and the short of it is. He bought my van from me, then gave it back to me to use as my company vehicle, covers gas, provides paid vacation, health insurance, and matching 401K. My job is trouble shooter, repair guy, and trainer for his not quite journeyman crew members. 22 Crews, been working with different crews, evaluating, and support to help them become the best they can be. We had a meeting that first week, and I know that some of the crew are skilled and competent, but my job is to help those guys that want to move up into the top spots, get there much faster.
The best part is I'm making more money here, then I ever did at my old job, and today the boss told me to use that van as of it was my own. Tow your boat, personal use, what ever. 43 years in, what a great way to ride off into the sunset.

 

[Incognito]

Well, its been 2 weeks since I quit the job Id been at for the last almost 8 years, out of utter frustration over the the day to day stuff, and started a job with the guy that I worked for back in 85 when I first got my Contractors license. I feel like I've died and gone to heaven, it wasn't 2 days after I quit when he just happened to run into me at the grocery store. We talked for a few minutes about stuff, then the next day called me to see if I was interested working for him again. Sat down with him and his general manager, and the short of it is. He bought my van from me, then gave it back to me to use as my company vehicle, covers gas, provides paid vacation, health insurance, and matching 401K. My job is trouble shooter, repair guy, and trainer for his not quite journeyman crew members. 22 Crews, been working with different crews, evaluating, and support to help them become the best they can be. We had a meeting that first week, and I know that some of the crew are skilled and competent, but my job is to help those guys that want to move up into the top spots, get there much faster.
The best part is I'm making more money here, then I ever did at my old job, and today the boss told me to use that van as of it was my own. Tow your boat, personal use, what ever. 43 years in, what a great way to ride off into the sunset.

Congratulations.

 

[zannej]

Steve, that is awesome!

Couldn't sleep last night bc my kitty Temjin got out when I was cleaning puppy crap from the front room (they don't use the puppy pads and they take huge dumps). She'd never been out before and we couldn't find her last night. I didn't realize the door hadn't shut properly. Namir (her brother) got out and came back in through the hole in the back door. But he lost his flea collar somewhere. Not sure if its outside or inside so I had to buy a new one.

Went out early this morning & looked for her. She started hollering at me from the porch, covered in cobwebs and wanting back in. I fed the kitties, let puppies out, napped until 2:30pm and then took my brother to get an x-ray on his ankle/foot. I dropped him off at the hospital and went to pick up his RX for inflammation, got dog food, the collar, etc. Got him some pepto bc he'll need it with the medicine. Meloxicam is rough on the stomach.

I also cleaned my keyboard the other day so keys are responding a bit better. I might need to up the sensitivity though.

I wanted to go cut weeds but I was sweating from just standing outside for a few minutes. It's very damp out there. Blackberries on the other side of the house are flowering. I'll let some of the ones on the fence live, but the rest are going to be annihilated. The ones around the AC must go!

 

[highup]

Well, its been 2 weeks since I quit the job Id been at for the last almost 8 years, out of utter frustration over the the day to day stuff, and started a job with the guy that I worked for back in 85 when I first got my Contractors license. I feel like I've died and gone to heaven, it wasn't 2 days after I quit when he just happened to run into me at the grocery store. We talked for a few minutes about stuff, then the next day called me to see if I was interested working for him again. Sat down with him and his general manager, and the short of it is. He bought my van from me, then gave it back to me to use as my company vehicle, covers gas, provides paid vacation, health insurance, and matching 401K. My job is trouble shooter, repair guy, and trainer for his not quite journeyman crew members. 22 Crews, been working with different crews, evaluating, and support to help them become the best they can be. We had a meeting that first week, and I know that some of the crew are skilled and competent, but my job is to help those guys that want to move up into the top spots, get there much faster.
The best part is I'm making more money here, then I ever did at my old job, and today the boss told me to use that van as of it was my own. Tow your boat, personal use, what ever. 43 years in, what a great way to ride off into the sunset.

22 crews? What is this, the Amazon floor store?
Great news. A business that large needs an educator. So nice that a business sees a need and values someone like you.

 

[Floorist]

22 crews? What is this, the Amazon floor store?
Great news. A business that large needs an educator. So nice that a business sees a need and values someone like you.

Years ago I worked for a carpet store in Kansas City Ks that had 28 full time crews and 10 part time. Was not unusual to get two jobs a day that were 80 miles apart. And they paid nothing for travel. Worked there about a year. Put over 40,000 miles on my van. The store was about 40 miles from my house. Stayed booked for 5-6 weeks. No weekends.

Did my own jobs on Sat.-Sun.

Took a job managing a store for two years. Trained a new manager and went back to installations.

 

[zannej]

Apparently I forgot to post last night that I installed a bidet attachment under the seat of the toilet. Right in the middle of it my brother had to use the toilet and the old seat bolts weren't long enough. Had to temporarily put it back on so he could use it but I'd already shut off the water so I had to put my face near a toilet bull full of crap while working on it. Drawstring on my pants dipped into the toilet while I was bending over it to secure bolts. Had to use tank to bowl bolts instead of the seat bolts bc I didn't have seat bolts long enough.
I got everything but one connection hooked up and last one (supply line to diverter) would not go. Brother attempted for less than 60 seconds and bailed. So I had to bring my friend over and he got it for me. He has stronger hands and better dexterity. Had to get him back quickly in case his ex got back before his Mom left. The ex said something horrible to him to hurt his feelings and his mom overheard him talking about it to someone and wanted to beat the crap out of his ex.
That's a lot of crews! Is that considered normal in the industry?

 

[Floorist]

Apparently I forgot to post last night that I installed a bidet attachment under the seat of the toilet. Right in the middle of it my brother had to use the toilet and the old seat bolts weren't long enough. Had to temporarily put it back on so he could use it but I'd already shut off the water so I had to put my face near a toilet bull full of crap while working on it. Drawstring on my pants dipped into the toilet while I was bending over it to secure bolts. Had to use tank to bowl bolts instead of the seat bolts bc I didn't have seat bolts long enough.
I got everything but one connection hooked up and last one (supply line to diverter) would not go. Brother attempted for less than 60 seconds and bailed. So I had to bring my friend over and he got it for me. He has stronger hands and better dexterity. Had to get him back quickly in case his ex got back before his Mom left. The ex said something horrible to him to hurt his feelings and his mom overheard him talking about it to someone and wanted to beat the crap out of his ex.
That's a lot of crews! Is that considered normal in the industry?

Most of the places I worked had 2-3 crews. Most crews are 2 guys, a few are 3.

 

[C.J.]

Apparently I forgot to post last night that I installed a bidet attachment under the seat of the toilet. Right in the middle of it my brother had to use the toilet and the old seat bolts weren't long enough. Had to temporarily put it back on so he could use it but I'd already shut off the water so I had to put my face near a toilet bull full of crap while working on it. Drawstring on my pants dipped into the toilet while I was bending over it to secure bolts. Had to use tank to bowl bolts instead of the seat bolts bc I didn't have seat bolts long enough.
I got everything but one connection hooked up and last one (supply line to diverter) would not go. Brother attempted for less than 60 seconds and bailed. So I had to bring my friend over and he got it for me. He has stronger hands and better dexterity. Had to get him back quickly in case his ex got back before his Mom left. The ex said something horrible to him to hurt his feelings and his mom overheard him talking about it to someone and wanted to beat the crap out of his ex.
That's a lot of crews! Is that considered normal in the industry?

Having a bidet means you don’t ever have to worry about a TP shortage again. Did you get one that shoots warm water instead of throwing your bum into shock with a blast of cold water?

You shoulda told your brother the toilet was outta service until you were done and either made him hold it or run out behind the shed with a 5 gallon bucket.

Speaking of toilets, how many installers make the customer clean their toilet before you R/R it. I don’t do that on a regular basis but I’ve seen some nasty ones that I straight up tell the customer that they have to clean up their nasty piss residue before I touch their toilet.

 

[highup]

Years ago I worked for a carpet store in Kansas City Ks that had 28 full time crews and 10 part time. Was not unusual to get two jobs a day that were 80 miles apart. And they paid nothing for travel. Worked there about a year. Put over 40,000 miles on my van. The store was about 40 miles from my house. Stayed booked for 5-6 weeks. No weekends.

Did my own jobs on Sat.-Sun.

Took a job managing a store for two years. Trained a new manager and went back to installations.

I charge $30 for a job 18 miles away and $35 for a town that's 24 miles away. I'm not driving 45 minutes or an hour a day + paying for my gas.

 

[Jon]

Having a bidet means you don’t ever have to worry about a TP shortage again. Did you get one that shoots warm water instead of throwing your bum into shock with a blast of cold water?

You shoulda told your brother the toilet was outta service until you were done and either made him hold it or run out behind the shed with a 5 gallon bucket.

Speaking of toilets, how many installers make the customer clean their toilet before you R/R it. I don’t do that on a regular basis but I’ve seen some nasty ones that I straight up tell the customer that they have to clean up their nasty piss residue before I touch their toilet.

A few years ago was sent to lay new vinyl in a bathroom, apparently first builder refused to go there so they had to get another to replace the floor of which I never saw. It was a house for a prison officer which I presumed was rented as the whole village are prison houses as they were built for the prison staff
Who would live in this mess then get trades men to come and do work?