The Joy of Mountain Biking

A Potted Plant

Honorary Sod
My new org is in Boston and I’m pleasantly surprised by the level of talent there.

Last org was California and while there’s talent, there is 0 loyalty, 0 camaraderie, and as a result very little in terms of job quality. Silicon Valley can eat a silicon dick.

MedRar dick please, cuz fuck loyalty that only benefits the employer. I'd love to move to a boston suburb but the price of housing is like eastern nj, I'd be an hour out and house poor with no significant increase of pay to make up for the cost incurred of being in the greater boston area.

IDK about you but I work to get paid. If I'm not moving up and there is no benefit aside for cash its time to move on regardless of how well I'm treated. I've been at my current company for 5 years this week, and to keep me in my seat I've been given an "apprenticeship" 2 days a week where I work with RPA devs. Take this opportunity away I'm out, my boss knows that as I've but in my notice twice in the past 18 months and they've answered with money/titles and opportunities. My boss knows I'm staying for the opportunity to become a developer.

Once I'm a dev with a few initiatives under my belt I'll jump ship to cash out and cool it so I can go back and get a relevant degree. Then I can sell my soul to the devil at a company like golden sacs cuz everyone know finance is where dumb money is.
 

Patrick

Overthinking the draft from the basement already
Staff member
Hi Joy - I feel ya on this one. Might be an opportunity to manage your manager.

Do quick face-to-face (zoom?) where you explain how you work best (autonomously)
but want to keep the info flowing - Ask what she needs to know to be comfortable that you are fully engaged/on target.
Also, that you want to use slack for priority messages - because it takes you out out of the zone.
Don't let her start suggesting solutions - we all know it can be muted, but is that really a solution?
This is not about changing your behavior - it is about how you work best.

You can use the email example - if the email was a priority, then the slack could have
said something along the lines of "i've sent some ____ by email which needs review/comment by____, is that possible?"
rather than 'did you see it' - cause you will eventually see it.
Nothing worse than someone sending a message that says they have to tell you something and to hit them back later,
only to find it was something they could have passed along via vmail/message.

Couch the conversation in the terms of how you work best, and how to get the most from the both of you.
Helping her be a better manager - What you need from her (come up with something), or you could give her a couple manager things to do.
ie - one of your peers in another dept is always late, causes stress on you/your deliverables. Have your manager talk to their manager
about improving on meeting deadlines or adapting workflow.

Be prepared with the things you want to address - it isn't adversarial, it is attempting at improving
performance and communication at work. Her hearing you say that you can handle "it" might go a long way.

GLWM.
 

serviceguy

Well-Known Member
And 'trenchant' was a good word, Leo. Doe, Kevin was right about intellectual geography.
Is literacy an indication of intellectual ability in your opinion ? BTW, it’s ‘tranchant’...with regard to Kevin...a broken clock is right twice s day, so...seriously, I have been working in several states before moving to NJ and could never understand why some people in the NE is so snotty about other Americans or look up so much at Europe...but I am dumb as I already mentioned. Let’s leave this out of @MissJR ‘s thread though, she’s been too patient already, and I think I can hear the pot lid rattling...I am open to private messages.
 

thegock

Well-Known Member
Is literacy an indication of intellectual ability in your opinion ? BTW, it’s ‘tranchant’...with regard to Kevin...a broken clock is right twice s day, so...seriously, I have been working in several states before moving to NJ and could never understand why some people in the NE is so snotty about other Americans or look up so much at Europe...but I am dumb as I already mentioned. Let’s leave this out of @MissJR ‘s thread though, she’s been too patient already, and I think I can hear the pot lid rattling...I am open to private messages.

Actually, elegance, but continue, Leo: I like green eggs and ham and Joy is a less angry (very disappointed about this...) hiker, now.

💋
 

stb222

Love Drunk
Jerk Squad
Is literacy an indication of intellectual ability in your opinion ? BTW, it’s ‘tranchant’...with regard to Kevin...a broken clock is right twice s day, so...seriously, I have been working in several states before moving to NJ and could never understand why some people in the NE is so snotty about other Americans or look up so much at Europe...but I am dumb as I already mentioned. Let’s leave this out of @MissJR ‘s thread though, she’s been too patient already, and I think I can hear the pot lid rattling...I am open to private messages.
Sarcasm much?
Yes, there are smart people everywhere but will have a higher concentration in the east coast megatropolis simply because people move here because of work.
 

ChrisG

Unapologetic Lifer for Rock and Roll
1. People don't have the time to do things right
As a teacher, I regularly warn my students against confusing "time consuming" with "difficult". Yes, there often is a correlation, but sometimes we just need to admit the task is gonna take longer than we feel like/have available, and we're just gonna half-ass it, or worse. Personally, I think the societal trend toward multi-tasking as a normal expectation is creating a lot of this damage, across multiple generations. We're all being told we need to be able to successfully do "X" number of tasks at once, so we're getting worse and worse at concentrating on one thing and making sure we've done it as well as possible.
I personally think it mostly comes down to accountability.
Another of my pet lecture topics: Rational Choice Theory. If the reward is enticing enough, we do the task. If the punishment is scary enough, we act accordingly. If neither is deemed worthy of our attention, we don't do shit.
 
Last edited:

Santapez

Well-Known Member
Team MTBNJ Halter's
As a teacher, I regularly warn my students against confusing "time consuming" with "difficult". Yes, there often is a correlation, but sometimes we just need to admit the task is gonna take longer than we feel like/have available, and we're just gonna half-ass it, or worse. Personally, I think the societal trend toward multi-tasking as a normal expectation is creating a lot of this damage, across multiple generations. We're all being told we need to be able to successfully do "X" number of tasks at once, so we're getting worse and worse at concentrating on one thing and making sure we've done it as well as possible.

Another of my pet lecture topics: Rational Choice Theory. If the reward is enticing enough, we do the task. If the punishment is scary enough, we act accordingly. If neither is worthy of our attention, we don't do shit.
Multi-tasking in general is absolutely horrible. There's tasks that should take me 1 hour of dedicated attention, that take me 3 weeks to get done because I can't get more than 5 minutes without interruptions. Often any work like that I have to do at night outside of the office. People expect that between phones/emails/slack/etc that everything should be instant.

I put my phone on silent a few years ago and stopped answering work calls entirely. It's pissed off a few people, but it's one less thing breaking my work flow.
 

thegock

Well-Known Member
And a higher concentration of idiots. Where's NY or CA on this list?

https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/slideshows/the-10-smartest-states-in-america

1. "Florida man says..."
2. If these are the HS grad rates for the top ten, then what do the bottom ten look like???? Inquiring minds want to know.
3. Are the SAT scores for two parts or three parts? asking for @serviceguy ...but @SNOWFAK3 can illuminate us here
4. Amazeballs how many people adults have advanced degrees---lesson for your 20 year old kidz
 

rick81721

Lothar
1. "Florida man says..."
2. If these are the HS grad rates for the top ten, then what do the bottom ten look like???? Inquiring minds want to know.
3. Are the SAT scores for two parts or three parts? asking for @serviceguy ...but @SNOWFAK3 can illuminate us here
4. Amazeballs how many people adults have advanced degrees---lesson for your 20 year old kidz

Alabama, Missouri and Tennessee all well ahead of CA and NY :D

https://www.safehome.org/smartest-americans/
 

JDurk

Well-Known Member
Multi-tasking in general is absolutely horrible. There's tasks that should take me 1 hour of dedicated attention, that take me 3 weeks to get done because I can't get more than 5 minutes without interruptions. Often any work like that I have to do at night outside of the office. People expect that between phones/emails/slack/etc that everything should be instant.

I put my phone on silent a few years ago and stopped answering work calls entirely. It's pissed off a few people, but it's one less thing breaking my work flow.
My current incomplete "to-do list" is dated 12/23/20. I've worked all day yesterday, all of today so far, and planning to continue into tomorrow finally completing. I made another on 1/11/21 with some overlap from the previous. I think it's time to make a new plan.

And sticking with the dumb topic. We only have 1 person in the office/shop that is regularly referred to as dumb, and he's a VP. I could refer to a few other as just fucking assholes.
 
Last edited:

Patrick

Overthinking the draft from the basement already
Staff member
Got this txt today. Same person leaves vmail saying they need to tell me something.
:(

Hi 👋 I sent you 2 email this morning
 
Last edited:

roc

Well-Known Member
Got at ttext today. Same person leaves vmail saying they need to tell me something.
:(

Hi 👋 I sent you 2 email this morning
I like the guy who answers the phone and just asks if he can call back later. I could have just left a message.
 

MissJR

not in the mood for your shenanigans
Team MTBNJ Halter's
The Grand Canyon: Down is Optional. Up is Mandatory.

* This is just going to be a recap of the GC portion of our trip. Breaking it up into a couple of different posts to make things easier to read.... so bear with me. It also might be a little on the rambling side.

Originally we had a few various plans to hit up the Grand Canyon last year. First, Steve was able to get a night at the Phantom Ranch. But then the reservation was canceled. Another spot opened up for later in the year and, again, he grabbed it but it also was canceled. In both cases, we planned to hike down together to a certain point where I'd split to head back while he continued down. Then similar plan for the way up. I wasn't sure I'd make it all the way honestly. And it was only one bunk reservation (male dorm) so I couldn't go anyway. Last year we also hit up the GC since our Sedona plans were rained out. We got there too late in the day to do anything but walk around the south rim. The next day we woke up to snow and ice and couldn't do anything. So, this time, we said fuck it... we're going down and up in one day and we're doing it regardless of weather. So we kept an eye on the area's weather and realized we'd need some crampons, rain coats and general winter gear. We also checked out the "average" times people who previously did the hike all the way down took. We had a bailout point plan as well.

The day before the hike, we decided to do a couple of things:
  • We knew we'd have to start before sunrise, so we walked along the paths to where the shuttle buses were. We didn't want to worry about doing any of this (and possible getting lost) in the dark.
  • We also checked out the trail head where we'd be ending at and seeing how far it was from the El Tovar restaurant (because we gambled on the timing and got a reservation) and how far back to the hotel it would be. In part because we'd be tired and in part because it could be in the dark at that point. (FYI: limited shuttle services so we could get a shuttle to the trail head in the morning, but not one from the restaurant in the evening)
  • And, of course, we set alarms and got all of our gear and food ready for the next day.


original_0d1061f6-5a8a-4616-8189-b88c2f8f3ccf_IMG_20210325_132046.jpg


IMG_20210325_145449.jpg


IMG_20210325_165320.jpg

gear: hiking shoes, day back pack w/2L water bladder, snacks, wool hat, gore gloves, trail jersey, LS base layer, running tights for under the hiking pants, puffer coat, rain jacket, smart wool socks, crampons and face mask for the end of the hike.
* not pictured: headlamp, PB & J sandwiches, trail mix.
 

MissJR

not in the mood for your shenanigans
Team MTBNJ Halter's
The Grand Canyon: Going down.

Steve "the narcoleptic" actually woke up before me. He was originally going to let me sleep some more but I woke up and we decided to get ready and head out. It was 5 am when we got up and got ready. We were out the door and headed to the shuttle buses in about 15 minutes. Made it there just a few minutes before the shuttle arrived at 5:30. Hopped on (only ones obviously) and headed to the trail. We weren't allowed to put the crampons on in the bus so we fiddled with them when we got dropped off... which was a good thing. The morning mule train got there at the same time and headed down before us. Those fuckers move fast! Don't get in their way... seriously.

It was dark and snowing lightly when we started. Turned to rain with lots of mud and eventually got drier when we got much closer to the bottom. I used the headlamps for the path to get to the shuttle, but it was almost a full moon and pretty bright out despite the snow storm so we were able to hike the trails without them.

We actually moved pretty quickly until the mud got all sucked into our crampons... so we removed them and just dealt with a little sliding around the muck. Ate snacks and PB&J sandwiches on the way. Stopped to take the usual hundred photos... and made it to the Tonto Trail bail out point much earlier than we were expecting... so down we continued eating and taking photos along the way. We also ran into "the toilet guy" shortly after the Tonto split. Things you don't think about: so there's bathrooms along the trails in certain spots. Aside from mules, no other way to really get supplies down. Soooo.. someone gets to hike the trails with TP and takes care of the bathrooms along the way. Not gonna lie... I like toilet paper and I like the Grand Canyon... Pretty sure I'm qualified to do his job when he wants to retire.

Ran into the mule train again when we got the bridge/tunnel crossing the river at the bottom before the Phantom Ranch. BTW: They shit everywhere.

IMG_20210326_052712.jpg




IMG_20210326_060318.jpg


IMG_20210326_060920.jpg


IMG_20210326_062030.jpg


IMG_20210326_071311.jpg


IMG_20210326_081730.jpg

IMG_20210326_085847.jpg

IMG_20210326_090520.jpg


IMG_20210326_090814.jpg
 

MissJR

not in the mood for your shenanigans
Team MTBNJ Halter's
The Grand Canyon: Phantom Ranch

Made it down to the Phantom Ranch. Got some lemonade. Mailed some postcards. Talked to some other hikers who had been camping a few nights. Adjusted our gear. I didn't realize but my raincoat couldn't quite handle the snow and rain amounts we dealt with so my puffer jacket got wet. Aired out the coats as best I could while we were down there and just put the raincoat back on for the hike up. Kept my fingers crossed that it didn't get too cold at the top and I could skip dealing with a wet puffer jacket.


IMG_20210326_092754.jpg
 

MissJR

not in the mood for your shenanigans
Team MTBNJ Halter's
The Grand Canyon: Going back up

Now the painful part... heading up.

Crossed the other bridge and started making our way up... with stops at Pipe Creek Beach (right on the river!) and Plateau Point. At first I was feeling really good. We were going at a good clip and even passing people. Made it to the Indian Garden stop and decided to do the additional Plateau Point trail (which has a really good view of the river from above.) We kept going back and forth with putting coats on and off... a little rain a little wind and then it would stop and we'd get hot... then we'd get cold and wet again. But overall it wasn't too bad. Walked back along the trail to where it meets at Indian Garden and the rain and wind started picking up a bit. Got water. Used the bathrooms. Readjusted our gear and kept on walking. And that's the point when my legs were starting to object. Not too bad at first... but then my hips were pretty fucking angry at me. It also did not help one bit that basically the entire hike up was mud and giant puddles and more mud and giant puddles. I needed to take some breaks along the way to rest and stretch my legs out. But I didn't want to stop for too long out of fear that I wouldn't be able to get going again.
IMG_20210326_101122.jpg


IMG_20210326_103912.jpg


IMG_20210326_105304.jpg

IMG_20210326_111500.jpg


IMG_20210326_112926.jpg



IMG_20210326_120432.jpg



IMG_20210326_121440.jpg
 
Top Bottom