So we have Social Isolation, which I find particularly spectacular because I no longer have to fabricate reasons to not interact with people.
They say even a broken clock is right twice a day, for anti-social people, this is that time, or one of those times... Damn I killed my analogy.

So I thought we should do something with our copious amounts of time without idiots.

What are you going to achieve?
@hr, has been making scones
c, has been bemoaning corporations generally
iron maiden, has invented a Boston marathon for her liver


But what are we going to commit to do that we have been wanting to do for ages.

• I am going to commit to launching my blog by the end of next week and developing a landing page that is my name with links to my various ventures.
• By the end of week after next I want to rewrite my company website
• By the end of April I want to remodel my office at work, I want to move out of the common area and have a private office
• Start riding to work on my Mountain bike
• Teaching my 6yo daughter coding is also on the agenda

What are you going to do?

I have to finish my Masters dissertation by May 1st - which is very frustrating given how distracting everything is and having no access to a proper library. I'm fairly committed to not stealing academic books online, so it's a big test of my integrity as well. So life is manic and every person who starts a message/email/tv show with 'now that we all have more time on our hands' makes me want to rage punch them. Then I remember that even though I'm busy and frustrated, it's very easy compared to what someone like Kid is doing, so I calm down and give thanks for perspective.

I'm very excited, however, for May 1st as I have lots of reading and writing projects that I have been wanting to work on for a long time. I'm going to refresh my Greek and either Hebrew or Latin over the summer as well which is nerdy but very exciting for me. On top of that I'm aiming to phone 4 people a day during the week come May to check up on them and make sure they're ok. I'm doing that plenty with younger people by text and Facebook or whatever, but I'm looking forward to having the time to do that meaningfully with older folk who are probably lonely and isolated.

I'm also loosing weight during lockdown and I only overeat when I'm bored or in social situations, so not having junk in the house means that I only eat three meals a day and they're all fairly healthly. And I make the most of my one allowed time of outside exercise a day.

Also write the awesome fan fic idea that I think about for an hour when I go to bed and can't sleep each night.

Let's see, I guess I'll just treat this as a to-do list:

- Pay state/federal taxes online, mail local tax return, call/text CPA to pay them for their services and see if they need signed hard copies of forms actually mailed or if scans will suffice.

- Follow up with Wal-Mart third party supplier to see actual status of barbell and plate set.

- Get borrowed lawnmower working, and mow grass.

- Troubleshoot non-starting motorcycle.

- Watch Night 2 of CoronaMania 36.

Seems like a good starting point. I'm surely forgetting something (or many things).

Work is taking up a fair bit of my time still, for which I am grateful for as there as son many who are no longer working and aren't eligible for assistance.

Other than seeing how far I can push my liver before I become a Simpson's character, I have already accomplished a few things off my list.

Accomplished:

I went through my filing cabinet and went through all my files, trashed what I no longer needed and filed stuff that had been piling up. Was a bigger job than I thought but is done for another year. It had probably been at least 3+ years since I'd done it.

Went through all my wardrobe as I have been stress shopping.

To do:

I have a 3 part closet. One part is ALL scrapbooking. There is literally thousands of dollars worth of scrapbooking crap in there and I haven't touched most of it in years. I either need to get on the horse or off. I'd like to move to a digital format and only keep some items. I simply don't have the time to devote to it anymore. I haven't started because I know it's a HUGE undertaking that will likely take at least a full weekend or week.

Our basement. Most of it is my mom's crap and projects that she needs to either do or let go of. We have to get an electrician in and this needs to be done before we can.

Apr 8, 2020 15:32:53 GMT 🤯 said:

Let's see, I guess I'll just treat this as a to-do list:

- Pay state/federal taxes online, mail local tax return, call/text CPA to pay them for their services and see if they need signed hard copies of forms actually mailed or if scans will suffice.

- Follow up with Wal-Mart third party supplier to see actual status of barbell and plate set.

- Get borrowed lawnmower working, and mow grass.

- Troubleshoot non-starting motorcycle.

- Watch Night 2 of CoronaMania 36.

Seems like a good starting point. I'm surely forgetting something (or many things).

If the spark plug and air filter are clean, I have a failsafe way of starting mowers:

1. Pump the priming bulb until you feel fuel in it (if you have one)
2. Flick the Mower to Choke and Pull the cord three times
3. Move the throttle to off and pull the cord three times
4. Move throttle to high (not choke) and pull cord, should go first time.

Apr 8, 2020 16:28:09 GMT iNCY said:

Apr 8, 2020 15:32:53 GMT 🤯 said:

Let's see, I guess I'll just treat this as a to-do list:

- Pay state/federal taxes online, mail local tax return, call/text CPA to pay them for their services and see if they need signed hard copies of forms actually mailed or if scans will suffice.

- Follow up with Wal-Mart third party supplier to see actual status of barbell and plate set.

- Get borrowed lawnmower working, and mow grass.

- Troubleshoot non-starting motorcycle.

- Watch Night 2 of CoronaMania 36.

Seems like a good starting point. I'm surely forgetting something (or many things).

If the spark plug and air filter are clean, I have a failsafe way of starting mowers:

1. Pump the priming bulb until you feel fuel in it (if you have one)
2. Flick the Mower to Choke and Pull the cord three times
3. Move the throttle to off and pull the cord three times
4. Move throttle to high (not choke) and pull cord, should go first time.

You da man. From quick debrief I got from buddy from whom I borrowed the mower, I suspect the plug and filter are alright. I would've been willing to bet only issue was needing fresh gas. However, before we loaded the mower into the bed of my pickup, did a few test yanks on the pull cord and that sucker did NOT wanna budge. Hoping it's just tight from lack of use maybe, if that's a thing? Hopefully nothing a lil brute force and/or WD-40 can't solve. Otherwise, it's off to YouTube to figure out how to disassemble/reassemble this model.

Meanwhile, Wife and I tackled ~99% of that first to-do just now. All that remains is a response from CPA and perhaps a phone call, and then a quick jog to the mailbox.

Not only am I still working (not from home) but they got me doing 6 days.

So I'm dreaming of isolation.

Apr 8, 2020 17:09:09 GMT 🤯 said:

Apr 8, 2020 16:28:09 GMT iNCY said:

If the spark plug and air filter are clean, I have a failsafe way of starting mowers:

1. Pump the priming bulb until you feel fuel in it (if you have one)
2. Flick the Mower to Choke and Pull the cord three times
3. Move the throttle to off and pull the cord three times
4. Move throttle to high (not choke) and pull cord, should go first time.

You da man. From quick debrief I got from buddy from whom I borrowed the mower, I suspect the plug and filter are alright. I would've been willing to bet only issue was needing fresh gas. However, before we loaded the mower into the bed of my pickup, did a few test yanks on the pull cord and that sucker did NOT wanna budge. Hoping it's just tight from lack of use maybe, if that's a thing? Hopefully nothing a lil brute force and/or WD-40 can't solve. Otherwise, it's off to YouTube to figure out how to disassemble/reassemble this model.

Meanwhile, Wife and I tackled ~99% of that first to-do just now. All that remains is a response from CPA and perhaps a phone call, and then a quick jog to the mailbox.

One of my jobs for this weekend is bringing the front yard back into subjection.
I take my lawn care very seriously as highlighted in the boomer thread.
Because I am not American, I have a push mower, but a really nice one:



I also have one of these which is really cool

powerequipment.honda.com/trimmers/versattach

How much lawn do you have?

Apr 9, 2020 1:18:49 GMT iNCY said:

Apr 8, 2020 17:09:09 GMT 🤯 said:

You da man. From quick debrief I got from buddy from whom I borrowed the mower, I suspect the plug and filter are alright. I would've been willing to bet only issue was needing fresh gas. However, before we loaded the mower into the bed of my pickup, did a few test yanks on the pull cord and that sucker did NOT wanna budge. Hoping it's just tight from lack of use maybe, if that's a thing? Hopefully nothing a lil brute force and/or WD-40 can't solve. Otherwise, it's off to YouTube to figure out how to disassemble/reassemble this model.

Meanwhile, Wife and I tackled ~99% of that first to-do just now. All that remains is a response from CPA and perhaps a phone call, and then a quick jog to the mailbox.

One of my jobs for this weekend is bringing the front yard back into subjection.
I take my lawn care very seriously as highlighted in the boomer thread.
Because I am not American, I have a push mower, but a really nice one:



I also have one of these which is really cool

powerequipment.honda.com/trimmers/versattach

How much lawn do you have?

We're renting right now, so I have zero care to do anything but keep the grass from being ridiculously tall. That said, mowing grass is always zen for me. So not complaining. I'm a push guy myself.

I'd guesstimate maybe a quarter acre of mowing here. Really nothing too bad. Too much to do with a weed eater though.

Jealous of you isolation folks, I’m working more hours than ever. I’m doing ten or twelve hour days, six days a week to help people with unemployment stuff.

Apr 9, 2020 2:36:42 GMT mikec said:

Jealous of you isolation folks, I’m working more hours than ever. I’m doing ten or twelve hour days, six days a week to help people with unemployment stuff.

Overtime or hazard pay?

Apr 9, 2020 2:37:59 GMT 🤯 said:

Apr 9, 2020 2:36:42 GMT mikec said:

Jealous of you isolation folks, I’m working more hours than ever. I’m doing ten or twelve hour days, six days a week to help people with unemployment stuff.

Overtime or hazard pay?

Neither for me, though I am getting hour for hour pay for the extra time at least. My team is getting OT. The dream of being exempt.

Apr 9, 2020 3:05:42 GMT mikec said:

Apr 9, 2020 2:37:59 GMT 🤯 said:

Overtime or hazard pay?

Neither for me, though I am getting hour for hour pay for the extra time at least. My team is getting OT. The dream of being exempt.

Fucking bulk spit. And people think the economy matters... (iNCY -_-)

Apr 9, 2020 3:12:41 GMT 🤯 said:

Apr 9, 2020 3:05:42 GMT mikec said:

Neither for me, though I am getting hour for hour pay for the extra time at least. My team is getting OT. The dream of being exempt.

Fucking bulk spit. And people think the economy matters... (iNCY -_-)

I am working 15-17 hours a day for probably 5-6 days a week
Ronnie Coleman said it best:

Apr 9, 2020 3:46:24 GMT iNCY said:

Apr 9, 2020 3:12:41 GMT 🤯 said:

Fucking bulk spit. And people think the economy matters... (iNCY -_-)

I am working 15-17 hours a day for probably 5-6 days a week
Ronnie Coleman said it best:

If you're working 15-17 hours 5-6 days a week, isn't that a crystal clear indicator of inefficiency?

Apr 9, 2020 11:53:28 GMT 🤯 said:

Apr 9, 2020 3:46:24 GMT iNCY said:

I am working 15-17 hours a day for probably 5-6 days a week
Ronnie Coleman said it best:

If you're working 15-17 hours 5-6 days a week, isn't that a crystal clear indicator of inefficiency?

You asshole  :lol:

Let me explain it to you another way.
The company that I used to work for (That I replaced when they went bankrupt) had two owners, one was a Managing Director and the other was a Sales Director.
In addition, I did Business Development and Project Management.
We had another installation technician, a telephone support technician, and Receptionist/Secretary and an Accounts person.
7 people

My business is Me, my Father and my Wife part time.
We turn over minimum 50% more than the company I used to work for. (Allowing for inflation)
Right now I am working to close a 7 million Euro deal, these sort of projects take enormous amounts of work to close.

Apr 9, 2020 12:41:36 GMT iNCY said:

Apr 9, 2020 11:53:28 GMT 🤯 said:

If you're working 15-17 hours 5-6 days a week, isn't that a crystal clear indicator of inefficiency?

You asshole  :lol:

Let me explain it to you another way.
The company that I used to work for (That I replaced when they went bankrupt) had two owners, one was a Managing Director and the other was a Sales Director.
In addition, I did Business Development and Project Management.
We had another installation technician, a telephone support technician, and Receptionist/Secretary and an Accounts person.
7 people

My business is Me, my Father and my Wife part time.
We turn over minimum 50% more than the company I used to work for. (Allowing for inflation)
Right now I am working to close a 7 million Euro deal, these sort of projects take enormous amounts of work to close.

Turn over as in hire/fire or turn over as in clear profit?

And I was mostly ball busting. I know there's zero rest for the true entrepreneur, especially those that work real deals and build real business like you do.

Honestly, it's more of the corporate cogs like me (management even more so) who I can't fathom why they work those kind of hours. Blood in for what out? Nada. No stake in the game, no reward... Just looking like a compliant twat.

It's these big corporations and the monkeys who inhabit them that I'd mostly love to see wiped out by Corona economy. Let the small but motivated guys like you rebuild the world. You either get a shot to make it better, or at least have an opportunity to really reap the riches before the next revolución!

Apr 9, 2020 12:52:09 GMT 🤯 said:

Apr 9, 2020 12:41:36 GMT iNCY said:

You asshole  :lol:

Let me explain it to you another way.
The company that I used to work for (That I replaced when they went bankrupt) had two owners, one was a Managing Director and the other was a Sales Director.
In addition, I did Business Development and Project Management.
We had another installation technician, a telephone support technician, and Receptionist/Secretary and an Accounts person.
7 people

My business is Me, my Father and my Wife part time.
We turn over minimum 50% more than the company I used to work for. (Allowing for inflation)
Right now I am working to close a 7 million Euro deal, these sort of projects take enormous amounts of work to close.

Turn over as in hire/fire or turn over as in clear profit?

And I was mostly ball busting. I know there's zero rest for the true entrepreneur, especially those that work real deals and build real business like you do.

Honestly, it's more of the corporate cogs like me (management even more so) who I can't fathom why they work those kind of hours. Blood in for what out? Nada. No stake in the game, no reward... Just looking like a compliant twat.

It's these big corporations and the monkeys who inhabit them that I'd mostly love to see wiped out by Corona economy. Let the small but motivated guys like you rebuild the world. You either get a shot to make it better, or at least have an opportunity to really reap the riches before the next revolución!

I meant more in total sales turnover, but we easily eclipse them on profit margins even more.

I always say to people in business, learn everything they will possibly pay you to learn. I essentially learnt to sell and be and entrepreneur while getting paid for it (I always generated profit) always worked big hours.

Then there came a day I could put all those skills to work for myself.
I really don't understand people wanting to be a cog when they could own the machine... I don't judge them, but it's not that hard to do it for yourself.

Eternally grateful for all the essential workers at the moment, especially healthcare workers.

I was meant to be moving house before this ramped up as the house I’m renting is for sale. I got approved for a new place to move to but had to decline when the order to shut all bars came down & didn’t know job future.
There wasn’t much interest before this happened, now I’m pretty sure any potential buyers will wait a few months. They were nice enough to give my deposit back which was appreciated.

Thankfully the jobkeeper payment was approved and my work was able to pay us already even though it doesn’t start until May (government back pays them). So in wrestling terms I’m on the AOL/Time Warner contract until clubs can open again 😒.

So I’m just content with staying at home and saving money and improving health. Little things like ordering dinner/takeaway at night on my breaks at work etc definitely take its toll on my wallet (and waist 😂).
So cooking more and trying to eat healthier.

I normally would finish work at 12am or later and go to bed at 4am, now I’m waking up before sunrise. I feel great not getting yelled at by drunk idiots every night so isolation isn’t bothering me.

My son is over two now, and with the loss of his socialization and learning opportunities with his Montessori being closed, it's all about his education and learning now.

My wife is working shorter days, but still goes to the office everyday. I work from home now, and probably working around 6 hours per day. We're trading off with our son.

We continue to limit his screen time to 20 minutes a day (other than facetime) so we're working really hard with him, but super rewarding to see and hear his progress. His vocabulary is so great now. Love to hear him sing!

Overall my life is exhausting. We had another small snow storm this week, so definitely looking forward to some nicer weather so we can at least play in the yard and get outdoor time.

I'm thankful for my continued employment during these times. I can't imagine the financial stress that so many people have. Of course that pales to the stress that the sick, and health care workers experience.

The only other goal besides my son's development is to make the perfect brownie. Chewy, chocolately. Dense. Gotta work on that, yet not get too fat trying out all the recipes.

Head up Foos, screen time is not necessarily a bad thing. What matters more is what content is consumed on the screen. If you can move the young one into screen stuff he can learn from he will get a net gain. Particularly with math and logic/programming games as he gets older. Too many assume all screentime is bad, but screen time that promotes active construction in the brain is as good, if not better, as other learning forms. That said limiting consumption of passive media that does not promote a learning outcome is not a bad idea. But the point it is not the screen that matters as much as what is on it. Random tik tok videos are not going to result in learning, but math games will. Same with cartoons vs science programming and what not.

Hey c, I have started my daughter on programming at 6.there is a great app called ScratchJr which teaches the basic concepts of processes.

Scratch and ScratchJr are great programs. That was one of the areas I was hoping to land up in after a PhD was design on one of the block based programming languages. I wanted to try to bring statistical programming to grade school levels using block based programming and visualization to present complex statistical ideas to early grade levels. Would have been a simple workshop solution and then into a crop growing game to move the concepts into a real world situation of using data to answer questions in commonly encountered design spaces. Plan was to use modeling with drag and drop chains to form the basic test statistic equations and show why the statistics work by having people put them together themselves. When all was said and done I believe the program could have been employed to 3rd or fourth graders to teach college level math and science concepts.

When I was a kid I started out with Logo writer probably nobody remembers that.

I started with a C64 and Basic 2. What an unforgiving language that was. Saving on cassette tape was really weird too. God forbid you messed up and needed to change line names, had to either use a goto command to a new block of code or rename each line 1 by 1.  Organizing the code as a list of named lines was one of the most baffling design systems.

Apr 10, 2020 14:11:26 GMT c said:

I started with a C64 and Basic 2. What an unforgiving language that was. Saving on cassette tape was really weird too. God forbid you messed up and needed to change line names, had to either use a goto command to a new block of code or rename each line 1 by 1.

Yes when I was a kid I had a commodore 16 and basic with the tape player.

Apr 10, 2020 10:08:25 GMT c said:

Head up Foos , screen time is not necessarily a bad thing. What matters more is what content is consumed on the screen. If you can move the young one into screen stuff he can learn from he will get a net gain. Particularly with math and logic/programming games as he gets older. Too many assume all screentime is bad, but screen time that promotes active construction in the brain is as good, if not better, as other learning forms. That said limiting consumption of passive media that does not promote a learning outcome is not a bad idea. But the point it is not the screen that matters as much as what is on it. Random tik tok videos are not going to result in learning, but math games will. Same with cartoons vs science programming and what not.

Yup. Definitely up to date on latest information out there. He just turned two, so there's no rush to turn him into a screen zombie. Currently my son is a puzzle savant. He's working on 5+ year old puzzles now. The screen time he does get is mostly songs and some Sesame Street stuff. We'll look into leapfrog and other programs once he's older. 

Not murder my kids.

Not to become a zombie…

Apr 11, 2020 3:04:48 GMT RT said:

Not murder my kids.

Do you have a small house?
I would have gone a bit insane if we were in our old place.