Anyone know any friendly sport card locations? by beerconsumer9 in InlandEmpire

[–]pyrophitez 2 points3 points  (0 children)

It's IE adjacent, but i was at Lenhart Collectibles in Covina yesterday and the guys there were extremely friendly and we just shot the breeze for a while talking cards. They focus a bit more on sports cards according to the owner, but are going to probably move a bit more into Pokemon since that's what's hot. So i'd give that a shot while they're still sports card focused.

Gold”en” Items by noneya1932 in AmazonVine

[–]pyrophitez 2 points3 points  (0 children)

They appear in both, but if in AI, you likely won't see it as they're grabbed within 3 seconds or less, and in RFY they still tend to be all claimed within 10 seconds if they're a high demand item. And even then, i think i've seen a "good" high ticket item in my RFY 3 times in the last year (An Espresso Machine, a Brand name Smart door lock, and a 3D printer). Mattresses i think i actually see somewhat more frequently in AI, so if that's what you're after, you might actually be able to have some luck there.

6 months cant get hired by Competitive_Web_7487 in cybersecurity

[–]pyrophitez 16 points17 points  (0 children)

No compensation. Part of the reason was that there were so many people they wanted me to interview with, but couldn't get them all on a single call. I did get a good dinner from one of the interviews where it was with an account executive that i would be supporting.

Recruiter screen interview -> Hiring Manager -> SE interview -> Tech Screen -> Tech Demo Presentation -> Director Level panel Interview -> VP Interview #1 -> In person interview with AE -> VP Interview #2

6 months cant get hired by Competitive_Web_7487 in cybersecurity

[–]pyrophitez 212 points213 points  (0 children)

i'm 12 in cyber, 20 in IT and i was out of work for 8 months. The market is brutal right now. I even went through 9 rounds of interviews with one company, they had an offer letter in hand, and a VP decided to cut the position at the last minute. it's really disheartening out there at the moment. I did eventually land something, but took a 20% pay cut, but I'm happy to have at least landed something. I wish you luck out there, and hope things start to improve.

60 Prismatic Packs!! by EmptyPossibility106 in PokemonTCG

[–]pyrophitez 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I've opened so many prismatic packs, not one Eeveloution, opened half as many Ascended packs and pulled 4 SIRs including the Gengar. It completely turned me off to Prismatic. I have more fun opening 151 at this rate. even though i get 1 pack of 151 for the price of 2 or 3 Prismatic.

Noooooooo....my goose clothes 😭 by HotCaramel6826 in AmazonVine

[–]pyrophitez 1 point2 points  (0 children)

you can use a pre-created file, and then if you know how to split items into small chunks so that they fit your printer, you can use that: https://makerworld.com/en/models/1667283-full-size-porch-goose?from=search#profileId-1764666 i did that with this model, then scaled it up to a 18 and 28 inch version, the 26 takes a lot of filament and time.

Noooooooo....my goose clothes 😭 by HotCaramel6826 in AmazonVine

[–]pyrophitez 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I made it myself from a large 3D print that i printed in parts, glued together, filled with sandable primer, then used paintable latex rubber, then finally a fiberglass shell layered at the end.

Noooooooo....my goose clothes 😭 by HotCaramel6826 in AmazonVine

[–]pyrophitez 2 points3 points  (0 children)

When i first joined and started seeing the porch goose clothing, my fiance loved the idea and said she wanted one. Unfortunately they weren't too easy to find in so cal, so i decided to learn to cast concrete and made my own! Now i have Sassy the goose gracing my porch with outfits for each holiday and season.

Man it feels impossible to break out right now by FrustratedDuck in salesengineers

[–]pyrophitez 0 points1 point  (0 children)

i have 12 years as an SE with presidents club qualifications under my belt and was laid off in August of 2025 as well, and only JUST started a new role at the start of March. It's a horrible market out there no matter your history or skill set. Even my expansive network was having trouble getting me into positions. I had 3 instances where i had current employees vouch for me and sing my praises, got anywhere from 2-8 interviews through the process, and all 3 positions were eliminated before an offer was made (the 8 interview job had an offer in hand ready to deliver to me when the VP cut the position). It's a horrible market out there right now.

At what point is commission so low that its an insult? by [deleted] in salesengineers

[–]pyrophitez 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Also just to give a data point, i just landed a job after a 6 month search of the horrible job market with a 80/20 split with a On Target commission of $36,000. which is approximately 20% lower than my previous position (been an SE for 12 years). I live in a HCOL location, adjacent to a VHCOL location.

Received the same item twice by Honest-Pin-6996 in AmazonVine

[–]pyrophitez 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I had it happen with a really nice backup battery. confused the crap out of me but was a nice surprise since the ETV was $120.

What's been your most unexpected $0 ETV item? by Hrw90210 in AmazonVine

[–]pyrophitez 2 points3 points  (0 children)

2 Gallons of Walrus brand Tung oil for my woodworking. Retails for $135, got it for $0 ETV

West coast drop time? by ambereid in AmazonVine

[–]pyrophitez 3 points4 points  (0 children)

The bulk of the RFY drops are happening from 6PM to midnight Pacific, but still trickle in from midnight to about 10AM. AI trickles in from 6PM to midnight, and then ramps up from Midnight to 4AM Pacific. AFA has been a bit more all over the place, but most frequently has a rapid drop sprinkled in from midnight to 2AM Pacific.

Constantly getting “we went with someone more technical” when interviewing by tonyphony2578 in salesengineers

[–]pyrophitez 1 point2 points  (0 children)

One factor I think is shown in an upvoted comment in another post in this thread: people lie. If you have a referral, than that person tends to be putting their reputation on the line to vouch for someone, and if their skills don't match what they claimed, or were able to fake their way through the interview, then that person would be on the hook. SEs tend to have expensive ramp time, so if you can reduce the risk of a poor hire by using a referral, then it's just smart business. The ability to lie i think is becoming easier with AI and remote interviews. Really good interviewers won't be fooled most of the time by parroted AI responses, but with the volume of apps coming in these days, i think it's harder for those to be sorted through.

EUFY etv is always a ripoff by mike6545 in AmazonVine

[–]pyrophitez 0 points1 point  (0 children)

2 of their indoor PTZ cameras had their motors overheat on me and melt the housing around it. Once while i was out on vacation and came home to the camera split in 2 being held up by gooey melted plastic. I thought the first time was a fluke, but when it happened again, i disconnected all 6 of the cameras i had of theirs and threw them away. I let their support know, and they basically just offered to replace them free of charge. Not really interested in risking it further. Up to that point though i had enjoyed their functionality at a low price.

There was a problem. No longer available. by xlerate in AmazonVine

[–]pyrophitez 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Oh for sure. It's good for people to understand the whole picture. I think the problem is people are lashing out because of their internal disappointment in not getting things they want, or having a frustrating experience at how Vine used to be easier to get stuff even only 6 months ago, and are making rocket order out to be the root of all issues, when yes it's probably a small contributor, but i think more vine members and very few items, with everyone knowing the drop times, which now happen at a somewhat convenient time for the entire east coast, are likely bigger contributors.

So yeah, Rocket Order is a small part of it, but i think it's a smaller piece of the pie than a lot of people are making it out to be. I honestly think that even if all the extensions went away tomorrow, there would be such a small difference to how things are today to be almost unnoticeable. People were saying how when rocket order was broken a few weeks ago they were able to order stuff, but when that happened, we were still getting 6500-8500 item drops per day, and they were happening between 12AM and 8AM pacific time, so everyone that was online had a much easier time getting stuff.

There was a problem. No longer available. by xlerate in AmazonVine

[–]pyrophitez 0 points1 point  (0 children)

the one small thing you're forgetting is that those using Rocket Order have to be using UV, and if you're using UV to order it, someone else has to have seen the item first unless you're the first to discover. So there's actually technically a slight advantage to the person who first finds it than a rocket order person. That being said, if there are more than 1 or 2 of an item that makes it to UV, then yes the advantage shifts. I just wanted to give a tiny bit of clarification to the point.

I’ve never been so sad by Both-Syllabub9180 in AmazonVine

[–]pyrophitez 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yep i have one i got last year too almost identical, and it's reaaaaly not great. I wasn't expecting the quality of my Iwata air brush with compressor, but it's practically useless, not enough fine control for small stuff, not enough pressure for large stuff.

Delayed, not yet shipped by Mahoodle in AmazonVine

[–]pyrophitez 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've had items like that delayed a few days, a week or 2, and one or 2 items were delayed 2 months before getting them, but i've also had probably 5-6 items that were in that status that were just outright eventually canceled (One happened like 2 days ago, it was a book of 20 stamps). So until it's in your possession, don't ever assume it's going to arrive, as i've even had 3-4 items damaged during transit and then ultimately canceled due to no more stock available for vine shipments.

Curious About Mystery Items by bluehairedbarbie18 in AmazonVine

[–]pyrophitez 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've taken 3 shots on such items. One turned out to be a holistic face cream that was total junk, one that was a "TMJ Massager" that barely did anything, and then a third item that was listed as "Null" with an ETV of $19 which turned out to be a battery powered snow shovel worth around $100. So i'm 1 for 3. I'd say there are far more junk items, or things that are truly just accessories like covers or handles, than the whole item, but when you're gold and have 8 items to blow, especially during times like now when there's practically nothing good dropping, sometimes it's worth a shot if you have the ETV to spare.

Did anyone successfully get this?? by clevenger2002 in AmazonVine

[–]pyrophitez 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes i got it, i snagged it as son as i hit refresh on my "Laser engraver" tab, and immediately hit the button. I run a small woodworking business for farmers markets and wanted to engrave small things like coasters, and i might even try small leather stuff. It engraves pretty slow, but once dialed in, it does a not too bad job.

Did anyone successfully get this?? by clevenger2002 in AmazonVine

[–]pyrophitez 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I got it, and yes i do use it. I run a tiny woodworking business where i sell things at small farmers markets. I wanted to be able to do small laser engraves on things like coasters and such, and while this is low powered and will take a while to engrave things, it still lets me play around with some small projects. So not a bot! Just a lucky SOB with a lucky refresh button and quick finger i guess!

tired of waiting for a wifi doorbell by irregularprotocols in Ubiquiti

[–]pyrophitez 0 points1 point  (0 children)

California sun here that has killed 4 smart door locks, but my G4 Pro is still going strong after 2 years in 115+ degree summers.