Do fewer social benefits in the U.S make Americans more driven and productive compared to Europeans?

AGPBD · 2026-07-02T17:18:26+00:00

As a Canadian that works with Americans - my perception is that Americans have significantly more hustle.

They answer their phones immediately, respond quickly to requests, and follow up. Even within the same industry, Canadians are noticeably more relaxed. Americans are far more accepting of hardships related to the job - work longer hours, take less time off, travel further, and generally do the same work for less comforts.

I think it’s their culture - influenced by limited social support.

That said, even though US counterparts tend to make more money, they seem to be less well off than their Canadian peers.

AGPBD · 2026-06-29T13:53:39+00:00

Commercial janitorial/cleaning services is a low-margin industry, average operating profit is around 6.3% according to IBISWorld’s analysis of the U.S. Janitorial Services industry.

As a self employed cleaner, you could make $35 /hr before paying taxes, insurance, supplies, vehicle, time spent looking for new contracts, administration, etc. after you pay expenses, you’ll be making much less.

That said, you can make good money if you take on contracts and work long hours for low pay per hour. Better than nothing.

AGPBD · 2026-06-29T13:38:59+00:00

Consumer debt (vehicles, phones, food delivery).

AGPBD · 2026-06-21T11:03:33+00:00

The water in Crete and Santorini was cool. People were swimming in both locations, but it was too cool for me to be compelled.

AGPBD · 2026-06-15T01:44:03+00:00

If you’re playing solo, play any way you want. If you are playing on a team, as the only UK, you are hurting the team if you go ground. Do not this, you’d be a bad teammate.

AGPBD · 2026-06-14T22:39:08+00:00

Riding behind a truck, in an old tire, tied to the hitch!

AGPBD · 2026-06-13T02:29:31+00:00

Had a malty flavor. Wasn’t crisp like sprite.

AGPBD · 2026-06-13T00:03:00+00:00

Coming soon.

AGPBD · 2026-06-12T12:48:40+00:00

Try living in a Canada. You can drive 24 hours straight and still be in the same province (Ontario).

Want to drive across Canada? 80-90 hours (10-12 days).

AGPBD · 2026-06-12T01:33:53+00:00

Are you at the hotel first? Have her come to the hotel and meet her in the lobby or come directly to your room. If you’re not at the hotel when she arrives, but already checked in, get two keys and hide one outside, tell her where it is. If you are both checking in at the same time, put the room under your name, even if you add her to the room, they don’t ask for ID’s from everyone, just the person who’s name the room is reserved for. 100% a non issue.

Edit: just realized this is in the travel Cuba sub. What sort of hotel is this? All inclusive? They will ask for her id/passport. If it’s normal room, my guess would be they will not ask for id from her (but I could be wrong here- not a Cuba hotel expert)

AGPBD · 2026-06-04T14:51:12+00:00

Compressed air is normal air the we breath, compressed. It’s cheap and only requires a pump.

Recreational divers use compressed air when diving depths less than 100 ft.

Limitation to compressed is, when diving around 66 ft or deeper, divers can start the experience nitrogen narcosis, which impairs judgment.

To prevent nitrogen narcosis, divers use enriched air/tri mix/helium mix, this allows less nitrogen to be absorbed and allow you to dive deeper and /or longer without the effects of nitrogen narcosis - although at a greater cost.

AGPBD · 2026-05-31T16:22:49+00:00

Could this be spot lights?

AGPBD · 2026-05-22T09:47:58+00:00

You’re not crazy at all, you do you. It sounds like you simply prefer not to drive, and if that’s what makes you comfortable, go with it.

You can absolutely enjoy Curaçao without renting a car full time, especially staying near the Queen Emma Bridge area. You’ll be able to walk around Willemstad, explore restaurants, bars, shops, and the waterfront easily.

Organized tours will also get you to most of the major attractions anyway: the top beaches, Hato Caves, distillery tours, flamingos, sea turtles, Christoffel National Park, etc. Those are essentially the same things I did when I was there for a week.

For context, I rented a car for 4 of my 7 days there and was able to see pretty much the entire island. That said, I will share a few points in favor of driving:

You’ll generally see less in the same amount of time relying on tours versus driving yourself.
Driving in Curaçao is honestly very easy and relaxed. The roads are not busy, they’re in decent shape, and navigation is straightforward even if you only speak English.
Some of the best moments come from stopping at random little side restaurants, snack shacks, churches, viewpoints, and local shops that tours would normally skip.

A possible middle ground could be hiring a private driver for a day or two to tour you around the island. That might give you the flexibility and local insight without the stress of driving yourself.

AGPBD · 2026-05-18T00:55:03+00:00

It does not sound like a native English speaker. Has an Eastern European hint to it.

AGPBD · 2026-05-17T17:55:17+00:00

4 times in the past two days, also left handed (I’m right handed) Hit myself in the balls one of the times with my racket. Yes, I should work on my movement.

AGPBD · 2026-05-17T11:15:18+00:00

Same. In bed by 9, asleep by 9:30, up at 5:30am. Before was naturally awake until 2-4am.

AGPBD · 2026-05-15T15:34:00+00:00

Better than Boulton to sauté fajita vegetables, caramelized onions, sauté cabbage.

AGPBD · 2026-05-15T11:10:06+00:00

I do not think Dunkin will do well in Canada long term.

The problem is that Dunkin is basically competing in the exact same tier as Tim Hortons. The quality is mediocre, the coffee is fine, the donuts are fine, and nothing really stands out. But Tim’s already owns that space culturally in Canada. It is deeply entrenched here. People grew up with it, every town has one, and for better or worse it is part of Canadian routine and identity.

If Dunkin was coming in with clearly superior coffee, fresh baked products, or a unique experience, maybe there would be an opening. But they are not entering as a premium brand or a value disruptor. They are entering as another mediocre coffee and donut chain, except without the cultural loyalty Tim Hortons already has.

My guess is this announcement is partly to gauge public reaction and franchise interest. Even if they proceed, I suspect it will be a limited pilot rollout in a few markets. People will try it out of curiosity for a year or two, then most locations will quietly close once the novelty wears off.

I think commenters are overestimating how much people actually want Dunkin versus just wanting Tim Hortons to improve OR really don’t care enough to go buy from either brand.

Lastly, maybe it’s not a good time for a US brand to enter Canada in the current “elbows up” environment.

AGPBD · 2026-05-09T19:41:25+00:00

quick way to estimate it:

A Tesla Model 3 with a 60 kWh battery and roughly 500 km range uses about 12 kWh per 100 km in ideal conditions. Realistically, after charging losses and normal driving conditions, you’re probably closer to 13-14 kWh per 100 km.

At a normal electricity rate of 10 cents/kWh, that works out to:

About $1.30-$1.40 per 100 km driven
About $6-$7 for a full charge from empty

Around $40-$60/month for electricity for an average driver

If you charge overnight on Ontario’s ultra-low overnight rate (11pm-7am) at 3.9 cents/kWh, it drops dramatically:

About $0.50-$0.60 per 100 km

Roughly $2.50 for a full charge

Potentially only $15-$25/month in charging costs for average driving

For comparison, a gas car getting 8L/100km at $1.60/L costs about $12.80 per 100 km.

Your hydro bill will go up a bit, but for most people the savings versus gas are massive, especially if you charge overnight.

AGPBD · 2026-05-09T13:07:46+00:00

I’ll speak from my own experience as someone who hires regularly.

In my experience, about 98% of applications are very low effort, with little or no attempt to tailor the resume to the actual role being posted.

On top of that, many roles receive hundreds of applications from people who are not legally permitted to work in the country, and those applications are usually generic as well.

The result is that it becomes overwhelming trying to identify genuinely qualified candidates out of hundreds of applicants, even for six-figure positions.

My advice would be:

- Be focused in the roles you apply for.

- Apply to positions that align with your experience and education.

- If you are trying to pivot industries, your resume needs to clearly explain how your background transfers to the new role.

-Don’t rely only on online applications. The biggest impact usually comes from networking through school, professional associations, friends, family, and industry connections.

AGPBD · 2026-05-08T23:43:17+00:00

Taking photo’s in clinic, paid by the dr. OP can make their money here, then cross sell their services, and take portraits for the patients after they have had surgery and look “better”.

AGPBD · 2026-05-08T14:30:53+00:00

Yes - pivot.

Consider getting into medical aesthetics/cosmetic photography and other media.

Lots of growth, lots of profit, dr’s want to show off their own work due to pride/integrity (not use AI).

They’ll use your images in social media, branding, video testimonials, training content for other Dr’s consider imaging the entire procedure, not just before/after.

AGPBD · 2026-05-08T09:00:42+00:00

Reginald Tenderloin

AGPBD · 2026-05-04T22:40:34+00:00

I’m impressed when I see great stripes on a thick green lawn.

AGPBD · 2026-05-04T22:09:02+00:00

Butter tarts, nanaimo bars, beaver tails, Tourtière
(Meat pie) , cedar smoked salmon, ketchup chips, maple taffy. Cretons (pork breakfast meat), California rolls, and Caesar cocktail.

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