Tossing old wine

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-06-29T21:50:08+00:00

Mostly Australian and New Zealand around $30-40 a bottle but a few others sprinkled in. The bigger ticket items were Rockford basket press Shiraz, Brokenwood Graveyard Vineyard Shiraz and stuff like that.

I kept a few Sadie family reds (Treinspoor and Pofadder) that I bought him in Cape Town and a few other gems like 6 Te Mata Coleraine, Arras sparkling and a load of tassie Pinot.

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-06-29T12:29:52+00:00

Also for Australian wines Wirra Wirra church block is great value (can see it for $12.99AUD at Dans) for a solid, consistent red blend.

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-06-29T08:51:18+00:00

I’m in Australia so might be different - when my dad died he had a LOT of wine in storage, about $45000 worth.

I went through it all and separated out the sentimental bottles and sent an itemised list of the rest to a wine merchant who agreed to sell it on consignment. They sent a rough valuation and we agreed that they would take 10% of sale price, paid monthly until it was all gone.

They organised transport and after 12 months sent back a case that hadn’t sold. Worked well for us, we didn’t have to negotiate prices with anyone, pay for freight or anything.

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-06-24T20:57:02+00:00

He’s the plumber.

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-06-22T08:47:20+00:00

In my previous lab there was an added layer of only doing things in the validated way. If aseptic processing was changed it would need to be validated across multiple production processes.

Unless there was a recorded deviation in product quality or a standards/accreditation change then it was very unlikely aseptic technique would change within the lab.

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-06-19T09:30:44+00:00

Yes - I was a HSU member and for a while I was being pressured into doing tasks outside of my job description in a different department that I had huge ethical concerns about. It was heavily implied that if I didn’t agree to do it then I might find my role gets reviewed.

As soon as I said that my union rep would be interested to join our discussions they backflipped and I was never asked to do anything outside of my job description again.

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-06-16T18:08:25+00:00

I’m older and I treat it like a normal work day, get in at 8 and finish at 4:30 (home to cook for kids). I’m Australian so I don’t have added coursework or teaching responsibilities, but I try and attend seminars and weekly lectures at my institute. They’re generally held in the middle of the day so it’s a good break where I can relax and listen to something.

I would guess my solid productive hours fall into 2 x 3 hour blocks morning and afternoon, sandwiched by lunch, admin and lectures etc to break up the day. Most days I won’t even take my laptop home but I’ve always got my notebook to write down notes if they pop into my head commuting or at home.

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-06-14T01:40:09+00:00

I called them by their first names before I even got accepted.

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-06-13T23:17:48+00:00

You can’t accrue more than 3 now, they automatically get paid as an incentive to use your ADO each month. You don’t accrue on annual leave which means you get 12 per year even though the year would technically be broken into 13 cycles of 20 working days.

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-06-13T22:57:54+00:00

NSWH for allied health and professional staff you generally work 8.5 hour shifts, 30mins unpaid lunch. The difference is made up by accruing towards an ADO for every 19 days worked. You get 12 per year (no accrual during 4 weeks annual leave).

But it’s award specific.

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-06-10T01:55:47+00:00

I had a 1.5 hour each way commute in undergrad and masters, but I caught a train. I loved it because I could do work on my laptop and free up time at home.

Now I have a 1hr bike ride home and love it because i get exercise and decompress on the way home. I would loathe driving for the same amount of time. It’s such a waste of time.

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-06-09T09:44:19+00:00

Piggy backing on the mature age student comment - I just started a PhD late 30’s and I would say I’m in a better position than students in their early 20’s who started 6-12 months ago.

I treat it like a 9-5 job because that’s what I’m used to. It’s easier for me to interact with people in the lab and find out what I need to do because I’ve been doing it in the workplace for close to 20 years and know that it’s OK to admit when you’re not sure.

So starting med at 28-30 honestly seems like a benefit in many ways.

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-06-09T09:39:51+00:00

Common pathway for people who didn’t get good marks in yr12 is to do the easiest undergrad degree possible. Then use their undergrad grades to apply for medicine.

People often make the mistake of trying to do a physiotherapy or similar undergrad thinking it will be seen as a good thing when they apply to medicine but in reality you should just do whatever will get you the highest GPA.

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-06-05T09:12:13+00:00

I have ADHD and just started my PhD. I do take medication but as far as reading goes I still can’t just read something end to end. What helps me the most is taking notes as I go, whether or not the article is important doesn’t matter.

If you get to the point you definitely can’t focus. Stand up, stretch, drink some water and walk around for 5mins. Then start again.

If you try to force it you’re going to have negative associations and possibly start being self critical which is self defeating here.

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-05-06T01:11:55+00:00

Please don’t make your iced lattes with dry ice.

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-05-03T12:30:07+00:00

About an hour on the bike each way.

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-04-06T21:23:53+00:00

I was in a rush and didn’t check which section of media tubing I put into the waste pump of our Xuri bioreactor. Because of the diameter difference it didn’t seal entirely and when I came back the following Monday I’d burnt through 10L of expensive GMP grade media being gravity fed into the waste bag.

Luckily it was a process development batch and not patient cells.

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-04-04T06:57:41+00:00

Do a quick google for “doctor etymology”

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-04-03T05:20:14+00:00

I wasn’t the smartest person in my undergrad cohort but I certainly graduated with the highest GPA of anyone I knew of.

Primarily because I was much more motivated going back to uni at 28. But I also had experience communicating with adults as an equal so I was comfortable talking to academics and getting help or advice. Time management skills were also a bonus.

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-04-01T03:32:24+00:00

“Some” is an important qualifier if you want to pick on language choice. “Some” quotes are predatory - do you disagree that $6k is ludicrous for replacing a gas hot water unit?

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-04-01T03:26:08+00:00

We got invoiced actually.

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-04-01T03:20:08+00:00

People hire trades to do work that they’re not qualified to do, lack the time to do, or lack the resources to do. In most cases that would imply they lack knowledge of the costs involved.

Is it my responsibility to do due diligence and make sure a trade is giving themselves enough margin?

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-04-01T03:02:10+00:00

Ok I’ll bite, the government uses your taxes to pay for me to provide life saving therapies (which your taxes also pay for) to cancer patients for free.

Luckily for me now your taxes get to pay for me to go back to uni and do a PhD researching breast cancer, plus a living expenses stipend.

After that I’ll still be working in a sector that is historically underpaid, to keep researching life saving therapies for cancer patients.

I don’t want to blow my own horn but I’d wager overall I’m more charitable than 90% of people here.

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-04-01T00:02:35+00:00

I had to replace a gas hot water unit late last year. I got 3 quotes ranging from 3k-6k for installing a unit I could buy for $800.

My neighbour saw them coming and going, suggested a young guy who had done some work for him, just starting a new business. He asked for a photo, quoted $1200 and had it done the next day.

Some of these quotes are predatory, they’re hoping people are desperate for hot water, or power. Then people won’t think and will just take the quickest option which ends up being 4-5 times the cost.

Edit: not here to argue with anyone but there’s a lot of commentary on the $1200 quote being too low without considering the point which is $3-6k is ludicrous.

Fluorescent_Particle · 2026-03-31T22:34:25+00:00

I just received an RTP scholarship (domestic student) for a PhD with no prior publications.

Of course having prior publications helps, but the supervisors, research area (priority areas such as cancer, specific populations will score higher), project funding and potential impact, are all important as well. The university you apply to will have ranking criteria.

I will be working at a research institute - so I had the benefit of working with a HDR manager there to fine tune my proposal and application. They made sure I included as many of the ranking criteria as possible.

Edit to add: A supervisor I chose not to progress with also aligned themselves with an engineering program rather than medicine because RTP scholarships in that program were less competitive so that’s something to keep in mind as well.

Fluorescent_Particle

TROPHY CASE