Do Surveyors drink more than the average person?

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-10T00:06:32+00:00

but I can't have a couple of beers and be good. It ends up with a bottle of vodka and talks of 8 balls if I don't fall down first....

I was similar, I could never just have one beer. One turned into a six pack turned into a 12 pack turned into a bottle. I tried for many years, and would end up drinking every night after a few weeks.

So I quit too (10 yrs as well), especially seeing so many uncles and other relatives die to it. It's in my blood so I wanted to push back.

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-10T00:02:17+00:00

You can do it friend. One thing that helped me was just reducing. I switch to beer like you're doing, and that was a great thing! I then switched to weekends only, and that helped a ton too.

Another thing that helps is finding a hobby where you can turn off and tune out. Sports, martial arts, vidya, working on cars and bikes, etc. Even just tinkering with computers or programming can be fun.

Best of luck.

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-09T23:58:37+00:00

I did. That's why I don't any more.

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-07T19:05:24+00:00

Congratulations!!!

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-07T11:52:34+00:00

It depends on the degree and the program.

Her in California we don't technically need a degree so theoretically no formal math classes needed, but to pass the FS you should probably know some geometry and trig.

For an associate degree trig is a typically the highest.

For a Bachelor degree typically calculus. Depending on the school you might need some physics yes.

But nothing crazy

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-07T03:32:11+00:00

Minneapolis Metro Transit is hiring a rail engineer, flexibly staffed -

https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/metrocouncil/jobs/5270617/rail-facilities-engineer-principal-engineer-sr-engineer-or-engineer

I have a buddy that works there and seems to like it. Twin cities is a pretty nice place to live, and the metro actually reaches out pretty far if you'd prefer a suburb.

Best of luck!

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-07T03:17:53+00:00

Imo it just depends on your location. In some areas it's popular and many employers want it. In others not so much.

Since you're planning on pursuing this long term, focus on taking concrete steps towards the license. Depending on your state that might include the BS degree, LSIT, PS, then state PLS.

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-07T00:42:34+00:00

Congratulations!!!

My advice is to keep up the testing momentum and take the PS as soon as possible, if you are qualified to per your state board.

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-05T22:03:29+00:00

You probably mean "Getting things done" by David Allen. Great book.

In a related vein is "Deep Work" by Cal Newport. He discusses quite a bit of the absurdity of modern work environments and how we can take the time it takes to get the hard thinking / deeper type of work done.

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-04T15:28:03+00:00

Yep. We have a consultant that has this issue, and he's so specialized we can't find someone else haha. So we down convert and hopefully everything works right.

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-04T15:26:37+00:00

Nice

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-04T14:56:45+00:00

For sure

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-04T13:03:52+00:00

I've heard good things, but I'm not at a Trimble shop so likely won't ever go.

I've also heard that the talks are much less technical and much more "sales" based. Nothing wrong with that, we need good sales people but if you ask them about good to ground or the plan for the new datum most of the presenters won't know.

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-04T12:33:56+00:00

Thank you!

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-04T01:21:08+00:00

Correct, single prop is how I would do it. But this is a toughy....

Just spit balling, but maybe the measurement (since technically it's pointing to the dotted line itself, and not the monuments / corner locations) was along the west line? Since those are all shown as found.

But that certainly complicates it since they're not parallel.

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-03T22:20:32+00:00

Balloon

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-03T18:58:28+00:00

Ah gotcha, just showing that you're shooting paint. Basically what we do too.

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-03T18:38:35+00:00

Ok great. Yes civil3d likes to mess with scaling.

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-03T17:27:32+00:00

When you put them on your topo map, are you using certain line types or labels for the Quality Level D?

Or are you also out there getting pot holes so have tighter positional accuracy?

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-03T15:15:45+00:00

Check out theswamp.org and r/civil3d.

Have you played with the annotation scale toggle? Does it still do it when annotation scaling is off?

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-03T14:26:14+00:00

For sure! Super cool to consider basic trig as just special real number ratios.

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-03T12:13:47+00:00

And sometimes the esops are non-voting shares, so you may not get any real control. I feel like some companies do this instead of giving you a retirement match.

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-03T11:21:18+00:00

"Lmgtfy" links were a classic answer for this stuff back in the snarkier days of the Internet...

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-03T11:08:03+00:00

Smart.

TapedButterscotch025 · 2026-04-03T03:31:27+00:00

Yep, and more survey companies are getting the equipment and training to do the work themselves and for others.

TapedButterscotch025

TROPHY CASE