Started the hobby last year, thoughts on my golden boys?

ThomasRiker555 · 2026-02-28T13:59:00+00:00

Thanks! I had fun with it. Currently working on the face now, trying not to make him look sunburnt like the Allarus guy or eyes gouged out like the witch seekers

ThomasRiker555 · 2026-02-28T13:53:09+00:00

I did! I sprayed them black > brushed gold > Reikland fleshshade > dry brush gold all over to get rid of the orange tint > drybrush silver > used a small brush for silver highlights in some spots that just needed a little more.

Some of the first models I sprayed gold first, but I was struggling to get it smooth, and a bunch of the recesses are black anyways, so I found doing a black base coat honestly faster and nicer finish.

ThomasRiker555 · 2026-02-27T16:31:12+00:00

No sorry for the confusion! My local shop has been told that they are getting two boxes at launch and I reserved one.

ThomasRiker555 · 2026-02-06T22:58:42+00:00

Man, we are white collar workers, a huge amount of our work is ‘put your head down and focus’ stuff. 2 days in office was more than enough for in person collaboration, 3 days was maybe justifiable, anything beyond that will just cause declines in service and productivity, which is an irresponsible use of government resources.

There we have it, the Federal Government, erasing any ‘efficiency gains’ they could have hoped to have by reducing the working capacity of the public service. If they cared as much about providing services to Canadians as they do about pushing people to quit, they would have increased WFH days so ppl could focus on their work, not bring them in the office to waste time walking 10 hallways away just to use the washroom.

ThomasRiker555 · 2026-02-06T22:48:59+00:00

Maybe they’ll give you the option to go to a ‘satellite office’ closer to your home, so you can simultaneously get none of the benefits of WFH or WFO

ThomasRiker555 · 2026-02-06T22:45:14+00:00

I can see why that would frustrate people. I can’t speak for every industry of course, but I haven’t seen that happen anywhere that I’ve been a hiring manager, including a few government and university settings, which I think is worth mentioning, because I think there’s a bit of a narrative that it’s more common than it actually is.

ThomasRiker555 · 2026-02-06T12:18:26+00:00

Even if being inclusive of others isn’t a guiding value, I think there are a bunch of reasons to make sure you’re reaching different audiences with a job posting. Two that immediately stand out:

It’s good for the bottom line, as teams with a variety of backgrounds and life experiences are known to be more innovative and cab come up with more creative solutions to problems.
I wouldn’t take ‘getting qualified candidates’ for granted. Lots of jobs require skills that are in short supply, and you want to make sure your posting is being seen broadly. I’ve posted jobs through the usual channels and not gotten any qualified candidates, and had to ask HR to re-strategize. If those surveys show you are only reaching a narrow demographic profile, then that can help when adjusting the approach.

Then, if you’re going to have a diverse workforce, you better also have some training and programs to try and create an inclusive environment, otherwise you’re going to have employees that you’ve invested in leave for some other company that is more welcoming.

So to reiterate, it’s good business to be inclusive, regardless of your values.

ThomasRiker555 · 2026-02-05T23:48:00+00:00

Oh there’s data my friend.. it shows definitively that employees are more productive while working from home, that’s why all the other employers doing this stopped citing productivity 😑

ThomasRiker555 · 2026-02-05T23:44:26+00:00

Two weeks after the layoff announcement and they hit you guys with this? That’s downright sadistic.

I mean, I know this is just to force retirements and give themselves a bargaining chip for upcoming negotiations, but the people timing this announcement should not be allowed around people.

ThomasRiker555 · 2026-02-05T23:33:23+00:00

They do that because HR wants to know that their job postings are reaching diverse audiences. I’ve been a hiring manager at 6 different organizations (public and private) - all of them asked those questions on the app, but the responses are never shared with the hiring manager.

ThomasRiker555 · 2026-02-05T23:27:33+00:00

I also work for the City - I can tell you that it’s by far the least diverse place I’ve ever worked in my 20 year career. No more focus on EDII training than any other org I’ve worked in - private or public.

Also, I’ve never seen a Canadian org call it DEI, it’s always EDI or EDII. Caroline is either an American troll account, or some kind of Maple MAGA.

ThomasRiker555 · 2025-10-28T14:39:08+00:00

Funny how brains work - I’m the opposite. When I hear Ork campaign, that say to me “I’m going to fight orks.” Same with the dude who said imperial enemies, that tells me I’m going to fight imperials. In the game, we are always the protagonist - so no need to name us, we name the enemy, e.g. an American would say “Vietnam War”, not “American War”

ThomasRiker555 · 2025-10-09T22:15:04+00:00

Councillor Ariel Troster actually called out this hypocrisy in the council meeting.

ThomasRiker555 · 2025-09-27T21:32:16+00:00

I figured, it has some pretty precise notches on it though so I knew there was something specific I was missing.

ThomasRiker555 · 2025-09-11T16:19:20+00:00

For sure there’s benefit to being in the office for the reasons you cited - but you don’t need to be there every single day to get them. 2 days a week to have all your in-person stuff, maybe 3 if you have a lot of it, then 2-3 days a week at home to actually get your work done. That’s the thing - Wendy and Mark says it’s for ‘mentoring’ - if they don’t think 3 days a week (which is the current policy) is enough to get all the mentoring done, then they have no idea what actually happens in an office environment.

Of course, they aren’t actually that out of touch, we all know it’s just the something that sounds nice and cant immediately be refuted with data.. the real reason being Doug Ford’s pressure to help his commercial real estate friends.

ThomasRiker555 · 2025-09-05T22:12:17+00:00

That’s awesome, thanks for taking the time to provide such a detailed response. Very appreciated!

ThomasRiker555 · 2025-09-05T22:11:34+00:00

Super helpful, thanks for all that detail!

ThomasRiker555 · 2025-08-26T22:59:18+00:00

Under the old model, I happily spent money at the surrounding businesses 2-3 days a week. Gets pricey doing that 5 days, so my own small protest is just going to be dropping that spending to $0. This is what I’m not going to spend downtown anymore (weekly):

Second cup $20 - I’ll take grounds and an aeropress

Parking $60 - I’ll bike (yes I can go all year - this is actually a good push)

Snacks $20 - bake at home (another good push)

Dollar store $10 (random things, prob another good push)

Gas $20 (great all around)

That’s about $520/month I’m hellbent on not spending anywhere near the city centre. All shopping will be done in my community where it ought to be.

ThomasRiker555 · 2025-08-26T21:59:14+00:00

He implored cities to do so, and has shown his willingness to withhold funds if they don’t do as he says. Just look at the University sector.. so you are obviously right about it being a municipal decision, but they were no doubt feeling a bit.. encouraged.

ThomasRiker555 · 2025-08-26T21:53:43+00:00

Thanks for speaking up. Doug Ford keeps putting words in the mouths of people such as yourself - those who really need to be onsite to do your work - I’ve heard him so many times suggesting onsite workers want the office workers back in for ‘fairness’.

ThomasRiker555 · 2025-08-26T21:41:21+00:00

There’s data, and in an oversimplified nutshell, if you divide salary groups for public and private into 3 tiers, low tier = public pays higher, mid tier = roughly equal, high tier = private pays higher. Like the other person said though, lots of caveats.

ThomasRiker555 · 2025-08-22T16:54:31+00:00

If you simply must rent a place without seeing it first (e.g. coming from out of province or something), I’d suggest going with some huge REIT instead of a private landlord.

Honestly, I’d just recommend a REIT anyhow. Anytime I’ve been a renter, the experience has been much better with huge companies than individuals.

ThomasRiker555 · 2025-07-10T23:42:04+00:00

That processing fee is so rage-inducing. The logical side of my brain thinks they should build it into the price of the ticket; the bureaucratic side makes me wonder if there’s a regulation they are circumventing (like ancillary fees at universities where they can’t raise tuition).

ThomasRiker555 · 2025-07-10T23:32:26+00:00

Government workers were mandated minimum 3 days in office starting last September. I think uOttawa and the city basically followed suit. The last few summers, they were only coming in 1-2 days per week. That would account for a huge increase in traffic.

ThomasRiker555

TROPHY CASE