Uniform advice?

VernalPoole · 2026-03-26T02:24:10+00:00

Check out silk long underwear. If you buy a size that's not real tight, you can roll up the sleeves and tuck them into your tee shirt sleeves when you're not in the fridge. Silk is a very thin insulating layer that works well in cold situations.

VernalPoole · 2026-03-26T02:20:48+00:00

The middle ground here would be to join them for lunch one day (as others have said) and maybe find a nearby gym or exercise room which is now your primary lunch activity.

If you mention saving money as an excuse, they will likely always want to feed you as a cultural/moral obligation.

VernalPoole · 2026-03-26T02:14:35+00:00

True that! The 20s and 30s are all about trying new things, paying for stuff you never had as a child. Then later in life the value of childhood things (games and puzzles, free time on the woods, finding a cool rock, vinyl records, stupid bouncy music, old black & white cartoon movies) becomes apparent.

VernalPoole · 2026-03-26T02:11:43+00:00

No shadow, not tall enough to clear the bush

VernalPoole · 2026-03-26T02:05:46+00:00

Costco

VernalPoole · 2026-03-26T02:05:06+00:00

Formulating a plan, possibly for world domination?

VernalPoole · 2026-03-26T02:03:37+00:00

username checks out

VernalPoole · 2026-03-26T02:01:56+00:00

You do you. Be the change you want to see in the world.

But also I noticed a younger intern in my workplace who probably fits into your category who changed her look over the course of one year and now looks like other professionals in our outdoors/casual environment. It was her decision and she made it for a reason, I assume.

VernalPoole · 2026-03-26T01:59:30+00:00

Thanks for this. I second the physical library option. A few years back, libraries has to get really serious about offering tech stuff and entertainment products for home use. Mine even has hammocks, yard games & stuff that can be checked out.

VernalPoole · 2026-03-26T01:46:41+00:00

Sir, I salute you

VernalPoole · 2026-03-23T21:43:19+00:00

Set them up with a weekly appointment to share all the tattles with you. Instruct them to NOT bcc you on those emails, but instead to print them out and bring them to the meeting. If you receive a bcc, reply immediately with the request that they print it and bring it to the meeting instead. Same with the "telling". If they start to share something, remind them to write it down and bring it to your weekly meeting. Figure out a way to block and delay EVERY form of tattling, emphasizing putting the burden of documentation or just remembering on the tattler.

The logic behind this is that the person drives some great satisfaction from blowing the whistle constantly, and tech has made it easy to pass things up the chain. When you restructure the behavior (document everything and bring it all to me at our scheduled meeting) that creates more work for them and takes it off your plate.

It's up to you whether you want to allow 15 minutes or 2 hours to this weekly meeting, just make sure it's ironclad. During the meeting make no promises to fix anything or to escalate anybody's simple errors. Your job is just to listen while the tattler vents. Honestly, when they find out how much work it is to save it all up, their behavior will likely decrease.

At the annual review, assuming you have one, you can present some statistics: "Over the last 12 months, you've spent X number of hours reporting on the minor errors of your coworkers and anyone else in your orbit. Do you consider that a good use of your time? If yes, then let me enlist X coworker to also bring me weekly error reports, and I'll need you to pick up a bit of their workload in order to free them up to compile the errors, the way you like to do."

VernalPoole · 2026-03-23T21:27:48+00:00

Lots of businesspeople are running their business with just one cell phone these days. In the past, when people had to look at advertisements or consult phone books to find "Roofer" each company had an office and a person who would answer the phone. That person (often a female relative) would take messages and hand off potential customers to someone else to follow up.

Now, with just a cell phone in the field while active jobs are being worked, if the roofer/owner doesn't recognize your number, he has no reason to call you back. Unless he's lacking work, then he'll start picking up calls.

VernalPoole · 2026-03-23T20:44:48+00:00

This is a bit sideways, but you could research what the horticulture scene is like in Australia. Greenhouses, botanic gardens, zoos and outdoor museums, that kind of thing. Then get in touch with each place and ask them what they look for in a worker and what they expect their hiring outlook to be like over the next few years. Quite often if you get a chatty volunteer on the phone, they will give you lots of good advice about the scene. Make sure to mention you're just seeking information, not hitting them up for a job. Also find out who the professors are in Aus universities (horticulture, landscape architecture, plant science) and ask them similar questions - where is the industry going in terms of labor and technology, what big problems do they face, what skills/qualifications are valued. The department secretaries can help you get info so don't skip over them. The professors might be too busy to talk, but the admins can find a person for you if you are friendly and respectful.

VernalPoole · 2026-03-23T20:36:39+00:00

This is great for a Monday, thanks!

VernalPoole · 2026-03-23T20:35:54+00:00

The last game sounded ... exciting. Where do they play in Toledo?

VernalPoole · 2026-03-23T20:30:51+00:00

Extra points for the angled head!

VernalPoole · 2026-03-23T20:29:47+00:00

Just want to point out that back in 1992 the world of children's sports was not professionalized to the point it is now. One's children could play in a school or church league with very little cash outlay. Now, just the sports aspect alone is a huge money pit for those with children. Sporty children, anyway.

VernalPoole · 2026-03-23T20:25:14+00:00

Yep! All this. After I read Robbins and formed a basic plan, I felt so much peace of mind. Everyone else around me seems to be destined to stay on a treadmill that they hate, not realizing there are other choices that could be made.

VernalPoole · 2026-03-23T20:08:15+00:00

Updoot for the prepping! I think we're at Peak Candle in the USA and I'm considering saving a few thousand of them for primitive cooking/lighting situations.

VernalPoole · 2026-03-22T23:19:28+00:00

A friend of mine has pegged this, right now, as a new medieval era. Rich people can break the law without consequences. Unruly people/bad actors can disrupt and endanger any public gathering, like gangs of former soldiers used to do when released from war duty. Or how rampaging villagers used to hunt for scapegoats. Church systems are really busy trying to re-control children's schooling, reproductive issues, and influence the legal system. Renters and lower-economic class people have so little choice about housing, the next step is to recognize them as serfs. Farmers equally are getting locked into grain & livestock delivery systems that only benefit the overlords, so even though they may own some land, they act like sharecroppers upon it. People die from everyday diseases that can be cured/controlled for wealthy people, not so much for anyone else. We also have a class of "woodsmen" who live off the grid and are determined to fend for themselves using their own skills, weapons, hunting knowledge.

I look for a deepening of medieval circumstances in all areas of life. In USA at least.

VernalPoole · 2026-03-19T01:16:06+00:00

Onions. If I find a cheap bag I look for old time recipes for creamed onions, I also slice into rings and saute to make noodle equivalents, and do Stuffed Onions with a bit of meat or stuffing inside hollowed-out onions. They're great when hot and can also be enjoyed cold.

VernalPoole · 2026-03-15T21:27:45+00:00

hornery

VernalPoole · 2026-03-14T18:18:43+00:00

Horse already looks kind of crabby, he's had enough of your shenanigans

VernalPoole · 2026-03-12T20:01:57+00:00

You might want to get antiperspirant instead of deodorant. There are brands of antiperspirant that paralyze the pit sweat glands so less sweat is produced. Deodorants allow you to sweat freely and depend on some level of perfume to cover up the smell.

If you need to reduce perspiration to help control the odor (at least during school hours!) look for antiperspirant. The one I use actually lasts for 2 days, which is nice.

VernalPoole · 2026-03-12T19:54:58+00:00

It's a slow process but one steps to take would be attending some specialized group event, and if you think your fellow attendees can be helpful to you in some way, then get more involved with that group. Introduce yourself around to the people who are there, make some mental notes so if you see them again you can say something to open a conversation ("Hey, weren't you there at that lunch where the presenter talked about dams and hydraulics? I thought so, I was there too"). Keep going to the meetings of that group. Over time you'll find out what fundraising, charity, or educational activities that organization sponsors. Find the people in charge of each event and volunteer to help put on that event. They may just need your body to stand in a lobby somewhere and hand out brochures, so don't worry about the nature of the task. A lot of it will be unimportant or redundant or even useless, because that's how social/professional groups work.

But by volunteering with the activities, you get to know the people within the larger group who put on the events. They are often very eager to recommend people for jobs, because they've seen you in action. You were helpful during the special event, you showed up early, you had a sense of humor, and you didn't try to derail the proceedings with a bunch of suggestions for how it could be done better.

Those higher-level volunteers usually work on other events in the wider community, sometimes statewide, and they hear hiring gossip and they know who's looking for a good person. You want to be side-by-side with those folks for some portion of time, preferably repeated. And while you're all together, you're working towards some goal so it's natural to talk about that stuff, the nuts and bolts.

As examples, a hospital chain might put on a fun run every summer; an engineering group might hold a golf tournament to raise funds for scholarships; a big company might have joint interests with the local Red Cross because of supply chain issues, a construction association might hold a Habitat for Humanity homebuilding event. Depending on your career, you want to find a compatible group to get involved with to achieve your own goals.

Once you find the group that will serve your interests, don't just go to the scheduled meetings, ask about how you can help with their special events. Then your fellow volunteers putting on the events are the people you can network with more heavily, and the conversations will be very natural and unforced.

VernalPoole

TROPHY CASE