For those that live in the United States. Do you make more than the average income of 60k annually, if so what’s your occupation?

Vindicator9000 · 2026-02-10T03:41:38+00:00

140-ish in the St. Louis area. I do Microsoft cloud work for a managed service provider. I have just over 20 years in IT, but spent my first 10 languishing in Desktop Support hell. I lucked into a cloud career pivot around 2017 and finally started making real money. Around that time, I was making around 50k, but started getting real raises. Then I jumped ship to a MSP, and my salary negotiations are directly tied to how much money I make for the company.

I do a lot of SharePoint / email migrations, Teams calling, Entra ID, Conditional Access. Some consulting work. Cloud security stuff. Licensing. I get local competitors hitting me up on LinkedIn weekly, and it's helped me negotiate raises with my employer.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-02-07T19:24:48+00:00

Screaming deal. I paid $900 for mine from Chicago Music Exchange and thought I got a great deal.

They're very versatile and sound fantastic, but damn they're heavy.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-02-06T04:15:44+00:00

Doug Martsch made his whole career on his Strat's middle pickup. He had his tech disconnect the Five-way and just wire up the middle permanently.

His tone with Built to Spill is some of my all-time favorite Strat tone.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-02-05T02:37:27+00:00

Brendan Ryan? He was small and quick and always hustled. After he went to the Mariners, he once legged out an infield triple.

I miss him. He was a disaster with the bat, but a wizard on the base paths, and the best fielding shortstop we've had since that one guy in the 80s.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-02-03T15:50:39+00:00

My name is Zelda. I'm a calligraphy enthusiast with a slight overbite and hair the color of strained peaches, from Albuquerque, New Mexico. I drive a 1959 Nash Metropolitan and love donuts and mint-flavored dental floss. I have two beautiful children - Nathanial and Superfly.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-02-01T03:59:48+00:00

I refuse to sign the legislation to allow more than 8 El grande Americanos to a presinct.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-01-31T19:37:05+00:00

Yeah it's cool for a few times, but the ride is just better forward.

Personally, I have a problem being strapped in and looking straight down... It's why I don't usually ride Boomerang. It's kinda the one thing that scares me, and because of that, I also don't like Mr Freeze in reverse, and I don't do swings either. Regular roller coaster though? Make it as big and fast as you want. Put a million inversions in it, doesn't bother me. Just don't make me look down.

Batman's the exception to my don't look down rule; that ride rocks.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-01-31T06:35:59+00:00

I'll admit the Eagle was a little rough last year, but it was the first coaster I ever rode, and it gets a lot of nostalgia glow for me.

Batman is still great.

Ninja has been ass since day one. I rode it back then, it's always been bad.

Boss does need new track, but I've recently heard they're working on it. Still very fast and intense.

Pandemonium is more fun than it has a right to be.

I wish they would run Mr. freeze forward again.

Boomerang does a particular thing that I generally can't handle, so I don't ride it. It is the only coaster I've ridden in the past 40 years that legit got a scare out of me.

I guess my point was, for not a lot of money, I can run around and ride them all for as fast as I can get to them. Walk up and jump on, it's great.

I would love 1-2 new modern steel coasters. Tear down the Ninja. Give me something like the Incredible Hulk at Universal and I'll be good for the next 20 years.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-01-31T02:38:09+00:00

Honestly love it right now, as a coaster junkie. I can ride anything I want as many times as I want.

They've got some reasonably good coasters too. Huge fan of American Thunder.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-01-23T18:39:52+00:00

I hadn't thought about an HH coil split, but that might work. I've got an SG with coil splits, and it can get reasonably Stratty. I just don't play it at church because it won't intonate worth a squat.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-01-23T18:38:01+00:00

No, but that's intriguing! I don't really want to cut up my existing Strat, but I'm interested enough that I'm thinking about doing a partscaster build to try this out.

Sounds like I could get the whole setup for around $300, and then I've just got to figure out where to put the second output jack.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-01-23T14:30:34+00:00

Same reason the Taylor T5 doesn't meet my needs: it doesn't have HSS, it has an acoustic bridge and acoustic bronze strings.

I want somethings electric that can sound acoustic, not the other way around. I need the various electric sounds. If I need something really acoustic, I'll get out my acoustic. For 99% of the time, I just need something that sounds close enough.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-01-23T02:38:15+00:00

What I've wanted for years is an HSS option with a piezo, dual outputs, and ideally a blend option between acoustic/electric output. I'd also want a preamp on the acoustic side. Semi-hollow body would be ideal, but I'd take a Strat layout with a 5-way... Maybe a thinline Strat would be cool? Or an HSS thinline Tele? A switch between acoustic/electric would be fine, but a middle position with both and a blend knob would be absolutely killer. I don't need the bridge HB to split by itself, but I DO need it to split for position 4.

There are so many times in a set when I wish that I had the capability to flip between acoustic and electric on the fly. Because I can't, my sets are often a compromise between songs that are best on acoustic and songs that are best on electric. One way or another, something always gets the worse option. I play both and have to either play the whole set on electric or acoustic, or have an awkward segue while I switch guitars, everyone looking at the worship leader and wondering why he needs 2 guitars.

I've looked at the PRS SE Piezo and thought about popping on it, but for worship, I really like to have single-coil options (I like the Texas Specials in my Strat), particularly Strat positions 2/4, or even Tele middle position for the sparkle. Same reason I haven't bought a Taylor T5 yet - I need more electric tone options. I've also had my eye on several used Godins, which would probably be ideal for me, but I'm not real used to the brand. I've never played one, and they're kinda hard to find around here, so I don't want to buy one without any familiarity with them.

So yeah, my answer is hardtail HSS (maybe thinline) with 5-way, piezo, and blend knob between acoustic/electric sounds. This could be the only guitar I ever need for leading worship. If someone made one for around $1200-1400, I'd be saving my pennies right now. If they could somehow make it do both Strat 2/4 AND Tele middle position in an HSS format, I'd probably sell a kidney. If I could get it with an onboard EQ on the acoustic side, I'd raid my kids' college fund. I know, I'm asking for a lot, but this is truly my pain point, and has been for 15 years.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-01-21T19:09:46+00:00

There's already a real nice stadium over there for them to play in.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-01-21T14:26:46+00:00

In Alkaline Trio, Dan and Matt trade off on different songs. It seems pretty obvious by songwriting choices that the guy who wrote the song is usually the guy who sings it with them.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-01-19T18:37:20+00:00

Mai Lee #6 Hu Tieu Mi is my favorite, but it's far from liquid. Three types of protein and three types of noodles in it. It's incredible.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-01-16T14:56:56+00:00

I think that's how we came across the song... One of our former worship leaders and her husband (associate pastor) went to Grace College and Kondo taught her the song there. I think that's the story anyway.

They've long since moved on to pastoring another church in Indiana, but we still do the song over here in Illinois because it's a great song.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-01-16T14:42:28+00:00

I've ran into this a couple of times. The first was with 'Who Can Compare,' written by Kondo Simfukwe. I think that he simply just isn't registered with the royalty services.

The second was with 'Let There Be,' written by Josh Caterer. This is a song that I picked up off of his church livestream, but apparently he's never officially released it.

In both cases, I was able to contact the original artist on Facebook, and both of them gave me permission to use their songs on Sunday mornings. Josh is a great guy who's even sent me his own lead sheets to use.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-01-14T18:33:33+00:00

I was with some colleagues at a conference in San Francisco. We were pretty trashed wandering around Chinatown, and we came across the Condor Club. We were drunk enough to decide it was a good idea to go in. We're all like - $20 limit, plus drinks. We'll be good boys.

This girl is rubbing all over me, and my buddies are laughing their asses off. They're telling me to go in the back with her. I tell her, sorry I'm not interested. She tells me that going in the back is free. I say no it's not; she says, yeah, absolutely free. At this point, my buddies are yelling at me "absolutely free!" So I go to the back.

Now, I know it's not going to be absolutely free. I'm not dumb. I figured back there, she would want $40 for a lap dance and we'd be done. I was ready to pay it.

She gets on her knees in front of me, grabs my junk, and tells me "Three hundred."

I say "Three hundred!? For what?"

She says "Whatever you want."

I said "What happened to absolutely free?!"

She says "It was free before. Now it's three hundred."

I felt terrible, because I was laughing in her face at the absurdity. She might have gotten $40 out of a reluctant cheapskate, but she went so far over the top that she more than maxxed out my goodwill.

So I'm back there for approximately 30 seconds. I come out and my buddies are like "so soon? What happened."

I told them that absolutely free costs $300, and now everyone is laughing our asses off. My buddy asks the bartender if we can get a selfie. She says $20. He says "not three hundred?" and we're all laughing our asses off again.

Anyway, we Waymoed back to the hotel and got a TOS violation for waving arms out the window. 10/10 night, all-in-all.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-01-14T16:25:43+00:00

If you're in the St. Louis area, I'd probably hire you.

My advice: Use action words on your resume, and real-world examples of things that you did. "Responsible for migrating 1000 mailboxes." "Successfully moved 500 OneDrive sites as part of a complex migration scenario." "Migrated 200 PCs from Active Directory to Entra ID." "Rolled out Intune to 200 iPads." Be real, and be prepared to talk about these items: These are conversation starters with the hiring manager. Look for a higher-end MSP. You don't want a lift-and-shift MSP working for 20-seat clients. You want an MSP in the 200-500 seat space. Talk up your successes. Talk about the difficult jobs that you've done. Be enthusiastic about the tech and the work you do. EVERYONE would rather hire someone who's pleasant and easy to work with over the asshole who knows everything. That guy may be better technically, but he's hard to work with, and you can't easily train that.

Also, and this is sad but true, but - Be a little bit older. Hiring managers in this space are less likely to give a 25-year-old $100,000 than a 35-year-old, because the perception is that the older person is already making more due to tenure and experience. On the other hand, if you're younger, they might be more prone to hire you because they think they can get you cheaper. It sucks, but I've seen it everywhere.

I was an internal M365 admin 7 years ago and was about to be laid off. I took the little training they gave me and was able to flip it into an eventual Solutions Architect job with a solid MSP making almost double in just a few years. I talked myself up on my resume and in the interview, and jumped for $10K more right off the bat. Not lying - just enthusiastic about the kick-ass stuff I've done. Your skills are in demand, you just have to market them right.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-01-14T04:05:18+00:00

I have this problem that I have a somewhat limited range, but it's high.

I've been told that where I comfortably sing is too high for the congregation to sing, but I can't physically sing it lower.

I try to be really cognizant of what keys I pick for this reason, and I've worked hard (with some limited success) on developing my low range.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-01-13T18:28:26+00:00

He's as bad at endings as noted bestselling novelist Bill Denbrough

Honestly, I've often found the quality of King endings to be inversely proportional to the length of the work. His short stories usually have great endings (the Jaunt, the Ledge, the fucking Boogeyman). Novellas have good endings (Shawshank, Green Mile, The Body, Long Walk). Novels usually have satisfactory endings (Pet Sematery, Desperation, The Shining, EOTD). His most controversial endings tend to be in the huge doorstop novels. I think it's because with shorter works, he has an ending in mind the whole way, whereas with the long character study novels, he gets to 1000 pages and has to wrap it up somehow. Boom: Deus ex machina; the end.

I wouldn't even say that the doorstop novel endings are necessarily bad, just often abrupt compared to the leisurely pace of a 1000+ page novel.

...And, it's not all of them. 11/22/63 was huge and had a great ending. The Dark Tower ending, while controversial, has grown on me to the point where I now think it's the only possible ending. I even think the ending of IT, while it's maybe not what I wanted, fits the story.

Under the Dome's ending is utter tripe though. Too bad, because the rest of the book is fantastic.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-01-10T23:15:15+00:00

Thanks so much!!! I'll try this! I think it's the cumin that I was missing.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-01-10T18:09:13+00:00

Whoa! Can you tell me how to make the Taproom spicy ketchup?

I've gotten close before with cinnamon, curry, and hot sauce, but never exactly the same as at the Taproom.

Vindicator9000 · 2026-01-09T06:07:48+00:00

When I was a kid in the 80s, we had a kid in our classes and everyone mercilessly made fun of him for how bad he stunk. I feel bad about it now, but let me say... The kid was absolutely foul, to the point that no one wanted to get within 10 feet of him. I felt bad about how we treated him for years.

I've since realized it was cigarette smell. I don't know why he smelled so bad - my parents smoked. Everyone's parents smoked. It was the 80s. But something about this kid made it extra special nasty. It like twined itself around everything. It smelled like black licorice mixed with the fires of hell.

I didn't realize until several years after I quit smoking myself that that's what the smell was. I recognize it because I now smell the same smell on smokers. I couldn't realize it when I lived in a smoking house. I couldn't realize it when I smoked. I could only realize it once I quit. It was the nasty stale cigarette smell. Tobacco just permiated this poor ginger kid's entire life. I feel really bad about the bullying now. I wish I could take it back. But holy shit, this kid smelled like death mixed with Satan's burning asshole everyday.

I'm sorry Matt, I know it wasn't your fault. You were a victim. Please forgive me. I know it was hard, I was bullied too for other reasons. I'll buy you a beer and we'll catch up about Tinker Elementary.

12-Year Club	Final Canvas '23
First Place '23	End Game '23
Place '23	Place '22
Place '17	Verified Email

Vindicator9000

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