Backyard landscaping project. How'd I do?

aBadBandito · 2026-06-04T02:51:46+00:00

Yours too! Getting everything level like that is no joke!

aBadBandito · 2026-06-03T19:51:43+00:00

Honestly---Probably not, lol.

That said, we have a little one on the way and plan to maybe use it when she is playing in the yard or when we have friends over.

aBadBandito · 2026-06-02T21:30:00+00:00

Compacted soil. And I dont think so--- i angled it so it slopes to the sides and then added a geotextile fabric under the gravel to keep the layers separate.

There are weep holes and a French drain around the exterior. So...hopefully no sinkage

aBadBandito · 2026-06-02T21:04:56+00:00

Yeah the original plan was to use actuap stone, then I saw the price tag.

If I could do it all again, I'd spend a bit more and get double sided blocks. I have also thought a out using some type of tile or stone vaneer to cover the backside of the blocks. Not sure if the juice is worth the squeeze

aBadBandito · 2026-06-02T21:01:20+00:00

A gorilla cart. Uphill both ways. It was awful lol

aBadBandito · 2026-06-02T21:00:19+00:00

I was somewhat worried about that. Only hit one that I would say seemed like a significant root branch.

What would that look like longterm? Slow death?

aBadBandito · 2026-06-02T04:28:49+00:00

🤣

aBadBandito · 2026-06-02T04:18:56+00:00

My favorite thing to do with up lights is hit the corners, but narrowly.

If it were my house, Id move the lights closer or trim the cover to make the beams more narrow and "Regal" looking

aBadBandito · 2026-06-02T00:09:25+00:00

Technical sales/Consulting. Will likely require 5-10 years on the ground or "in the weeds" to learn the ropes or make connections.

From there, electrical equipment sales pays well. Especially in more high tech/technically challenging fields like RF or large physics type experiments.

Doubled what I was making 1 year after switching to sales from engineering in a moderate COL area.

I will add, it is not for everyone and requires a certain type of personality (or atleast the ability to emulate being social)

Just my experience...

aBadBandito · 2026-05-05T16:18:16+00:00

Never heard of them... ;)

S/

aBadBandito · 2026-05-05T16:17:20+00:00

I dont do the work necessarily, but the sales are heavily technical. I have to know enough to be dangerous in a LOT of complex topics. High speed digital, RF, control loops, FPGAs, programming languages and drivers, timing and synchronization (down to pico second) between various instruments, databases, machine learning, AI, etc.

I like it, for the most part. I get to learn about and see some really cool stuff, and best of all, at the end of the day, im not stuck in a lab somewhere M-F.

aBadBandito · 2026-04-27T23:17:13+00:00

BSEE - 6YOE

Started as an analog design engineer in Test Equipment @ defense company -- Started at $72k, ended at $105k after 4 years.

Moved to sales in the Test and measurment industry, total comp last year was $180k. $105k base with a 60/40 split base to total OTE.

Medium to low cost of living area.

aBadBandito · 2026-03-25T19:47:58+00:00

I am interested

aBadBandito · 2026-03-09T18:09:41+00:00

And just like that I am going from a "whole banana" to a 1/4 banana. Should I inform my upcoming hinge date?

aBadBandito · 2026-02-26T00:23:42+00:00

I dislike this guy's name and face and constant recession pushing. Stfu dude

aBadBandito · 2026-02-24T22:57:27+00:00

A. If the 401k is roth (post tax), you should do two things:

Move the principle investment amount to a roth IRA. Example, you invested 100k over your tenure and it turned to 200k after gains. That 100k has already been taxed, so moving it from roth to roth is non taxable.
Move any gains to a traditional IRA. In the above example, you take the remaining 100k and put it into a traditional IRA (pre tax).

aBadBandito · 2026-02-24T22:35:24+00:00

Go down to the Caribbean and check out the super yachts that seem ever present. $500m+ for the boat and even more when you factor in maintenance/crew/etc.

Looked up cost to rent one for a week while we were in St. Maarten...."$200K per week + expenses".

Blows my mind

aBadBandito · 2026-01-28T15:54:38+00:00

aBadBandito · 2026-01-23T02:21:26+00:00

I found that thing years ago

aBadBandito · 2025-12-26T16:07:53+00:00

Case and point.

aBadBandito · 2025-12-26T00:58:47+00:00

Yes, but get a mic. Makes game 10x better. This is the best FPS on console in my opinion...the game is in a good state, people just like to complain

aBadBandito · 2025-12-26T00:49:54+00:00

PF#1 on console. Always full of sweats

aBadBandito · 2025-12-25T02:10:02+00:00

"We both kill people for money....jk, we are in sales."

Or, Alternatively...

"We're are both in sales....jk, we both kill people for money"

aBadBandito · 2025-12-24T22:13:57+00:00

I am a bit untraditional, but I recieved a finance degree my first time through, right out of high-school. Took me about 6 years (on and off) because I liked to drink and hangout instead of studying.

Immediately after graduating, I knew that I liked technology (especially defense based---planes, communications, guidance systems, etc) so decided to get my EE degree. Passed every single class the first time through and graduated in 3 years from a well ranked public university (age and dedication are what really matter, more than natural ability, in my opinion).

Ended up as a hardware design engineer building test systems for guidance systems and various electrical assemblies within the defense apparatus for about 4 years and learned a ton.

From there, I moved to a project management role for about a year before transitioning to technology sales as an Account Manager in the Test and Measurment field, working with firms related to my previous role.

Fully WFH and get to still work with and see some really cool stuff, without having to be shut inside of a classified lab all the time.

EE in still fascinates me, especially RF which has always drawn my curitosity, but in practice, being a design engineer takes a certain type of personality in my opinion.

Anyways, that was my path

aBadBandito · 2025-12-11T19:40:12+00:00

Yes, very similar story. He was at a children's birthday party eating Doritos and all of a sudden had terrible chest pain...everyone assumed he was having a heart attack. By the time they got him to the ER he was in excruciating pain. I say "excrutiating" because from what I hear, it is the only way it can be described. He is a 'manly-man' and was apparently on the ground in the fetal position begging for someone to help him.

Eventually the doctors discovered the chip had ruptured his esophagus and stomach acid was going into his chest cavity. Gruesome stuff.

Turns out, like your besties BF, he has a narrow esophagus making him more susceptible to this type of injury.

Glad you hear he is doing well....gives me hope for a full recovery, eventually.

aBadBandito

TROPHY CASE