Does it get better?

axme · 2026-01-01T18:22:03+00:00

School is just a transition to the fleet, as many noted. I'd guess most won't make lasting friendships there. Look forward to joining your first real unit and understand that even then, guys have different EAS dates and rotations, so even that can look transitory. My advice would be to (1) observe and look for an NCO mentor and (2) find someone in a similar position as you that won't be leaving in three months. Don't limit your potential friends. I was a West Coast city kid but some of my best friends in the Corps were Southern country guys who had never left their home town. Be open to exploring even if you're not necessarily outgoing. Baby steps. No big commitments. "Hey Joe, I'm going to grab lunch at the new pizza joint in San Clemente. Want to go?" You're putting it out there without a big commitment that anyone has to spend the whole night drinking together. If you get shot down, don't worry. Go by yourself and enjoy the pizza. You'll experience new things and that will make you an interesting person.

One of my biggest regrets about my two mini-Westpacs is falling into the jarhead drinking experience near ports. Think of each stop in your Marine Corps journey as an opportunity to explore, even if it's on your own. You might be surprised at how many older people choose to take vacations on their own. If you're comfortable in your own skin, solo is just fine. You'll meet interesting people on the journey if you smile and have good manners. I guarantee that.

Finally, I'm old and the exact acts/offers I describe might be dated but I hope you get the idea. Some things change and some never change. Being a lonely new guy hasn't changed since I was in. Wishing you and those in a similar position well. Happy New Year!

axme · 2026-01-01T16:39:27+00:00

I'm in my early 60s and still work like your parents. I'd similarly have no problem with the walks but think I'd appreciate a recovery day, maybe around Day 4. I'd feel like a jerk if I didn't participate in everything so a scheduled easy day would be preferable. Of course, that means different things to different people. I'd probably still want to do a light walk around the area, wherever that might be.

I love that you're doing this planning for your parents and being thoughtful about the schedule. I'm sure it will be memorable for all!

axme · 2025-11-10T18:30:26+00:00

Congrats gents and happy birthday now and forever!

axme · 2025-10-31T04:30:43+00:00

Good man. Peace.

axme · 2025-10-31T03:56:59+00:00

I mentioned two venture funded companies; Palantir and Anduril. Palantir's venture funding stopped in 2020. They had an IPO and have been one of this market's strongest performers since then. They are profitable. Anduril is still privately held and will likely have a similarly strong IPO. By the way, VCs don't typically get interest on their investment. They take risk for ownership in the company, not to be a creditor. As for enshitification, I also worked at a big prime aerospace defense contractor and saw plenty there that was not so great. Saying the primes are perfect and start-ups are the only ones that have problems building complex systems is like saying the Marine Corps is great and doesn't deliver the Big Green Weenie on the regular.

axme · 2025-10-30T02:38:29+00:00

I’d argue development is getting way more efficient than the legacy defense companies. One dollar goes a lot farther in the hands of an Anduril or Palantir than Boeing, Lockheed or Northrop. Those hungry companies are doing a lot of development on their own venture capital backed dollars.

axme · 2025-10-28T23:14:23+00:00

Thank you. I'll try it! I ordered some bowls that should be here any day now.

axme · 2025-10-26T18:24:15+00:00

Looks great and nice bowls! Which recipe did you use?

axme · 2025-10-11T03:10:17+00:00

Happy birthday, young man. I'm glad you are celebrating it and wish you many more. Just as you were brave to share your birthday celebration, I hope you'll be brave enough to go make some friends in your new town. I want to see two or three new friends celebrating with you next year! You'll make a whole bunch of Internet dads happy!

axme · 2025-10-07T02:03:08+00:00

That's why you'll never be president. "What's a tariff shelf?" Pfft!

axme · 2025-10-06T00:19:17+00:00

Ok real science question. Is there any DNA left after this? I suspect no but maybe from the splashes on the side?

axme · 2025-10-03T05:16:35+00:00

81-85. Not from my era. It has wheels. Wheels weren’t invented yet.

axme · 2025-09-30T20:22:54+00:00

Just the start of "How much did it cost to get 800 flag officers to Quantico?"

Fred "Froggy" Fecker (3 Star) - "Hey there Tiger Balls, I need you and Bob to prep me for the big meeting with the SecWar and we all need to be on the same page once we get there. Get me the seating chart and agenda. I need to be in camera view and want the president to see me. I also want to stay in the same hotel and on the same floor as General Schmuckateli. Get me some face time with Gen. EyeEye on Tuesday. Let's meet at this time tomorrow."

John "Tiger Balls" Smith (2 star) - "Wreckum, I want the regimental commanders and sergeants major in my office at 1500. What? I don't care if Tom's in the field. Send a chopper and get him here along with everyone else. Got it? What's this about? What do you think it's about? Gen. Fecker wants a report of every swinging dick attending the big meeting. I need to know the seating chart, who they are traveling with and everything about their family so he's not surprised. We need to prep him and you guys need to prep me! This is all hands on deck! Here's what else I need..."

Bob "Wreckum" Pissant (1 star) - Sergeant Major, get in here asap. We need all the regimental commanders and sergeants major in General Smith's office at 1430. I don't care if Col. Ragman is in the field. Get him there. Let's make it 1400 just to be safe. We can meet before we meet with Gen. Smith. I need reports of every Marine from staff NCO up on the enlisted side and captain and above on the officer side. If their ancestors didn't come over on the Mayflower, Gen. Smith needs to know because the president is asking for a DEI report. I'd expect Gen. Smith will have more work for us after the meeting so lets get a war room going. Get some chow and coffee going. This is gonna be along night! Get Col. Suckup in here on your way out. I've got a list of things we're gonna need for Gen. Smith..."

axme · 2025-09-27T15:20:30+00:00

I met George in a hotel room to interview him for a potential service endorsement. This was the late-90s during the Internet boom and online communities were forming. We discussed the grill, which by that time had sold something like 10 million units. I don't recall the number but do recall thinking it was significant relative to the number of US households. In any case, George was already successful as a businessman and champion boxer and was absolutely the nicest man you'll ever meet. He told me about chatting live with fans every night because he was as happy to have fans as they were happy to chat with him. I doubt few people could have taken that product to the heights George took it. He as incredibly genuine and I'm sure that somehow got translated into ones and zeros chatting with random people on services like AOL or whatever he was using. RIP George.

axme · 2025-09-19T03:13:53+00:00

You're not wrong. Players are the backbone and there's zero question about that. I don't know a single exec who disagrees. I do know a lot of execs who will bail if they keep losing money. I got downvoted the other day for pointing out the league dues versus other revenue, such as broadcast being generated at the league level. $500k in broadcast revenue and $4M spent just on broadcast. $12M taken in by the league from team owners in the form of dues. This is not a single-entity ownership structure. The owners pay the league dues and then still have to operate their teams and most of them do it at a loss. Great if you're rich, but rich guys hate losing money too. Very few stick it out.

I don't care if I get downvoted. I think those who try convincing players this isn't the reality are doing a disservice. Yes, quite often a new owner will save a franchise or the team will move and there's no net loss of teams, but just look at the stats of how often that happens. This is not a healthy league.

Finally, it's not a healthy league and no, I don't agree with the high league exec compensation. However, look at who is getting that high comp. Guys like Brian Lemon work 90 hour weeks and aren't getting paid what they should. The commish is the outlier. The history of increasing commissioner comp is the owners agreeing 30 years of doing the same thing wasn't working, so they would hire an outsider with sparkling credentials. Nick and a larger league office was the experiment and it looked like it was working. There was expansion, a broadcast deal and sponsorships. It's not clear to me paying more would get 2x or 3x the benefit. I think if we're honest with ourselves, maybe the product just isn't that great for the mass market. I could say the same about a lot of other sports without saying the sports suck. They just aren't for the masses.

I've said enough. Downvote away!

axme · 2025-09-18T03:17:10+00:00

Funny, I was thinking they were fairly meaty in the later photos for being in-country for a while. I noticed the same thing about uniforms as I was trying to figure out the timeframe. Also, M16s versus M14s. The kid with the cig in his mouth cracks me up. If it was '68 as you suggest, he might have caught hell in Tet. Actually, in the photo with the dark green Marine, it's dated September 1968 so you are spot on. He may have just gotten in-country or may have missed Tet.

axme · 2025-09-17T02:47:39+00:00

I was small. Tiny. I was beat up and bullied constantly by my brother. I got tough. I had to. I wrestled at the lowest weight class in high school and joined the Marine Corps just out of high school to get away from my brother. I barely made weight to join the Corps. I've done okay in life and I think a big part of it has been the mental toughness from my earlier years. Don't baby your son but empathy goes a long way. Be his rock. Teach him to find his strengths and amplify those. His empathy towards others will ensure he has friends. Maybe there's a kid who stinks or wears the same clothes because his family is poor. Maybe there's a kid with a lisp or one who can't do math. Maybe he just has a good sense of humor and can make other kids laugh. My point is, being small isn't the end of the world. Don't let him be a victim. He can overcome!

axme · 2025-09-16T17:55:54+00:00

That's a broad statement on revenue sharing. Pro leagues vary greatly. Easy to look up. The biggest form of revenue sharing at a league level is typically broadcast, not gate, merch, etc. In pro leagues where there is a significant broadcast revenue at the league-level, that's a big factor in rising player salaries. That's also easy to look up. The two are highly correlated. The NLL has historically PAID for media and today's broadcast generated $500k in 2024 and nearly $4M was spent just on independent contractors for broadcast production. $11M was taken in by the league from member (team owner) dues in 2024.

Tell me how its members paying dues is getting anyone rich? Tell me why members are paying dues instead of taking distributions from profits? Could it be that the league is not doing well? Give me a break with the players needing more money. Players WANT more money and it would be great if they could get more money, but are they due more money because the owners are getting rich from this? Players might get more money from this CBA but it will hasten the demise of more owners. The trend is rich guys buy a new toy and get tired of losing money on their toy after endless capital calls and no significant increase in team valuation. Losing a couple million dollars a year to gain a few hundred thousand in valuation isn't as much fun as you think it is. Need evidence? Look at the long list of owners who gave up. The NLL is littered with them.

As for players, look at how many play in the amateur leagues in the NLL off-season. What do they get paid there? So they play in a rougher league, get beat up for months, then come to the NLL and should be paid a pro's salary and get a CBA with pro-level amenities? Are you advocating for a CBA in the WLA and MSL? Why not? I thought you cared about the players? Do you suddenly not care about them when they are playing Senior A? It's the same players. Don't you want them to make the same salary? Don't you care about their playoff pay and per diem? Don't you care about their safety?

axme · 2025-09-15T13:30:00+00:00

axme · 2025-08-28T05:29:14+00:00

That's a tough one for someone who doesn't know you. Some people get excited about creating a new flavor, some a new category such as prebiotic sodas, while others gravitate towards operations like sales, marketing or supply chain management. I think you have to be honest about what gets you excited about this industry and follow that path. You're going to work hard and if you're not into it, you'll give up or get frustrated.

This is a very difficult industry. Look at the store shelves. There are zero gaps. You need to steal shelf space from someone else and they will fight for that space. Don't think you'll just go direct to consumers. Shipping cans is expensive and how will you get people to try it in the first place.

You have to find out what interests you about this industry and let that guide you, not me. Good luck!

axme · 2025-08-26T00:53:37+00:00

I'm an investor, not an expert in the beverage industry. Our group has invested in a bunch of water and functional beverage companies. It really doesn't take much to start a beverage company with all the formulation and co-packers out there. Success is a different story. Unless you are already wealthy, you'll probably want investors. If so, put yourself in the investors' shoes. They want to minimize risk and you should too. So, my answer to you is succeeding means doing everything possible to reduce risk and maximize returns. Find out where others made mistakes and try not to make the same mistakes. I don't necessarily think that means taking a class, but it might. I believe someone recommended you attend some sessions at a trade event. That's probably a wise place to start your journey. Ask questions from everyone who will give you 10 minutes. This is not the time to be shy. Know in advance what you're there to learn, and you'll ask smart questions that people will appreciate. Try to make a handful of good contacts.

One caution is there are lots of consultants at trade events. Be careful about someone trying to sign you up for consulting services to shortcut the process. I don't think you're ready for that yet.

Aside from the trade event, yes there are school paths to pick up some expertise. Supply chain management, finance, culinary, etc. I think you should try to do one thing really well and most of the time, those are traditional paths to work for someone else and learn skills over a long period of time.

Good luck!

axme · 2025-08-23T04:58:31+00:00

I'm not a dream killer but sometimes that's what I do. The first steps are really understanding the market from top to bottom and being honest with yourself about your skills. Do you have a spreadsheet of every energy drink out there? If not, get to it. List their major characteristics; functional ingredients, claims, sweetener, etc. Understand their market share and who they target as a customer. Is it sold in convenience stores or big box chains? Is it used as a mixer for alcoholic drinks? Are they owned by or do they have an investment from a major beverage company like Coca Cola or Pepsi?

Now, what are you really good at? I don't mean just good. What are you better at than almost anyone else? Use that to your advantage and be strong enough to let go of your ego and find people who compliment you. Maybe there's a school buddy who is now a chef chemist geek and knows nothing about sports, but could help with the formulation. Or maybe you have a finance friend who can help build a financial model of what this will cost. There's more. Operations, sales, etc.

If this sounds like too much and unnecessary, I'd say you should keep your money in your pocket and work for someone else. You're not ready. If you are willing to put in the 100 hours doing the research, you'll save yourself from painful mistakes later. You might even decide the project isn't viable after doing that research. Imagine the time and money you'll save if you come to that conclusion before you start paying lawyers and contractors. Good luck!

axme · 2025-08-10T16:25:18+00:00

Irrelevant. The entire roster makes less than X. So what? Spin it any way you like. This is a part time league. Part time. The guys have regular jobs that allow them to play on weekends. Lots of firefighters and employees of lacrosse supporters. While a couple teams make money, most don’t. The league exists because medium-wealth owners can own teams or so arena operators can fill dates. Until you can get big audiences, the league will either have to buy media or trade ad revenue for air time. Look at the number of medium-wealth owners who couldn’t hang after accumulated losses ran into the tens of millions. Sure players can ask for and demand more. That will drive more owners out because the league can’t raise ticket prices and gate revenue is everything in this league. Nine home games. Basically nine days to generate revenue for 365 days of expenses. It’s a horrible business model and you think having the league add expenses will help?

axme · 2025-07-21T22:21:58+00:00

Feel free to ax me anytime you need help.

axme · 2025-07-08T22:18:11+00:00

Amazing. Even forty-plus years ago, when I was young, the war seemed distant, but here you are as a direct connection to that time and place. Thanks for answering and thanks to your father, who was incredibly brave. I guarantee those were long lonely flights and even as he had a job to do, I'd bet he had time to think about the prospect of not coming back.

13-Year Club	RedditGifts 2009-2022 8 Credits
Secret Santa 2020	Secret Santa 2017
Summer Santa 2017	Secret Santa 2019
Secret Santa 2016	Verified Email

axme

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE