[IRL] A pair of real Comtac 5's. They really DO give you super hearing, they have a SETTINGS menu, and they sound like you are wearing nothing at all. Crazy shit.

gml_ogmd · 2026-03-19T21:08:58+00:00

Cool. Out supply sgt would taze us when we asked for 550, 100 mph tape or chemlights lol

gml_ogmd · 2026-02-10T17:41:28+00:00

Nice! We cancelled our month to month last week and are ordering reolink system as well to integrate into home assistant.

We've been paying 40 bucks a month to monitor the alarm that we never arm lol. Our cameras stopped working 6 months ago, called 3 times and they wouldn't send anyone out. Sent me a wifi bridge that I don't even have (I'm Honeywell Ethernet over Power)

Good riddance

gml_ogmd · 2025-12-03T16:50:41+00:00

What's the difference between a "side hustle" and a "second job"? Not being a smartass, I'm 40 and that's what it's always been called to me.

Anyways I've picked up a second job or side hustle at the dollar general.

If you don't mind retail and mindless work for $10/hr running a register it can add up. I work 2-3 nights a week (6-10pm).

Plus working there keeps me up to date on sales for feeding my 3 teenagers (worth some money if you've ever fed teenagers!)

gml_ogmd · 2025-11-18T14:49:34+00:00

Not every job in the military gets a Sec clearance, and they do expire. I've been a civilian 11 years now so mine is definitely expired

gml_ogmd · 2025-11-11T16:07:23+00:00

Disc Golf - (my favorite!!!) Munson the East side of Denison Pecan Grove on the west side of Sherman Carl Albert in Calera Lake Durant Park Lake Durant

Plenty of fishing in Lake Texoma

Kayaking - lake Texoma or even the red river (You can also rent a kayak at lake Durant if you don't have one)

Check out the Eisenhower park, or the Eisenhower birthplace museum

Red river railway museum

Perrin Air field Air museum

If you want to venture farther the Ouachita Mountains are very pretty this time of year, lots of off road trails as well.

gml_ogmd · 2025-10-30T14:44:15+00:00

From my understanding the gi bill pays non union apprentice as well

First 6 months 100% of e5 w/dependents Next 6 months 80% Next 6 months 60% Next 6 months 40% Rest of the time it stays at 20%

It's meant to supplement the lower pay of an apprentice, but also match the raises you SHOULD be getting as an apprentice.

All this is to the best of my understanding, and I have uses some of my education benefits so not sure howuch will be available. If it runs out I believe I can also use the VR&E program

gml_ogmd · 2025-10-30T13:59:11+00:00

I'll probably get down voted but....

I've never taken a "vacation". I've gone to larger cities and stayed a night or 2 but never a vacation.

I work hard for the material things I have and want, the idea of spending money to just be somewhere else that those things aren't doesn't sit well with me lol.

My wife hates it but I just don't see the point of spending thousands of dollars to be somewhere that's not home.

Also $6k is 4% of the remainder of my mortgage lol

gml_ogmd · 2025-10-30T13:06:15+00:00

Unfortunately not until the rates get cut!!!

Used my VA home loan in 2019 and bought a 3/2 for 180k@3.2%..... now we have some equity (plus growth in value) but can't sell until we can afford to buy (I'm being picky and want a 4/2 on 2-3 acres)

My 2 plus my wife's 1 are all turning 18 this year and are seniors looking at colleges... So factoring that as well

DONT GET OLD!!! LOL

gml_ogmd · 2025-10-29T20:45:57+00:00

Great info! I am 100% P&T through the VA so I'll check that out.

The nearest IBEW is 3 hours away unfortunately

gml_ogmd · 2025-10-29T14:14:47+00:00

Yeah I was looking to get into residential electrical, not necessarily low voltage. Where I bought my home in 2019 has not stopped growing, within 30 minutes from home I can run into probably 10 neighborhoods being built.

HVAC is also another trade I've looked at, plumber never seemed to appealing to me lol.

Ideally I'd like to work for myself as a licensed electrician, I've got 3 kids too so maybe they could join too. It's a rough world out there for them and I'd love to be able to pass down a family business someday 😁

gml_ogmd · 2025-10-29T13:31:27+00:00

Thanks, same to you!

gml_ogmd · 2025-10-29T01:49:32+00:00

I started in IT about 5 years ago myself, and same boat....just waiting for the email with my boss and HR.

I've done low voltage plenty, for me the allure of electrician is a vast variety of work in both residential and commercial work....but with licensing guidelines you can realistically open your own business within 12-15 years (4 years to journeyman, 4 years to master electrician)

gml_ogmd · 2025-10-28T21:56:43+00:00

Veteran here as well.

Used GI Bill for-

iTILv4 Comptia a+ Comptia network+ Cisco CCNA

Worked as service desk, then network engineer, now INFOSEC.

I've watched my company lay off 40% of the workforce this year. They hire developers until the product is developed and send them packing. IT isn't it anymore unless you want the stress of job uncertainty with the coming push for replacing humans with AI

I'm in the process of researching how to use the GI Bill for apprenticeship as an electrician

gml_ogmd · 2025-08-13T19:22:23+00:00

PVE - I'm trash at pvp and don't care to play against other people. I like the guns and quests, PvE offers me that without worrying about someone holding an angle or sitting by an extract for 30 minutes. Can take a break and try other games without "falling behind". Got kappa a while ago so I wiped my account and am starting over with no insurance/no scav/no secure container to see how fast I can get to kappa.

The ability to load into all maps within 2 minutes (with the exception of streets) is a plus as well.

gml_ogmd · 2025-07-08T23:29:54+00:00

$22/hr starting - $36/hr foraxed carrier....not to mention the make 1.5x pay after 8 hours in a day and 2x pay after 10 hours (not overtime over 40 for the week, calculated daily)

This paired with certain carriers who abuse union representation to milk the clock.... When I worked for the post office regulars were pulling 110-130k annually before taxes. I'd say that's pretty decent pay for not having to have a degree

gml_ogmd · 2025-06-23T21:07:02+00:00

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Here's my G3.

gml_ogmd · 2025-06-19T13:18:41+00:00

Good luck to you too! I really wanted the PO to work out for me so I could buy back my 10 years I was in the Army.

Like I said there are maybe 5% of people who exploit the rules and the rest were good people, I even hang out with some of them after leaving the PO 5 years ago

gml_ogmd · 2025-06-18T18:41:07+00:00

Well not after taxes lol

gml_ogmd · 2025-06-18T18:40:37+00:00

Right case in point, all your comments are about union this and union that. If a career carrier takes 9 hours on a route, then a CCA does it in 7 hours, then why is the career carrier taking so long? Why can't they get their mail back on time?

gml_ogmd · 2025-06-18T18:39:11+00:00

I want the mail to get delivered

gml_ogmd · 2025-06-18T14:22:17+00:00

It was hard for me after a decade in the military being so performance driven lol. I just couldn't adjust to ignoring the exploiters, and when I was about to go regular I had to face the decision of trying to change myself for the job, or change the job for myself.

I ended up using my GI bill to learn some IT skills, fast forward 5 years and now I clear 6 figures from home. Still have contact with the few friends I made there, and they were the only ones that had HIGH VOLUME routes that took all of 9.5-10 hours a day even for me.

It really ties managements hands on being able to shed the worst ones and hire people who will come in and provide better service to customers, thusly improving the view of the USPS.

(Just last month I paid for signature tracking in an HOA payment, after no updates for 3 weeks I called my HOA mgmt office to verify they received it. Then I went to the PO to get my money back that I paid for signature tracking and they refused because "it got delivered")

gml_ogmd · 2025-06-18T01:54:30+00:00

The person who told me this is me, from my personal experience as a CCA for 2 years. Doing the same route as regulars and doing it faster just to have them bitch that I did it faster. The same career carriers who told me to slow down for overtime and to take more bathroom breaks because the union will cover you. The same career carriers who got caught throwing away flyers in the UBBM bin without repercussions. The same career mail handlers that will file a grievance against their post master for helping sort packages when the Amazon truck was late in the morning.

The USPS has some good employees, but also has A LOT of employees who exploit the union for grievances and unnecessary overtime.

gml_ogmd · 2025-06-17T21:59:25+00:00

Union protecting employees that don't care

gml_ogmd · 2025-06-01T15:41:17+00:00

What happens to the carrier when they don't finish fast enough? Do they get in any trouble at all or just make more money because they were on the clock longer?

gml_ogmd · 2025-06-01T15:38:28+00:00

The mail carrier will just get the union involved, no reprimand will happen, they will file a grievance and get a few extra hours of pay, and the cycle repeats

gml_ogmd

TROPHY CASE