The random chat thread for throwing out things that don't matter

Amusing.... all those other forums are down this morning 😛

@dev I just now saw this write-up.  Sorry I missed it earlier.  Thanks for the time you took to write this up. Dev.  I appreciate having this information.

Posted by: @uncle-mush

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@dev I just now saw this write-up.  Sorry I missed it earlier.  Thanks for the time you took to write this up. Dev.  I appreciate having this information.

 I was actually going to post a follow up today. Don't do it!  I had some faith in Amazon because they have a good record of logistics but that is for deliveries not the actual trust you should give them to enter the confines of your house.  I lost my faith on what you read on the internet from publications that are acting like they are reviewing the service but are in actuality are shilling the service. I am not saying that it is not safe most of the time as all it takes is just one time which should be a very high standard for Amazon to take seriously when it comes to your families security. 

 The first two key delivers were great. I bought the camera to record the interaction and on the third delivery the driver did not follow protocol and went deep into my garage out of the cameras view  and placed the package at the access door which is always open and it seemed to take longer than is should have so I do not know what he was doing. They are only allowed three feet entry to place the package. In addition to that he moved quickly though the garage and collided into something and then you see his feet running out as the door was being closed. Protocol says he is suppose to wait outside and observed that the door fully closes before leaving. 

 I called customer support and they told me that it was not what they are suppose to do and seemed to not care.  I then thumbs down the delivery and added my comments. 

  I packed up the camera and disconnected my garage from the Amazon server.  I just happed to talk to a different driver who was delivering a package to me and ask what is happening and he told me it has been a problem and they had a meeting over the safety concerns. Apparently they hired new drivers that are creating issues with a large number of complaints. Amazon claims that only special drivers get the privilege which is not true

  In the end I blame Amazon as a corporation and myself.  It was foolish to think they could be trusted when what they should have done is only allow key delivers to veteran drivers and make sure they are strictly trained in making such deliveries. They should also be warned that if they do not follow protocol they would be terminated because it needs to meet a much higher standard of doing it right or not at all. 

 I hope this was helpful to anyone thinking of trying the service. My standard for safety is to walk away from trouble and not be a spectator as you see people do these days. 

It's been a while since I've seen one of these anywhere.   Today, at LOWES I saw this. Several RHD MR2 spyders in white, blue, yellow and red.  I was tempted to purchase and add to my collection (hoarded stash) but decided to stay the course and only purchase construction materials that I went into the store to purchase. 

 I sold my air compressor sometime back and along with it the tools it came with just because cordless tools are better and in many cases better than wall outlet tools.I replaced my impact gun for a mid torque and some of the others like a cut off tool. The Milwaukee stuff has been great with their innovation in both tools and batteries that is far more convent and space saving.

 One of the tools I found that I used a lot was the pneumatic die grinder which is like having a big Dremel except they are generally only one speed but they get a lot of grinding work done and I found it invaluable for a lot of things automotive, home repairs and all of my other hobbies where I need to remove some material to make my own custom modifications fit.  The problem is most die grinders will bog down during heavy cutting or grinding and just don't have enough torque, the smaller cordless ones will shut down because of overheating.

Since I found the die grinder to be an invaluable tool that can do so many things I decided to spend a premium this time and get Milwaukees best one over their lesser priced one. It uses a paddle switch rather than a slide switch and it has a five position speed dial like a Dremel so I can do even more with it like polishing and removing surface corrosion.  My next project is removing the chipped paint from a stair rail and then having it repainted. 

So I got this, no big deal as we all upgrade eventually but the reason why I am writing this is because this line of tool which is used by contractors has a feature that is impressive. It has blue tooth and geo location. You can inventory the tool, check the working life, and on some tools set parameters of its function. If the tool is stolen you can disable the tool without having a battery attached because I think there is a coin battery in the tool.  I would never use such a feature but it got me thinking of the times when I would loan out a tool and never get it back to the point where I forgot who has it. 

We live in interesting times.  

 I was parked near this old wrangler when it began to smoke which increased in intensity.  I was concerned but then I stared to smell coolant and I could then see coolant spewing out from under the car onto the asphalt. It was no longer a concern of mine but the other cars started to get out of its way in fear of the car catching on fire and one of the employees from CVS came out with a fire extinguisher that he did not know how to use.  I might have got involved in the past but these days I stay clear from it because it is not an immediate emergency.  A lady calls the fire department which is down the street. I am now watching as a crowd gathers and cars clear out but I stay knowing everything is fine but once I hear the fire trucks I get the hell out of there because I know I will be trapped.  As I was leaving I got trapped in one direction and backed up to find a way out of there before the other side of the lot would have been blocked by the other fire truck. 

I am now observing from a distance as the some of the fireman are unfolding the big hoses which made me laugh at their stupidity.  Eventually it looks like someone in charge of the situation put a stop to it. I imagine SUV will be towed after the smoke clears.  

 If it was an electric car I would have got the hell out of there.  

@dev wait... We're supposed to *analyze* a situation and problem solve? 

A good 'ol knee-jerk reaction never done no harm...

Posted by: @marsrock7

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@dev wait... We're supposed to *analyze* a situation and problem solve? 

A good 'ol knee-jerk reaction never done no harm...

I would not expect the people to know what is going on. I may have said something to the owner but who am I.  A good number of people were old, old and I would have thought they would have remembered the days when a busted radiator on the side of the road was common. 

I would have expected every member of the fire department to be trained in being able to asses the situation before rushing to judgment so they know what they are dealing with.  I think there is a failure of training with new people. I do not think they are hiring the best people for the job. 

Something funny I seen today regarding Vertical Scope and their ownership of SC. When all of this was going down there were two camps. One welcoming them naively with open arms and those of use that were skeptical like myself that can see their corporate bottom line based on the forums they acquired where they don't care about members. 

I studied their methods and thankfully we not that important but they have ramped up the advertising and have fallen short of what they promised. I have been getting more pop ups lately and more space filled with ads. I do not care about the ad checkers, I have tried them and they have their own issues but more than that they can be defeated as time goes on. 

If you are an official vendor you are allowed to spam the board. One of the members who thought they were a great idea now has a problem with the way they are spamming.  Thankfully they don't have that many vendors but eventually they will for other non car related items. 

Yeah.  It's horrible browsing those forums these days.  UBlock Origin is a pretty good adblocker.

Been using brave browser for the last few years. Don't have any ad issues on the VS boards. 

I am learning how to do some home renovation work. I do have some wood working experience and I have done patch repair but I have never plastered a wall. 

I come to find out it's a whole other world and like most things these days its like a high end hobby.  

I started out with a pan and a knife to a skimming blade. Now I have traded all that and have moved on to the pro tools which is a Hawk and a Trowel.

I have come to learn that the internet can be the best thing to happen for DIY and the worse thing.   There is too much information particularly conflicting and too many scam products.  

I finally figured it out and have now switched to the tried and true old world methods. I never realized that plastering is a high level skill where there are so many things involved that it feels like my coffee hobby. 

I am kind of happy that I am wired this way to learn new skills rather than a gambling, drug or other destructive vices that consume my life. 

Posted by: @dev

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I am kind of happy that I am wired this way to learn new skills rather than a gambling, drug or other destructive vices that consume my life. 

 

I'm right there with you Dev.  I am grateful for all the different "things" that I have gotten into over my life -- it has been a very interesting and rewarding (though not so much financially) journey.  I have no regrets as to my journey.  And I, too,  am grateful that I never got into activities that could have destroyed me, had I ventured down those roads.  Writing this the day after Thanksgiving, I have much to be grateful for.   

Posted by: @uncle-mush

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Posted by: @dev

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I am kind of happy that I am wired this way to learn new skills rather than a gambling, drug or other destructive vices that consume my life. 

 

 

I'm right there with you Dev.  I am grateful for all the different "things" that I have gotten into over my life -- it has been a very interesting and rewarding (though not so much financially) journey.  I have no regrets as to my journey.  And I, too,  am grateful that I never got into activities that could have destroyed me, had I ventured down those roads.  Writing this the day after Thanksgiving, I have much to be grateful for.   

 

My only regret was not following my instinctual feelings that you do not have to indulge in certain social lifestyle habits to fit in. I have seen all kinds of degeneracy in people and they live for it which is their choice and I wish I could have not partaken in any of it. What I mean by that is I never really liked going to clubs but I was dragged along. I thought the whole thing was superficial and expensive, the same with gambling as I felt that it was not addictive and just a big waste of time going nowhere. This does not mean I don't like to socialize but I would have rather like to worked on a car or some other project.  

I went down the rabbit hole again. This time with pressure washers. Too much information overload with trying to choose a spray gun where there are people measuring trigger pull. 

Everything has turned into my coffee hobby.