MacGyver

Good to hear you’re on the mend. Modern medicine is amazing - and I’m thrilled to hear that you can find peace through the uncertainty. I know you don’t need to hear it from someone else - but those changes they suggest will legit change your life.

Nope. Goodbye.

Let this be a lesson in how not to behave in someone else’s ad.

Sorry you’re having to deal with this. As I read through this thread, I’m reminded that this is one way the world has changed for the better. Any member over 40 can ask the generations older than them and likely learn about a family member or two who died of dental infections. It was a top 10 cause of death for hundreds of years. If you query someone under 40, it’s unlikely that they know anyone who died of one. 50 years ago, by 40 you had likely had several teeth pulled - and many adults were absolutely plagued by dental issues. A kid born today with fluoridated water, a good diet, and decent dental hygiene may well die at an old age with all of their natural teeth. All that to say - sorry for all the trouble it’s caused you - but thank the good Lord for Amoxicillin.

My oldest daughter is the tracker in our family. She likes to know where everyone is - and people knowing where she is. I have a deal with my children that goes in the reverse as well. Any of them can text a single letter to me, and they’ll get a phone call a couple of minutes later stating that there is a family emergency at home and that I need to come get them from where they are right now. This gives them an immediate out that’s not on them if they ever find themselves in a situation where they’re uncomfortable - or see it going that way. There are some other adults in my kids lives - and some of other kids in mine who can do this and get a similar immediate response. I’m thankful for the community in my life.

I coveted that thing in my heart back in the day. I’m sure David would’ve sold it to me. That thing was just a treat to shoot.

This is such a better situation to be in than the other way around. When it’s not needed anymore - you can be sure they’ll let you know. The world has gotten weird. I can’t imagine how a single woman must feel a lot of the time these days.

Good to see you on! Was thinking of that suppressed Ruger 44 mag of yours just the other day.

That's sweet

Oh, I’m sorry to hear this - and also thrilled to hear that they sent you to St. Thomas. Glad to hear you’re on the mend. Prayers for your coming days. As others have said - the rehab is hard - and makes all the difference.

For a local Tennessee connection you might give Murder 101 a listen. It’s about a high school class in Elizabethton, TN that essentially breaks the case of a 40 year-old serial killer. It’s quite consumable, and also not entirely done yet. It’s a fun listen you could make it all the way through in an afternoon.

$1.5 billion in cash on top of $1.4 billion in debt creates more problems than it solves - especially since so many of those underlying deals that Vista did in their roll up had significant debt too. Deals like this look a lot different in a non-zero interest rate world.

I’d start with a solid cleaning. No penalty for total disassembly and proper lubrication of the entire thing.

I used my first Garmin unit in 1994 on a search and rescue team. I’ve been a user ever since. They’re expensive. But they’re worth it.

This is hands down the best Mark IV receiver on the market today. It’s hard to improve on the original - and this one does in every way.

I knew you’d be right along in this thread anytime…

This is a truly great little pistol. Maybe the best .22 mag revolver made.

I'm sure I could tell the difference holding the two up to one another. Just saying - it was awfully clean - unlike the 10w-40 back in the day. Nothing to add other than I'm kind of amazed at some technical advances that make that stuff possible. I wonder what sort of gas mileage difference can be attributed to using that much lighter weight oil?

My local Toyota dealer showed me my oil after my 10k oil change just because I was curious. It was 0w-10 or some such. After a full 10,000 miles on a truck with 75k on it - it basically looked like a bottle of water. It was clean and clear.

And of course the crazy thing is, there is no line on a P&L, there's no one in any boardroom of any publicly traded company anywhere that says this is a bad decision. To the contrary, to everyone who cares, it looks like a good decision. But then one day you wake up - and you've lost core capabilities. You literally cannot do those critical things anymore. You get to a point where not only have you taken advantage of your employees - but now your business model depends on that low cost labor because management has looted every last dollar and there's nothing left. Once storied brands are now shells of their former selves. And of course consumers are mostly okay with that. Yeah, we complain about it. But we also like paying $17.99 for a pair of jeans. And as it turns out - when 70% of GDP is consumer spending - this whole late stage capitalism thing kind of depends it.

I’ve never found an Emerson proper that I’ve kept in my rotation. They’re wonderful knives for some particular use cases. That said, the wave feature is one of the best innovations in the last several decades in terms of EDC knives. I’ve got several blades with the feature and love it. The pockets of my jeans love it a little less than I do…

Nothing good is going to come from this thread.

For sure. I’ve hired people the world over because they've got the best skills for the job. I mostly don’t care where they want to live. I’m firmly of the old Jack Welch school - “on Friday afternoon everyone should leave square.” The company has gotten good value for their money and the employee has been paid fairly for their time.” If I take advantage of my employees - or they take advantage of my trust - the relationship just isn’t going to last. Of course, I’m a small business. There are plenty of big companies that have made a business model of taking advantage of their employees by essentially commodifying them. They’ve broken that contract - or at very least changed the conditions of said contract. It shouldn’t surprise them when their employees don’t hold them in the same regard.

That can actually create major issues due to wage and reporting laws in different states - so that's probably the reason they want to know. But I agree - companies should pay for the job being done and if they're hiring remotely should pay the same regardless.

Low single digits at best. All kinds of people would say they support it. But peoples’ budgets are tight. I just don’t think we’d see it at the cash register. That’s not to say you can’t be successful as an American brand. You certainly can. But the quality has to be there - especially at a price premium.