SOLD Huge rocket, no longer free if you pick it up

[jimzcatz]

Pretty lame response. The original posting said plainly the university didn't want it. What you described is pure theft and not relevant to this thread

 

[troj]

Pretty lame response. The original posting said plainly the university didn't want it. What you described is pure theft and not relevant to this thread

Except that it is. The original post sounds very much like it was made by a student, and not a university employee who has the authority to make such offers. Ergo, it is exactly akin to someone offering someone else's cat for free.

 

[dhbarr]

I think probably the maintenance department said "get it out of here!" so they tried to, then a bean counter got involved.

Having worked for a university before, as soon as someone who runs a desk for a living is on the project, by-the-books starts to heavily outweigh get-it-done.

 

[jimzcatz]

Somebody giving away a cat?

 

[tsmith1315]

Somebody giving away a cat?

How much for shipping?

 

[heada]

https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/a-minus-minus.png

 

[afadeev]

Somebody giving away a cat?

How much for shipping?

Free to a good home, if you come to pick it up.

Unfortunately the manager of the park wants it gone now. I would take it in a heartbeat if I had a place to put it, but I don't. I would love for this to go to someone willing to give it another life or two. I can make some measurements if anyone is interested to make sure it would fit your transport method.
The university technically owns the cat but they want it gone, so if not free it would cost <$50 (paid to the university, not me). Attached is a picture of the cat.

https://barcelonalowdown.com/botero-fat-sculptures/

 

[Sluggo]

I know Daryll well, have flown with him several times, I would love to take it off your hands feel free to message me. Yes I can come get it.

Ding Ding DiNG DiNG.!!!!

 

[Rocketjunkie]

The title of the thread says it all
FREE! Huge rocket, free if you pick it up
Otherwise, totally misleading. Would be fun on a P9000

 

[icyclops]

If someone told you your neighbor's car was free for the taking, don't be surprised when your neighbor is pissed that you are trying to jack his car!

Don't expect stuff for free. The rocket was at least worth $438...

That’s funny, the title of this thread says free.....does anyone post free stuff on craigslist and next door....and when you show up they try and get money from you....

Geez, at least change the thread title to OOps, it’s not really free after all

 

[RocketRev]

Nice to have the university let us know the rocket was going on auction. I pm'd b1rdman but I never got any solid details out of him other than, "how does one decide who gets the rocket?" And now as I read that apparently, the university auctioned the rocket off for $438? I told b1rdman that I'd trade him a single-pad wireless launch system for it. That's a $550 item. Apparently the right hand does not know at the left hand is doing as they just lost $112 on the deal............

Anybody know who got it?

Brad the "a bit disappointed"

 

[PayLoad]

I'll take the cat. Where do you put the motor?

 

[b1rdman]

Wow, this thread is a little different from how I remembered it!

A couple people guessed correctly that the bean counters got involved. Well before I posted this thread, I asked for permission to do whatever I wanted with the rocket from a university employee (I'm a student if that wasn't already obvious, and my team is a student organization) who contacted the workers of the university warehouse where the rocket was stored, and I got full permission from that employee. However, this didn't mean anything when I actually went to the warehouse to arrange pickup, and the workers said their boss was getting on them about what was going to happen to the rocket. It was listed at auction shortly after.

Maybe I should've updated this thread, but would you all really be happier if I said, here, go have a bidding war for a rocket that you thought was free?

No one here was entitled to anything at all, so I'm not sure why some people are so mad. I tried to give it away for free instead of asking anything for it because I wanted to do something nice for this community, and only one person was going to get it in the first place. Of course I would've given it to someone here if there was any way at all to do that, unfortunately there wasn't. I know because I tried.

If anyone does know who got it, shoot me a message because I'd love to see it in action again!

In unrelated news: I've seen a cat lurking around my neighbor's yard, and I don't really know why you're all so interested in cats but if anyone wants to come take it off their hands, we can probably work out a time!

Thanks all.

 

[kuririn]

so I'm not sure why some people are so mad.

Maybe because you offered to give something away for free which you didn't have the authority to do?
Or maybe because you got "permission" from someone who cannot grant it in the first place?
No, wait, I know. Maybe it's because after all that you don't even offer the slightest hint of an apology for your actions. Instead you're trying to justify it.
Yeah, that's it.

 

[b1rdman]

This is gonna be my last reply, but how on earth was I supposed to know that person didn't have permission to let me do what I wanted with it? I'm a student, I don't know the inner workings of university ranking. The person that I got permission from works very closely with the warehouse people (he manages the storage space that the rocket was stored in for so long, among other things), and he told me he had talked with them about it, it wasn't just some random professor or other employee that said 'yeah, all yours'. By "permission", I mean they said verbatim that I was free to give it to who I want, and to get it out of the warehouse soon. What happened is unfortunate, but I don't see how I'm at fault, it was a mix-up at levels above me. I argued my case as much as I could but it didn't work. I gave my best effort at giving away a massive rocket to someone here, for free, and I was acting logically with the information I had. I didn't have any reason to suspect it was incorrect information.

That said, I appreciate the level of interest that this got. I didn't know there were so many people willing and eager to take such a big rickety ol rocket at a moment's notice. I hope the new owner treats it well.

 

[RocketRev]

Hello b1rdman,

I'm not at all mad at you, just disappointed in the Uni-System. You asked the person that you knew who was in charge of the storage facility. He said he's in charge of the facility. He said to get rid of the rocket. That person may or may not have actually had the authority to tell you to "give it away," but it is absolutely NOT your fault that what he said got over-turned by some faceless bureaucrat. That was mostly his fault and none of yours.

College/University bureaucracies do have a hard time dealing with the unusual. I remember walking into the main office of the college from which I graduated 12 months later. I just walked in the door as an incoming Junior and signed up for classes. I never even bothered to apply for entrance to the college. I just walked in the door of the Admissions Office. The person behind the desk just stared at me like I had three eyes when I pulled out my checkbook to pay for taking 30 hours in the Summer semester in cash. It took me 3 years to finish my first 2 years of college because I was working 60+ hours per week, taking night classes, and saving for my last 2 years of college. So I figured I could do the 30 hours of my Junior Year in the 3-months of the Summer session between my Sophomore and Senior years. The lady behind the Admissions desk had to get her supervisor to figure out what to do with me because apparently nobody had ever done that there before. She asked, "Can he do that?" Her supervisor said, "I don't know." They made me get permission from two different deans before they'd even let me take the classes. In the end, they all said "Ok." And I managed though it was a weird Summer. I think I remember seeing the sun outside of the College Library once or twice...LOL.....

Bureaucracies are not ready to deal with anything out of the ordinary. If the guy in the storage facility had just tossed the rocket in the dumpster, anybody could have grabbed it, and none the wiser. Instead the bureaucracy got its nose out of joint and you got left holding the proverbial bag.

Sorry about that b1rdman. I do not blame you for this.

And I was going have Sticker Shock make me a huge Wilson F/X sticker to put on that beast! Sigh........

Brad, the "still disappointed but I'll get over it" "Rocket Rev.," Wilson

 

[cbwho]

Stop blaming the bureaucracy.

The main problem is the failure to communicate. As soon as the student realized it wasn't free, the student should have posted it here.

The other issue is expectations.

 

[dhbarr]

The other issue is expectations.

You mean like expecting a student ( who signed up for this forum for no other purpose but to relate this offer ) to communicate well when pinned between a bureaucracy and a message board full of cranky old loons like me?

Now the student knows: when you get tossed around by paper pushers, you need to relay that fact to the other members of your team.

 

[curtisheisey]

Don't be too hard on him. Bureaucracies and processes are complicated and my not be apparent at first. He was trying to do the right thing. Help him learn from the experience.

 

[jsdemar]

Schrödinger's Cat rocket. It was both free and not free until someone tried to take it.

 

[steveh.jae]

No good deed goes unpunished

 

[dhbarr]

Schrödinger's Cat rocket. It was both free and not free until someone tried to take it.

On behalf of The Committee I am delighted to inform you we would also have accepted:

• Schrödinger's Rocat
• Heisenberg's Uncertainty Article
• Delayed Choice Quantum Flyer

 

[Cl(VII)]

On behalf of The Committee I am delighted to inform you we would also have accepted:

• Schrödinger's Rocat
• Heisenberg's Uncertainty Article
• Delayed Choice Quantum Flyer

This post game me the nerdy warm fuzzies.