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Parachute rigger 4 years active USAF, 33 years contractor to the USAF still going.
What do you do (or did) for a living?
- Thread starter NTP2
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chrisudy
Well-Known Member
Been in finance/accounting for the last 20+ years. Currently Chief Financial Officer of a site construction company (we build parks, roads, and move lots of dirt and rock).
Before finance, I was the theater technical director at two local colleges in the mid to late 1990's. I got to meet some interesting people and performers. George Carlin, the Smothers Brothers, Barenaked Ladies, Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, Phish, Frankie Valli, just off the top of my head.
Before finance, I was the theater technical director at two local colleges in the mid to late 1990's. I got to meet some interesting people and performers. George Carlin, the Smothers Brothers, Barenaked Ladies, Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, Phish, Frankie Valli, just off the top of my head.
Now I can't suppress the thought of Tom Smothers and Q-Tip in the same room...
boatgeek
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One job and two companies over nearly 27 years. I'm a naval architect, designing boats and other floating objects. We mainly do commercial stuff (tugs, barges, fishing boats, dredges, etc.), generally in the range of 50-400 feet long. We've worked on at least two thirds of the Bering Sea fishing fleet over the years. We do a little naval work, but mainly small stuff (little tugs, torpedo retrievers, dive boats, etc.) without guns. A few have had torpedo tubes though. I am mainly working on barges right now. Top several projects:
100' x 40' ship docking/escort tugs, with 90 tons of pull
438' x 105' deck cargo barge, about to launch. It'll carry just shy of 17,000 tons of cargo from Seattle to Hawaii every other week.
283' x 76' deck cargo barge to be delivered this fall, will carry interisland freight in Hawaii (for some reason, I have a lot of Hawaii jobs right now)
90' x 30' fishing boat, currently fishing the Bering Sea (my first real project)
Sealifts carrying Ikea kits of drilling rigs from the Lower 48 to Alaska's North Slope
And more stability tests than I can count.
On the down side, I've had two of my projects sink with fatalities. On one, I went in front of a Coast Guard Board of Inquiry. On the other, it was clear that the captain was intent on pulling a Darwin. Unfortunately, he took some other people with him. On neither case was my work considered at fault.
100' x 40' ship docking/escort tugs, with 90 tons of pull
438' x 105' deck cargo barge, about to launch. It'll carry just shy of 17,000 tons of cargo from Seattle to Hawaii every other week.
283' x 76' deck cargo barge to be delivered this fall, will carry interisland freight in Hawaii (for some reason, I have a lot of Hawaii jobs right now)
90' x 30' fishing boat, currently fishing the Bering Sea (my first real project)
Sealifts carrying Ikea kits of drilling rigs from the Lower 48 to Alaska's North Slope
And more stability tests than I can count.
On the down side, I've had two of my projects sink with fatalities. On one, I went in front of a Coast Guard Board of Inquiry. On the other, it was clear that the captain was intent on pulling a Darwin. Unfortunately, he took some other people with him. On neither case was my work considered at fault.
NTP2
Well-Known Member
That is horrible!
BTW I before I got into rockets I wanted to make my own sailboat and sail around the world, it turned out that I can sail pretty good but that’s not exactly a living.
It may not be “a living” but it certainly would be “living”.
From about the 2:34 to 3:34 time, these folks are flying over a site I used to work at... it's the white dome with cable trays leading up the hill.
Pretty fortunate, got to work a lot of places and see/work on a lot of stuff at China Lake. But I never did get a spent GTR-18 to set on my desk.
Pretty fortunate, got to work a lot of places and see/work on a lot of stuff at China Lake. But I never did get a spent GTR-18 to set on my desk.
boatgeek
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The first one was not the best time in my life. It did make me a better engineer, but it was a very hard way to do that.
It is much, much cheaper to buy a used boat than to build a new one. And it gets you out sailing faster. It can be a living if you know how to do things that are in demand among cruising sailors (fiberglass repair, welding, sail repair, etc.).
stealth6
insert witty tagline here
Let's see, off the top of my head I recall.....
-- All kinds of theatre/stage work.....sound, lights, production, operations, rigging, logistics, booking, "stage management", roadie, etc. From punk rock shows, to classical/orchestra productions, to bar gigs, to rock concerts, to musical theatre and plays, to political rallies, and on and on. Some studio work as well.
-- Also was a working musician playing on those stages now and then.
-- Lots of other logistics/production/operations type work for "events" and such.
-- Was "Operations Director" for a bunch of years for a non-profit organization involved in outdoor/experiential education for youth.
-- Worked for a lot of years in the bike industry, from being a mechanic to managing a shop, and also a bit of race support.
-- Worked as a river rafting guide, as a bike tour guide, and as a tour guide in Antarctica.
-- Ship's crew in various places around the world.
-- Couple of other "boat driver" jobs here and there...on oceans and rivers with different types of craft.
-- Worked as a graphic designer full time for a few years, and have done occasional freelance work every since.
-- I built guitars, other stringed instruments, along with some other woodworking.
-- I've sold some writing and photography now and then, and have co-authored a couple of guidebooks.
-- Managed an "events rental" company for a few years.
-- Done a bit of construction/carpentry type work.
-- Done biology field work in the Grand Canyon and thereabouts.
-- Worked on a boat inspections crew concerned with invasive species in waterways.
-- Done some community organizing / political outreach type work.
-- Had a few stints in retail, from grocery stores, to book shops, to plumbing supply, to hardware/ranching stores.
-- Did some groundskeeping (in a cemetery and a church!)
-- Lots of different types of one-off odd-jobs for a bit of cash over the years.
-- and yes, I had a paper route when I was a wee lad.
I'm sure I've missed or forgotten a few.
s6
-- All kinds of theatre/stage work.....sound, lights, production, operations, rigging, logistics, booking, "stage management", roadie, etc. From punk rock shows, to classical/orchestra productions, to bar gigs, to rock concerts, to musical theatre and plays, to political rallies, and on and on. Some studio work as well.
-- Also was a working musician playing on those stages now and then.
-- Lots of other logistics/production/operations type work for "events" and such.
-- Was "Operations Director" for a bunch of years for a non-profit organization involved in outdoor/experiential education for youth.
-- Worked for a lot of years in the bike industry, from being a mechanic to managing a shop, and also a bit of race support.
-- Worked as a river rafting guide, as a bike tour guide, and as a tour guide in Antarctica.
-- Ship's crew in various places around the world.
-- Couple of other "boat driver" jobs here and there...on oceans and rivers with different types of craft.
-- Worked as a graphic designer full time for a few years, and have done occasional freelance work every since.
-- I built guitars, other stringed instruments, along with some other woodworking.
-- I've sold some writing and photography now and then, and have co-authored a couple of guidebooks.
-- Managed an "events rental" company for a few years.
-- Done a bit of construction/carpentry type work.
-- Done biology field work in the Grand Canyon and thereabouts.
-- Worked on a boat inspections crew concerned with invasive species in waterways.
-- Done some community organizing / political outreach type work.
-- Had a few stints in retail, from grocery stores, to book shops, to plumbing supply, to hardware/ranching stores.
-- Did some groundskeeping (in a cemetery and a church!)
-- Lots of different types of one-off odd-jobs for a bit of cash over the years.
-- and yes, I had a paper route when I was a wee lad.
I'm sure I've missed or forgotten a few.
s6
The most diversified person on here.
Did you fly out of Edwards? Did you get to drop ordinance at China Lake? When there are bombs dropping at China Lake I can hear them here in Pahrump. Sometimes they will rattle the doors of my garage. And that was sure a soft landing.
stealth6
insert witty tagline here
And probably the one with the least amount of savings/retirement/money to show for it all.
But, as is sometimes said, "money ain't everything", right?
s6
dr wogz
Fly caster
I have to vent..
(and I'm sure some can relate - joys of engineering)
A meeting was called yesterday, to discuss a series of mechanical breakages (screws snapping) on a particular aspect of product I've helped design / am the lead designer. The part that keeps breaking wasn't designed by me, but (I feel) my input into the design was pretty much ignored, and the issues we are now see, (I feel) were obvious (to me at least). (I feel favoritism to a particular engineer)
the meeting was called (for early next week) and the use of our FEA / FEM analysis* will be presented. (A series of screws broke. We don't need FEM to tell us if you bend a screw enough, it'll break..) Their finding dictate larger screws are needed. But I fear we are just moving the stress to another part of the machine at this point.. they (management / project leader [PL]) don't seem interested in looking at the root cause, as that means a potential redesign of this part. (but minor 'band aid' fixes are OK.. and there have been a few!)
But it'll be me who has to fix it / revise the current design with their findings & decision.
So, I sent my supervisor, the PL, and the dept head a pointed: "i'm upset, we're just putting band-aids on a bad design, and I have nothing to contribute" response to them.. And I get called for not being a 'team player'..
*One PL loves FEM!! He thinks it's the best thing in the world, and can solve any problem! Fancy buzz words & pretty [stress] pictures in my opinion. (It has its place, but not here..)
Sorry, had to vent!
rather bummed about it..
(and I'm sure some can relate - joys of engineering)
A meeting was called yesterday, to discuss a series of mechanical breakages (screws snapping) on a particular aspect of product I've helped design / am the lead designer. The part that keeps breaking wasn't designed by me, but (I feel) my input into the design was pretty much ignored, and the issues we are now see, (I feel) were obvious (to me at least). (I feel favoritism to a particular engineer)
the meeting was called (for early next week) and the use of our FEA / FEM analysis* will be presented. (A series of screws broke. We don't need FEM to tell us if you bend a screw enough, it'll break..) Their finding dictate larger screws are needed. But I fear we are just moving the stress to another part of the machine at this point.. they (management / project leader [PL]) don't seem interested in looking at the root cause, as that means a potential redesign of this part. (but minor 'band aid' fixes are OK.. and there have been a few!)
But it'll be me who has to fix it / revise the current design with their findings & decision.
So, I sent my supervisor, the PL, and the dept head a pointed: "i'm upset, we're just putting band-aids on a bad design, and I have nothing to contribute" response to them.. And I get called for not being a 'team player'..
*One PL loves FEM!! He thinks it's the best thing in the world, and can solve any problem! Fancy buzz words & pretty [stress] pictures in my opinion. (It has its place, but not here..)
Sorry, had to vent!
rather bummed about it..
Old saying at work: "Never enough time/money to do it right to begin with, but always enough to do a rework".
boatgeek
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I know that feeling. And also agree that FEA doesn't tell you everything that you need to know.
There was a case out here in a public agency where an engineer disagreed with the totally inappropriate materials (stainless steel in stagnant seawater) planned for a project. They were told to PE-stamp the drawings as they were or be fired. They grudgingly did, and when the stainless rotted out two years later due to crevice corrosion, costing several million in repairs, the engineer was fired because their stamp was on the plan.
I wish it was otherwise, but I was never flight crew and except for the rare "joint mission", AF aircraft would fly out of EAFB and the Navy from Armitage Field at China Lake.
Good question about the detonations... live ordnance would be used by both the AF and Navy on targets in Superior Valley (south of the Navy's Electronic Combat Range (ECR / ECHO) and the Army makes lots of noise at Ft. Irwin, just east of ECHO. The majority of the weapons testing at the main China Lake / North Ranges facilities use telemetry packages rather than warheads. That said, occasionally some real "thumpers" would get lit off up in the Coso Mountain Range to the north and east of the main facilities. Depending on lots of weather variables and topography, you could be hearing explosions from any of those places. And don't forget, you have "noise makers" to the north of you and somehow those sounds could get reflected by mountains.
Here's an video of some of the stuff going on over the hill from you.
NTP2
Well-Known Member
so what do you use in stagnant seawater?
dr wogz
Fly caster
fun stuff! (it really is!!) and if you are after an engineering degree, definitely something to master!
FEM / FEA "Finite Element Method" or "Finite Element Analysis" - teh ability to see how a part / thing will behave under loads & stress. "When will the part break, and where?"
We use the PTC Creo sim module since we use PTC Creo CAD at work.. (Sucky CAD [interface], but uber powerful!!)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finite_element_methodhttps://www.simscale.com/docs/simwi...analysis/what-is-fea-finite-element-analysis/
https://www.ansys.com/products/structures/ansys-mechanical
NTP2
Well-Known Member
My wild guess is aluminum of some sort?
NTP2
Well-Known Member
Thanks!! I have seen that sort of thing but didn’t know the name of it.
boatgeek
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Copper-nickel is the best option, though pricy. It would last for the lifetime of the boat. I believe that straight copper works as well. Weirdly, mild steel will last longer than stainless, though one of the other two options is likely better once you consider replacing it every 5-10 years.
Aluminum would probably be worse than stainless. Both depend on oxygen in the water to form a hard film that prevents further corrosion. Without oxygen in the water, both get eaten quickly.
dr wogz
Fly caster
yeah, lots of people think Stainless is great for a lot of things. it isn't..
And they think 'stainless' is 'stainless'.. but again, there are myriad of different types..
We use primarily 304 & 403 in our ovens & display cases..
304 for where it is in contact with food, and 403 for everything else..
And they think 'stainless' is 'stainless'.. but again, there are myriad of different types..
We use primarily 304 & 403 in our ovens & display cases..
304 for where it is in contact with food, and 403 for everything else..
Finite element analysis- a form of engineering stress analysis. If you have a complicated thing that there isn't a known equation or method of analysis, you use software that divides the complicated thing into a lot of finite elements, little pieces, that each can have its behavior modeled. Then you connect them mathematically into what is basically a very large system of simultaneous equations for the computer to solve. It can be very good for some things but is very susceptible to "garbage in garbage out", or "pebkac" (problem exists in the person acting between the keyboard and the computer.
NateB
Well-Known Member
You can't take money with you. Experiences are valuable too. I've followed dreams and many whims and have had a good ride doing so. I passed a few opportunities in early college in order to "be responsible" and figured out it wasn't the right path for me. As Warren Miller always said, "If you don't do it this year, you'll be one year older when you do."
This right here. So important to find the right balance in life and actually “live life”. After graduation from college I took a year off and was a climbing/ski bum for a year. Lived in the back of a truck. Dead broke but good grief did I ever live.
Warren Miller is one of my favorites. Latter in life when I was debating whether to part with the money for a heli-ski trip my buddy used that famous Warren Miller line on me. I ended up shelling out the money and then kept going year after year after year. The experience and memories have been orders of magnitude more valuable than the money used for them.
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Things that I have been paid for (that my 1k brain can remember at this moment):
-Emptying metal shavings from machine shop troughs
-Working at a VFW post (hauling kegs, dish washing, emptying grease pails, some food preparation, etc.)
-Stacking pallets (the pay was incredible, especially for a teenager)
-Selling "novelties" at Spencer Gifts (I was asked if the store carried things such as "camouflage toilet paper" and "soap shaped like a... you know")
-Various uncategorizable temp jobs, including one where I handed out coupons for products that the store didn't carry
-Stacking, organizing, unpacking, and selling college textbooks
-Videography for a university (filmed everything from lectures, to talk shows, to music videos)
-Singer/songwriter for an alternative rock band (yes, I did get paid, but not very much; we did make it to local radio)
-Extra coordinator for a film directed by Alan Rudolph and starring Matthew Modine (I had to tell 200 extras to "go over there" and such)
-Research grant for studying obscure 17th century philosophers (including Margaret Cavendish)
-Production Assistant and science researcher for Newton's Apple (I also appeared on an episode)
-Independent videographer filming anything that anyone would pay me to
-Floor director, camera and teleprompter operator for a local news station
-Office Manager for Business Ethics magazine (very short term)
-Master Control Operator for local cable station (I made sure movies and shows ran on time)
-Staff Accountant (took phone calls, processed payroll, made spreadsheets, tracked down checks, bills, and invoices)
-Assistant Director for an Art Conservation laboratory (I once had to roll a cart containing a van Gogh and a Gauguin down a long steep ramp - the conservator told me "no pressure, there's just $20 million on that cart")
-Bassist for a rock band who had a record contract when I joined and who didn't have one when I left (I was paid, but again, not too much)
-IT Help Desk and Website development and design
-Published comics in a few books (they offered to pay me, it wasn't much, I didn't need the money, so I turned down payment in the hopes that the comics might stay in print longer)
-Election judge for 2008 primary and general presidential election (the company I worked for at the time allowed paid time off to do this)
-Project Management for a large state agency (during one very unpopular project I was booed by 200 people in an auditorium)
-Software Engineering, Technical Business Analysis, Technical Project Management, and leadership/management for various medical companies (implantable devices, pharmocovigilance, neurology, marrow transplantation, radiology)
-Allowing banks to use my money (i.e., interest payments)
-Stock Dividends (OK, I may be getting facetious now
)
-Emptying metal shavings from machine shop troughs
-Working at a VFW post (hauling kegs, dish washing, emptying grease pails, some food preparation, etc.)
-Stacking pallets (the pay was incredible, especially for a teenager)
-Selling "novelties" at Spencer Gifts (I was asked if the store carried things such as "camouflage toilet paper" and "soap shaped like a... you know")
-Various uncategorizable temp jobs, including one where I handed out coupons for products that the store didn't carry
-Stacking, organizing, unpacking, and selling college textbooks
-Videography for a university (filmed everything from lectures, to talk shows, to music videos)
-Singer/songwriter for an alternative rock band (yes, I did get paid, but not very much; we did make it to local radio)
-Extra coordinator for a film directed by Alan Rudolph and starring Matthew Modine (I had to tell 200 extras to "go over there" and such)
-Research grant for studying obscure 17th century philosophers (including Margaret Cavendish)
-Production Assistant and science researcher for Newton's Apple (I also appeared on an episode)
-Independent videographer filming anything that anyone would pay me to
-Floor director, camera and teleprompter operator for a local news station
-Office Manager for Business Ethics magazine (very short term)
-Master Control Operator for local cable station (I made sure movies and shows ran on time)
-Staff Accountant (took phone calls, processed payroll, made spreadsheets, tracked down checks, bills, and invoices)
-Assistant Director for an Art Conservation laboratory (I once had to roll a cart containing a van Gogh and a Gauguin down a long steep ramp - the conservator told me "no pressure, there's just $20 million on that cart")
-Bassist for a rock band who had a record contract when I joined and who didn't have one when I left (I was paid, but again, not too much)
-IT Help Desk and Website development and design
-Published comics in a few books (they offered to pay me, it wasn't much, I didn't need the money, so I turned down payment in the hopes that the comics might stay in print longer)
-Election judge for 2008 primary and general presidential election (the company I worked for at the time allowed paid time off to do this)
-Project Management for a large state agency (during one very unpopular project I was booed by 200 people in an auditorium)
-Software Engineering, Technical Business Analysis, Technical Project Management, and leadership/management for various medical companies (implantable devices, pharmocovigilance, neurology, marrow transplantation, radiology)
-Allowing banks to use my money (i.e., interest payments)
-Stock Dividends (OK, I may be getting facetious now
)
The Nellis Range Complex is similar to China Lake. The ranges go from North of Vegas to Tonopah 240 miles to the north. It's about 260 miles east to west. That's 2.9 million square miles. The ranges have many different targets and is highly instrumented. It has adversary radars and weapon systems. There are cameras everywhere. We came to Nellis on an humanitarian reassignment because my wife's father had terminal cancer. She had to cross train from Target Intelligence to Wing Scheduling. Which turned out to be a very good thing. When she retired from the AF she went back to the same desk doing the same job at twice the pay as a contractor. She worked at a remote site and that group wanted a liaison at the Nevada Test Site. She started working there at twice her other pay. She saw a lot of great stuff while working there. She saw the first test of a Thermobaric bomb. You may have seen the video. It shows the bomb fly into a cave and detonating. IIRC she saw the 5000lb deep penetrator tested. She saw the first Hellfire shot off a Predator. We got invited to see a Predator up close at Indian Springs AFB. Now all the training is done there. Only now it's called Creech AFB. I'm sure she has seen a lot of things she can't talk about too. Sandia has launched rockets from the Ranges. Nellis has the Fighter Weapons School. That's similar to Top Gun at Fallon NAS in Fallon Nevada. That's about 300 miles north of Vegas. Nellis holds Red Flag exercises a few times a year. And other exercises. I have seen Indian and German Migs fly over. Tornados, Eurofighters and just about anything flown by our Allies or the USAF. The Air Force even used Pahrump as a simulated over seas village. Several times the town has been part of an exercise. F15', F16's, A10's flying circles overhead at low level. A light plane would have the instruments from a Predator and fly along the mountains. Helicopters would land a little ways up the mountain. A couple of years ago two Blackhawks landed about a mile away in the desert and did an extraction. They did that many times over two days. We even had a Blackhawk land next to the Fire Station in town right next to the road. Pahrump is surrounded by bases and ranges. Nellis to the east. The Nellis Range Complex to the north. Edwards to the south west. China Lake to the west. Groom Lake about 60 miles to the north east. Several times we would get passes to Capstone. That's the Air Force firepower demonstration. That is an amazing thing to see. There are bleachers a couple miles from the drop zone. I've seen B52's, B1's, B2's, F111's etc drop bombs. On the ground are old tanks and other vehicles. Watching a bomber drop a full load of live bombs is awe inspiring. The string of bombs would be a mile long. We saw a B1 drop high drag bombs from low level. A10's coming in from behind us and firing their gun. What a sound. Then firing rockets at the tanks. The last one we were at an AC130 was there. It fired it's guns at the tanks including their 105mm cannon. Alas we don't get invites now that my wife has retired. Pahrump has been a very interesting place to live. Come for a visit.
during high school I mowed the Catholic cemetery and back then we did not have weed eaters, so we had to hand trim around every foot marker and tombstone, down on our hands and knees.
43 years as a graphic designer/art director. I'm soooo glad I'm retired now..... AI will kill the graphic design industry within 2-5 years. It's been dumbed down to being able to type into a search bar.
