@fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org
@fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

fratermus

@fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org

Living offgrid in a campervan since 2018 w/ pibble+boxer Muffin.

LIKE dogs, books, thoughtful people of all flavors DISLIKE bullies, sh1tposters, partisans, noise

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fratermus,
@fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

I was riding at night on an unlit rural road when I came right up to a black cow standing sideways across the road. I would have hit it except I was rolling very slowly through the area looking for my bookbag that had come out of the seat bungie.

The bookbag was also black but I found it a few minutes later because a buckle reflected from the headlight.

fratermus,
@fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

What’s the closest you have ever been to actually dying?

There are a few stories. Since we are in public I’ll pick one that won’t freak out onlookers.

tldr

I was drawn down on by two soldiers from my own unit because I was unexpectedly left alone in a place where single actors were not allowed. Cold War stuff.

full version

I was working with a [redacted] which had a 2m “dead man zone” around it in this context, demarcated by a paint stripe. SOP was for the guards^1^ to shoot anyone who entered the zone solo; the assumption being someone would only do that for sabotage.

When maintenance or other operations were required, we would

  • team up with another person of equal knowledge of the operation
  • coordinate to enter the zone simultaneously
  • perform the operation. maintaining line of sight with them and their hands
  • coordinate to exit simultaneously

I got assigned to do some maint with a squadmate who was both highly intelligent and also a fscking idiot. We entered together, started the task, and then he unexpectedly walked out.^2^ I snapped my head around and saw him passing over the line. The idiot had left me alone in the Dead Man Zone and things were turning to shit. The guards chambered rounds and were yelling at me to get away from the [redacted].

I’d already put my arms up and had started backpedaling out. I don’t remember the immediate aftermath clearly because my stressmeter was pegged at aneurysm / this isn’t happening. Through some miracle I did not download into my drawers.

I never saw him working in the Zone again so I suppose he was blacklisted from that duty. And no one else ever got left alone in there AFAIK.

^1^ our unit were also providing the guard rotation; no one else had the clearance required to be that close to the [redacted]. So the guards in this story were my buddies and were abso-fscking-lutely willing to shoot. We all were; it was part of the job. We did have infantry support on the outer perimeter but they were so far outside the razorwire fences we never saw them working. Perhaps it was just as well; they told us they hated us every chance they got. They thought we were [insert homophobic slur here] and [insert MOS-specific slur here] because we rarely carried rifles and did not engage in recreational fistfighting. But we were grateful for their protection, however begrudgingly provided.

^2^ IIRC he walked out to get a torque wrench or similar

fratermus,
@fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

Have you ever created your own job perks?

No, but I had a small company and asked the worker bees to define their own perks.

There were four employees. Three of them played paintball together and wanted paintballs. So I brought a case of their favorite balls into the office before their outings. The fourth guy wanted to have baby carrots to snack on. He ate ~3 lbs a week. Dude would code for hours as long as he was crunching carrots.

I couldn’t have guessed what any of them wanted but they were absolutely cranked by getting it. This was a huge lesson for me: ask people what they want.

fratermus,
@fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

john the ripper?

fratermus,
@fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

It’s… inconceivable no one has said Princess Bride yet.

fratermus,
@fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

I use BT only.

fratermus,
@fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

I once decommissioned a hard drive with shotgun slugs. Yes, this was in Texas.

fratermus,
@fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

Do you think bad weather is a good reason for moving?

I’m probably not your target demographic (I live in a campervan) but I move regularly to follow mild weather.

fratermus,
@fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

Folks with money and DIY skills have made mini-splits work in campervans, so it should be possible. There’s a lot more mounting area for panels on the ground than on a van roof. :-)

deleted_by_author

    •
    fratermus,
    @fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

    Why do people not follow the directives of the police in US?

    Did you see the videos where several cops are screaming contradictory commands? Or impossible/unlawful commands?

    What's the most efficient way for peeling potatoes by hand? (sh.itjust.works)

    Like, I get comments from people telling me it’s weird I always try to peel potatoes like I am trying to make the worlds longest 1-piece potato peel. To me it feels way for efficient and fun to continu down a potato in 1 peel, while circling around it, instead of randomly scraping a hundred different pieces of peel off and...

    fratermus,
    @fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

    Why would you ever want to peel them?

    I used to eat the skins until my kidney stone went to the lab. No more skins or spinach for me. :-( Kidney stone pain is an amazingly-effective incentive for dietary change.

    fratermus,
    @fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

    Not necessarily, it’s specific to one’s body chemistry.

    fratermus,
    @fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

    I logged into my Usenet provider yesterday. I read groups related to my hobbies, so not sure my recommendations would do you much good.

    fratermus,
    @fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

    Busiest one I read is probably uk.media.radio.archers about the BBC radio show

    One of the posts on there today was about this article: www.theregister.com/2023/08/30/usenet_revival/

    which seems optimistic but a man can hope

    fratermus,
    @fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

    I learned to drive on a 1942 John Deere in the early 70s. No on-the-fly shifting but the basics of steering, clutch, and throttle were there.

    In 2017 I bought my first automatic; that vehicle was not available in manual or I def would have bought it that way.

    fratermus,
    @fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

    My favorite is bathrooms where you can stand at the urinal and make eye contact with people in the dining room everytime the door opens.

    fratermus,
    @fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

    I live in a campervan and so have no temperature control in the traditional sense. Closest thing would be the Maxxfan with thermostatic fan control and it’s set to 68F. As long as external temps are lower than internal temps it does a reasonable job.

    fratermus,
    @fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

    For some reason it took me a long time to click with Schitt’s Creek.

    Do you still write notes with pen and paper?

    With so much note taking apps nowadays, I can’t understand why does anyone still write notes with pen and paper. You need to bring the notepad, book or that paper to retrieve that information, and most of the time you don’t have it in hand. While my phone almost always reachable and you carry when you go out. For those still...

    fratermus,
    @fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

    Typing on a phone is terrible for writing more than a few sentences.

    A bluetooth keyboard might be helpful here.

    fratermus,
    @fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

    They also invented tinfoil hats to keep secret agents in your walls from being affected by your mindcontrol countermeasures. Duh.

    fratermus,
    @fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

    What would happen if caffeine was made illegal?

    black market

    fratermus,
    @fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

    There is a saying from when the newspaper world that when a headline asks a question the answer is no.

    Multiplexers are critical to my workflow due to bandwidth limitations and intermittency. mosh+tmux saves my butt daily.

    fratermus,
    @fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

    Do you donate to Wikipedia? Why or why not?

    I did and ever since have been rewarded with an endless barrage of “you gave once before so do it aga–a-a–aa-a-a-a-a-a-a-in” banners. Given the ecomonics of fundraising I wouldn’t be surprised if donors were badgered more than non-donors.

    fratermus,
    @fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

    why are companies trying so hard to have employees back in the office?

    Managers generally don’t know how to manage people, so point fingers at WFH (or anything else that’s handy)

    fratermus,
    @fratermus@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

    that doesn’t work anymore. That’s weak

    The book “Jesus and John Wayne” addresses that mindshift in Evangelical thinking.

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