On the dole?

[PhantomTweak]

Glad you got such a nice a raise and a new job, OAM!

Good luck and hope you do well and enjoy the job!

Pat☺

[logjam]

What a shame OA, you only made the dole for 2 months. Never mind, you have a chance of making it all over again if you meet up with another man hating boss in future. Good for you to make another 52%. I guess you don't have to pay back your previous severance package either?

[OldAirmail]

What a shame OA, you only made the dole for 2 months. Never mind, you have a chance of making it all over again if you meet up with another man hating boss in future. Good for you to make another 52%. I guess you don't have to pay back your previous severance package either?

No. That "severance package" was a VERY small amount for 7 weeks only.

For people like me at the bottom, it amounted to about four weeks pay. Or three weeks pay after taxes.

If it hadn't been a large layoff, I think that she would have seen to it that I didn't get even that much.

Such is life.


And I don't know if she's really a "man hating boss". She just intensely dislikes anyone who disagrees with her on her way up the corporate ladder.

What's funny, is that one of the very few techs that she kept is a real a$$ kisser who happens to be one of the worst techs I've known.

Even when he knew that I'd check behind him, he'd screw up by not testing is work.

[OldAirmail]

Thanks guys.

Yeah, that was a pretty un-nerving way to get a pay raise though. I was starting to look at part time jobs in the usual "retired persons" field.


Job hunting at 63 isn't a pleasant experience. I have a feeling that more than a few here know that.

There's no doubt that in my 20s & 30s I benefitted from my youth. And although "they" can't "legally" discriminate on age, it's not hard to do.

I even remember laughing to myself when they passed that law. I knew that "they" wouldn't have a problem finding someone else who "Better fits our needs".



I was totally surprised when at the end of the interview they both offered me the job, AND were willing to pay me much more than I had asked.

Apparently, it came down to the fact that I have the badly needed training and experience that they required.

What I received today was confirmation that I had the job, and a starting date.



Aside from the age, most companies don't want someone with over 33 years experience.

With my age & length of experience it's either find a "management" position, or take a part time minimum wage job somewhere.



I'm not taking a dig at Obamacare, but a lot of companies aren't replacing full time positions. They'll cut their costs by hiring someone for a 20 to 30 hour a week position.

The law of unintended consequences.

When you put all that together and factor in the economy.....

Well. Good luck to you.



Back in the '50 & '60 we, in the U.S., had a lot of fairly good paying manufacturing jobs.

But I recall a teacher in the early '60s telling the class that "In todays world there will be fewer jobs that don't requite a high school degree."

How a young kid of today is supposed to find a job with the opportunity to learn and move up in the world, I don't know.



Today, we also have people growing up with an entitlement mentality. "I DESERVE to have THIS" (whatever THIS may be).

What you don't see is "I deserve this, because I have worked to have it".

Nope. It comes down to a simple "I deserve this, so GIVE it to me."



Was I lucky to find this job? Yes.

Did I get it because I was lucky? No.


BTW - I lied. It turns out to be a 51%, not 52% increase. But close enough.

[Sprocket]

Been living and working in the UK for ten years, got laid off 2 1/2 years ago. 63 yrs old at the time..

The medical company that I used to work for got sold to a Swedish company, and from there everything was moved to Poland and China.

But for me it was a huge double wammy. I was in R+D in the design and development of medical devices. My job there was that of model builder.
From idea to proof of concept models....incorporating electronics, pneumatics, machine shop, PCB design, PC and controller interface etc etc. learning new stuff on a daily basis...

At times the resident doctors there would call me in, got a new idea, all very excited. It was up to me then, can this be manufactured? Is it a good idea? Why not? Put a prototype on the table..
I absolutely used to love this job..An extremely varied job, and true as they say, variety is the spice of life...

So yes, very bad age to be laid off, and very sad to loose your dream job.. Been for some interviews, but it has become clear to me the grey hair spoils my chances.
And of course, it is all 3D printing nowadays.

And if you were wondering, one of my scratch builds: 56" upper wing, powered by 24cc petrol engine I converted from a leaf blower..



Sprocket: getting poorer by the day

[OldAirmail]

WHAT A FANTASTIC JOB! WOW!

I'm very sorry that you lost that job.

I'm specialized, but not that specialized.



And all I wanted to be when I was a little kid was a tool & die maker.

Of course after watching an episode of Sky King, I wanted to be a pilot.

And then there was a period when I wanted to be a magician!

Who knows, maybe I'll grow up someday.


No. Lets face it, I'll never become a mature adult.

[logjam]

I wanted to join the circus. I guess I did!

[OldAirmail]

I wanted to join the circus. I guess I did!

I never did join the circus, but I've certainly been a clown.

Somehow most of us do grow up. At least a little.

[OldAirmail]

BTW Sprocket. That's a great plane.

None of the ones that I made out of balsa, tissue, and dope ever came out that nice.

[Sprocket]

[quote="OldAirmail"]BTW Sprocket. That's a great plane.

Thanks OAM..not quite in the correct thread I know..

But here's wishing you the very very best with the new job..

You lucky fish you!

[OldAirmail]

Thanks.

As to the airplane picture being in the right post????

This whole site is mostly about airplanes, so of course it's in the right place.

BTW - That covering can't possibly be tissue & dope, can it?

[PhantomTweak]

BTW - That covering can't possibly be tissue & dope, can it?

From it's look, I'd say "Yes"!

Pat☺

[Sprocket]

BTW - That covering can't possibly be tissue & dope, can it?

Sorry guys, no, it is not tissue and dope...The whole airplane is covered using "Solartex". Iron and hot gun stuff.
Then airbrushed with a polyurethane based paint, called "Japlac" available here in the UK. (Costs an arm and a leg mind, but it is fuel/petrol proof)

Now let me rush to make a small correction here: I said the upper wing was 56", and that is incorrect. It is 66"




Made the cowling using some 1mm PCB board....


Before painting:




Converted leaf blower engine. Replaced the carb with a bigger one from a chain saw. In the end I binned the magneto and used a commercial electronic ignition.



Her goggles are two small "O" rings appropriately "pulled" with some thin wire


My thoughts: Flies OK but is a bit sluggish.. given that this is not a performance engine, I think it is too heavy, and should rather have gone with solarspan, and no painting.
It needs a Zenoah up front! But the wish list is long.. very long.

[logjam]

Alternatively you could have used a vacuum cleaner motor with a long electric cord.

[OldAirmail]

It's been a long time since I've worked on my own cars, but I recall seeing racing nitro kits.

A little nitrous oxide might help.