My "shop" for the last 5 years

yay, thanks Jim, haven't even applied for the job yet :D At the end of the day, I'll be pretty thankful if we get to choose where we live and however crappy SeaTac might be, it sure beats somewhere in the middle of the Dakotas or Kansas! If that sounds screwy, read this

Hey hey what's wrong with the Dakotas? :) I was born and raised there, North Dakota that is. I should also mention North Dakota is enjoying one of the lowest unemployment rates in the nation at the moment. You just need to learn to bundle up in the winter and enjoy mosquitoes and horse flies in the summer. :-D


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I read it, I feel for you. I had no idea. I'm glad I'm self employed.

no worries, I chose this career with my eyes open and I love what I do, I just want to get over this PITA process and settle down somewhere.

Hey hey what's wrong with the Dakotas? :) I was born and raised there, North Dakota that is. I should also mention North Dakota is enjoying one of the lowest unemployment rates in the nation at the moment. You just need to learn to bundle up in the winter and enjoy mosquitoes and horse flies in the summer. :-D

I actually thought SD was beautiful in its own way when we drove through it. It's just that I grew up somewhere even flatter than the Dakotas (the Fens in the UK) and I've been a keen mountainbiker for my whole adult life, so I've no particular desire to live somewhere flat and surrounded by nothing much. Not to say other people don't like it, my folks absolutely love the open skies of the Fens, just not my cup of tea.

Anyway, snuck out to the garage(s) today and took a few pictures. Whoever made this garage arrangement must have been deranged as it's a 3 car space with room for one car! Thankfully we only have one car and lots of tools, so it works out perfectly for me.

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the workshop room that takes up 2/3 of the 2nd bay
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the press does get used, although it's main role is something heavy to lock my mtb to :)

2nd garage - haven't yet set up the anodising rig (got distracted fixing a bunch of problems with my commuter bike instead) so it's spread all over the place. Tarps were for covering pears, which have been my main bane for the last few weeks!
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it's a pretty darn neat space, that's for sure and it's really handy both having frequently used tools together and rarely used ones tucked away in another room. There's even another garage and shed at the end of the garden, but they've fallen into disrepair. Crazy place.

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I read it, I feel for you. I had no idea. I'm glad I'm self employed.

I read it also. WOW... did not realize it was that difficult.

I agree with Jim... running your own show is the place to be. It has its own set of issues... however at least one has some control over their life and destiny.

OTOH... If one actually got tenured at a BIG school... the bennies might be better than self empolyeds.
 
Well it is kind of like running you're own show, just within a large frame work. Sort of like a collective I guess - no one is telling you what to do, but you still have a set of responsibilities that you have to meet.

Benefits are okay, health is passable and retirement is decent, then tuition for the kids is a huge plus. Pay is manageable as a single earner with wife and kids, but doesn't leave much after the usual bulls and kid stuff. The big change with tenure is not stressing about tenure. If anything the work load actually increases :) I do it because I love teaching and seeing students have those same "aha" moments that I did.
 
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