Petty Vents

[Cooking Goddess]

It's a shame that capable job performance gets put on the back burner. Once upon a time, someone could be dismissed for poor job performance. No one's life depended on whether the dumb worker remembered whether or not you wanted fries with that.

 

[Addie]

The chief told me that 20 years ago, if I were giving a training session, all ears and eyes would have been glued to me, their job depended on it. Now the union makes it almost impossible to get rid of dead weight.

BTW, this isn't common to just "my area".

I have a grandson who is a firefighter. When he is not on firefighting duty, he runs the town ambulance. He told his father one day, that he hated working on the ambulance, "I just want to run into burning buildings!" That sure was no consolation to his family.

Every firefighter I have ever known in this state, even volunteer department personnel, had to go through the firefighter's academy. They graduate from there with a lot of respect for the job they are going to be assigned to. And for those that don't want to learn or listen, they get stuck with all the grunt work.

All firefighters in this state are on the civil service list. So even though they may have applied to go to the fire department in their town, they may end up at a station in a town about 25 miles away. The Chief of that town takes a look at the list and the scores of each graduate. He makes his pick. If that person turns down three assignments in the hope that an opening will come available where he wants to be, he is removed from the list. The same goes for the police here.

When my grandson got the call to go to the academy, he just had a brand new baby and had bought a house. It was his dream job. So the whole fam damily all pitched in for the six weeks he was away, and bought groceries, paid their mortgage payment, paid the utilities, etc. We kept his wife and new baby going. When they take the physical test in order to graduate, every would-be firefighter has to run into a smoke filled building, with flames in different areas, up a couple of flights of stairs and make a rescue. And they have to do this in FULL gear. My grandson graduated near the top of his class. For those at the bottom of the list, they get called by the small towns that pay the State minimum for civil servants. And most of these small towns have no union to fight for all of the firefighters.

BTW, my grandson just past his exam for promotion to Lt. He studied for two years for that exam.

And the proper name for all of them is "Firefighter. Not firemen. Firemen take care of heating boilers, and other major plumbing problems relating to heating systems.

Firefighters fight fires and save lives. Even those of little kittens and puppies.

 

[Just Cooking]

The chief told me that 20 years ago, if I were giving a training session, all ears and eyes would have been glued to me, their job depended on it. Now the union makes it almost impossible to get rid of dead weight.

BTW, this isn't common to just "my area".

In retrospect, I can agree with what you say above.. I try to not be negative but, facts are that with all "our" faults 40, 50 60, years ago, doing the best job possible was a strength to be proud of..

I have to believe that my step father would be disappointed with what has followed him into a job he cherished..

Thank you for pointing that out...

Ross

 

[Farmer Jon]

I was a volunteer firefighter for a few years before I moved out to the farm. I've met and worked with full time paid fire personnel. In craigs defence some of these guys are so dumb its a good thing their boots don't have laces because they would never make it to the fire. On the other hand most of them are very intelegent people but every station has that one guy that screws up everything.

 

[roadfix]

I guess all these things can be said about most any other profession, whether they involve savings lives or not.

 

[CraigC]

My Dad used to install and repair Mass Spectrometers...so many calls for help where Dad either drove or flew to a location far away, renting a car, staying in hotels only to turn the switch to "on" or plugging it in for the fix.

Ha! That is exactly the type of waste of a municipalities money I was referring to when I said some fire fighters lack of "knowledge" cause that waste and yet they cry about raises. The guy in my vent, just cost his fire district about $500.00 and me the lose of time from my service route. I have been sent from the east coast of FL to the west coast of FL to replace a $10.00 part that only requires a screw driver. Travel time and labor, $300.00.

Maybe I shouldn't say municipalities money, but what it really is, TAX PAYERS money!

 

[BlueMoods]

I just got a box of Peaches. They are like a rock. Trying to ripen them in a brown bag. Will see what happens. I love peaches. But have not had a good one in years.

Peached do not ripen once picked, the SOFTEN but do not gain any more sugar or ripeness. Best uses for hard ones are poached, grilled or preserves. Add sugar or a sweet sauce or syrup as needed. That's why a good peach in a store is rare.

Where I live, I have to grow my own to get really good ones for eating raw, store bought is okay for cooking with.

 

[Addie]

Ha! That is exactly the type of waste of a municipalities money I was referring to when I said some fire fighters lack of "knowledge" cause that waste and yet they cry about raises. The guy in my vent, just cost his fire district about $500.00 and me the lose of time from my service route. I have been sent from the east coast of FL to the west coast of FL to replace a $10.00 part that only requires a screw driver. Travel time and labor, $300.00.

Maybe I shouldn't say municipalities money, but what it really is, TAX PAYERS money!

Craig, when Pirate was doing plumbing, he got some really stupid calls. But the best one was "I can't get any hot water from my faucet." So he went and it was around seven at night. He was tired and just wanted to relax. It was a single handle faucet. She kept turning the handle to the right for cold water. Pirate had to teach her how the faucet works. She had never seen a faucet like that. She had just had the faucet installed that day. He billed her for the call. And she paid it.

I asked him if she was married. "Oh yeah. And her husband was sitting in the living room watching TV." Not once did he take his eyes off that screen.

 

[Caslon]

California supermarkets and many other US stores are now charging 10 cents for each plastic bag at the checkout. This is in order to encourage customers bringing in their own bag of some kind. Good luck with that. Do the math. I buy $50 worth of groceries requiring 3 ten cent bags. 30 cents is what percentage of $50?

 

[dragnlaw]

Caslon our grocery stores have been doing that for a couple of years now. But they only charge .05$ and not all of them do.

I have noticed that they now have slightly bigger bags but they are more fragile to tearing - they always were fragile but seem to be more so.

 

[Just Cooking]

Discouraging use of and banning plastic bags has been going on for a long time here.. Charging for paper bags for a year or so..

At first we thought it an inconvenience but, as we collected an assortment of reusable cloth bags we got into it.. It does help the environment, landfill problems, sea life here at the coast, etc..

This is just another part of recycling, etc.. I'm not a real "green guy" but I see the need for and the results of doing these things..

On another food forum there was a lot of controversy about reusable bags.. Too much hassle, keeping them clean, etc. Like anything else in a changing world, we adjust and makes it work..

I can't imagine not going into a store without my cloth bags.. For those times when Jeannie pops into a store and finds something she wants, she has a compact bag in her purse to use or, she will pop for the 10 cents and use that bag for trash at home..

Ross

 

[GotGarlic]

Discouraging use of and banning plastic bags has been going on for a long time here.. Charging for paper bags for a year or so..

At first we thought it an inconvenience but, as we collected an assortment of reusable cloth bags we got into it.. It does help the environment, landfill problems, sea life here at the coast, etc..

This is just another part of recycling, etc.. I'm not a real "green guy" but I see the need for and the results of doing these things..

On another food forum there was a lot of controversy about reusable bags.. Too much hassle, keeping them clean, etc. Like anything else in a changing world, we adjust and makes it work..

I can't imagine not going into a store without my cloth bags.. For those times when Jeannie pops into a store and finds something she wants, she has a compact bag in her purse to use or, she will pop for the 10 cents and use that bag for trash at home..

Ross

My store offers a credit of 10 cents per bag you bring with you. DH goes to conferences regularly, so we've accumulated quite a few very sturdy canvas bags that I use for shopping. I throw them in the laundry every so often. No big deal, just a bit of an adjustment. And we still get plastic bags sometimes, to line trash cans and clean the litter box.

 

[Just Cooking]

My store offers a credit of 10 cents per bag you bring with you. DH goes to conferences regularly, so we've accumulated quite a few very sturdy canvas bags that I use for shopping. I throw them in the laundry every so often. No big deal, just a bit of an adjustment. And we still get plastic bags sometimes, to line trash cans and clean the litter box.

Yes on that in bold... I forgot to mention that...

Actually, yes on the entire post...

Ross

 

[Dawgluver]

I've seen a small part of what plastic bags can do to the ocean. They account for a lot of garbage that washes up, some even come from across the ocean. They don't disintegrate. Turtles, fish, and birds mistake them for jellyfish, eat them, and starve to death.

I use cloth bags whenever possible. As GG said, it's no big deal to wash them every so often.

 

[Mad Cook]

Will someone please strangle the next "TV Chef" who says "charred" when s/he means "burnt"?

 

[Mad Cook]

California supermarkets and many other US stores are now charging 10 cents for each plastic bag at the checkout. This is in order to encourage customers bringing in their own bag of some kind. Good luck with that. Do the math. I buy $50 worth of groceries requiring 3 ten cent bags. 30 cents is what percentage of $50?

What a brilliant idea. Over here shops now, by law, have to charge 5 pence for supplying a plastic carrier bag. It's cut down the bag usage considerably. The 5 pence goes to charities.

I've always used a wicker basket since I was young and frequently got laughed at in the past. I am now looked on with awe and receive questions of "Where did you get that basket?"

 

[skilletlicker]

Most of the time I carry groceries home in a backpack plus, if necessary, a tote bag. Cheaper than a gym membership. Still, those plastic bags accumulate and it doesn't take long for them to fill an 18-gallon kitchen trash bag. And I'm just one old man. Imagine how much room all our bags are taking up in landfills.

 

[dragnlaw]

Discouraging use of and banning plastic bags has been going on for a long time here.. Charging for paper bags for a year or so..

I can't imagine not going into a store without my cloth bags.. For those times when Jeannie pops into a store and finds something she wants, she has a compact bag in her purse to use or, she will pop for the 10 cents and use that bag for trash at home..

Ross

I also carry a compact bag in my purse.

My store offers a credit of 10 cents per bag you bring with you. And we still get plastic bags sometimes, to line trash cans and clean the litter box.

Way back, gads, more than 20 years, they used to give you credit for bringing in your paper bags. They didn't charge you but you did get a credit for re-using them. They didn't even have plastic bags at that time (other than the smaller ones for meat & vegies)

The times I have forgotten to take them in (I keep them in the car) I just have them load the groceries back in the basket, wheel it out to the car, and bag them there!

You could also get them boxed, convenient to go to the cottage. But now they collapse them and send to recycle. If you want boxes to move or one year I made a nursery for chicks and goslings out of the huge boxes for paper towels, etc. you have to go in and ask for them to be kept aside at least a week earlier. AND if you don't pick them up when you say you will - their gone!!

 

[roadfix]

The checkers think my oversized, heavy canvas bag is so cool... I think so too. I like anything made of canvas.

 

[Dawgluver]

I have a big insulated canvas one from Costco. Great for out of town trips.