Once you get high enough in corporate hell, all work is meetings and e-mails about meetings. There is nothing else.

For me, stopping, getting out, and getting some coffee wakes me up for 2-3 hours. I also listen to audiobooks as I drive to keep my brain working. A good engaging story is better than a nap for me.

Capitalism exploits cheap labor everywhere around the world. It’s a feature of the system.

Mexico and Canada have been investing in agricultural infrastructure for decades now. The only reason that the U.S. farmer can compete is due to shenanigans in import requirements. Imports are held to a much higher standard than domestic production. It’s why the majority of foodborne outbreaks are from American production.

American farmers have been conditioned to rely on cheap labor and expensive equipment. There’s been only been minor infrastructure investment since the 1970’s.

Without government subsidies and cheap labor, the majority of the farmers business models in the us is not sustainable.

Brings back a fun memory. On a business trip in France, I was driving and with my coworker (French national).

I had the GPS set to English pronunciation of the signs etc. My coworker spent most of the two hour drive a complaining about the pronunciation and begging to change the settings. I spent the trip laughing my ass off at him and refusing to change it.

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The American system for me.

Halfway through the year cost so far:

Relatively inexpensive union insurance for the family $2310. Out of pocket expenses so far $3,700. Total $6010 so far…

Estimated total by the end of the year - $2310 in insurance premiums, 3,000 out of pocket.

Yearly estimated total $11,320.

2 years ago we had the corporate America special. Premium was $16,200, out of pocket was 8,000. $24,200 was the total cost. It was 26.8% of my gross income that year.

Barrels were reused until they could no longer be repaired or salvaged. Cooper’s had steady guaranteed work for their skills.

Consumption was mostly at the public houses/taverns for the lower/middle classes.

Well your going to wish you weren’t so curious with this one. Source of this information: several museum visits around 30 years ago after a pint or three, so the info might be warped.

Gin is a double-distilled 40% or higher spirit flavored with juniper + other flavors.

The source of the alcohol was any carbohydrate or starch source. Whatever was cheapest. It was mostly wheat and barley at the time but just about anything else cheap could be used like rye, turnips, etc. For the cheapest rotgut the ingredients was stuff considered unfit for animal feed (rodent feces, insect damage, molds, water damage, etc).

Since their ingredients were highly questionable, their input cost was minimal. Heating was from coal. They also started making larger batches which further reduced down the cost.

Logistics - Canals at this time period was the most important logistic. One donkey pulling a barge could move as much as 50 wagons. Tons of goods were transported cheaply and efficiently on the barges. The gin was shipped in casks/barrels like beer/ale. Bottles were very expensive and reserved for the elite.

Public sanitation consisted of a gutter on the side of the road. The entire city smelled like the open sewer it was.

The gin was not served in bottles. It was served like beer or ale into cups/mugs/communal tankards etc … mostly earthenware, leather or wood.

They get a big hefty fine. The fine is then reduced down to nothing after they claim they had no idea they were not legal to work in the country.

Next they reduce the amount of money they pay the other employees who they have no idea are not legal to work because of the fine they did not pay.

Have you run into a Teancum?

For those that are not up on your mormonisms, it’s pronounced:

Tea-an-cum

An it’s a boy’s name.

When I was first out of college I used to get 8-10 of pre-payed envelopes every week. I kept a PO box for my mail that I would check weekly.

I would have maybe 1 or two pieces of real mail and a full box of junk.

So I started folding up the junk mail I to the 8-10 prepared envelopes every week. This was all done at the counter next to my PO box and dropped mailed back right then.

It was quite cathartic.

Prompt

John Doe

Customer

Thank you for your payment.

Response:

My Dearest Mr. Doe,

Pray, permit me to take pen in hand and offer, with the utmost sincerity and gratitude, my profound thanks for your timely and generous remittance. Rare indeed is the pleasure that I derive from correspondence of such a felicitous nature, and rarer still is the privilege of addressing a gentleman of your esteemed character and noble disposition.

Your payment, received with all due ceremony, has graced our humble establishment like a ray of golden sunlight filtering through the ancient boughs of a venerable oak. It is not merely the settling of accounts that stirs my heart, but rather the cherished confidence you bestow upon us—a trust which we hold as dearly as any precious relic or priceless heirloom.

Allow me to assure you, most honourable sir, that your patronage is the very lifeblood of our humble enterprise. You have, with a stroke of your pen, renewed the bonds of commerce and camaraderie which unite us, and for this, I am ever in your debt.

May fortune and felicity attend your every step, and may the days to come bring you as much satisfaction as your esteemed custom has brought to us. Should you require aught, whether great or small, pray do not hesitate to command our service, for it would be our greatest pleasure to attend to your wishes with the utmost devotion and alacrity.

With deepest respect and abiding appreciation, I remain— Your most obedient and grateful servant,

[Your Name] [Your Title or Company, if applicable]

I fell like I should change my default invoicing letter. Much better than the default QuickBooks one.

Ah the good ol’ days when farmers had 10+ kids.

Only 5 made it to adulthood due to diseases like measles, mumps, influenza, whooping cough etc. , poor and dangerous working conditions, and no healthcare. Of those 5 remaining, 1 of them died in childbirth, and 1 died in a random war and 3 went on to have kids of their own.

Fucking hell, I understood that. I have slipped and fallen into the dark side. Learn from my mistakes and turn back before you get to this point. There is no hope for me now.

That’s okay, we can reschedule the 1 of the 60 TFCV meetings about theupcoming 5 TPS meetings, that so we can be prepared for the 2 SMR meetings in 3 and 4 months, which is needed for the the BRM meeting in 6 months. Then we’ll see if anything is decided at the BRM meeting. If not we’ll repeat the meeting schedule for the foreseeable future.

Like one that put Brazil as the leading exporter of a crop that the U.S. used to dominate.

What do they want to pay? Minimum wage for 60 hours per week with no overtime.

When your business requires the exploition of cheap labor, you deserve to go bankrupt.

I have the same issue. I have a 10 year old laptop that I use as well. My solution was to dual boot Linux mint & Win10. Most of the time I use Mint on that computer and load the windows only when playing that game.

I have a work phone and a personal phone. The work phone i answer calls from I known numbers all the time. My contact information gets passed around as part of my business. For a while I had scammers hitting my number 3-4 times per day. I answered and fucked with them every time. A little free stress relief through the day. Now I almost never get them anymore.

My personal phone I have always screened all the calls. It still gets hit with scammers 2-3 times per week.

I guess you are right. There is a list going around of numbers who waste their time.