What's the stupidest thing you've done recently?

Yes, not too too stoopid. Just a little (ffft) stoopid.

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Well, silly maybe...not listening to yourself perhaps even

Its okay..you have company Smile

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I'm not beating myself up about it. It's kind of funny and I believe that a little food poisoning once in a while is a good thing.

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can we quote you on that, littlek?

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A little food poisoning... I dunno. Isn't one of those canned food poisons botulism which is supposed to be really bad, really fast?

I guess this is stupid on my part... somebody wasn't thinking too hard, anyway. When we left the college-age son in London in September, one of the last things I said was, "For Pete's sake, don't lose your plane ticket."

He's flying home in a couple of hours (I think) and we've been back and forth by phone and email because not only has he lost his ticket, I didn't make a copy of it to have here OR have a shred of the right information at hand to give him. All I had was a pitiful credit card statement. I think it is straight now, but I have learned I will always make sure when buying the ticket to use the credit card that is going with the person who is flying. Otherwise he gets a paper ticket instead of an eticket. What a pain in the patoot.

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I had heard of Gretna Green, at some point, but I don't remember if it was when I lived on the street in west Los Angeles as an adolescent, or later. Strange street in any case on our end of it, between San Vicente and Sunset, in that the street itself was quite wide and still performs as a cut through between the boulevards... so cars gather speed for the approximate five block stretch between, revving up past single family tract homes of let's say, 1950. I never knew anybody much in that neighborhood, just the immediate people next door, plus I was just beginning to start to talk to people back then.

In Venice, a few miles south, I knew virtually everybody for blocks around. Okay, I lie, but almost everybody.

Ok, back to Stupid........

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Piffka wrote:

A little food poisoning... I dunno. Isn't one of those canned food poisons botulism which is supposed to be really bad, really fast?

I guess this is stupid on my part... somebody wasn't thinking too hard, anyway. When we left the college-age son in London in September, one of the last things I said was, "For Pete's sake, don't lose your plane ticket."

He's flying home in a couple of hours (I think) and we've been back and forth by phone and email because not only has he lost his ticket, I didn't make a copy of it to have here OR have a shred of the right information at hand to give him. All I had was a pitiful credit card statement. I think it is straight now, but I have learned I will always make sure when buying the ticket to use the credit card that is going with the person who is flying. Otherwise he gets a paper ticket instead of an eticket. What a pain in the patoot.

Oh no, Piffka... it always happens when you least expect it. It isn't really your fault...

The stupidest thing that I did recently... hmm, I don't really do 'stupid ouch' stupid things. I asked my German teacher whether we had to get out of the 'bed' rather than 'did we have to get out of the block,' which caused some embarassment!

Oh, and the Uni asked me to do one of these 'positive rôle model' things that they do by getting Uni students in to schools to show that, yes, an education is beneficial. Some kid was talking about 'Dentist innuendo,' and instead of swiftly changing the subject, I listened... that was a bit of a no-no.

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Eva wrote:

Wilso wrote:
You're right there pal. I've worked with plenty of engineers in my time. Never yet met one that I trust. And in fact, of all the people I would seek out for technical assistance where I work, NOT ONE, is a university trained engineer.

Really, Wilso? Hmm, I've never heard that before.

My husband is now in charge of automation products for the largest electrical supply house in the state. Having been a controls engineer for 10-15 years before that, he also has considerable experience in specifying, starting up, and troubleshooting on control systems. He now teaches engineers in various plants & factories how to troubleshoot & solve problems with their own equipment. In fact, if those engineers cannot solve a problem, they call him to come fix it before they have to fly someone in from the factory. He would be the first one to complain about the competence of engineers, I suspect, but ordinary electricians usually know very little about industrial applications.

What is your background? Maybe I haven't been paying attention, but I don't remember you telling us...? I am genuinely interested.

I'm a licensed electrician. Four year apprenticeship which consisted of 3 years of work and technical training plus a year just under the supervision of tradesmen. Two years post trade in industrial electronics. 17 years working as a tradesmen. Done maintenance work, calls, instrumentation, electronics (not my strong point), now working mainly in IT. I've just finished setting up the process computers for the Basic Oxygen Steelmaking plant, installing and testing the X window applications. I also maintain the cable database, and control the issue and backup of all the programmable controller software for the Continuous Casting Plant. And like I said, of all the technical people who solve the problems, about 90% have got the same qualifications as myself. We obviously do have engineers, but for the most part they lack the on the job real world experience to be very good in an industrial environment. And ours are better than most, because they spend the first couple of years of their training working with tradesmen, the same as I did.

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Sounds good, Wilso! From what my husband tells me, there is no substitute for field experience.

And pdog, I sure hope you are right. I'd love to think he's just as liable to do something stupid with electricity as I am. (sigh...wishful thinking...)

Nevertheless, I am still not telling him about the mixer and the whipped cream. (blush)

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Every time I think about that- I get the giggles. Honestly, the guys at work were rolling.

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Piffka wrote:

I guess this is stupid on my part... somebody wasn't thinking too hard, anyway. When we left the college-age son in London in September, one of the last things I said was, "For Pete's sake, don't lose your plane ticket."

He's flying home in a couple of hours (I think) and we've been back and forth by phone and email because not only has he lost his ticket, I didn't make a copy of it to have here OR have a shred of the right information at hand to give him. All I had was a pitiful credit card statement. I think it is straight now, but I have learned I will always make sure when buying the ticket to use the credit card that is going with the person who is flying. Otherwise he gets a paper ticket instead of an eticket. What a pain in the patoot.

Now, Piffka, just who has done the silly thing here? College-age, I think you said? The blame rests ENTIRELY with your son, and you are lily-white pure. You should NOT have to keep all the backup stuff - if anyone does, he should! And I speak as the mother of 3 sons, 2 at uni

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Spending too much money to please a new client, and forgetting a loan payment that is on automatic debit. Rolling Eyes

Live and learn.

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Oh don't think I'm not steamed at my errant son, Clary. He is ultimately responsible and I am basking in that bit of lily-white wash. But he's still a teenager and I need to get him home the least expensive way. He's used to traveling with an eticket, so paper tickets don't make sense. "What? I can't just give them a code and my name?" At least he didn't lose his passport.

Anyway, that is yesterday's disaster. I think all is well... at least no more calls, no emails. Hopefully he was so contrite that he's looked for the perfumes we asked him to buy at the Duty-Free shop. Mr.P. was so disappointed that he couldn't bring him home some more good Scotch.

Wilso -- You sound extremely competent.

D et R -- What is Dentist Innuendo? I'm so intrigued. It would have been hard to stop that diversion for me, too.

Littlek -- Are you still OK???

Osso -- There's a Gretna Green in LA? I love the Gretna Green story of Scotland: Gretna Green Story

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Piffka wrote:

D et R -- What is Dentist Innuendo? I'm so intrigued. It would have been hard to stop that diversion for me, too.

Oh well; at least he'll be home safe soon; did he have a good time down in London? How long did he stay?

Dentist innuendo: this girl was proclaiming that her dentist is a pervert; he not only ogles her and tells her that he's 'happy to see' her, but he also says such things as 'I'm going to stick my thing into your mouth,' and more dentist innuendo. Then there was a class discussion of dentist innuendo, but the teacher seemed interested too...

Gretna Green-- I've been up there for... a wedding (what a surprise!) It was mentioned in Pride and Prejudice too, I think. I don't know why people still go there despite huge differences in Marriage laws; perhaps they want to envision themselves as star-crossed lovers on the run! Laughing

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OIC. <background snickering> I must be too old (and my dentist too young) for me to have experienced this.

Who doesn't want to be a star-crossed lover, after all? I think that must be it, that and some historical significance. I was married on the slope of a volcano... that had symbolic significance, too. Very Happy

Next stupid thing, so stupid I've been ashamed to admit it. Everybody knows Changing Rooms, right? Well, I decided to surprise that errant son with a refreshing change to his room. Then waited until nearly the last minute. (The show only takes two days, right?) Well, I have paint drying, paint that needs to go on... a gigantic new bed that can't get up there until the paint is dry and I have to leave in a few hours to get him. It WILL be a surprise, oh yes it will!

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Piffka wrote:

OIC. <background snickering> I must be too old (and my dentist too young) for me to have experienced this.

Who doesn't want to be a star-crossed lover, after all? I think that must be it, that and some historical significance. I was married on the slope of a volcano... that had symbolic significance, too.

Next stupid thing, so stupid I've been ashamed to admit it. Everybody knows Changing Rooms, right? Well, I decided to surprise that errant son with a refreshing change to his room. Then waited until nearly the last minute. (The show only takes two days, right?) Well, I have paint drying, paint that needs to go on... a gigantic new bed that can't get up there until the paint is dry and I have to leave in a few hours to get him. It WILL be a surprise, oh yes it will!

I don't think that I'd want to experience dentist innuendo... and you're not too old at all Smile

.

As for Gretna Green, well that's the reason that I'd marry there; for the romantic legend of it all (if I were to marry there (minimal chance) or to marry at all (even lesser)). But why do all these clueless people go up there? Take for example these two, one of whom I took under my wing in this 'welcoming' scheme that I am obliged to do; they're only in their first year of Uni and they say that they're getting married at Gretna Green. I, going into false 'aw how nice' mode, said 'Aw... is it because of..' what we've just discussed. They said, 'they do that in Gretna Green?' I said, 'er.. yes!' They said, 'we didn't know.' I said 'why did you choose Gretna Green then?' They said, 'erm... well...'

Wow... being married on a slope of a volcano is an amazing idea.

Doing your son's room up is a wonderfully warm idea, not a stupid one! (You have 'Changing Rooms' over in America?') It does, however, seem like an erratic 'ahh, get this done, Piffka, get this done!' situation. Good luck Smile

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Gretna Green in Los Angeles, to answer Piffka, is an ordinary street, fairly short in length, covering two sections, one of about five blocks long, and then, across a busy boulevard, another ten or so blocks long. The street was made famous in the nineties because of the murder that occurred there, heavily covered in the OJ Simpson trial.

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Exactly! It is a get-this-done, get-this-done operation. Have just finished the last coat of one color, cleaned the equipment & am getting ready to start on the final wall.

BBC America shows many British series, usually a year or two behind. I've been watching Changing Rooms for a few seasons... what a concept! Don't we all want to have these instantaneous changes? But my real dream would be to get those Ground Force gardeners over. <sigh>

Ahhh, Osso. Thanks. Y'know, I began to hate that OJ crime show and just tuned out. Have done that lately with the Iraq Debacle and am so much happier! Do you think it is stupid to not want to know the news when it is so awful?

Gotta go, I've got a wall calling my name.

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No, Piffka, et al... I am very News stupid, don't watch it, don't listen to it, much anyway, but do read it.

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What's the stupidest thing you've done recently?

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