F'N...tastic Fridays....

[Eleven]

31 minutes ago, Zamboni said:

One place I wouldn’t waste my time or money? Freakin bars. Not all patrons obviously, but a good chunk are either horny, alcoholics, desperate for human interaction/lonely or don’t have the ability to come up with better things to do. Again, not all, but a few friends who like the bar scene admit that’s a big chunk of people who enjoy bars. Some grow out of it, some sadly don’t. And no I’m not talking about the people who just meet friends out for a drink or two.

 

This is not an unreasonable viewpoint. I like bars. It's a way to let loose, talk a bit, watch a game a bit, and--to me, most importantly--observe.  Bars are just so full of life.  There have been nights where I've nursed two drinks for four hours just to watch it all.  (When I was younger, or, more recently, when @Weave and I went for a bourbon session, I may have been the watched, rather than the watcher.)  One of my favorite things on a weekend is to solve the NYT puzzle while having a drink or two.  One of my other favorite things is to have a drink or two and observe obnoxious Bills fans.  Hunting season almost is open!

But nothing is for everybody, and if it isn't for you, hey.  Good.  

[darksabre]

4 minutes ago, Eleven said:

Do tell...

It was incredibly quiet. Except for the mooing cows. There was no ambient light anywhere nearby so you could see the Milky Way clear as if you were in it. We didn't have to interact with any people unless we went into West Yellowstone for food. 

Now that's a vacation.

[Eleven]

2 minutes ago, darksabre said:

It was incredibly quiet. Except for the mooing cows. There was no ambient light anywhere nearby so you could see the Milky Way clear as if you were in it. We didn't have to interact with any people unless we went into West Yellowstone for food. 

Now that's a vacation.

Oh. ?  I guess if I didn't want to interact with anyone, I'd just go to a seminary or something.

Edited August 31, 2019 by Eleven

[North Buffalo]

We will take a cruise to Alaska... though trying to find the one with the most stops and maybe one that involves taking a train back.  Was going to do it this year till these health issues came up for me and my Dad.  Hopefully next year.

[Eleven]

40 minutes ago, North Buffalo said:

We will take a cruise to Alaska... though trying to find the one with the most stops and maybe one that involves taking a train back.  Was going to do it this year till these health issues came up for me and my Dad.  Hopefully next year.

I think that's different, though.  That's a nature-oriented trip and I think it's great.

[spndnchz]

Bump

[Randall Flagg]

I'm taking four credit hours of classes this semester, and when it's done, I will automatically pick up an along-the-way Master's degree by virtue of having passed my three qualifying exams at a PhD level. 

I've decided that when that happens, I'm coming home. 

The last six months have been an episode of me slowly losing any interest whatsoever in my physics research. It was in the regime of experimental particle physics. Learning about the ATLAS software and everything that goes into that stuff was so painful because there is no concrete, textbook-like resource for you to read and pick up on things. It wound up turning into me showing up to my adviser with 500 questions every day, about 40% of which he could answer, and I would come out more confused than before. All the while, looking for particles that I don't actually believe to exist. It wasn't fulfilling and I found myself making my office hours and teaching duties last longer and longer to avoid doing it, because I enjoyed that part of it so much more. When I realized that I enjoyed the teaching more than any other part of grad school (though classes are still always interesting to me) I realized that I should probably duck out now, and try and find a job that will pay me more than this stipend does. 

I am so excited to be coming home to every person I've ever known and loved. 

I'm also terrified about not being able to get a job. But I'll try my best. And I'm ready for the next stage in my life.

[josie]

Soon as I finish my work and pack, we're off on a roadtrip. 

There will be airplanes, horses, civil war battlegrounds, and bizarre roadside stops.

Let's go

[LGR4GM]

Hockey time. 

[WildCard]

10 minutes ago, LGR4GM said:

Hockey time. 

Football time first though

[LGR4GM]

2 minutes ago, WildCard said:

Football time first though

No, will be watching hockey tonight which is awesome. 

[spndnchz]

Bump

[MattPie]

Set

[Sabres Fan in NS]

The sun is shining, kind of.

Progress, kind of.

[WildCard]

3 minutes ago, MattPie said:

Set

Spike

[#freejame]

Big block by NS

[Samson's Flow]

On 8/31/2019 at 6:37 AM, North Buffalo said:

We will take a cruise to Alaska... though trying to find the one with the most stops and maybe one that involves taking a train back.  Was going to do it this year till these health issues came up for me and my Dad.  Hopefully next year.

 

On 8/31/2019 at 7:17 AM, Eleven said:

I think that's different, though.  That's a nature-oriented trip and I think it's great.

As someone who just took an Alaskan Cruise back in August, I will absolutely say that's different and also well worth it. The amount of scenery you can experience just from the boat, plus the nature/wildlife oriented shore excursions and opportunity to explore really made the trip. I can't say enough good things.

Even the cruise portion wasn't too bad, given the drink package and premium dining options. ? 

[josie]

We drove the Skyline road in the Shenandoah today. 

 

Wow what a view - we almost mist out on spectacular mountain panoramas what a shame that would’ve been

[North Buffalo]

38 minutes ago, josie said:

We drove the Skyline road in the Shenandoah today. 

 

Wow what a view - we almost mist out on spectacular mountain panoramas what a shame that would’ve been

Been years but yeah that is a great drive and good for camping too.

[josie]

1 hour ago, North Buffalo said:

Been years but yeah that is a great drive and good for camping too.

It’s one of my fav places on earth. I’d been talking it up to dark for years. And today? Our hike was nice but not a single clear view to be had. Just driving through clouds the whole time haha 

Edited September 14, 2019 by josie

[dudacek]

6 hours ago, Samson's Flow said:

 

As someone who just took an Alaskan Cruise back in August, I will absolutely say that's different and also well worth it. The amount of scenery you can experience just from the boat, plus the nature/wildlife oriented shore excursions and opportunity to explore really made the trip. I can't say enough good things.

Even the cruise portion wasn't too bad, given the drink package and premium dining options. ? 

I just want to humbly point out that this is life every day where I live. ?

(Minus the drink package and premium dining options.)

[Tondas]

My birthday present from my wife.  The company says they will be making a Sabres acoustic in the future.

[Winston]

On 9/6/2019 at 11:07 AM, Randall Flagg said:

I'm taking four credit hours of classes this semester, and when it's done, I will automatically pick up an along-the-way Master's degree by virtue of having passed my three qualifying exams at a PhD level. 

I've decided that when that happens, I'm coming home. 

The last six months have been an episode of me slowly losing any interest whatsoever in my physics research. It was in the regime of experimental particle physics. Learning about the ATLAS software and everything that goes into that stuff was so painful because there is no concrete, textbook-like resource for you to read and pick up on things. It wound up turning into me showing up to my adviser with 500 questions every day, about 40% of which he could answer, and I would come out more confused than before. All the while, looking for particles that I don't actually believe to exist. It wasn't fulfilling and I found myself making my office hours and teaching duties last longer and longer to avoid doing it, because I enjoyed that part of it so much more. When I realized that I enjoyed the teaching more than any other part of grad school (though classes are still always interesting to me) I realized that I should probably duck out now, and try and find a job that will pay me more than this stipend does. 

I am so excited to be coming home to every person I've ever known and loved. 

I'm also terrified about not being able to get a job. But I'll try my best. And I'm ready for the next stage in my life.

“Congrats” feels like the wrong word, but I truly mean it. I can only imagine what a relief it must be to get that monkey off your back. If you’re not passionate about it anymore, you’re only going to grow to despise it more as your research consumes your later PhD years. Take that Masters that you’ve rightfully earned and get on home! You’ll figure it out- I think everyone on this board is pretty confident in that, even if you don’t know what’s next ?

Programs that offer “along the way” Masters to PhD students are honorable. OSU just started it this year for my wife’s program. Before that, you could fail your final defense and walk away with nothing. You’d have 7 years of experience and a lowly stipend, I guess. But you know what I mean. My wife didn’t think it was that big a deal when she got hers recently. I told her that you never know what life will throw at you.. You could need to relocate for my work, drop out for health reasons, leave the program to attend to family, or simply have a change in passion and want to pursue something else. They can’t take that Masters away. I’m glad she got it, and I’m glad you did too!

Edited September 14, 2019 by EichSnipe

[Samson's Flow]

11 hours ago, dudacek said:

I just want to humbly point out that this is life every day where I live. ?

(Minus the drink package and premium dining options.)

Well duda we were planning on visiting Vancouver first, but audibled when we saw hotel prices in the mid $300's/day. To this day it is my favorite place in North America and can't wait to get back again

[TrueBlueGED]

On 9/6/2019 at 11:07 AM, Randall Flagg said:

I'm taking four credit hours of classes this semester, and when it's done, I will automatically pick up an along-the-way Master's degree by virtue of having passed my three qualifying exams at a PhD level. 

I've decided that when that happens, I'm coming home. 

The last six months have been an episode of me slowly losing any interest whatsoever in my physics research. It was in the regime of experimental particle physics. Learning about the ATLAS software and everything that goes into that stuff was so painful because there is no concrete, textbook-like resource for you to read and pick up on things. It wound up turning into me showing up to my adviser with 500 questions every day, about 40% of which he could answer, and I would come out more confused than before. All the while, looking for particles that I don't actually believe to exist. It wasn't fulfilling and I found myself making my office hours and teaching duties last longer and longer to avoid doing it, because I enjoyed that part of it so much more. When I realized that I enjoyed the teaching more than any other part of grad school (though classes are still always interesting to me) I realized that I should probably duck out now, and try and find a job that will pay me more than this stipend does. 

I am so excited to be coming home to every person I've ever known and loved. 

I'm also terrified about not being able to get a job. But I'll try my best. And I'm ready for the next stage in my life.

Good on you. I'm sure it wasn't easy, but if you weren't passionate about the research, it's the right thing to do. 

Having made a similar choice several years ago, I'll just say that's it's liberating. If you want to chat sometime, let me know.