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Up Topic Chit-Chat & Non-Welding Discussion / Off-Topic Bar and Grill / rig welders...and the utter ******** involved.
- - By Tommyjoking (****) Date 04-20-2014 02:51 Edited 04-20-2014 02:54
Well after about a year of this BS, testing to hire on as an employee. I have figured out I am way, way, way better off contracting and flying my own flag. No offense to all my friends that passed numbers and contacts and tried to convince me to quit "wasting" my time doing bids and rfi's and carrying all the insurance etc etc. Since doing the split check hire on as an employee thing I have utterly starved into bankruptcy. Biggest reason being is I do not suck cock, or pay bribes. I have determined that skill in welding is the very least of concerns on the split check oilfield work. It is a personality contest at the very least, make no mistakes here.  If it was based off tests and skill I would not be crying about it, If I could not stand up I would not *****.  Unfortunately the skill tests seem to be just an aside or formality at the very best....who you know who you blow is the way to make money here.   Apparently I do not blow good enough.......

WOW when I was an independent contractor I looked at a job and guaranteed in writing what i would do for x amount of cash. I was very successful at that **** even tho it is a tremendous headache. So to my friends who said I was killing my self doing so, I am sorry I would rather deal with my ******** and make 125hr on each job then deal with your buddy who lies through his ****ing teeth and wastes three weeks of my time. Maybe it works for you and thats great.....I will do what works for me.

So in summery if you folks need a guy to finance a pipe or structural job and/or man one up....get in touch with me. If I cannot pull it off I will hook you up with someone that can.

BTW I lost my home and everything associated with supporting yourself, drained my bank accounts dry on bs promises etc.  So be real carefull how you may respond, I may be sensitive.
Parent - By ssbn727 (*****) Date 04-20-2014 05:08 Edited 04-21-2014 15:59
Whatever floats yer boat! Go for it!

But pointing fingers won't do any good since what is done is over with...
This is the beginning of a new chapter in your life and as long as you still have your health, there will be more than enough time to get back whatever material things in your life you may have lost... This is now your opportunity to prove to yourself most of all just how resilient you really are! So you failed... So what! it happens all of the time and it will happen to anyone who thinks they cannot fail... If someone tells you that they have never failed then they're not living in reality Tommy and failing is what makes you stronger once you learn to accept it, learn from it and move on from it!  

So from here on in you must learn to accept what has happened or you'll walk around begging for a fight for the rest of your life as you build up your attitude that will reflect a hostility towards potential customers/clients as well as many of your existing ones also... After understanding this in order to begin accepting what has happened in a positive light, you must then learn how to adapt to your new way of living which means making some really hard choices in how you spread your money around your life as well as your family's lives also... On how trusting you should be towards people that you really do not know and to get everything on paper before you make any important moves...
But most of all, you must remain confident in yourself and remain positive in your hopes and dreams because you and your family'sr life isn't over by any means at all Tommy!

Improvising is going to be part of your mantra also in order to overcome this setback that is only temporary - that is unless you want it to become permanently a cloud over you and wondering when it will go away because, only YOU can do that!

So pick yourself up and dust yourself off and then get ready for the beginning of the rest of your life Tommy!
If this sounds redundant then so be it because someone needs to remind or confirm to you what you already know... You're going to get through this being better than ever!

Respectfully,
Henry
Parent - By gndchuck (**) Date 04-20-2014 21:45
sorry to hear about all that, may the future be bright for you
Parent - - By Lawrence (*****) Date 04-21-2014 12:01
The cream rises to the top sir !
Parent - By SCOTTN (***) Date 04-21-2014 13:47
Tommyjoking,

I am truly sorry to hear that you’ve lost your home and your bank accounts are drained while you were trying to support yourself and make a better life for you and your family.  Disappointments are just God’s way of saying “I’ve got something better”.   As difficult as it may be sometimes, please be patient, live life, and above all, have faith in God.  May God bless you, and I wish you the best of luck with whatever path you choose.
Parent - By lo-hi (**) Date 04-21-2014 16:51
I didn't lose my home , but my first try went really bad. Knew I could weld, but underestimated just how tough the rest of the game could be. Had to sell just about everything to keep the lights on and feed the wife and kids. Before it was over I thought that I was gonna have to sell my ******* and **** through my ribs.  25 years later I still remember that lesson. The second try worked out and although there have been ups and downs I wouldn't trade it for anything. good luck and don't let the bastards keep you down
Parent - - By Rafter_G_Weldin (***) Date 04-22-2014 06:05
Been there done that. Lost more than most could even imagine. I agree with Henry. Get up dust yourself off and get back on. Don't dwell on the past it only drags you down. As Henry once told me. P.U.S.H. (Pray Until Something Happens). If I can do it anybody can.
Parent - - By SCOTTN (***) Date 04-22-2014 11:34
P.U.S.H. (Pray Until Something Happens).  Great advice, but sometimes you have to take matters into your own hands.  I remember when I was a kid, I prayed to God for a bike.  I had hoped that God would bless me with one pretty quick, but God just doesn’t work that way.  So I stole a bike and prayed for forgiveness.  Seriously, I know firsthand that prayer works.  As unworthy and undeserving as I am, my family and I have been blessed many times.  I also can’t count the times that I have been so stressed about problems in my life, and then I suddenly feel better just because I prayed.  Whenever you don’t understand what’s happening in your life, just close your eyes, take a deep breath, and say… God, I know it’s your plan, just help me through it.
Parent - - By ssbn727 (*****) Date 04-22-2014 19:54 Edited 05-04-2014 23:09
Seems to me that we're all on the same wavelength Scotty...

And what I mean by Praying until something happens is to pray to God for help in many different forms for infinite situations that call for his assistance... Although I would also hope that some are not misled into thinking that by praying for everything that could be considered a dilemma, or a situation, or a material preference, yet can be achieved, performed and repaired independently from resorting to praying for help with and for everything... Because if one does get into the habit of doing so the they are no longer praying...
They're wishing! And you know what's said about being careful for what one wishes for!

In fact, the act of praying for help when one is powerless to do so themselves, or by anyone else is also a true example of humility by being humble enough to ask for help whether it be to God or to anyone else for that matter... Because after all is said and done God is what surrounds all of us, and by praying for help we then ask and let God into our lives.

Respectfully,
Henry
Parent - - By mcostello (**) Date 04-23-2014 01:36
AMEN, Henry.
Parent - - By ssbn727 (*****) Date 05-04-2014 23:10
Are you still in Lancaster, Ohio?

Respectfully,
Henry
Parent - - By mcostello (**) Date 05-05-2014 00:48
Henry, if You mean Me,Mcostello, Yes.
Parent - By ssbn727 (*****) Date 05-05-2014 15:44
Cool... That makes you a next door neighbor - state wise.:lol::cool:

Respectfully,
Henry
Parent - - By Cumminsguy71 (*****) Date 04-28-2014 13:10
Tell us how you really feel Tommy!!

I've been there all the way with you brother! I've seen the hard times, have not been as extreme as your situation in losing the house though. Things I didn't really enjoy that I did last year are now things I will do to keep the lights on(handrail, gates, residential stuff).

I've heard all of the stories and being "looked out" for some petty reason and know by my character that I would not survive in that game. Not because I could not handle it but I would be the first to call somebody out on it, thus making a name for myself as the "watch out for this guy" guy. We are alike you and I. We see the color blue and we say it is blue. In that game it seems that it is called yellow but it's still blue in our eyes. I like a clear picture, not a cloudy haze. You give me a test, I pass with flying colors and you don't like what kind of machine I run or how my rig is set up or the type of cologne I'm wearing that day and send me packing.

You're dedicated and have the drive to do it. You've kept after it for several years now and seems it started to go south when you started chasing this split check thing. Give me a call sometime, I think I might have something that would be right up your alley, key word being up. I think I could use a good man in Texas and it involves a spider!! I can put in a good word for you and you can just ride the lighting, none of that physical stuff!!

Take it easy man! As always if you need anything you know where to reach me!

Shawn
Parent - - By Tommyjoking (****) Date 04-30-2014 01:26
Thanks for the kind thoughts and proverbial butt kick with the bunny slipper.   This has been a long ongoing thing, I also have been a great contributor to things not working out.  Way tougher slipping in there then it seems.  I know nepotism (for lack of better terms) is everywhere but it I was shocked to see so much so quick.  I am not a quitter by any means so, it WILL work out.  BTW guys losing the house battle was just not good the way it went down, but in all reality it is just God showing his will thru my wax caked ears...in other words it is for our betterment.   We are not out on the street or anything like that....we have already moved into a nicer place out in the country in TX.  Thanks again.
Parent - - By SCOTTN (***) Date 04-30-2014 13:28
Tommyjoking,

Never judge a man until you’ve walked a mile in his bunny slippers.   The bunny I got my slippers from woke up in a hospital with a doctor standing over him.  I was in the same room with him when I heard the doctor say, “I’ve got good news and I’ve got bad news for you”.  The bunny asked for the bad news first.  The doctor told him that they had to amputate his legs.  The bunny was absolutely devastated.  After a few minutes, he gained his composure and asked the doctor for the good news.  The doctor told him that the man in the next bed is wearing his feet.   The most amazing part of it all wasn’t how I ended up in an animal hospital.  It was the talking bunny.  All I wanted was pair of bunny slippers like the ones I thought I saw my wife was wearing one night, but with less wrinkles in them.  I was lying in bed one night, minding my own business, and she walks in wearing nothing but bunny slippers.  I asked her what’s with the bunny slippers, and she told me that she wasn’t wearing slippers.  So what are those things on your feet, I asked.  It turns out, as you get older, gravity takes over and things drop way down.   Imagine my dismay.
Parent - By WeldinFool (**) Date 05-01-2014 19:01
You're a sick man...keep 'em coming!
Parent - By vagabond (***) Date 05-05-2014 22:45
The last rig I had before jumping into the inspection world I used to build gates and staircases with.  When I arrived in California there were 22 power plants under construction and times were good for awhile.  After that I found myself in Bakersfield where 1 in 4 trucks had a welder in the bed (yes the bed, lol).  And after watching the backstabbing, thievery, ring knocking and BS for a few months I parked my rig and went to work single hand.  I won't say I'll never rig weld again but I'll be someplace I'm in demand if I do.  When I'm not on the road inspecting now I have a handful of farmers that always need something done so I set up a little trailer with a Hobart on it to make beer money.  I still get a rig check, but my "rig" is a set of guages and it all fits in a shoebox. . .:cool::cool::wink:
- - By Dualie (***) Date 05-04-2014 03:44
I got called out to a coast guard ship the other day to weld a bracket on,   lets just this was the most miserable hiedy hole i have ever had to cram my happy azz into to make a weld.     Lets just say if i knew what i was getting into i would have told them the rate was $1000 an hour and not felt bad.    I made the weld and got paid but i don't think its anything i want to get involved in twice.
Parent - - By Tommyjoking (****) Date 05-06-2014 20:36
LOL   A few years ago I patched a 12" long tear in an aluminum hulled houseboat..100+ footer..tear was in the engine "room" and right at the waterline.  UMMMM  I did not know I knew yoga till that day...talk about messed up uncomfortable, can't reach, see....it was bad but it was a $1900.00 day.  Had to take a 220 shop machine and get it far out on the slip and wire it in just to get it done.  Hell I would do it again anytime those guys price dry docking thier boat.
Parent - By Dualie (***) Date 05-07-2014 03:46
i was nice enough to talk them into covering my privates with a fire blanket.   thats the only upside
Up Topic Chit-Chat & Non-Welding Discussion / Off-Topic Bar and Grill / rig welders...and the utter ******** involved.

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