revchuck 

I'm retired with a decent income, but have a part time job in a bike shop for the same reason. It's nice for consumables like tires and tubes, and friggin' awesome for wheelsets, framesets, and bikes, of which I've bought one each.

globecanvas

I just got back from a verrry long day in Boston visiting colleges with my kid. My main takeaway from the visits is that I wish I could go to college. Also he's lucky he's the oldest and we are not yet impoverished, his youngest brother might not be so lucky :/

Apropos of the resume and job application conversation, one place we visited was Northeastern University and I was really impressed by their focus on actually teaching kids how to apply for and get a job, and what to do when you get one. They have a required course that is all about resume composition, interview skills, etc, and all students end up taking basically an extra year to do several semesters of actual paid work experience, not internships, while living on campus. It seems like such an obviously useful thing to teach but we certainly didn't get anything like that when I went to college.

globecanvas

Photos from this morning's ride, by Newman.

revchuck 

Nice!

big john

Is that bird poop all over the rocks in the second shot?

Flatballer

My co-op experience was invaluable. I still graduated in four years, but I had enough credit coming in from AP classes I was able to work two semesters plus two summers at one company. Living at home though, not on campus. Full time. By the time I graduated I had a job already lined up and had enough experience that I was already useful and valuable.

big john

I was an instructor at a private trade school and part of their training when they first came on was how to act at work. These were mostly guys 18-22, or so, mostly with some trouble in their past, but they seriously had no idea how to behave, how to get through a workday.

Later, I taught a special education class for L.A. school district. I learned that "special education" included everyone from emotionally and mentally challenged to seemingly normal guys who couldn't read, to just mean anti-social jerks.
At both places the best gratification came when one of the students got a job. Some of them were good learning the material and good working with their hands, (think auto shop), but it was hard to convince them they could get a job and actually support themselves.

globecanvas

No, that's just what the quartzite conglomerate looks like.

globecanvas

That's really useful to hear, thanks!

topflightpro

I got my haircut this morning. They definitely cut more off on the left side than the right.

Also, I went to college in Boston. It was fun. My roommate married a girl who went to Northeastern.

Flatballer

My 6 month review at work is next week or something. My last haircut was for the interview. It's probably time.

Also, there needs to be some difference between a yield sign on the interstate where you get a quarter mile acceleration lane, and one where you're about 4 feet from being dumped into a traffic lane. Up here they use just a yield sign for both situations. It's often a blind approach so you can't tell unless you just know the area.

hubcyclist

being around boston now and having gone to school not too far from the city I can attest to it being a great place all around.

I need some better kit to race unattached, I have some castelli stuff from my prior club that I like but obviously would be poor form to represent a club I'm not paying dues to. The only generic stuff I have are some loose quarter zip garneau jerseys, definitely not a cool look lol

furiousferret

Growing up I was kinda of like that; my mom checked out when she got leukemia and we spent half our time in foster care and those kids were pretty messed up; the foster parents just wanted to rid of us asap. None of us knew how to act properly. Schools didn't want us, and to be fair, it was for good reason. Some of those foster kids are dead or in prison now, the others I don't care to ever see again. Most of them never had a chance in life, they're just too messed up.

Marine Boot Camp really helped me out, I think what helped the most was I was a fair bit smarter than most of those kids.

Flatballer

That's not always enough to make it, but it certainly helps a helluva lot.

Flatballer

Are you in the same area as that club? If not, I would be tempted to use it anyway, their sponsors certainly wouldn't mind some extra advertising, and you're not going to confuse anyone. I haven't raced up here, but I definitely ride in all my old team stuff, because they're 800 miles away and not going to care.

Ttoc6

I race in my old team's kit + college stuff now that I'm down here in UT. I also get to wear some kit I never got to wear due to a team change right after joining, which is pretty nice.

For racing I wear college skin suits and I bought some knock-off Rapha gear from China. High quality, not over the top branding and just straight black. Actually, its some of my favorite kit to wear now a days despite being about half the cost. I have heard complaints from others that you can see right down by ass-crack through the mesh in the racesuit, but IDK. I can't see back there.

The bibs are excellent for the price though. I need to order another couple of those next pay check. They just take a long time to get here.

Doge

Last year in collegiate race in Boulder, CO the two on the same team had different color kits and it was allowed. I got a real strange look for even asking about it.

The wearing a kit for a team you are not on/color rule is pretty regionally enforced. The kids in the SoCal area could never get away with that. They did get away with different sleeve length, but even color (black kit vs white kid) would invite a lecture. But these are the folks that didn't like number gluing either. At Redlands, they wouldn't let Junior use a state TT kit in the ITT as it was from another team and awarded for a junior TT. In hind site he should have as it was a $20 fine.

rubiksoval

I think people/school districts are starting to really come to terms with this more and more. Our metropolitan district is putting an increasing amount of focus on social/emotional learning (at least in elementary schools) because so many students have no idea how to cope with anything. They never learn how to disagree with someone, or approach a problem without resorting to violence, or finding a solution that doesn't involve personal or material destruction. Some kids just freak out and break down at the slightest thing.

And their parents (if there are any in the picture) don't know, either, which is the primary reason so many act the way they do. It's a vicious cycle.

But there is no end to the craziness and despite all sorts of daily and weekly intervention, I would not at all be surprised at a good number of my students ending up in jail or worse by their early 20s. There's just too much baggage and desperation from home life. 10% of my school's students are homeless. On more than a few occasions I've had a kid coming in complaining about being hungry because they hadn't eaten since yesterday's school lunch. Have had multiple kids walk in to school off the bus wearing nothing but short sleeves when it's 30 degrees outside. Two of my kids were talking Friday. They both lived in a hotel but one had just been kicked out. Had no clue what was going to happen next. Not something an 8 year old should be worried about, but an increasingly common reality.

Desperation leads to bad things, and so many kids are desperate from birth.

gsteinb

Winter nearly here? We've delved deep into the hand wringing and over thinking stuff early.

You own clothes? Wear them. It's pretty simple.

rideaz

[QUOTE=furiousferret;19866101
Marine Boot Camp really helped me out, I think what helped the most was I was a fair bit smarter than most of those kids.[/QUOTE]

My son is in marine corps boot camp right now! Were you at MCRD San Diego?

miyata man

hack

The sport is struggling to attract new riders and I can't imagine parents calling out riders wearing non-color coordinated kits or officials getting upset about sleeve length does much to keep people coming back. At this point, just be happy they're out there at all.

gsteinb

Guys on the same team should be in the same kit (as in same color, etc)...not necessarily exact. Teams with multiple color combinations...meh. It gets confusing and isn't really fair.

Doge

Fines are real, officials enforce rules. Different places, different rules are important. I've seen tape on bikes being an issue.
But for teams, I help with, I ask about things, it is not calling then out.

globecanvas

Unfortunate juxtaposition there...