How do you pay for your adventure?

I know there are a diverse and to me intriguing line of occupations of this group. Thought it might be nice to chat about how many of us intersect/compliment/curious etc. about what we do to provide for our current recreation. Starting from current and maybe working back, I hope it will be a good way to get to know all the great people I have had the pleasure to meet.

Currently I work as a small engine Mech in Emporia. Small engine should not be my title as I work on any thing from sharpening garden shears to tonka trucks, ATV's commercial zero turn mowers, construction genie lifts................list is too long. Pay sucks, benefits are zilch, boss is an ass, but it is never boring and I consider it semi-retired. I could be making great coin but I am me (asis) and I am so tired of the corporate... peace of mind and enjoying my work more is how I will eat dirt.

Some of the crap I have to work on, and also, check my work

Another project I worked on for nearly 3 years as an A&P/Marine Mech. Complete restoration of a 1947 Republic Seabee.

Gotta do this one, on my 1986 KX125 Tillamook St. Forest Oregon.

looks like you're having almost too much fun in that last pic

I've been turning coffee into Internet service since about 1999 Before that I was 18 and just showed up at the local computer shop every day until they gave me a job, eventually we got into wireless Internet Access and I've been doing it ever since. Started at my current position in 2002, and built out a network of over 40 towers in Coffey, Woodson, Wilson, Allen, Bourbon, Montgomery, Washington, and Labette counties in Kansas; and Washington county in Oklahoma.

The pay isn't great, but it keeps me on my bike and pays the bills; and it sure beats living in the city!

Great thread to start Asis!! Love both your bios too...

Cool Nick! Do you happen to scale or help erect those towers? I seen an episode of Dirty Jobs where they erected the towers in South Dakota.

Cool idea for a thread, Scott!

I'm a technical manager for a team of support personnel for NetApp, here in Wichita.  [www.netapp.com].  Netapp builds enterprise class storage controllers.. basically huuuuge network attached storage devices.

Its fun.. when people ask me about the place, i tell them its like working in the Wonka chocolate factory, but instead of oompa loompas, we have nerds.

Cool idea for a thread, Scott!

I'm a technical manager for a team of support personnel for NetApp, here in Wichita.  [www.netapp.com].  Netapp builds enterprise class storage controllers.. basically huuuuge network attached storage devices.

Its fun.. when people ask me about the place, i tell them its like working in the Wonka chocolate factory, but instead of oompa loompas, we have nerds.

Really nice storage devices too. Think you could slip one out the back door for me?

Cool Nick! Do you happen to scale or help erect those towers? I seen an episode of Dirty Jobs where they erected the towers in South Dakota.

I don't climb them as much as I did 10 years ago, but I have a full set of gear and do go up from time to time. Now I have worker bees to do it for me

We've built a couple of very short towers, but for the most part we lease towers. The pic above is one that we bought a couple of years ago.

Cool idea for a thread, Scott!

I'm a technical manager for a team of support personnel for NetApp, here in Wichita.  [www.netapp.com].  Netapp builds enterprise class storage controllers.. basically huuuuge network attached storage devices.

Its fun.. when people ask me about the place, i tell them its like working in the Wonka chocolate factory, but instead of oompa loompas, we have nerds.

Cool Derek! I am pretty much a hillbilly Geek muhself, not up to Nerd status since early 2k. Not sure if I have slowed down or technology just got so fast I can't keep up, but I kinda try.

I don't climb them as much as I did 10 years ago, but I have a full set of gear and do go up from time to time. Now I have worker bees to do it for me

We've built a couple of very short towers, but for the most part we lease towers. The pic above is one that we bought a couple of years ago.

That has to be freaky! One of the last jobs I worked at in Wa. was a chemical plant. We had 100' columns we climbed and did head changes and crane work on. One job me and my wingy had was replacing a windsock on the tallest column 100'. They rented a 120' Genie lift for another job as well and we tried using that to do the task. My buddy was driving while I was hunkered down in the basket, the base looked like a matchbox looking down. Buddy was bit nervous too, we got maybe within 20' the wind blowing in off the Columbia River, Ospreys were flying below us, he asked me...what do ya think...I said "fk man u driving, u wrek us and I live I am gonna woop ur ass"    We bailed on the lift but did climb the ladders and got the job done. Had platforms to stop and gather on..........Can't imagine doing that on a tower.
Seems age has a way of instilling life preservation!

I'm currently a Transportation Dispatcher at Spirit Aerosystems in Wichita. Been doing this for about 3-4 years now, before dispatch I was a heavy equipment operator for a couple years and before that I was an overhead crane operator for 16 years all at Boeing/Spirit...

Before that I owned and operated a Snap-On Tool franchise in Hutchinson Kansas for 2-3 years...

Pryor to that I was a Chem-Mill tank operator at Boeing Wichita for a few years... Chemically milling airplane skins and parts for production of Boeing 737 Classic, 747, 757 and 767 aircraft...

Working back further I did several odd jobs from an attendant at a local porn shop and building basements and inserting ads for Wichita Eagle newspaper and Hutch News! Diverse period in my life huh? Lol...

In 1980-81 I worked as a Motorcycle Mechanic for Nichols Honda and J&S Suzuki here in Wichita after a 2 year training period at Wichita Area Vo-Tech out of high school...

Of course delivered newspapers and flipped a few burgers and did some time at a local hardware store and I'm sure I've left several out along the way, started working at age 14 or thereabouts and haven't stopped yet at 54..... Feels like I've been there and done that at this point..

P.S. Several years semi pro musician between 197? up until I retired from that 4-5 years ago... First I was a Bass player for many of those years playing original Heavy Metal music and recording one full length record independently, then the majority of my musical endeavors were as a vocalist playing cover tunes in all the appropriately seedy bars of the region... Still a Metalhead, reckon I'll die one as well!!