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“The smartest engineers I know are burned out and starting vegetable gardens”

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Re: “The smartest engineers I know are burned out and starting vegetable gardens”

#31

Post by hughrr »

carlivar wrote: post #26

It's Zoom. I'm convinced. Sure there are some people that have always been remote, but I think two years of isolation has caused a cultural infection that is difficult to isolate but absolutely present. Humans need to be around other humans, and not just their family. At my work we are trying to get team meetups scheduled for roughly April/May. I was worried people aren't ready, but turns out they are actually hungry…

I don’t think it’s that. I’ve been working remotely for nearly a decade now and the real problems were there before: competence and reachability.

Competence, or lack thereof is easier to hide or write off now. People aren’t always reactive or reachable.

As for being around other humans, I love that. But not colleagues. I have separate friends. You need the context switch away.

Re: “The smartest engineers I know are burned out and starting vegetable gardens”

#32

Post by Schroedingersat »

carlivar wrote: post #27
Schroedingersat wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Lot of stress in farming when your goal is profit Aye, there's the problem. Almost like supporting the lavish lifestyles and endless waste of worthless middlemen sucks whether you're on a tractor, behind a lathe, or sitting at a keyboard

On a farm you're alone most of the time. No meetings. Not really any middle management. I grew up on a farm. It's damn hard work and I would never go back to that. But there is appeal in not having to be constantly coordinated, poorly, with other people.

I meant the razor thin margins due to centrally controlled food distribution and sales, and dealing with shit like computers on a tractor that have a tantrum if you replace an oil filter yourself.

Shit be physically hard and long hours, but the people responsible for it also being precarious, low income, and incredibly financially stressful are the same people that make the other stuff awful.

Re: “The smartest engineers I know are burned out and starting vegetable gardens”

#33

Post by renewiltord »

The X are doing Y thing is always perpetuated by people doing Y who want to claim they’re X.

Personally, the smartest engineers I know are eating an Envy apple. They’re also a bit sleepy. They will wake up at seven tomorrow.

Re: “The smartest engineers I know are burned out and starting vegetable gardens”

#34

Post by AtlasBarfed »

When my mother died I went out that day to walk, eat lunch, and keep my head straight.

It was surreal. It was like everyone was walking around in a dreamstate, unaware they would die, of the mortality of life. I'll never forget that sensation, how everyday life and consumption and entertainment and routine lull you, distract you, from the inevitabilities of life.

COVID was a fundamental disruption to life. ALmost a million Americans are dead. Not a lot by historical standards of plague, but still... a threat. And now the cold war rears its head and nuclear armageddon.

As I offhanded remarked once in a bathroom in bar that for some reason had an attendant who was discussing moving apartments, "Ah, moving is a time for reflection".

And that has been what the last couple years has been: times for reflection. A collective illusion shattered, or at least disrupted.

Re: “The smartest engineers I know are burned out and starting vegetable gardens”

#35

Post by ranguna »

renewiltord wrote: post #33

The X are doing Y thing is always perpetuated by people doing Y who want to claim they’re X. Personally, the smartest engineers I know are eating an Envy apple. They’re also a bit sleepy. They will wake up at seven tomorrow.

Farmers want to claim they are engineers?

Re: “The smartest engineers I know are burned out and starting vegetable gardens”

#36

Post by renewiltord »

ranguna wrote: post #35
renewiltord wrote: post #33

The X are doing Y thing is always perpetuated by people doing Y who want to claim they’re X. Personally, the smartest engineers I know are eating an Envy apple. They’re also a bit sleepy. They will wake up at seven tomorrow.

Farmers want to claim they are engineers?

Haha! Engineers who have given up on engineering like to think they are “the smartest engineers”.

Re: “The smartest engineers I know are burned out and starting vegetable gardens”

#37

Post by octoberfranklin »

Schroedingersat wrote: post #32
carlivar wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

On a farm you're alone most of the time. No meetings. Not really any middle management. I grew up on a farm. It's damn hard work and I would never go back to that. But there is appeal in not having to be constantly coordinated, poorly, with other people.

I meant the razor thin margins due to centrally controlled food distribution and sales, and dealing with shit like computers on a tractor that have a tantrum if you replace an oil filter yourself. Shit be physically hard and long hours, but the people responsible for it also being precarious, low income, and incredibly financially stressful are the same people that make the other stuff awful.

> dealing with shit like computers on a tractor that have a tantrum

The completely obvious solution is to not buy those tractors.

Re: “The smartest engineers I know are burned out and starting vegetable gardens”

#38

Post by [deleted] »

AtlasBarfed wrote: post #34

When my mother died I went out that day to walk, eat lunch, and keep my head straight. It was surreal. It was like everyone was walking around in a dreamstate, unaware they would die, of the mortality of life. I'll never forget that sensation, how everyday life and consumption and entertainment and routine lull you, distract you, from the inevitabilities of life. COVID was a fundamental disruption to life. ALmost a m…

[deleted]

Re: “The smartest engineers I know are burned out and starting vegetable gardens”

#39

Post by _8j50 »

Schroedingersat wrote: post #25
_8j50 wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, but then you will get burned out from farming some day. It's what you make of it. Lot of stress in farming when your goal is profit instead of a hobby garden. My $0.02: people are at least 60% of what makes your day job good or bad, given adequate compensation that is. Maybe try companies that are not in tech but need your talent? Go where you're celebrated, not tolerated and all that. Good boss+Coworkers+envir…

> Lot of stress in farming when your goal is profit Aye, there's the problem. Almost like supporting the lavish lifestyles and endless waste of worthless middlemen sucks whether you're on a tractor, behind a lathe, or sitting at a keyboard

It sucks only if you care about that. Depends on the person a lot. I like what I do, it's almost an escape from the nightmares of life. I also don't have to be stressed all the time about paying bills. Not caring as cliché as it is, is truly freeing. I learn about cool stuff when not working or just watch netflix or something.

Re: “The smartest engineers I know are burned out and starting vegetable gardens”

#40

Post by _8j50 »

carlivar wrote: post #27
Schroedingersat wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Lot of stress in farming when your goal is profit Aye, there's the problem. Almost like supporting the lavish lifestyles and endless waste of worthless middlemen sucks whether you're on a tractor, behind a lathe, or sitting at a keyboard

On a farm you're alone most of the time. No meetings. Not really any middle management. I grew up on a farm. It's damn hard work and I would never go back to that. But there is appeal in not having to be constantly coordinated, poorly, with other people.

Being alone loses its appeal fast, especially if you're also alone after work or you only have spouse+kids
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