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Why are Adults so busy?

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Re: Why are Adults so busy?

#471

Post by kwhitefoot »

toyg wrote: post #407
dennisgorelik wrote: post #389

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> my kids will have opportunities I never even dreamed of On another hand your kids are more spoiled with the wealth they were born into and potentially may have lower drive than you have. Hard to tell how they would turn out.

> your kids are more spoiled with the wealth they were born into An afghan (?) proverb I barely remember went something like this: "The king's father grew up in a tent; he worked hard, built his house, and led the people well. The king lived in a house but remembered the tent he was born in; he worked hard, built his palace, and led the people well. The king's children were born in a palace; they have never seen a te…

The English language version is:

    Shirt sleeves to shirt sleeves in three generations.

Re: Why are Adults so busy?

#472

Post by kwhitefoot »

jandrese wrote: post #380
nradov wrote: post #266

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Dishwashers only save a little time. Most dishes still have to be rinsed in the sink first or else the leftover food plugs up the machine. And then putting away dishes takes just as much time. Doing laundry is a lot more than loading and unloading. If you have small children then you have to check everywhere for stains and apply something like Spray 'n Wash first. And then folding takes a lot of time. (There is a fol…

> Dishwashers only save a little time. Most dishes still have to be rinsed in the sink first or else the leftover food plugs up the machine. And then putting away dishes takes just as much time. If this is the case your dishwasher sucks. Other than knocking big chunks (bones, cobs, etc...) into the trash there's no need to pre-rinse dishes on a competent machine. I do agree that dishwashers don't save as much time as…

Drying takes no time for me because I don't do it. All the plates that are in daily use are on a rack beside the sink.

Re: Why are Adults so busy?

#473

Post by zeveb »

emodendroket wrote: post #467
zeveb wrote: post #402

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> OK, in a theoretical world where meetings aren't hours long with no agenda and tons of circular, pointless discussion, I agree. Well, an agenda is part of the courtesy the meeting convener owes the participants, and a well-run meeting is part of the courtesy the chairman owes the participants. Meetings are incredibly expensive: everyone owes it to their organisation, one another and themselves to make that expense…

Yeah, that would be nice, but I'm not going to change the world just by thinking so.

> Yeah, that would be nice, but I'm not going to change the world just by thinking so.

Then take action! You are not a passive victim of circumstances: you are an active participant in, among other things, meetings; demand that your fellow-participants behave politely.

Take responsibility for your destiny.

Re: Why are Adults so busy?

#474

Post by zeveb »

tamana wrote: post #449
zeveb wrote: post #402

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> OK, in a theoretical world where meetings aren't hours long with no agenda and tons of circular, pointless discussion, I agree. Well, an agenda is part of the courtesy the meeting convener owes the participants, and a well-run meeting is part of the courtesy the chairman owes the participants. Meetings are incredibly expensive: everyone owes it to their organisation, one another and themselves to make that expense…

Or we can get work done during the parts of the meeting that sent relevant to us, drastically decreasing the meeting cost.

If you shouldn't be in the meeting, leave. If you should be, stay. If the meeting should be split up, then advocate for it to be split up. If it should be structured differently, then advocate for it to be structured differently.

You owe attention to your fellow participants.

Re: Why are Adults so busy?

#475

Post by zeveb »

tamana wrote: post #447
zeveb wrote: post #401

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm frankly shocked that so many people seem to disagree so strongly with my belief that texting in a meeting is rude, discourteous and unprofessional.

Many people believe that what is important is getting stuff done, not social status grooming with shows of allegiance in meetings. Is there any practical reason, that makes texting rude, discourteous, and unprofessional, besides that it unflatters someone's ego?

> Many people believe that what is important is getting stuff done, not social status grooming with shows of allegiance in meetings.

It's not about shows of allegiance: it's about being present for your fellow-participants.

> Is there any practical reason, that makes texting rude, discourteous, and unprofessional, besides that it unflatters someone's ego?

Human beings can't multitask: every second you're texting is a second of meeting content you're missing. It is rude, because it says to those speaking, 'what you are saying is not as important as what I am reading or typing.' It is discourteous, because it wastes their time. It is unprofessional, because a professional would do others the politeness of turning down the meeting if he doesn't believe his presence is needed, rather than attending and ignoring.

Re: Why are Adults so busy?

#476

Post by dec0dedab0de »

orbitur wrote: post #375
dec0dedab0de wrote: post #264

Earlier quoted context omitted.

With young kids around, the laundry and responsibility for dependents figures become hours daily, not weekly. I started dropping off our laundry at my local laundromat about 6 years ago, it immediately improved my quality of life. Now if only they would put it away for me.

So they wash, dry, and fold your clothes for you? I've only seen/heard of places where you throw in coins and return for your things later.

Yes, I pay $1 a pound, and I pick it up the next day folded nicely or on hangers.

Re: Why are Adults so busy?

#477

Post by Tenhundfeld »

branchless wrote: post #433
Programmatic wrote: post #420

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If it was free money, everybody would be doing it. If it has no downsides, what's stopping you?

I don't want to exploit working people. Weird, eh?

Why is it necessarily exploiting people to charge a market rate for a good or service?

That makes no sense, unless you just don't believe in private property – which is a different argument and not one I'm super interested in having.

And honestly, if you think it's so easy to be a landlord, you should try it. It's not. It can be fairly easy, until you have:

- a tenant who won't pay but also refuses to leave, necessitating legal action to evict, which is doubly expensive due to the legal fees and lost income

- a tenant who wrecks the property, e.g., letting their cat pee all over the wood floor, but refuses to provide any additional money to remedy

- a tenant who falls in the yard and initiates a frivolous lawsuit against you

- squatters who refuse to leave and require police action

- a roof that needs replacing, new HVAC, new appliances, etc.

Investing in rental properties often performs no better than just investing in the general stock market. Is that exploiting people? Is it exploiting people to have a savings account that pays interest? Anybody can do that and gets free money.

Re: Why are Adults so busy?

#478

Post by fit2rule »

jdimov10 wrote: post #431
fit2rule wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think this is a wholly narcissistic point of view .. moreso, I believe that the reason adults are so busy is that they realize that none of the luxuries they've gained can be attained without the help of other people working for them and so in order to maintain a fair life, adults work just as hard as others need to - on average - in order to maintain civilized life. Where civilized life is defined in the regions b…

This is not a realisation, it's a belief. And it's a very boring one. I quite enjoy my narcissistic views and have absolutely no interest in trading them in for your moralism ("fairness", "equality", "justice" and other socialist bullshit). Live your own hell all you want, just don't inflict it on others. Since you're a believer in "fairness", I'll cut you a fair deal: I'll keep my luxuries to myself and you keep you…

I'm okay with your statement, its your right after all, but lets see if you have the same views in 5, 10, 20 years time from now. I wager not, but thats entirely up to you. Responsibility for ones social existence is one thing; calling it 'socialist bullshit' is another thing entirely. There is nothing in this statement of belief, that we are all very dependent on each other, that makes it a socialist ideal. Even the most rabid totalitarian-authoritarian imperialists have to admit, they can't make all the good shit themselves...

Re: Why are Adults so busy?

#479

Post by branchless »

Tenhundfeld wrote: post #477
branchless wrote: post #433

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't want to exploit working people. Weird, eh?

Why is it necessarily exploiting people to charge a market rate for a good or service? That makes no sense, unless you just don't believe in private property – which is a different argument and not one I'm super interested in having. And honestly, if you think it's so easy to be a landlord, you should try it. It's not. It can be fairly easy, until you have: - a tenant who won't pay but also refuses to leave, necessit…

Wrong. Here is why most "invest" in exploitation. Banks lend you several times your salary. You are not appreciating the dynamics my dear rentier.

Re: Why are Adults so busy?

#480

Post by BigGillyStyle »

To me the struggle is the rare collision of having both free time and ANY energy at the point the free time comes. Most of my energy goes into all those other buckets. I can see why some people just stare at a TV (which I don't have) or do other passive entertainment (which I'm sure I do). To be fair to myself...I do exercise (usually biking) 1-2 hours every day, which some will classify as "free time". While it is often enjoyable, I don't consider it an optional, spontaneous, or random endeavor...which is usually what I consider "free" (or "unplanned") time.
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