Personal Dilemma

Well it would never be passed into law in the USA, but I can't see the harm in protecting Aussie workers entitlements, when the employers are trying to take that away from them. 4 weeks of vacation really isn't much. It's simply setting minimum standards (just like the minimum wage in the USA), of course employees are free to negotiate for better if they can.

What I've found in the USA is that workers almost feel guilty about taking vacation days. Aparrently most workers don't even use all their vacation. The obsession with long work hours in unhealthy IMHO. You are going to get more out of your workers if they are well rested, and in the proper mind-frame for productive work.

I can certainly see the argument that someone can do more in 7 productive hours than trawdling along for 9 hours, just watching the clock go round.
 
We don't have any 'sick' days here. When you are alotted 'sick' days, people just used them as vacation days. Now, we have unlimited 'sick' days (after 3 consecutive days you may be asked to get a Dr. note or something) but people take off a lot less time due to 'sickness' than when they were given a set number of sick days per year..

I have 17.5 vacation days right now. In 2010 (15 years), I'll have 20 days and in 2015 I'll have 25 days. We also have the option to buy up to 5 days every year at the really cheap rate of something like $150 per day, IIRC. I don't think anybody doesn't buy them all each year.

Our vacation time is also use-it or lose-it. So I find a way to use it or work something out with my boss.
 
ddrueding said:
I took a 3 moth vacation once. It was easy. I quit my job, went to Asia, screwed around, came back, and got another job.
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That kind of crap only works when you live someplace where jobs are incredibly plentiful. When I was a full-time contractor I only managed to be employed an average of MAYBE seven months out of a year.
 
Mercutio said:
That kind of crap only works when you live someplace where jobs are incredibly plentiful. When I was a full-time contractor I only managed to be employed an average of MAYBE seven months out of a year.
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I wouldn't have the balls to do it now; the market was much better then (1999-2000).
 
For those interested, my unofficial time for the half marathon was 1:45:55. (Distance was 21.1km). It is just over a 5min/km time, which is pretty damn good.

Official results won't be posted for about a week.

I pulled up pretty well afterwards, and am over the moon with my time. Sub 1hr 45min would have been great, but I'm so close to that goal time, I can't be disappointed with it.

Winning time (male) was 1hr 12min for the half marathon event. Fastest female time was 1hr 16min...

Approx 800 runners competed in the half marathon.
 
Chewy509 said:
Fastest female time was 1hr 16min...
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That time is so good and so close to the best time achieved by a man that it's hard to believe. Assuming that runner was clean, she has my admiration.

Your time was excellent too Chewy. I never tried running more than 12Km myself and I did it at around 3m30s per Km. That's roughly 5m30s per mile. So for running long distances, you beat me.

I'm sure by now you know that running your half-marathon was more rewarding than doing some overtime. So next time you face the choice, you'll know what to answer.
 
In high school PE I remember being timed to do a mile and being told I could go at whatever "steady pace" I wanted. The coach made me stop when he realized my "pace" (and I *was* moving the whole time) was a 26 minute mile. :D
 
That is a good time. Back when I was running, I entered a 5km road race and timed something like 17+minutes. I had some 6 months of training (nothing scientific or back breaking, mind you) behind me but I was ready to die at race's end.

Now back to recreational bike riding.

Hmmm, another try. Merc, you don't like riding bikes, do you.
 
Merc would need to steal the seat of a custom motorcycle to feel confortable on a bike. Plus, many bikes' frames are made for riders weighting less than 250lbs. Above this limit, a mecanical fairlure could occur and injure the unfortunate rider.

Merc on a bicycle isn't a good idea.
 
Merc does not like biking.

I did walk to work today. One of the places I occasionally teach is directly across the street from my apartment.

I thought about driving anyway.
 
Merc, how far is it from your front door to your bed? From your bed to your bathroom? Perhaps the secret to you getting in shape is to get a larger apartment, where these things are farther apart? ;)
 
Bed to bathroom: 24 feet.
Bed to front door: 36 feet.
Bed to car: About 90 feet total.

I do not want a larger apartment. Then there would be more to clean.
 
One big room with a toilet dead-smack in the center. There are no walls, it is lined with computers which divide the space.
 
ddrueding said:
I remember my best time for a mile ever (when I was 16) was 7m45s. Then I passed out due to breathing problems...
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You're not supposed to stop breathing. : ) My best was 6:45 for a mile. For longer distances, 10 minutes per mile is friendlier on my body, but still gets my heart rate between 135 and 165, depending on if it is down hill or up hill; there is no flat terrain by me.
 
Mercutio said:
Bed to bathroom: 24 feet.
Bed to front door: 36 feet.
Bed to car: About 90 feet total.

I do not want a larger apartment. Then there would be more to clean.
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My internal measurements are about half that. And to the car varies with parking (the GF gets the carport) from 100-300 feet.
 
Handruin said:
One big room with a toilet dead-smack in the center. There are no walls, it is lined with computers which divide the space.
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No toilet. Just a trough or something... ;)

Actually, my bed is physically about as far from my bathroom as it could be. I actually got up and paced it out so I'm pretty confident of the measurement.

And I'm down to only eight computers now, not including laptops. I think that 's pretty reasonable. Four file servers, one game PC, one bedroom PC, one HTPC and my test box.
 
CougTek said:
That time is so good and so close to the best time achieved by a man that it's hard to believe. Assuming that runner was clean, she has my admiration.
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Claire Geraghty (female winner) has won the last few major half marathons and 10k events, and IIRC she's heading off to Beijing for the Olympics next year to compete.
Your time was excellent too Chewy. I never tried running more than 12Km myself and I did it at around 3m30s per Km. That's roughly 5m30s per mile. So for running long distances, you beat me.
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Thanks! :D (and same to everyone else whose offered words of encouragement).

Overall, it really doesn't matter if you run a sub 4min/mile or a 12min/mile, as long as you're out and about and enjoying yourself doing it (and this counts for any sport whether that be cycling, mountain-biking, hiking, rowing, roller-blading, skating, etc), I say "Well done".
I'm sure by now you know that running your half-marathon was more rewarding than doing some overtime. So next time you face the choice, you'll know what to answer.
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Over time or running.... hmm... running anyday.

The feeling I had at the end, was well euphoric, knowing that I am now capable of completing not only a 21km run, but also do it in a reasonable time. For someone who is approaching 30 in August, I'm feeling pretty young.
 
There are two bathrooms within 24' of the far corners of my bed. :) I don't have to run very far to reach one of them.
 
My exercise today left me feeling pretty euphoric. Went out for a Sailboat race; during the race conditions built until it was blowing 15 knots from the east and gusting to 40 knots from the south. We also had two sets of swells that when combined in just the right (wrong?) way, caused 20+ foot troughs. My 24 foot race boat fell (literally) into one of these, causing everyone on board to rise above the deck and land with a significant crash. While recovering from this I watched one of the pieces of hardware, made of 3/16" steel plate, crumple like a piece of paper under the extreme load. We got in fairly intact, a bit of blood and a minor concussion; but another of the boats lost it's mast.

I can't really get into a sport where boredom is a concern. Running always had that stigma for me.
 
I can't really get into a sport where boredom is a concern. Running always had that stigma for me.
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Mostly true. But one can vary venues, pace.
Running is attractive to certain personalities. Not many will find fun in what they think of as drudgery.
 
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