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[maxx919]

Hey guys, I'm here now too haha. Talked to Joe on RC Tech and he said all you guys hang out here now. How's everyone been?


Little update for me, I'm turning my predator into a running truck. Ordered everything I need and should have it together next week! I'm using a TRX 3.3 to keep it simple and scored a Vantage pipe to use cause it looks awesome

[George16]

Originally Posted by maxx919

Hey guys, I'm here now too haha. Talked to Joe on RC Tech and he said all you guys hang out here now. How's everyone been?


Little update for me, I'm turning my predator into a running truck. Ordered everything I need and should have it together next week! I'm using a TRX 3.3 to keep it simple and scored a Vantage pipe to use cause it looks awesome

Great to we you here bro. I'm doing great here in Florida. We're finally done unpacking everything and just got back from Michigan last week.

[maxx919]

Glad you're back stateside Lito! Happy to hear you're all settled in and doing well.

[JERRY2KONE]

Hey Lito how are things going for you? Enjoying retirement life I am sure. Another Navy friend of mine just put his (10) resume's out there in late November to see what kind of bites he would receive. Low & behold he immediately got about 8 hits. He did 6 first interviews, and three second interviews just before Xmas, before finally deciding on what job he wanted to push for. He is an IT geek and quite experenced with Linux and vertual storage technologies, and all self taught. He started last week with an annual salery of about $96K. They hooked him up on his first day with all brand new communications gear including giving him choices for an android phone, android tablet, and a heavily loaded laptop so he can stay connected to the system 24/7/365. The jump in pay was 30-40%, which makes the change well worth the extra responsibility for him. He landed smack dab where he wanted to be just ten miles from his house, which he has owned for roughly ten years in Charlotte, NC.

[George16]

I wish I'm good at computers so I can get a job like that. I'm doing okay right now. just taking it easy. I might apply for a job at Home Depot so it will be less stressful :).

Any job openings in the state department?

[JERRY2KONE]

Try Lows you may have better luck. Home Depot just downsized and got rid of a slew of people nationwide to cut spending. I received a bunch of emails from another one of our members who shared tons of info about the two since he has worked for both. He is with Lowes now and said things are a lot better, and his stress levels are a whole lot easier to deal with. Your going to find out fast just how cut throat things are out there in the civilian sector. Plus the money most want to offer is embarrassing. One of our daughters received her Masters in Social Psychology and findig a job has been quite a challenge looking to make any kind of money to live off of. The best thing she could find was substitute teaching in a school district that is trying to create a counseling position siuted for her qualifications.

Check out State.Gov and look under employment. Remember they post jobs in cycles, and the application process is tetius and time consuming, but it is worth it once you get in. If you do get in it is a job with international postings just like the military. My wife just reached her 16th year as an Office Management Specialist", which is an (executive assistant), and she will earn well over $100K for 2011. Plus full medical with co-pays, manditory paid 6 week home leaves, and our kids paid tuitions for international schools worldwide at $15K-$20K per child per year. Our housing is paid in full, and we have no utility bills. The first two tours are Department picked two year postings, and from there on you pick three year postings where you wish to go. We have been in South Africa, Tokyo, Belgium, Korea twice, and now Prague twice. Life is good.

A friend of ours is an RSO Reginal Security Specialist. He did three years here, and then opted for a one year tour in Kabul. His family stays here while he serves his time in Afganistan. He is earning double pay, Hazardous duty pay (all tax free), and has to take 2 to 3 weeks leaves every two to three months to help keep his family stablized (happy). He will make over $200K+ this year. Keep in mind that we pay for nothing. Our housing is paid for. Our utilities are paid for. All of our travel is paid for. We have the best benefits out of every Gov service you can think of. We have friends in every agency branch who praise our lifestyle. It is a traveling lifestyle, but much better than the military. Trust me I know.

[texazbadboy]

Its good to hear that somebody is prospering in this dreadful economy.It is really tough to find good paying jobs without a college degree.Every day I kick myself for not furthering my education.I'm now considering getting my CDL so I can make a better life for my family.
I'm sure you'll find something good in Florida Lito.Ts one of the few states that have prosperous jobs left.I know in my searchs to go overseas and do contract work there we're alot of jobs that we're looking for the military back grounds(knowledge).Try like ITT.com,Raytheon,Halliburton,Boeing,they are just a few that had listings.

[Nitronaught]

Hey Jerry,
NC may have some I.T. opportunities, then I might have to move..lolll

Down here, it's contractors positions mainly right now. Glad your friend got a good position. I think the economy is showing a little bit of a turn around,,, we can sure as heck do with it....

Happy New Years everyone! :cool:

I had a strange start to the weekend. I was going across I-75 in Florida to go to see relatives. While driving saw thick bluish grey smoke and then a bunch of leaves and debris. A car slammed on the brakes slid off the road into the grass and then flipped into the wooded area... I saw I could get over and stop so I did. Checked everything out first, luckily the 20 yr old guy had his seat belt on.... He missed 2 trees by inches and ended upside down.... I got him out with some others and made sure he was allright..

Man that guy was sooooo lucky to be alive... Made me think how lucky I am. :cool:

[JERRY2KONE]

Yes I do count my blessings when it comes to how we live and what we have received for all of our hard work. All of it has been part of our plan so all of it is expected. I never put all of my eggs into one basket when it came to job skills. I tried to learn everything and anything that I could in areas that I can depend on to keep food on our table no matter what the economy does. I was a mechanic when I went into the Navy in 1977, but I am now retired from that and can do just about anything mechanical as well as cabinet making, framing, electrical, plumming, cement work, roofing, welding, and some basic machine work.

Actually I just watched a report about what States have been hit the hardest by the state of our economy, and Florida is ranked number one for the worst number of jobs available, and most of the jobs that are available are below the national average in pay. In fact this is why employers can get away with paying so little, because there are so many people waiting in line to take whatever jobs are open due to departing disgruntled employees. There are few if any loyal employers because they know they can fill any job with somebody new and at lower pay. And finding a good job with half desent benefits is becoming the unicorn of jobs.

I departed Orlando in 2004 right before the housing bubble hit. I bought my homestead in 1991 for $98K (brand new model home), and sold it for $160K in Dec/2004. It hit a value of $185K six months later. Now the houses in that neighborhood are valued and selling for between $25K - $35K for 1800 sq ft, with a two car garage on a 1/4 acre lot. That is just unbelievable and outrageous. I sold the empty lot next store to my home for nearly $25K. My friends there told me that people are tearing their homes apart selling anything they can and walking away from their mortgages because the Banks refuse to work with them about the slumping values (bad loans). Investing in a good home used to be a great savings plan, but no longer. Finding a good job in Florida used to be fairly easy, but now there are hundreds of people applying for the same job.

[JERRY2KONE]

NITRONAUGHT Hey Jerry,
NC may have some I.T. opportunities, then I might have to move..lolll

Down here, it's contractors positions mainly right now. Glad your friend got a good position. I think the economy is showing a little bit of a turn around,,, we can sure as heck do with it....

Actually my best friend moved from Florida around 2000 up into Charlotte because of the IT jobs that were open there. He took a really good job as a temp, and ended up staying with the company for quite a while. Charlotte is the central hub for quite a few IT companies, and even several corperations with IT data centers there. He tells me all the time that there are tons of IT jobs available there, and tried to get me into computers, but it is just not my forte'. Through the last few years we have shared info about the economy there compared to other places, and NC has barely been touched by any of it. He purchased his home for a fair market price and has not lost a cent in value. In fact his home is up in value from what he paid in 2000-2001. So you may want to seriously consider moving there if that is an option for you. He lives just 5 miles from the Charlotte Motor Speedway so that is where I go to see the NASCAR races when I can.

[George16]

I just got done completing one more "honey to do list". Putting all these curtain rods and curtains require a lot of patience on my part. I'm glad that's one of the best traits I learned from the Navy.

Anyway, I applied for an opening within the state department and we'll see what happens. You're right about the process Jerry. It was tedious and time-consuming. But it's okay. I'm not really doing anything right now anyway. I'm going full throttle on job applications in a couple of months or so in order for me to get fully recharged and start another career. I'm hoping it will be a rewarding one just like the time I spent in the Navy.

My background is on gas turbine techonolgy but also got certified as a substance abuse counselor along with my degree in psychology. This degree doesn't pay but I can deal with it as long as a company doesn't blatantly undervalue my experience and what I have to offer. My first job interview went well and in fact got oferred the job. I politely declined since the compensation was well below the average pay in the area. Additionally, the HR personnel told me that I need to make a decision within 4 hours hahahaha. Up to now, they haven't filled the opening yet. Oh well.

Like I said in my previous post, I'd much rather work at Lowe's or HD and get paid the same or even lower as a residential facility counselor. Dealing with hardcore addicts at a residential facility is very, very difficult.

[Blazerss]

Hey guys, just wanted to let everyone know I'm now a member here as well. I was fairly new to ue but I had gotten a lot of advice from many of you and had purchased parts from you guys. Took me a while to get accepted here but finally got the confirmation email today. Hope everyone is doing well. Since ue has been down I picked up a prototype predator chassis and am planning the build. Bosox has already contributed to it and parts are starting to accumulate for the build.

[Nitronaught]

Originally Posted by JERRY2KONE

NITRONAUGHT Hey Jerry,
NC may have some I.T. opportunities, then I might have to move..lolll

Down here, it's contractors positions mainly right now. Glad your friend got a good position. I think the economy is showing a little bit of a turn around,,, we can sure as heck do with it....

Actually my best friend moved from Florida around 2000 up into Charlotte because of the IT jobs that were open there. He took a really good job as a temp, and ended up staying with the company for quite a while. Charlotte is the central hub for quite a few IT companies, and even several corperations with IT data centers there. He tells me all the time that there are tons of IT jobs available there, and tried to get me into computers, but it is just not my forte'. Through the last few years we have shared info about the economy there compared to other places, and NC has barely been touched by any of it. He purchased his home for a fair market price and has not lost a cent in value. In fact his home is up in value from what he paid in 2000-2001. So you may want to seriously consider moving there if that is an option for you. He lives just 5 miles from the Charlotte Motor Speedway so that is where I go to see the NASCAR races when I can.

Thanks for the Info Jerry, the way things are going that may be an option....

But I'd have to sell my house, and down here that's the problem.... I can't sell my house for what I paid for it 18 years ago....

[JERRY2KONE]

We're all in kind of a tough spot right now with our homes. We have a house in California that is upside down as well, but what can we do. So we have it rented out to a nice family to cover a good % of the mortgage so we just have to wait it out. We had to draw about $40K out of our 401K to do a complete renovation to the hoiuse just so we could get it rented out. Man did that hurt when we did our taxes for last year.

Thousands of people are also stuck in just the same way. They cannot move to another city for a job, because they are stuck in a house that will never sell under the present situation. I hope it all works out for you one way or another. We keep hearing hints of a recovery, but without some significant change in our Gov and economy I dont see how it is going to change anytime soon. I still think there is more trouble on the horizon. Especially looking at the presidential candidates we have to chose from.

[George16]

Originally Posted by Blazerss

Hey guys, just wanted to let everyone know I'm now a member here as well. I was fairly new to ue but I had gotten a lot of advice from many of you and had purchased parts from you guys. Took me a while to get accepted here but finally got the confirmation email today. Hope everyone is doing well. Since ue has been down I picked up a prototype predator chassis and am planning the build. Bosox has already contributed to it and parts are starting to accumulate for the build.

Welcome to RCMonster .

It's great to see you here too.