Posted by jim lee [172.68.142.44] on Thursday, March 15, 2018 at 01:29:44 :
In Reply to: Re: Ok, do you want this old 3rd member? posted by Matt Wilson [172.69.69.175] on Thursday, March 15, 2018 at 00:26:44 :
I worked for a hoarder once. I kinda' got a good look at his thinking process. Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING had value. The thing that made it really strange was this guy was totally loaded. He collected cars & warbirds. Had warehouses to store his goodies. One was cars, I didn't go in that one. One was Warbird stuff. I was in there all the time. Two B25 bombers, one a wreck, one sorta' flyable. A Spitfire, P51 or two? Couple jets.. Probably the last stash of Merlin V12s hundreds of them?. A separate warehouse full of them. That one I did see.
He got upset with me for throwing out used manila folders. He went through my office trashcan and I think he found something like four folders.
What really screwed him up was computers. He prided himself on his ability to write database code for the company. But he was writing it for a DOS system. So the office computers had to run DOS. (Around 2008?)
We couldn't get around the office very well because of the stacks and stacks of used PCs. He had one girl pulling them apart to inventory what parts were in them. She puled apart maybe 50 to 75 of them, left them in the office, then wandered off and did something else.
I got really good at repairing used HP Plotters. Along with used PCs he'd buy used plotters and we'd all have to use them for our jobs. But we weren't allowed to buy ink cartridges, no no.. I had to refill the old ones.
That job was the biggest insane waste of time I'd ever seen. Cataloging trash, trying to run a business on junk. When I made it past 90 days, everyone there, including the boss, congratulated me on becoming one of the "old timers".
This is where I coined "PPA". When people asked me what I did at my job, I'd answer, PPA! Paid for Pointless Activity.
Funny thing was, I liked the guy. He was Bat-Shit crazy. But he was really a nice guy. He was completely stuck trying to buy up all the used computers, trying to save every (no kidding) rusty nut and bolt. Trying to inventory endless mountains of trash. He couldn't tell the difference in value between a P51 fighter and a used styrofoam cup.
It was kinda sad..
So this is what I'm thinking about when I see myself starting to store things "Just in case". Or realizing I'm "restoring" nuts, bolts & screws.
At some point you need to make the choice of repairing EVERYTHING or tossing it out and moving on. That 3rd member is kinda' at that point for me. Yes, it would be nice to have a spare. But I don't have room here and I doubt I'll ever have the time.
I'm going to trust that when the world needs more 3rd members, the John Bizals of the world will make more of them for us. Just like the new brake drums.
-jim lee
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