Off_White

Ho man, sorry bout that, but you went public with that tidbit back in the day when you weren't yet savvy in the ways of internet spray. I'm glad to see you're still here.

Edlinger, the funny thing is that the guy you're "educating" is the one who did the prior ascent of the IB wall. I don't think it was an 80% overlap, but it's discussed elsewhere and kukuzka1's ascent was a bold adventure.

What did I miss, is Obama cutting back on military contractors or something traumatic like that?

when I first saw the thread topic I thought I was going to read that you'd skied it! Awesome pick for a first alpine rock route, nice photos too.

I'm out of town until Sept 6th, so while the event still runs for folks already registered, there is a moratorium on new folks until I'm back. Sorry for the inconvenience, see you in September.

The Olympics are really great for that sort of 3rd class mountaineering, that trip is going on the list. Thanks for the TR

Odd assortment and poor use of terminology. The gear is the odd man out, otherwise it could be a parent disposing of a kid's discarded obsession. St Helens as a location suggests Portland as a source.

Hey Larry, when you reply to a topic (or start one for that matter) there's a box you can check that says "add this thread to my watched topics" that should do it. You might have to edit your your preferences (MY STUFF on the top bar, pull down menu to Preferences) to make sure the box labeled By default should anything added to your Watch Lists be emailed to you? is checked "yes". Otherwise, yes, you have to keep checking threads to see if anyone has responded to you.

good article j_b, people do in fact take a lot of what government does for granted. government is good

Heinrich, the armchair quarterbacking seems pretty respectful and mostly interested in discussing whether there are any lessons to be learned that could help others in the future. I didn't know Lee, but at 52 years old and having been climbing a long time, it could have been me, and I'd guess that like me, Lee wouldn't mind a frank discussion if it would help someone else avoid the same fate. Sounds to me like they were using standard glacier travel protocol, and probably acting more safely than I've tended to do in the same situation, since I'm often with only one other partner. This seems like one of those tragic incidents that literally could have been any one of us, like Craig Luebben in the Torment moat. This sheds an uncomfortably bright light on the self delusion that risk exposure is controlled by personal choice. I really feel for all of Lee's friends and family, all the best to all ya'll.

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Now that's a great day in the mountains. You've had some great TR's here recently, I've really enjoyed your stories.

Here Bill, this is a real newbie saying hello.

Not sure if you're asking me this question or just being rhetorical, but I'm pretty sure you know I don't believe that.

Bye Bye Spambot (nicoledc109's deleted signature was spam promotion)

The only thing that might lead me to that conclusion is his fondness for truly horrifying choss - that just ain't right.

Yeah, I suppose one would just be a bigot, not much of a step up the social evolutionary ladder though. How does that work with Jews? I mean, it can be an ethnicity, but it can also merely be a religious choice. So disparaging Judaism is not racist, right? It isn't even anti-Semitic since one could feel quite differently about their secular friends of Jewish extraction.

Fair enough. Now, suppose you had used the money of investors to start a much larger business--investors who expected a return. And suppose that acquiescing to the demands of your now-organized employees meant that your ability to borrow from these investors for future projects was severely diminished. Exactly how would that serve the interests of the employees for whom you care so deeply? The notion of a rate of return for an investor as the highest moral value is one of the roots of the problem we're talking about, isn't it? The sort of venture you're describing doesn't place any great value on the interests of its employees in the first place.

Ivan: more lefty than hippy, but then again I don't think of hippyness as translating to business skills. I've certainly been more hippy in the past than I am now. Pink: Yes, my wife works, and not for my company either. You worry me, you shouldn't just be taking what's left over in your company, you need to proactively plan for what you need to make and structure that into your company's pricing. Pay yourself a salary regularly, know your numbers intimately, keep company finances clearly separate from your own. Email me or call me if you want to talk business sometime, or come visit next time you're in the NW. Fairweather: If my employees did that, I'd be concerned that something was really wrong in my company and some serious work, reorganization, and conversation needed to happen.

OK -time to put up or shut up, how much more than your competitors are you paying YOUR employees? Maybe I should walk away from this and go to work for you, oh blessed great employer jb who does so much for so many. I must have been wrong about you as strictly based on your posts you sound like a know-nothing parasite. How many employees do you have? I tend to agree with JB on more things than not, certainly on this particular post, so as a business owner and employer I thought I'd share my employment practices. I've got 5 employees, and I pay them as much as I can, including health insurance, dental insurance, vacation pay, sick pay, and flexibility with regards to unpaid time off. I think I'm roughly 10 to 15 percent over the competition in terms of total compensation, but folks in construction aren't always that forthcoming about this topic. A few years back I did have a conversation with one of my best competitors, and he did share info based on my promise that I wouldn't try and steal any of his people, so I'm not completely whistling in the dark. My employees are my greatest single business asset, and I want them to feel both valued by me and proud of their work. Perhaps more importantly than the compensation numbers, I encourage everyone to do their best and follow their own sense of how best to do things. Empowering the employees with authority over their own work is a good thing for them, the clients, and the company. Funny thing is, this is also a successful business strategy. Employee satisfaction and retention matters. My clients appreciate having the same folks they've come to know and love come back to work on their homes, and they notice the respect and attitude that flows throughout the company. In an industry where 95% of businesses fail on a ten year cycle, we're at 22 years and looking to weather this particular downturn just fine. Oh, I'm sure I personally could make more money by paying my employees as little as possible, but we wouldn't be doing the same work for the same people. I wouldn't be as happy or proud of my company either.

Dude, I think Rob is hitting on you, don't be so clueless. I suggest you set a date via PM.

Wow, I hope no one was hurt!

You speak with such authority about things you are so ignorant about, it's a real pattern for you, isn't it?