wilblack

Humans lived without guns for vast majority of our history. So obviously, yes, we can live without them.

Maybe they can make an expansion pack with two new options. 1) Increase Mental Health Care, and 2) Pass Reasonable Gun Laws.

Also "thoughts and prayers" are the standard political response from GOP senators and congressmen. Many think they should do their jobs and pass legislation to help keep the public safe, like is done in the automobile industry for instance. Thoughts and prayers haven't helped...ever.

Yes, and the number of car fatalities has fallen over the decades because automobiles and drivers are regulated. So why shouldn't guns be?

I am not sure what your point is about the refugees, but there is a lot being done to help those people and money being spent on the problem.

And you do realize this is not "a madman somewhere". These is a heavily armed madmen about once every other month.

I love trees.

There are still plenty of places with no WiFi is available, i.e. marine and farming environments (the areas I work in). So I could see this being used as an IoT hub. But I'd rather just use a Rpi.

Yes, this is exactly my thoughts. Sure I suppose some people will sit on their asses, but I think many more would pursue hobbies/activities that they are interested in. And when more people are able to participate in ”the pursuit of happiness" isn't that a good thing?

You could say that but it seems like you will be turning down a lot of work. If you are only working 3 to 4 hours a day it is not that hard to double yours hours for a week or two to meet a client's deadline. It will keep your clients happy and if you charge by the hour it a nice bonus on your invoice.

I started contract work last fall. I set me rate assuming a 25 hour work week. At first I tried working ~4 hrs / day everyday day. I quickly realized this did not work for me. Working everyday, even just a little is not sustainable for me. I have a family and they are still on the 9 to 5 schedule, so working even a few hours on weekends cut into my family time which is important to me. So now I force myself to take at least one weekend day off with no prgramming. This is hard because I love to program. Also I have a hard cutoff time during the week days at about 5:30pm when my wife and kid get home. I usually feel like I want to keep working but that forces me to stop (at least until my daughter goes to bed). So now I work 5 or 6 days a week but seldom exceed 6 hours/ day. Most days are closer to 4hrs. It's great at this pace because I usually always feel like i want to keep programming so I don't get burnt out. And if I do have an off day I just don't work.

The problem I am running into now is what do I do with my spare time? All my hobbies are computer based (video games and Raspberry Pi projects) but I am trying to minimize my screen time in my off hours. This will get better in the spring and summer as the weather gets better but during winter on the Oregon Coast going outside is hit or miss.

And I hear you about not being able to go to bed until I solve a problem I am stuck on, that drives me crazy.

I am happy at the moment. Doing contract work, have clients I've known for years, and getting into my own IoT projects. Life is good for now. I just told me wife though that it feels like it could all come crashing down at any moment.

Do you mean a 40 hour 4 day work week or a 32 hour 4 day work week? I'm all for the latter.

Thanks, I'll try that top next time. I too am not one that is good at conversing with strangers. I'm the guy that just stands there and tries to look busy. On the other hand my CEO will have talked to everyone in the room by the time the event is over, and he remembers their names and what they do. I'm always amazed.