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An average day

as the budget allows.
This guy had way too much budget. Note the three spires, if you can call them that. Might be lightning rods. The third one indicates that there is another unique elevation at the rear. At least the landscape matches the neighborhood.
 
Do you pay attention to the ads here at the forum? We are being tracked.
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We've been posting about boats and an ice bath so the algorithm is working. I click on the ads now and then but then new ads tailored to that click show up on all of my devices. I am convinced that the phones, laptops and iPads are listening to my conversations. I'm not sure about the TV, but I wouldn't be surprised... maybe even the refrigerator. Do I sound crazy?
 
We've been posting about boats and an ice bath so the algorithm is working. I click on the ads now and then but then new ads tailored to that click show up on all of my devices. I am convinced that the phones, laptops and iPads are listening to my conversations. I'm not sure about the TV, but I wouldn't be surprised... maybe even the refrigerator. Do I sound crazy?
A lot of what we experience isn't electronics listening to us (although some do), it is actually the advertising algorithms. Target was one of the leaders in this field. By tracking purchases and comparing them to what other people typically purchased later on, Target would send coupons for the items people tended to purchase later in the mail.

In one instance the administrator of the program received an angry call from a father when they sent his daughter some coupons for baby formula and diapers. The father was naturally upset given that his daughter was still in high school. A few weeks later the father called back to apologize as his daughter was actually pregnant.

This was before the advent of mobile device technology and the Internet-of-Things, so it shows just how accurate these algorithms can be. It also leads us to question how much freewill we actually have if our decisions can be predicted to this degree.
 
A lot of what we experience isn't electronics listening to us (although some do), it is actually the advertising algorithms. Target was one of the leaders in this field. By tracking purchases and comparing them to what other people typically purchased later on, Target would send coupons for the items people tended to purchase later in the mail.

In one instance the administrator of the program received an angry call from a father when they sent his daughter some coupons for baby formula and diapers. The father was naturally upset given that his daughter was still in high school. A few weeks later the father called back to apologize as his daughter was actually pregnant.

This was before the advent of mobile device technology and the Internet-of-Things, so it shows just how accurate these algorithms can be. It also leads us to question how much freewill we actually have if our decisions can be predicted to this degree.
I don't care what you say I am never buying a boat or ice bath....;)
 
A lot of what we experience isn't electronics listening to us
A lot of what we don’t experience is electronics listening to us. An algorithm sets the boundary of what you will see. That is not based on you but rather, on the population at large. The advent of AI will allow the algorithm to fine tune the ads to fit the individual. Regimentation is the result if not the goal.
 
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ICE is in ice bath, I'm sure that has nothing to do with it?

What kinda boat are you looking for ICE? an ICE Boat with a sail?
 
Agree 100%.

In defense of the inspetor most can barely keep up with the current adopted codes and will not even look at the newer editions till they are being adopted.
I think there is confusion regarding code changes and acceptable alternates. The building official does not have the authority to change the code which can only be done by the body with the authority to adopt or modify the building code .

The building official has the ability to determine that what is being provided is at least as good as what the code requires. This was intended to only be used occasionally. But if the building official were to use this to effectively change the code then the building official has overstepped his authority. This is a problem when instead of the alternate only being used occasionally it becomes a general code change..

Another consideration is the reality that in many cases an inspector doesn't have the education or training to determine if an alternate is equivalent to what is required by the code. Thus the building official should be involved in the decision to accept an alternate. This assumes that the building official is better qualified than the inspector.
 
Right! That's what I call a delayed response, I had to look back to se what he was talking about. The post being replied to was posted when my daughter was in middle school. She's been teaching high school for two years now....
Thats the proverbial slow boat to China.
 
The job is replacing the dimensional lumber beams and support posts with PSL beams and steel posts. The apartment complex belongs to a family that owns a few hundred units. The patriarch passed away and now the wife and daughter are in charge. The property manager has been with the family for twenty-two years. His name is Alex.... nice guy and having managed apartments for most of his life I reckon he would have to be... a nice guy.

The wife and daughter had previously left all of the property issues to the man. They had never been on the property. Then they saw the sag in the beams. The floor of the two apartments slopes dramatically. Well being uninformed about physics as it relates to the angle of repose.. they recoiled. Immediate action was called for. Alex explained that the condition as they found it has been that way for the entire twenty-two years that they have known about him. That is if they knew about him.

The contractor that was awarded the contract is a close friend. The first time that I met him was twenty-five years ago. As an aside, he lived in the apartment complex across the street then. Well he asked me to have a look at what was going on. An engineer drew up a set of plans and on the plan was this, "Level the floor." Gotta love engineers. The building is just under four inches out of level in fifty feet. There are individual dips due to the sagging beams which could be mitigated...some. The note about the level floor was removed.

We commenced to shoring the building with 6"x12" lumber. Most of the individual dips are gone and the carport ceiling is now a nearly straight line. The building remains four inches out of level.

Now to the reason I posted this: It's the post on the right. As the beams were being removed, the post fell over. I was not connected to the footing... and not because something broke or rotted.

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It was just never connected. The post base was a dummy.

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Gravity was an engineered feature back in the day.

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It is debatable as to whether the lady owners should be informed. The other post had a legitimate attachment to the footing. The apartment complex has dozens of these posts. When I first analyzed the situation, I surmised that the original construction was four inches out of level. I haven't changed my mind about that.
 
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I enjoyed getting involved. The sag is apparent.

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The underside of the beam was showing signs.


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Once it was exposed it was obvious that the deterioration was progressing... so the ladies were rightfully concerned.

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I was driving around wasting time… well I was a new inspector so I wasn’t aware that it was a waste of time. I came across a sewer replacement in the front yard of a house located on a busy thoroughfare. Being the permit clerk masquerading as the inspector… well I knew that there was no permit for a sewer replacement. Put my foot to the brake.

Here I want to say a few things. Fisrtly.. is that a word…. The blue label on the bottle says yes. So you should know that I didn’t stop to investigate out of an expression of authority.. no not at all. I had an imperative to ensure safety. There was three guys and a trench. Turned out it was a tempest in a teapot… which translates to a four foot deep tench and thirty feet of ABS.

There I was … too far into it to walk away.. A few hundred citizens had driven past and they all knew what I represented. I’m not sure how they knew, but know they did. A tan 3/4 ton Ram diesel is the inspector.,,,,until he gets home, then he’s the obnoxious neighbor. Proof of this is the time I misplaced my wallet. I went to the bank and when I got to the window, the teller refused to give me any money. I had no ID. A lady standing in line said, “Oh for Pete’s sake, he’s the city building inspector. Give him lunch money”

I knocked on the door. A lady stepped out on the porch. I introduced myself and she started to cry. From there it was blubbering. She never said a single word. I ended up assuring her that everything would be alright. As I walked back to my truck I looked at the ABS and saluted the Vietnamese crew.

It had not occurred to me that I can walk away until I walked away. It’s not like I thought it through in the moment and then gave her a pass. Not at all, it’s was spur of the moment. When I considered what I had done I reached the conclusion that trusting your intuition makes a difference. I grew a foot that day.
 
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