[Lorric]

If you don't mind my curiosity, what do you do, Black Wolf?

Exploration Geology in outback WA (specifically, around here).

Also, what Hobbie said!

Thanks. So you're not even involved with anything to do with the animals, you (someone) just picked this one up.

[Black Wolf]

Nah, we're not involved with the animals, but the caretakers up here are raising this one after the mother was shot - given that they live in the pouch, they tend to be found with the mum if they're too young to look after themselves. So it's theoretically just visiting, but the reality will likely be that she'll end up hanging around the camp when she grows up.

[Lorric]

Awww, that's nice.

[Hobbie]

As long as she doesn't kick you. I wasn't lying when I said a kangaroo kick could disembowel someone.

In the meantime, the days are counting down to when I finally get internet. I can FINALLY start playing the games I bought in the sale...

[Black Wolf]

As long as she doesn't kick you. I wasn't lying when I said a kangaroo kick could disembowel someone.

Yep, well aware. Luckily, she's a doe, so shouldn't end up half as aggressive as the males get.

[Dilmah G]

Mirin' HARD BW. I want one too.

On a different note but related to mines work, is your field pretty safe ATM? I'm having one of those 'serious thinks' about uni and what I'm studying and I might consider changing majors if the mines would be a likely avenue after graduation.

Also just read Battuta's latest blogpost and was very impressed. Learned many things!

[Luis Dias]

He has a blog? Where? And btw, when are you gonna continue your awesome war maneuver thread, Dilmah?

[Dilmah G]

I'll just check if it's okay if I link it, and man! I actually rewrote my second post like 4 times. You have given me inspiration to give it another rewrite, and if I see fit, I'll release it sometime in the next few days! I have so much I want to say and so many different ways it can be said. I'm thinking I might bang something out for a few hours now and see how you guys like it, no matter what I spit out.

[Klaustrophobia]

approaching 24 hours awake.  good night.

[haloboy100]

Depression is a mother****er.

[perihelion]

Depression is a mother****er.

Truer words ne'er be said.

[FlamingCobra]

Got my haircut today. I love my stylist!

[Lorric]

Got my haircut today. I love my stylist!

Your name and talking about stylist makes me think of something like this...



Do you like it? 

[Klaustrophobia]

i'd totally be okay with my hair looking like that.

[Black Wolf]

Mirin' HARD BW. I want one too.

On a different note but related to mines work, is your field pretty safe ATM? I'm having one of those 'serious thinks' about uni and what I'm studying and I might consider changing majors if the mines would be a likely avenue after graduation.

Short answer is, well, No.

Long answer... well, the minerals industry is a boom and bust industry pretty much by its nature. It's intimately tied up with global financial conditions, which drive commodity prices as well as investor sentiment (which is critical for most exploration companies). Right now, the gold price has dropped precipitously, which has hurt a lot of smaller producers/near producers and really hammered the gold explorers without a solid resource. Iron ore, while it looks OK for the big guys producing, has serious questions over long term demand, especially with so much supply coming online, which is making the industry (and the associated financial markets) very skittish - minor fluctuations in the prices lead to panic on the Terrace, and suddenly hundreds of people lose their jobs.

Gold and Iron ore have, for a long time, been the two biggest players in the WA minerals industry. With both of them in less than ideal health, people are being forced into peripheral industries (like Nickel, rare earths etc.) where conditions are different, not neccesarily better - Nickel's not great, and notoriously volatile, REEs are the flavour of the month but have the feel of a bubble about them, Manganese has done OK, base metals have mostly done OK, other things like diamonds and uranium are outside my expertise if I'm honest. The net result, though, is that there are a lot of people either out of work or working in areas that they're not experienced in. Geoscientist unemployment was, last I checked, around double the overall state unemployment rate.

Additionally, construction is winding down in the major projects, so engineers and surveyors and the like are affected to, especially as the gold price slowly but inexorably starts to close up marginal mines, leaving people with (often) a lot of experience chasing work with the newbies. Overall, the attitude at the moment is to find a job, keep your head down and hang on to it. I can;t in good conscience recommend the industry to anyone right now.

But.

Like I said, it's a boom and bust industry. I was lucky - I came out at the height of the pre-GFC boom, and rode out the GFC, then caught the second spike before the current downturn. If you're not looking to get into the industry for a few years, I honestly couldn't even pretend to predict how it's going to look then, althoughmy instinct is that things will stay volatile, but be slightly better, if for no other reason than the downturn will force out a lot of people here on 457s if they can't find work, shrinking the pool over time. But that wont mean much unless the sector generally picks up, and that can change in an instant if China or the US or the EU do something silly. So, yeah, no predictions really mean much at this point.

Sorry if I wasn't much help.

[jg18]

I'll be at GaymerX this weekend in SF. If anyone else is attending, do say hi! My badge name is jg18 (creative, right? ) and I look like this.

[FireSpawn]

I'm home. Are your bodies ready for my return? 

Also; WTF!? I leave for a fortnight, and HLP gets Skippy as our mascot? Why do I miss all the cool things?

[Lorric]

I'm home.

Welcome back! 

[deathfun]

After coming back from a piano lesson (not your class type, a one on one with some who's been doing this for a while) I stopped by my old workplace for a bite to eat

One of the Sous-Chefs comes up to me (he usually does this offer to entice me back to work) and gave me what I considered an offer I couldn't refuse

One work shift
4-12, full eight hours
12 dollars an hour (75 cents more than my original) paid in cash
6 pack of beer from his own pocket

Had to say yes

[Nakura]

After coming back from a piano lesson (not your class type, a one on one with some who's been doing this for a while) I stopped by my old workplace for a bite to eat

One of the Sous-Chefs comes up to me (he usually does this offer to entice me back to work) and gave me what I considered an offer I couldn't refuse

One work shift
4-12, full eight hours
12 dollars an hour (75 cents more than my original) paid in cash
6 pack of beer from his own pocket

Had to say yes

Sounds like a damn good deal, congratulations! That's nearly twice what I make at my job an hour.