The scariest job you ever had?

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etrigan420

Golden Member
Oct 30, 2007
1,723
1
81
Worked as a census taker doing follow-ups on people who hadn't sent in their forms. Was met twice by people with guns who didn't want any gubmint paper pushers on their property. Interviewed people who, when asked where they were residing on such and such a date, responded with things like "Oh, I was in the penitentiary then - for attempted murder." More than a little scary at times for an unaccompanied woman.

Oh snap, I did that too...back during the 2000 round...in Hampton, Virginia.

IIRC, there were a lot of "House too sketchy, did not approach" responses on my roster...

The only time I've ever had the phrase "Would you look at this white mother fucker..." pointed at me.
 

MongGrel

Lifer
Dec 3, 2013
38,466
3,067
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Back at you man. At least the Marines are known to fight the enemy, the number 1 fight in being a Boiler Technician was boredom...we'd light and secure the boilers *maybe* 6 times on a 6 month deployment. The rest of the time (usually 6 hours on, 6 hours off, ad nauseum), the main function of the Burnerman (guy in the picture with the torch) was to sit on a stool watching through a porthole into the furnace looking for flame pattern deviations...yay.

Hell, my wife did 20 years as a Corpsman. Deployed once (at the 18 year mark to Kuwait), and the only time she ever saw the inside of a ship is when she came to see me! :biggrin:

Many salutes to your wife, Corpsman cool as hell.

I went to school near the corpsman school on Pendleton at the time, a corpsman the Marines best friend.

We were always brought up to protect them at all costs.
 

alkemyst

No Lifer
Feb 13, 2001
83,769
19
81
What the hell does that mean?

I scored (and I am not saying I am the only one to do it) as high as possible on this test. It had recruiters actively persuing me for over 5 years. One of my thoughts was to go Pharmacy and come into the Military (more than likely Navy) as an officer and not in a direct combat role. Wars/Conflicts were hot during those days 1989-1995.

When my ex-wife broke her neck, I had to move back to Palm Beach County and give up school for a while (over six months the first recovery and then she needed a second fusion of the spine which killed over a year in total)...

I started working again in with a Mortgage company and was paid a very good salary and didn't need to think about college nor becoming an officer. However; by the time I turned 30 I was bored of banking and went back to college for a Bachelors in Comp Sci.
 

alkemyst

No Lifer
Feb 13, 2001
83,769
19
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That he's talking out of his ass again. Wait, was that a rhetorical question?

angry-face.jpg


Yeah, he mad.
 

MongGrel

Lifer
Dec 3, 2013
38,466
3,067
121
I scored (and I am not saying I am the only one to do it) as high as possible on this test. It had recruiters actively persuing me for over 5 years. One of my thoughts was to go Pharmacy and come into the Military (more than likely Navy) as an officer and not in a direct combat role. Wars/Conflicts were hot during those days 1989-1995.

When my ex-wife broke her neck, I had to move back to Palm Beach County and give up school for a while (over six months the first recovery and then she needed a second fusion of the spine which killed over a year in total)...

I started working again in with a Mortgage company and was paid a very good salary and didn't need to think about college nor becoming an officer. However; by the time I turned 30 I was bored of banking and went back to college for a Bachelors in Comp Sci.

this relates how?

Other than trying to turn it into some personal blog thing again.
 

alkemyst

No Lifer
Feb 13, 2001
83,769
19
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this relates how?

Other than trying to turn it into some personal blog thing again.

I was answering someone's question, do you understand why I respond to you the way I do?

Perhaps if you didn't try to crap on EVERY post I make especially when I am simply replying to another member here, we'd all get along better?
 

Away

Diamond Member
May 1, 2005
4,430
1
71
Worked as a census taker doing follow-ups on people who hadn't sent in their forms. Was met twice by people with guns who didn't want any gubmint paper pushers on their property. Interviewed people who, when asked where they were residing on such and such a date, responded with things like "Oh, I was in the penitentiary then - for attempted murder." More than a little scary at times for an unaccompanied woman.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1b2v_Lls3A
 

Ruptga

Lifer
Aug 3, 2006
10,246
207
106
Perhaps if you didn't try to crap on EVERY post I make especially when I am simply replying to another member here, we'd all get along better?

LOL, pot/kettle. Also, the word you were looking for earlier was "amused".

See, Olds, this is why he won't go away. We can't ignore him because he actually alternates through cycles of so-bad-it's-good and so-bad-it's-shit, and sometimes we just can't help but laugh and then make a joke at his expense.
 

JDawg1536

Golden Member
Apr 27, 2006
1,275
0
76
I scored (and I am not saying I am the only one to do it) as high as possible on this test. It had recruiters actively persuing me for over 5 years. One of my thoughts was to go Pharmacy and come into the Military (more than likely Navy) as an officer and not in a direct combat role. Wars/Conflicts were hot during those days 1989-1995.

When my ex-wife broke her neck, I had to move back to Palm Beach County and give up school for a while (over six months the first recovery and then she needed a second fusion of the spine which killed over a year in total)...

I started working again in with a Mortgage company and was paid a very good salary and didn't need to think about college nor becoming an officer. However; by the time I turned 30 I was bored of banking and went back to college for a Bachelors in Comp Sci.

So you were going to go in as an officer or go to pharmacy school and then become an officer? Officers don't take the ASVAB. I was really asking what you meant by "behind the scenes." What does that mean?

And the AS in ASVAB should stand for Absurdly Easy. It's a high school sophomore level test. I don't know dick about anything mechanical or electric and I scored a 97. A guy in basic with me supposedly scored a 99. That's as high as it goes.
 

Ruptga

Lifer
Aug 3, 2006
10,246
207
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And the AS in ASVAB should stand for Absurdly Easy. It's a high school sophomore level test. I don't know dick about anything mechanical or electric and I scored a 97. A guy in basic with me supposedly scored a 99. That's as high as it goes.

I got a 98 and that puts me in the 98th percentile of people that take the ASVAB... which is to say people that are mostly high school age, or at least their expertise level is. Nobody with any sense pays for college and then joins the military.
 

alkemyst

No Lifer
Feb 13, 2001
83,769
19
81
So you were going to go in as an officer or go to pharmacy school and then become an officer? Officers don't take the ASVAB. I was really asking what you meant by "behind the scenes." What does that mean?

And the AS in ASVAB should stand for Absurdly Easy. It's a high school sophomore level test. I don't know dick about anything mechanical or electric and I scored a 97. A guy in basic with me supposedly scored a 99. That's as high as it goes.

No. Read this: http://official-asvab.com/docs/1997score_scale.pdf

Here is the Cliff notes:
http://official-asvab.com/understand_coun.htm
 
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alkemyst

No Lifer
Feb 13, 2001
83,769
19
81
I got a 98 and that puts me in the 98th percentile of people that take the ASVAB... which is to say people that are mostly high school age, or at least their expertise level is. Nobody with any sense pays for college and then joins the military.

How would you come in as an Officer?
 

olds

Elite Member
Mar 3, 2000
50,126
780
126
Worked as a census taker doing follow-ups on people who hadn't sent in their forms. Was met twice by people with guns who didn't want any gubmint paper pushers on their property. Interviewed people who, when asked where they were residing on such and such a date, responded with things like "Oh, I was in the penitentiary then - for attempted murder." More than a little scary at times for an unaccompanied woman.
Hope you never came to CA. I don't fill out census reports. Once had a lady come up to me while I was on my tractor. She was asking why I didn't send the report in. Pissed me off that some stranger was disturbing me on my property as I was working. I was shocked that a female would come out to BFE by herself. Luckily, I had my tractor and some lye.
 

MongGrel

Lifer
Dec 3, 2013
38,466
3,067
121
Perhaps these tests have changed over the years I guess.

Yeah apparently in 2002.
 

Ruptga

Lifer
Aug 3, 2006
10,246
207
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How would you come in as an Officer?

Military college, duh. There's some standard contract that basically says "you're going to college here basically for free, on the condition that you serve as an officer for 5 years after graduation."

And I'd also like to know what this "behind the scenes" BS is. I feel pretty confident that was just you embellishing a fish story.
 

alkemyst

No Lifer
Feb 13, 2001
83,769
19
81
Military college, duh. There's some standard contract that basically says "you're going to college here basically for free, on the condition that you serve as an officer for 5 years after graduation."

And I'd also like to know what this "behind the scenes" BS is. I feel pretty confident that was just you embellishing a fish story.

I'd rather not have leverage over me with the military though.

It's like signing an employment contract for getting an MBA...you are their bitch unless you can stroke a check for the full education costs back to them.

It's clear you come up with answers that attempt to discredit me, but haven't thought the entire argument out.

Also when I first started college (I took the ASVAB Junior year I think, maybe senior) I didn't want to go military then...as I got more and more phone calls and letters and spoke to more people coming in as an officer started looking interesting esp if you did two full terms at that time. Lot's of re-signing bonus money and benefits.

I was accepted to Pharmacy school prior to my AA, in my third year of college. I had a few pre-reqs to complete between my acceptance and the start of the August term. That said I could have probably completed my Bachelor's fast track and not had a lot of debt quickly and still done it. I choose to take a ton of optional classes which extended my time in college and costs esp the higher level courses. When I had a choice of Zoology/Biology/Botany for example, I took all three.

During that time (spring break) was when my ex-wife broke her neck though so all bets were off.