Passing my 500th post, time to pause

[RegionRat]

Having just passed my 500th post milestone, I'm going to take a pause to reflect and thank you all.

That 500th post was about Rusty Toussaint's daughter being severely injured in a shark attack. She will bounce because she has a fighting spirit. If I stay on this rock long enough, and the powers that be don't take us all down, by the time I cross 1000 I am sure there will be more stories of injuries, losses, accomplishments, and recoveries as well.

Real life isn't like the portrayal in social media or on some forums. Stick around long enough to collect some folks you care about, and you will have some sorrow to go along with the happy occasions.

This is the bittersweet path we take if we are on this forum for the right reasons. We sometimes have to hear the sad with the happy. Sure, the forum is a place to get advice from the more experienced and accomplished, but I hope that when you are the ones that have some grey hair of your own you will see fit to give something back as well. Along that path if you are lucky, you will get to meet and know some of the best humans on the planet. Their lives off the range are as impressive as their shooting and their technical skills.

I had the pleasure of meeting some of you by virtue of being in the defense business and I really enjoyed reading about non work related topics. On several occasions, I dragged some of you into problems encountered on work related projects and you tripped all over yourselves to help, veterans and non-veterans alike. Just the thought of helping give our soldiers the best chance to come home alive was enough for many of you to set aside your own priorities and jump into action.

Thanks for having my back and theirs. I cannot say that without specifically pointing out the help that came from our neighbors to the north and beyond, so folks should remember we are not now, and have never been, an island.

I was a reader here for many years without joining. I didn't jump in with comments till I was nearing the end of my career and found myself stuck in a jury pool killing time and I decided it was time to comment. The occasion was something to do with a thread where an ego battle was going way off track and both sides were wrong. I try to keep out of ego battles and will encourage those of you who have read this far to try and keep things civilized. There are too many times when threads turn ugly and unproductive. That kind of behavior is older than the internet but it isn't the norm on here and for that I am also grateful.

I will encourage those of you who have gained experience to remember that many of the folks reading don't jump in when they fear being burned for their questions. I will also remind those of you who really don't have any idea of what you are doing to try not to encourage others to do the same or put their safety aside. Many of you are still young and full of hormones, but have not suffered the loss of limbs, friends, children, or even seen the consequences of what you are discussing. So please think twice and don't turn the forum into a jackass video. Speak up if you can help, but don't if you haven't got the background. Age and wisdom are not mutually guaranteed, so try not to be an old jackass either.

Many thanks for all the posts that helped me pass the hours while far away from home. Thanks to those of you who take the time to put something back and keep things civilized. Many of the folks I am thanking, have left the stage. You are all missed. Let us all hope that we get to stick around together a while longer.

 

[dellet]

probably would not hurt to have you post more often.

 

[TAJ45]

Well stated. Kind of the obverse of the coin, some of us w hoary frost heads may not have the "Do it this way'' answer but maybe narrow the options a bit by saying "Sure as heck, don't do it this way". ;-)

 

[EOD Rob]

Having just passed my 500th post milestone, I'm going to take a pause to reflect and thank you all.

That 500th post was about Rusty Toussaint's daughter being severely injured in a shark attack. She will bounce because she has a fighting spirit. If I stay on this rock long enough, and the powers that be don't take us all down, by the time I cross 1000 I am sure there will be more stories of injuries, losses, accomplishments, and recoveries as well.

Real life isn't like the portrayal in social media or on some forums. Stick around long enough to collect some folks you care about, and you will have some sorrow to go along with the happy occasions.

This is the bittersweet path we take if we are on this forum for the right reasons. We sometimes have to hear the sad with the happy. Sure, the forum is a place to get advice from the more experienced and accomplished, but I hope that when you are the ones that have some grey hair of your own you will see fit to give something back as well. Along that path if you are lucky, you will get to meet and know some of the best humans on the planet. Their lives off the range are as impressive as their shooting and their technical skills.

I had the pleasure of meeting some of you by virtue of being in the defense business and I really enjoyed reading about non work related topics. On several occasions, I dragged some of you into problems encountered on work related projects and you tripped all over yourselves to help, veterans and non-veterans alike. Just the thought of helping give our soldiers the best chance to come home alive was enough for many of you to set aside your own priorities and jump into action.

Thanks for having my back and theirs. I cannot say that without specifically pointing out the help that came from our neighbors to the north and beyond, so folks should remember we are not now, and have never been, an island.

I was a reader here for many years without joining. I didn't jump in with comments till I was nearing the end of my career and found myself stuck in a jury pool killing time and I decided it was time to comment. The occasion was something to do with a thread where an ego battle was going way off track and both sides were wrong. I try to keep out of ego battles and will encourage those of you who have read this far to try and keep things civilized. There are too many times when threads turn ugly and unproductive. That kind of behavior is older than the internet but it isn't the norm on here and for that I am also grateful.

I will encourage those of you who have gained experience to remember that many of the folks reading don't jump in when they fear being burned for their questions. I will also remind those of you who really don't have any idea of what you are doing to try not to encourage others to do the same or put their safety aside. Many of you are still young and full of hormones, but have not suffered the loss of limbs, friends, children, or even seen the consequences of what you are discussing. So please think twice and don't turn the forum into a jackass video. Speak up if you can help, but don't if you haven't got the background. Age and wisdom are not mutually guaranteed, so try not to be an old jackass either.

Many thanks for all the posts that helped me pass the hours while far away from home. Thanks to those of you who take the time to put something back and keep things civilized. Many of the folks I am thanking, have left the stage. You are all missed. Let us all hope that we get to stick around together a while longer.

RegionRat,
First off, I rarely get pass the first paragraph of a post as long as your! However, you sucked me in to the point that it nearly caused tears.
Like you, I have read many post on this site without posting myself. I am fairly new to the site and have just started posting. Also like you, I am coming to the end of a very long and kinetic career doing my best to serve the people of this country as my screen name might suggest. If you are a reader and did not get that one, just google EOD.
These two things are my only regret. Why did I wait so long? How much more knowledge would I have gained and past on, if only I would not have let my pride of being wrong get in the way? One thing I have learned throughout my career was that I always learned more as a teacher then I ever did as a student. In my job, the world changes from one day to the next and you cant be everywhere all at the same time. I learned early that just because I out ranked someone did not mean that I knew more about the issue at hand as the guys under me and because I learned to trust them, saved even more lives!
I totally agree with your entire post and would just like to add to anyone looking in from the outside, dont wait like I did. I feel that i have found a very warm place to pass on my knowledge, continue to learn and have yet to feel dogged because of my ideas. Never forget one thing, its not about having all the answers, its about having THE answer that make the difference. Plus, it might not make the difference to you or most, but it may make all the difference to that one person and that is what really matters.
Marine Corps moto, there is no such thing as a dumb question! Thats not really true, but you get the point!
Thank you very much for taking your time to remind us what is really important in life RegionRat

Rob

 

[Bill Norris]

Thank U RegionRat for your 500 post and thank u EOD Rob for your service. It's guys like u that help build the character of this site.

 

[Cecil S.]

This is a good read. Thank you Gentlemen.