Tanya Olson

Yes. I forgot about that. The client posts the job and anyone can provide a proposal. My experience was that the other people proposing were off the mark as far as what the job entailed and what kind of experience it required…
You are probably right to avoid it if this is key to getting a future job. Not to change the subject, but its looks like…[Read more]

You could try Elance.
I used it for a couple of projects with a somewhat shifty client and it worked pretty well. It was only in the States, but there are tons of freelancers and jobs posted there from all over the world. Its kind of a pain to set up, but the client is required to have at least a portion of the project funds in an escrow. The…[Read more]

We are using Carbonite. Its not cheap (depending on how much space you need) and you do need at least 5mps upload speed for the initial upload, but it is automatic and saves daily after that. I don’t know if its our ‘favorite’ but after researching all of the options, its the one that works best for the amount of storage we need.

You could just buy your own quarry!
http://www.businessbroker.net/business-for-sale/westover-rock-granite-quarry-two-harbors-minnesota/292345.aspx#
Whats so great about basalt? If you don’t want red Colorado stone, you could try slate from here in the Black Hills – check out Dakota Stone in Hill City, SD http://www.dakotastone.net/ledge_building…[Read more]

So I guess my initial suggestion of half of an oil drum, a pile of dirt and a bunch of sticks won’t work (random, but those were my first “design” materials)….I LOVED Legos – and they are very popular with my own 11 year old, but NOT as popular as Minecraft (as several others mentioned), which is incredibly 3 dimensional and spatial. My rugrat…[Read more]

Yeah. Because being homeless is so awesome, who wouldn’t want to stay homeless for a free sandwich every day? Personally, I just love sleeping in a bleach-smelling cell with a plastic mattress and thin holey blankets. Its totally worth it even if I can’t get into the shelter until 10:30 at night and have to leave again at 6 in the morning. And who…[Read more]

Check out Supportive Housing. This is primarily created for homeless people with a history chronic substance abuse. This is a concept being used throughout MN and I believe in Washington or Oregon with great success. No – it doesn’t address the root causes of addiction and social inequality. It meets people where they currently are and moves…[Read more]

Curious about your opinions Land8ers – when does it cross the line? Is it unprofessional to look up information pertinent to the meeting? 
It seems to me that you could have a laptop or tablet in front of you and have all kinds of activity going on, but appear to be taking notes. Is it just the phone? If its ok to search for pertinent information…[Read more]

Farmer and ranchers here use steel structures to control access to hay. They can eat, but they can’t get into the structures. Maybe something like this would be a good solution? http://www.a1gate.com/hay-feeders.html

Great points that I concur with in both Andrew’s and Nick’s comments – stick to schematic on lower budget projects and use an hourly fee calculation.
Our firm does not use the percentage calculation for fees unless required to by the client (some govt. agencies / municipalities). We use a structured fee proposal (Schematic, DD, CD, CA, Bidding,…[Read more]

No, I think these are permeable pavers, they just didn’t add the material, or didn’t use the right material, between the pavers to fill the gaps. I’m guessing the controversy is either about ADA compliance or that sand swept into the gaps would reduce the permeability.

The true answer is that there is no tree that restricts its growth to the top 5′ of its structure.
Well, some are right – a pollarded tree does. Grow a Sycamore for 25 years and pollard it. Oops. No room for the roots. Mulberries would grow faster and you can also pollard them. Oops. Now your sidewalk and mural is covered with purple splats of…[Read more]

I worked almost exclusively on a laptop for a couple of years, now work on a desktop. The desktop is much much much faster, easier to work in detail on graphics programs as well as drafting. Not to mention ergonomics – laptops aren’t designed for 8 hour a day every day use. No, your employer probably won’t have you working on your own computer.…[Read more]

…and thats how they get ya…

Goes back even farther than that – same sentiments expressed in ancient China. INCLUDING complaints about the horrible music kids listen too!

There is NO WAY that was not designed by engineers.

Its definitely tenacious! 

I don’t know about your grass, but our grass doesn’t take no for an answer!

Except for where we DO want it to grow, then its the most finicky plant in the world. 

How many volunteers does it take to weed the grass out of a grass-free lawn? haha!

Excellent – congratulations Andrew! I don’t think you will ever regret it!