145 lines
4.8 KiB
Markdown
145 lines
4.8 KiB
Markdown
---
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id:
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aliases: []
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title: 2025-11-10
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tags:
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- authorship/original
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- destiny/permanent
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- original-format/digital-text
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- original-format/typewritten-print
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- status/complete
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- type/periodic/daily
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dg-publish: true
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---
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# 2025-11-10
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## 2025-11-10 06:53 --- Monday Morning Before Work
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I've been trying to be alone with my thoughts more
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recently. It's almost bizarre how working in silence
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for an hour makes the thought of music or an audiobook
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seem overstimulating, It feels right, though.
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To want to converse with myself rather than let my
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superego be drowned out by appealing sounds or a
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fantasy story I've already heard, or obscure facts
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about a game I've never played and never will.
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I still relapse, of course, a lifetime (albeit
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a short one) of unhealthy interaction with computers
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will do that, but I'm making quick progress.
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I watched a video yesterday that suggested that
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it might be my growing understanding of computers
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rather than my self discipline that's lead to this
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change in the dynamic between me and them. That,
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in understanding _how_ they function, I've turned
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them from _devices_ into _things_, which lack
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the mystical allure of the former. Whatever
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the reason, it's good progress as far
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as I'm concerned. It feels good to be introspective
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and to have time to build skills people care about,
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like music and style and... birdwatching...
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## 2025-11-10 10:40
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#topic/estimating
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A significant change from Ace to PDI in my mentality during takeoff
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is that I now tend to expect that (within reason)
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"holes" in takeoff scripts are _intentional omissions_,
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not holes in cost coverage.
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## 2025-11-10 11:14
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#occupational/takeoff
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I was updating my notes,
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filling in gaps in scripts based on Joel's,
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when I noticed a strange paragraph:
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> [!quote] `OneNote`/`Joel Take-off`/`Misc. Notes`
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> Drop Down Ceilings vs. GWB (Gypsum Wall Boards)
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>
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> Drop down ceiling is technically "Exposed" (the real term should be accessable),
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> so Romex and SER is not permited. Will need to use MC.
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>
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> > [!image]
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> > ### 334.12 Uses Not Permitted.
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> >
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> > #### 334.12(A) Types NM and NMC.
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> >
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> > Types NM and NMC cables shall not be permitted as follows:
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> >
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> > 1. In any dwelling or structure not specifically
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> > permitted in 334.10(1), (2), (3)
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> >
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> > 2. ==Exposed in dropped or suspended ceilings==
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> > in other than one- and two-family and multifamily dwellings
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This analysis of 334.12(A)(2) is flawed.
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Based on the [[nfpa-70_100_definitions|Article 100]] definitions
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of [[nfpa-70_100_definitions#Exposed (as applied to wiring methods).|exposed]]
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and [[nfpa-70_100_definitions#Dwelling, Multifamily.|dwelling]],
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[[nfpa-70_334_nm-cable#334.12(A) Types NM and NMC.|334.12(A)(2)]]
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can be paraphrased as follows:
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> [!cite] NEC 334.12(A)(2), pp.
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> Types NM and NMC cable are not permitted to be installed
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> in accessible spaces above suspended ceilings,
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> _except in buildings containing one or more dwelling units._
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The prohibition of 334.12(A)(2) _never_ applies to apartments or condos,
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And only applies to hotels and dormitories on a basis of AHJ interpretation
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(See [[multi-family-dwellings#Are Hotels Multifamily Dwellings?]]).
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It's unclear to me if this a genuine misunderstanding
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or just a [[heuristics|rule of thumb]] to cover the case
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that guestrooms are not interpreted to be dwelling units.
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If it's the latter, I believe it's far too conservative
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to be used whole-cloth on all estimates.
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## 2025-11-10 15:15
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### "Feeder"
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#topic/construction/electrical
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The NEC definition of feeder is quite strict.
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I'm certain I misuse it frequently.
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![[nfpa-70_100_definitions#Feeder.]]
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It _does not_ include power conductors to
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[[nfpa-70_100_definitions#Utilization Equipment.|utilization equipment]],
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those are [[nfpa-70_100_definitions#Branch Circuit.|branch circuit]] conductors.
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## 2025-11-10 20:00 --- Monday Evening, Before Bed
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Today while (a peer) and I were walking, he asked
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me what I thought of his qualities as an estimator.
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I told him I think he has the right of it, that having beliefs
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about what's correct that don't change just because
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a senior says they should, is a good sign.
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I can't remember now if I knew it before today,
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but my relationship with Dale, my former manager,
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while never "good", was much improved when I started
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pushing back on his direction and feedback. I became
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an estimator, where before I was just someone who
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could estimate for him. He hated it, and let me know,
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but I never felt more sure of my position.
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Estimating is not a field where you get ahead
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by being more technically skilled or efficient.
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You distinguish yourself by convincing your superiors
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that you understand the objective and how to achieve
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it. The best estimators---as measured by compensation
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package---are not doing takeoff, they're
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telling other estimators what to take off and how.
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Conquer your self-doubt. Tell your boss they're
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wrong and stupid and they should feel bad. Profit.
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