- Most outrageous / unbelievable lies
- Most offensive / dangerous lies
- Most “adult meant it as genuine advice but it’s laughably out of touch” lies
- Lies you wish you still believed
- Lies you took as truth and didn’t question it until you were way too old
Trade schools are for those who couldn’t make it into college.
I would have absolutely gone into welding if I had been told the honest truth about what the trades can earn.
In Germany we have the following system:
And Meister can make bank in the current climate.
Remember who connects your toilet or your lamps legally and what you can do without either.
I read that as “connect your toilet to your lamps” and I thought, ah, yes, a Home Assistant user.
I’ve noticed that when people talk about not needing a college degree, they always mention welding. I’ve personally never met a welder, but it seems they’re the gold standard of blue collar work. Why is that?
I’ve been a welder. It’s a big field with lots of variety. It all mostly sucks. Super hard on the body. Lots of bad fumes and dust.
If you’re actually looking to get into it, learn to weld pipe. Best pay and job opportunities.
Welding is like sewing. Any old mug can darn a sock… but to repair a historically important high quality silk sock to such a high standard that the repair is invisible to the naked eye takes an elite level of crafts(wo)manship that very few would ever attain. Not a perfect analogy but close enough…
Because the argument is bullshit, and most tradespeople are going to struggle, but that doesn’t let people romanticize the past and divide the present.
And it’s hard on the body and the culture is super toxic just like the materials and environments you may be subjected to.
The only reason I mentioned welding, is I did some welding and plasma cutting in college and actually enjoyed it. I would have gone into the specialty welding like pipe or something like that for the higher wages.
and it’s entirely possible you would have washed out as a traders person and never earned that.
very few people make bank in the trades, most make a OK living, but trades have massive drawbacks too.
this whole ‘we need people in the trades, it pays so well’ is a lot of bullshit, just like ‘everyone has to learn to code’
all it mean is they want more competition in the field to drive wages down.
Better live in a country where welders qualify for early retirement then, as the welders I’ve known have all developed issues with their eyesight, often starting in their late 20s or early 30s. Yes there’s a mask and every professional welder uses it because they know just how quickly they’d fuck up their eyes otherwise, but even then you’re still staring at a spark for a significant portion of your workday.
Health-wise, it’s one of the worse trades to get into because of that. Financially, of course… that’s probably part of why it pays so well.
A lot of welding also releases some really nasty fumes. I wouldn’t be surprised if the fumes are also a contributor to eye issues, not to mention Welder’s lung being named after the profession
Weirdly nurses too we’re super high risk for musculoskletal injuries that can really add up over the years. Even if you use 100% prefect lift mechanics every time you logroll or transfer a patient, or help them stand up, the patient often doesn’t know proper lift mechanics and will do wild shit like use the back of your neck as a grab handle. Even in psych where our patients are mostly ambulatory it can be even worse because my patients are more likely to intend to injure me.
Similar story - binmen. Teachers warning you that’ll be you if you dont try hard and get good grades.
Id fucking love to be a binman, way better hours, pay and perks than any other job ive ever worked.
One of my friends switched her career over to welding and she loves it! Never too late!