John F Dean

Kara,

A few posts have already been made that addresses the actual patch.  One problem with repairing cracks is that they tend to spread.  Drilling small round holes at the extreme ends of the crack tends to limit the growth of the crack.

Without seeing the tank, if I were to repair it, it would drill a small hole at either end of the crack, fefore I patched it, to discourage it from spreading.

If I was thinking of buying the tank, I would ask myself why the seller didn’t repair it.  I would assume a tank without a crack is worth more than a tank with one.

Finally, what are you planning on using tank for? Humans, animals, garden, or something else?


I am finding the price for a new black water tank that looks similar to be in the $2000.00 range.  

My wife bought a used Bow Flex. With the help of a ramp I managed to unload it from the truck.  I would need human help to get it inside. So I took a break until my helper arrived. Of course, when he did, the BowFlex was covered with chickens. They were working on their pecks.

John C,

No idea.   Much depends upon the intellect and attitude of the person on the funders end… which is often the state. I learned quickly to have good relationships with people on the inside.  

In my later years I would have other CEOs amazed I could get through on one phone call when it would take them weeks of repeated calls.  Of course these same people would brag about how they cussed out various officials.   Now, does it take that much thought to ask yourself if the official knows they will be cussed out when they call you back …why would they make the call?  And, when you are caught making an honest error, do you really expect them to charge in to rescue you?  

Of course, there are various levels of billing fraud.  There is out and out theft where all aspects are phony. .  I was somewhat more sympathetic with revenge billing. That is a service delivered was refused funding due to unfortunate wording.  So, the CEO gets ticked off and submits a phony bill to make up for the loss. I found it is safer to do a legal work around. Early on as an administrator I had the funding for a service labeled “Attention and Compliance” rejected.  I resubmitted the billing under the heading “Receptive Language” and it was paid.  The same services. Different heading. No one cares what you do. They care about what you call it.

Yeah…I went off a second story roof … by myself… a mile from the nearest neighbor.  Who would have thought a metal roof would have ice on it on Christmas Eve. When I woke up on the ground my faithful companion was in my face barking.   ….oh yes, did I mention it was northern Minnesota and a snowstorm was coming in (which is why I was on the roof ..To patch a leak).  I was lucky.  When I went off the roof I hit the ladder, and it broke my fall.  It also broke  my knee cap in 3 places (all hairline). Thinking I had not screwed up enough, I refused to go to the hospital. Amazingly, since then I have hiked the Grand Canyon several times.  Only rarely does it act up.

It was after that I adopted my mantra of don’t do dumb things.

Hi Eric,

No idea as to what happened to the others.

Of course, the degree is one of the many clones and approximations of an MBA…..Healthcare Administration, Rehabilitation Administration, public Administration, etc. Normally the content varies by a course or two.

I have no idea as to the history of the individuals.  The case in question revolved around fraudulent billing. Normally, to prosecute successfully, a pattern has to be demonstrated.  

At the not for profit I operated, we were inspected, investigated, etc probably monthly by some entity or another. There are the routine inspections …Fire Marshall, state auditor, Health Dept, funding sources, etc. Then there are accreditation surveys.  Finally, there are the infinite complaints that someone gets ticked off and complains to everyone they can think off.  My favorite was when 3 of my staff and I were reported for crawling through someone’s bedroom window at 2:00 AM beating  them up and raping them.  Of course, they never called the police …never went to the hospital ….AND it was our building ….we had the key to it…so why go through a window.  

Anyway, with that level of oversight, fraudulent billing is high risk behavior.  Though, in the time period in question, it was not uncommon for computer programs to have some funky rounding problems in their financial programs that could add up over time. For the uninitiated, I am talking about 8k computers.

It was a masters program in public administration.  It is a chicken or egg situation; it is not uncommon to enter such a program after getting a promotion or appointment.

I once got a remarkable letter from a department head at the state level.  It read something to the effect “ it has come to my attention that there are rumors that I am a political appointee. I’ll have you know I have a Bachelors degree and 8 years of experience.”   It reminds me of a comment that I think Churchhill made, “ If you have to tell someone you are a lady, you aren’t.”


She didn’t hold her position very long.  

Critter proof garbage cans.  I keep more feed on hand during the winter than the summer… in case of weather issues keeping me. Home.

Early on in my relationship with Permies I realized it was more valuable to me than any of my magazine subscriptions. I know of no magazine where I can ask a question and quickly get a knowledgeable reply.  I figured that, with my personal ethics, that I needed to support the site to at least the degree I support a magazine.   It figured that purchasing Pie was the easiest way to provide that support.  Over the years …almost 10 years now…I have made a point of purchasing Pie equal to what I would pay for a magazine.  I figured that I owe the site that much.