What's the latest in people's lives?

[RK_Striker_JK_5]

Hmm, yeah. Take a bit of a breather if you can afford it.

[Griffin]

I've sent off for a Provisional driving licence, which is quite frankly disturbing.

[Mikey]

By "proviisional" do you mean "probationary?" Why would that be disturbing?

[Reliant121]

Provisional = obtained as soon as your 17 or above, allows you to drive with a fully licensed driver (as long as license has been around above 3 years). No tests. Unable to drive on a motorway legally, or on own

Full = Full independent licence, can drive on motorway. Must take test.

Full auto = Same as the above, only you are only permitted to drive an automatic.

[Deepcrush]

As of this afternoon, I am for the first time in a long while... unemployed. Today was my last day with the county schools and now I have to figure out what the hell to do!?

Were you not operating under the teachers' CBA?

Oh, well - assuming your run there gave you a little monetary breathing room, take a couple of days to not think about it. Weather's going to take a bit of a downturn after today, so it might not be ideal to fish, hunt, or play a pickup game of ball; but it's always good weather for a couple of frosties and a little time to yourself.

No, I was classified as Student Support Staff with Special Education which is apart from the Teacher's Association. My two week was turned in a while back. Though normally they want you to finish the week as a whole before you leave. I guess those in charge just didn't like me, which is understandable since in just one year I've reported against at least four of the staff that they know of. Such is life though.

[Mikey]

Provisional = obtained as soon as your 17 or above, allows you to drive with a fully licensed driver (as long as license has been around above 3 years). No tests. Unable to drive on a motorway legally, or on own

Full = Full independent licence, can drive on motorway. Must take test.

Full auto = Same as the above, only you are only permitted to drive an automatic.

Ah. We call that provisional license a "learner's permit." I still don't understand why exactly that's disturbing.

No, I was classified as Student Support Staff with Special Education which is apart from the Teacher's Association. My two week was turned in a while back. Though normally they want you to finish the week as a whole before you leave. I guess those in charge just didn't like me, which is understandable since in just one year I've reported against at least four of the staff that they know of. Such is life though.

Gotcha. Well, you've gotta do what's right, 'cuz the administration won't. I've often said - and my wife agrees, because she's one of the few who wouldn't have a problem without tenure, and her job is now to clean up the messes made by incompetent teachers - that tenure has evolved to the point at which it primarily protects bad teachers from corrective action.

[McAvoy]

So I got a call from my mother last night. Well after talking to her, she put my brother on the phone.

My brother knocked up his girlfriend and then had to get married last year in September. Both of them were not in a good position to begin with. She has no job, and he is in and out of work. He looks for the quickest buck. He's a hardcore gamer, so he sort of puts off alot of things. My parents kicked my brother out of the house (he's 25) after realizing that he isn't doing anything to get himself ahead in life. Basically mouching off Mom and Dad. Dad recognized this long ago and so did I, in fact it was me who first saw this. My parents gave him the benefit of the doubt and Mom was the last to realize that he isn't doing anything. He is a army reservist and we have always said that he just becoming full active since he can get a regular paycheck as a E-6. But he doesn't want to, but instead he spends alot of time looking for ways to make a free buck out of the US Government.

His girlfriend on the other hand, is unstable. She lost her job because of her attitude and alcohol. She is dumb as hell when she is drunk. She got pregnant and then my parents kicked my brother out. But allowed them to move in with my parents when the baby was born. Since then living under my parents roof has not been good to my brother's marriage which we all knew wasn't going to last long.

Three weeks ago, his wife found porn on his computer. She freaked out and chased my brother outside where she started to hit him. Hitting him hard enough for the neighbors to call the police on her. When the police came, she started saying things about him. I do not know if they are true or not, but such things like credit card fraud, illegal gun possession and among other things. Some of them were dropped. But the police had to take away my brother's computers and now the FBI and few agencies are looking at him.

I do not know the whole picture, but what I do know is that my brother doesn't tell the whole story. So my parents had to drop $5,000 on a lawyer because if the agents find anything, my brother will be doing time in prison.

Now, here's the other problem. Before she met my brother, his wife was did alot of drugs and alcohol and her siblings did as well. She took the baby with her to her parents house to this environment. My brother always feared without his support, she will go back into this lifestyle which is one of the reasons why he doesn't do full active service with the army.

Thoughts?

[Captain Seafort]

Ah. We call that provisional license a "learner's permit." I still don't understand why exactly that's disturbing.

Probably because it signals the start of old age and decrepitude.

[Mikey]

Ah. We call that provisional license a "learner's permit." I still don't understand why exactly that's disturbing.

Probably because it signals the start of old age and decrepitude.

Speak for yourself - in the States, we don't get decrepit until at least 28.

*snip*

Wow, that's some heavy sh*t. At the current point, your parents hiring a lawyer for him is still enabling him... but I don't know what choice there is. Logically, they should cut him off, including letting him twist if that's what it comes to; but I couldn't do that to my kids, and I can't imagine any parents worth the name doing it no matter what cold logic dictates.

Let's see... new family to take care of and an automatic E-6 grade plus family bennies and a place to live? Methinks your brother is long past the time to put the friggin' mouse down and man up and do what he needs to.

As to the one innocent person who's going to be hurt by all of this... someone needs to be in touch with whatever passes for family services in that state. If your brother is incarcerated and your parents can't do it, a new family is what that kid needs (if the sitch with the mother is as described.)

[Captain Seafort]

Ah. We call that provisional license a "learner's permit." I still don't understand why exactly that's disturbing.

Probably because it signals the start of old age and decrepitude.

Speak for yourself - in the States, we don't get decrepit until at least 28.

Speaking for him more like. He probably thinks of the Wall coming down and the first Gulf War as ancient history, and never went through that phase of the map of Germany looking rather odd without that line through the middle of it.

[Mikey]

As opposed to me: I tend to think of the Wall coming down as referring to Jericho, and the Gulf War involving a young slinger.

[Captain Seafort]

As opposed to me: I tend to think of the Wall coming down as referring to Jericho, and the Gulf War involving a young slinger.

What do you mean? I always assumed you were talking about part of a big tower, and a couple of brothers having a bit of a falling-out.

[Griffin]

Ah. We call that provisional license a "learner's permit." I still don't understand why exactly that's disturbing.

Probably because it signals the start of old age

Pretty much, it just feels, wrong, that soon I'll behind the wheel of a car. Its almost as if can be considered a mature and responsible adult.

[Mikey]

What do you mean? I always assumed you were talking about part of a big tower,

If I'd been present when that tower went up, I might be able to understand some of your barmy Blighty slang.

and a couple of brothers having a bit of a falling-out.

As the great Robert Hunter once wrote:

They say that Cain caught Abel
rolling loaded dice,
ace of spades behind his ear
and him not thinking twice

Pretty much, it just feels, wrong, that soon I'll behind the wheel of a car. Its almost as if can be considered a mature and responsible adult.

As I've often said: You're only young once, but you can be immature for the rest of your life.

[McAvoy]

*snip*

Wow, that's some heavy sh*t. At the current point, your parents hiring a lawyer for him is still enabling him... but I don't know what choice there is. Logically, they should cut him off, including letting him twist if that's what it comes to; but I couldn't do that to my kids, and I can't imagine any parents worth the name doing it no matter what cold logic dictates.

Let's see... new family to take care of and an automatic E-6 grade plus family bennies and a place to live? Methinks your brother is long past the time to put the friggin' mouse down and man up and do what he needs to.

As to the one innocent person who's going to be hurt by all of this... someone needs to be in touch with whatever passes for family services in that state. If your brother is incarcerated and your parents can't do it, a new family is what that kid needs (if the sitch with the mother is as described.)

The situation is as best as I can describe off of my own experience and from what my brother has told me.

I do believe for the most part what he has said of her is true. This is from my own observations and impressions of her.

I think what you said about paying for lawyer is spot on with my parents line of thinking, especially my Dad. I think he wants my brother to get his act together, but with these legal troubles he is in now, he needs help. I do not doubt that if he beats these charges against him, that my Dad will come down on him like a ton of bricks.

The baby which is a little over 5 months old now, is an innocent life that needs to be taken out of this situation. My parents can certainly take care of the baby and my brother did say once he gets these charges dropped he'll try to get custody of the baby. Which is hard. Courts always favor the mother over the father. No matter how shitastic the mother is as a parent.