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on call compensation

mandapanda — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 04:18:34 -0800

Is it legal in the states of Massachusetts or California for a company to require its non-exempt employees to basically be on call 24/7 with no compensation? Details inside. A company based out of California with branches in Massachusetts requires a group of non-exempt employees to respond to calls from its internal alarm system 24/7. The calls last only a few minutes, but require the employee to assess the situation and inhibit the alarm if the situation is not urgent. If the situation is urgent, the responding employee must go to the branch location and inspect. If the alarm is inhibited but the situation remains, the alarm will call again in an hour.

If and only if the employee goes the location, the employee will be paid. No compensation is offered for being on call to answer the phone, nor is compensation offered for answering the phone. However, employees get in trouble at work for not answering the phone on nights and weekends.

Is this legal? My gut feeling says no as the employees are required to maintain a condition throughout non work hours in which they are capable of responding to calls. Also, the calls require a non-negligible amount of work and definitely provide a service to the company. Taking the calls is a requirement.

Thanks for your input.

Learning to make better decisions in relationships filter:

Anonymous — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 19:52:35 -0800

Help me get over a broken heart uber-style. I'm taking my recent relationship experience to the max and looking at why I do what I do. Can you help me? About two months ago, I went through a pretty non-descript breakup that hurt, as all breakups do, but had a fantastically heartbreaking unexpected coda that left me in a deep depression. Without getting into much detail: We knew each other for a while, dated, had an awesome time together, things started to get funky with both of us playing a part and that led to us not being together. Not what I wanted but life don’t always do what we think it’s ‘sposed to do. After the breakup, I was privy to an overwhelming flow of information about my ex that involved lying, cheating, secrecy and all around bad form and behavior behind my back (I did not seek out the information, it came to me.) To say the least, I was devastated.
I decided to take this opportunity to look at myself, my choices and my relationship “resume”. Needless to say, I’ve made bad choices in partners before (surprise!) and vowed to get a handle on this situation. I began therapy, write regularly and spend time with good friends. But, is that enough? I know it’s only been two months but I cry. All.The.Time. I’m having a hard time processing this recent experience not to mention looking at a lifetime of dating disasters. I can see some of my patterns, you know? I see that I have made some romantic decisions based on immature reasoning: The chemistry is good, the sex is fantastic and turning a blind eye to inappropriate behavior for fear of failing in relationship. Again. This last one was a doozy ‘cause I thought I was being smart and mindful. Communincating clearly, being vulnerable and honest and all that good stuff but it was probably the most painful ending yet. I really want to learn how to make better partnering choices but don’t know how. I mean, seeing my pattern and knowing how to change it are two very different things. Not to mention, I am human. Prone to make mistakes. Does that exclude me from having a loving relationship?
So, have you been able to change your relationship patterns for the better? How and what did you do? I don’t expect that I will do an automatic 180. I expect a little two steps forward, one step back action but god damn! I need some help on the two steps forward. I feel I reek of this experience and don’t feel like I’m moving in any direction at all. If this sounds familiar, the making bad relationship choices part, how were you able to change? Anon but email can be sent to changemypatterns@gmail.com
Thanks a bunch for any and all insight.

Headlights won't turn on, any ideas?

mattsweaters — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 19:53:21 -0800

Headlights won't turn on, any ideas? So I was driving this evening and people where flashing their headlights at me and when I pulled over I realized that my headlights were not on.

Everything else works on my car fine, but no headlights or high beams will turn on. Is there anything I can check before I take my car to the mechanic [i'm kind of poor these days]

My car is a 2003 Mitsubishi Lancer, stock nothing fancy added to it.

thanks!

What music played in the intro of today's episode of NPR's On Point?

niles — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 20:09:17 -0800

What music was used in the intro on today's episode of NPR's On Point? You can here it by clicking the "listen to this show" button on the top of this page. It's the drum/guitar piece that starts at 10 seconds in.

I know shows like This American Life list out songs that they use, but I can't find any corresponding list for On Point. The words spoken over the music also prevent me from using any music identification programs.

Anyone recognize it? Thanks!

A ladder left behind

Funmonkey1 — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 02:55:24 -0800

[FearFilter]: 15 years ago I experienced an imminent death/serious injury moment that turned out ok. However, I still feel physical chills and tingly feelings even thinking about it. Am I the only one or is this common? Thoughts and stories appreciated. The science is a huge bonus. Short background. Many years ago some friends and I decided to put a ladder out the 3rd floor house in order to gain access to the roof.

I clearly recall the way back down the ladder and it is no mistake, balance was against me. That 1 second of fighting against of gravity while looking down is ingrained in my mind. The moment is etched forever in the brain and triggers immediate fear and physical response if I focus on it. WTF? After so long?

I can't be the only one that has such a memory that stirs such strong physical and emotion reaction. What is it called and how does one not be so jolted?

Where to buy a Carry On Garment Duffel Bag in Minneapolis?

xotis — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 19:43:02 -0800

Minneapolis Filter: Where can I find this bag in or near Minneapolis tomorrow (Tuesday 9/22)? I am looking for a garment duffel/bag that's as minimal as possible, yet has room for 1 suit, 1 shirt, and a few undergarments/extras. I need one that will fit in an overhead bin on my flight tomorrow as I'd prefer to not check it if possible.

This bag is exactly what I'm looking for, but I can only find it online. I don't have time to order it online unfortunately, as I need it tomorrow by 9pm. I'd be happy with anything similar, as long as it's in the $100 or less price-range.

Thanks!

How do I stop being jealous of my younger sister and pissed off at my mom?

Anonymous — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 16:10:13 -0800

How do I stop being jealous of my younger sister and pissed off at my mom? When I was in high school, I came out as gay and my parents were really homophobic. My mom also bullied me a lot about the course I took in university, and about moving away for school, even though I won scholarships that would have let me done that. I stayed in my hometown, and I struggled a lot with depression, insecurity, and eating problems while I did my undergrad - but also overcame these things and learned to be highly independent, finishing uni in a specialization I enjoyed, and supporting myself financially pretty much since I originally moved out. These days I’m living in another city, and doing well in grad school.

My sister is going to a prestigious grad school across the water in England, with the full support (loan & otherwise) of my parents (“oh, the experience of a lifetime!” etc.). I get along with my sister, but I find myself bitterly jealous of her, which upsets me. I’m pissed off because I know my mom was supporting my sister every step of the way.

I don’t like these feelings. I don't want to be hurtful and most importantly, I want to move on. I'm seeking advice for how to do this. Thanks.

A weekend alone in Belfast

nam3d — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 15:33:17 -0800

I'll be working in Belfast next week and have some time alone at the weekend (29/08/09-30/08/09). What should I get up to? Any events I should be aware of?

How is it that people can post videos of illegal acts onto YouTube and they can't be found?

Sully — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 20:40:16 -0800

How is it that people can post videos of illegal acts onto YouTube and they can't be found? I remember watching a video where someone has a camera mounted on the front of their motorcycle and they thread through traffic at insane speeds. I always thought that there would be some electronic trail the cops could follow. A more recent example includes one where hunters shoot some ducks with callous regard in a pond, and another involves a man who let his 7-year old drive the car at 70 kilometers per hour. In both cases, the police are showing stills from the videos on the news in the hopes that someone can ID them. But can't they just trace it back electronically? I would have thought that the cops' ability to track down the posters would have been better than this.

GrossFilter: Sometimes when I talk for long periods or get really mad, I get this buildup around my lips and eyes.. which I discover afterwards and feel embarrassed that all that time I had shit growing on my face.

In Heaven — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 02:21:11 -0800

GrossFilter: Sometimes when I talk for long periods or get really mad, I get this buildup around my lips and eyes.. which I discover afterwards and feel embarrassed that all that time I had shit growing on my face. It's really strange, maybe since I don't talk much anymore. But when I do, and what I mean is... say I'm in this long heated argument, or something where you're really in the convo and take no breaks, and kind of tense, like bulging eyes and stuff lol. I'm talking hours.. few times it happened, luckily I was on the phone. I got off, went to the bathroom, and in the corners of my lips, where they meet, was like white stuff, like when my lips open and close in the crease it leaves a white shit that's like half skin mixed with saliva turned solid white grossness.

Well today, it happened again, but this time I was with someone, and it wasn't my lips.. it was my freakin eyes!! The two outer corners, that white shit was there. I was like wholy fuck. It looked like I had two dabs of lotion on my eyes.

Has anyone had this happen?? It never used to happen, maybe it's old age?

Any way to treat it other than making sure to wipe my face every half hour?

Not just looking for a university

parmanparman — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 05:55:21 -0800

I am considering the City on the Hill, i.e., an independent municipality of working thinkers with heavy access and participation in city life, politics, and education. Is there a difference in the terms "Intellectual Center" and "City on the Hill"? What are some historical examples of a City on the Hill that are lowland cities? if you believe there is a distinction in terms: What are some modern examples of a City on the Hill and what are only Intellectual Centers?

nyc, blogs, websites, radio, events

bluelight — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 08:17:12 -0800

What websites/blogs/radio stations do you use to find things to do in NYC? Besides word of mouth, how do you find out about the various happenings around NYC?

Which forums do the best web programmers hang out at?

jackson5 — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 16:15:45 -0800

Which forums do the best web programmers hang out at? Long story short: I've got a web site that already does over 1 million pageviews per month. I've got a great idea to take it to the next level, but I'm looking for someone who can handle the coding and technical aspects in exchange for an equity stake.

I'm wanting to bring aboard a great programmer who doesn't necessarily need the work but will be motivated by the equity.

Which forums would you recommend I post on to find this person?

Also, if there's anyone interested here, let me know.

Seeking simple off/on switch for phone line

4midori — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 22:14:34 -0800

I need a simple off/on switch for my phone line. I have a passable cordless phone. I used to have a really nice one, but it broke. Disposable commodities!

Anyway, I turn the phone off when I go to bed. My current phone has no way to turn off the ringer short of unplugging the phone line from it.

I'd like an simple off/on switch for my phone line, preferably one with an indicator light which very clearly indicates whether it's on or off. I've Googled it buy found nothing.

I'm not handy with a soldering iron, so I'd rather not build something.

Suggestions?

Sleepz?

sully75 — Fri, 22 May 2009 10:00:12 -0800

If you are really exhausted from lack of sleep and stress, x say 2 months off and on, what's the best thing to do to get back in good shape? I've had a pretty stressful couple of months (2 moves, started a crazy school program, lots of work, anxiety). I haven't been sleeping particularly well for a lot of it and also fell of my exercise routine that I'd been doing since January.

Anyway, I missed out on a lot of sleep. The last few weeks I've just felt weary. Sometimes I don't but it doesn't take much for extreme weariness to kick in.

So what do I do? I have a hard time sleeping during the day, or sleeping in. Should I force myself to lay in bed, even if I don't sleep? Or just try to get on a more regular sleep schedule and wait for things to fix themselves?

An additional problem is that I usually wake up a bit after sunrise and it's really hard to get back to sleep. And I play music at night so I'm often awake until 11 or 12. = I'm getting 6.5 hours of good sleep a night quite often, and 8 would be more like it.

Dont leave me hanging on the telephone...

gergtreble — Tue, 19 May 2009 07:04:43 -0800

Help me find on hold music for my company. My company recently asked me to come up with suggestions for on hold music. So far we have come up with:

Call me - Blondie
Hanging on the telephone - Blondie
Hold me - Fleetwood mac/savage garden

oh and

Never gonna give you up - Rick Astley (Yay! Rickroll)

So give me your best witty on hold suggestions!

How to solo on the sax?

GernBlandston — Wed, 06 May 2009 11:07:09 -0800

My 10 year old has been playing saxophone for a little while now, and she wants to start playing solos. How does one learn to play solos on the sax? What are the first steps?

Making a smart offer on a house

whatgorilla — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 08:10:42 -0800

How do we make the most strategically sound offer on a house, and how to best estimate the monthly costs (mortgage+taxes+insurance+PMI)? Part 1:
I found out that a great house was being put on the market two days ago. Called the listing agent, who had just put the sign in the yard. $154.9K for 3/1, 1500sq ft + lots of extras. We saw the house yesterday, loved it, and decided to put an offer on it today; however, the listing agent left a message with our realtor that someone else had looked at the house yesterday as well, and was also putting an offer on it today. We are prepared to offer the full price, but if the other offer is super low, and the sellers would accept an offer of $150K from us, then it seems like we're just giving away $5K out of fear that the other offer is really high (which might be the case, since I'm assume the listing agent told them about us as well). However, if we offer $150K and the other prospective buyer offers $151K (or the full price), we'd lose out. Our offer goes in at 5:30pm; theirs goes in at 7:30pm. The house really is worth $150K easily (it sold for $150K in 1/05, and they've added nice, new appliances and all-new windows since then). $155K is definitely a fair price, though $5-$15K more than we'd planned on spending.

What should we do in order to maximize our chances of getting this house? (Note -- time isn't on our side: wife is pregnant with twins and may go on bed-rest in May, so we really need to find a place, but our backup plans are all short-sales, which take forever.)

Part 2;
What's the most accurate way to estimate our monthly house-payment (mortgage+taxes+insurance+PMI) on a mortgage of $144K in Jacksonville, FL (32205)? How accurate is the zillow mortgage calculator? I can't tell if it's taking the $50K homestead deduction into consideration nor how high/low it's insurance estimate is.

Thanks.

I Want to Learn Stunt On How To Get Someone To Stand On My Shoulders

goalyeehah — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 21:03:41 -0800

How do I get someone to stand on my shoulder's ala Cary Grant/Katherine Hepburn in the film "Holiday" How they do it is awesome and done quickly. It is during the New Year's eve party where Cary, Katherine, E.E. Horton, and Binnie Barnes are in the playroom. It looks as if Cary reaches across his wrists and grab Kate's hand's and bend's his right leg. She steps on the thigh and then one shoulder and the next. As Cary turn and she stands, he lets go of her hands.

So cool.

Where can I learn this? Are there any books out there?

how to manufacture 1000+ units of new, custom fabric based product?

nolnar — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 05:19:44 -0800

I've made a new fabric product that I hope would sell 5000+ units. For viable efficiency I need to buy manufacturing of the product or its parts. I don't want to reveal my product idea, but let's use a SLR camera bag made in sturdy fabric as an example. My product has similar materials, size and complexity. How do I go from there? background: I lack previous experience from buying manufacturing of a product. (I also don't have business experience but I'll focus on that topic later so leave that for now)

questions:
(1) Are there companies with online services that take blueprints/prototypes/CAD-designs of a fabric camera bag type of product as input and output a number of units (100, 1000 ...) of either the completed product or parts for me to assemble?

(2) Are there for fabric camera bag type of product similar services to to print-on-demand book publishing or what http://www.cafepress.com/ et al offer? That is, I input the design and the company hosts my product page, handles the customers payments and manufactures and sends out the product. I get a portion of the money from each sale.

(3) Are there detailed product catalogs with generic standard parts to buy in bulk for this type of product? Something similar to the extremely detailed catalogs of electronic and mechanical components available from many companies. So for a fabric camera bag type of product there would be standard should straps, side pockets, plastic clip-on joints and so on in various shapes, sizes, colors and materials.

Note: I know that there are various craft communities/websites where custom fabric products can be made on demand from any design by hobbyist crafters, as discussed in this thread http://ask.metafilter.com/111371/How-can-I-design-and-make-a-custom-camera-bag . But that is not viable for the thousands of units in my example.

Movies where someone hangs onto the hood of a driving car?

asavage — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 14:21:35 -0800

MythbustersMovieStuntFilter: Movies where someone is hanging onto the hood (or roof) of a car, while the driver tries to shake them off. We've got Terminator, DeathProof, and Better off Dead, any others are greatly appreciated. (Guess which one of us gets to do this?)
Extra points for where I might look for that scene in the film.

Terrorist Fist Jab, Hooray!

InsanePenguin — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 05:52:58 -0800

Did the terrorists want Obama to win? Actually, though, I'm curious. As an Obama supoporter, during the election I heard many times from non-Obama supporters that "the terrorists want Obama to win," and I have two questions:

1) Is there any evidence that these ambiguous "terrorists" wanted Obama to be President, and

2) If they did, why? I would think that after 8 years of Bush invading their countries and committing war crimes, they would actually welcome a US President that was going to pull the US troops out of their countries, so it makes some semblance of sense that they would be happy (meaning, not wanting to kill us all because they hate our freedom /sarcasm.)

Also, wouldn't it be ironic if after 8 years of a War on Terror, Bush's political opponent (in policy, anyway,) ended the supposed terror attacks on the US just by being elected?

baffeled

blizzardm17 — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 04:29:18 -0800

i had power go out to a portion of the house because a pump was running and pushing against water that couldnt move because ice was in the outlet pipe. i turned off the light switch and shut the pump off. i came back 4 hours later and there was no power from that switch. it was 12 degrees out. 2 days later it warmed up and all of a sudden i had power again. any ideas, i am worried

Catching that Intrepid Ibex

photomusic86 — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 17:57:21 -0800

How can I use Ubuntu (running as a virual machine on VirtualBox with OSX 10.5) to improve my computing experience? After some initial problems, I finally got VirtualBox to run Ubuntu 8.10, which is cool, but I'm not sure what to do with it. Born and raised on a Mac since OS 7, I'm not used to Linux, or even Windows (which I might run at a later date). Why should I use Ubuntu, and what for?

Print on Demand services with APIs?

steiny — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 06:05:33 -0800

Are there any print on demand services that offer APIs for large prints or small posters, instead of having to email requests manually, or manually fill in web forms again and again? I'm looking for something a bit like the Moo print API but for larger prints ie A4 (legal size) and up.

Ideally the service would be able to handle print runs ranging from 1 to 1000 prints or more, and would be able to bill weekly or monthly.