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Caught myself bragging about a 12-hour shift until an old-timer set me straight
I was talking to a guy named Pete at the fuel dock last Tuesday. He's been running dredges since before I was born. I mentioned how I pulled a 12-hour day clearing a clogged cutterhead and felt pretty good about it. He just nodded and said, 'Son, I once spent 36 hours straight on a mud pump rebuild because the spare parts order got lost.' That hit different because he wasn't trying to one-up me, he was just stating a fact. Made me realize I still got a lot to learn about this trade. Anyone else have a moment like that where a simple story from a veteran made you rethink your own work?
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harper_wright2mo ago
Man, I used to feel like I was hot stuff after grinding through a rough shift too. I remember bragging to my uncle about busting 14 hours on a crane repair, and he just casually mentioned the time he worked three full days nonstop in a ship engine room during a hurricane. It totally changed my mindset, like okay, I'm not the hardest worker in the room. That kind of quiet experience really puts your own idea of "tough" into perspective.
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wendy722mo ago
Wait, does anyone else have that ONE relative who makes ALL your accomplishments feel tiny without even trying? My grandpa did the same thing to me once. I flexed about finishing a double shift at the warehouse, and he just nodded and said "That's nice, I once walked 12 miles to a mill after a blizzard took out the roads." I just stood there feeling like a TOTAL goofball. It's like these old timers have a secret stash of stories that make our "hard days" look like a walk in the park. Honestly, it's kind of humbling in the best way.
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