Out of Bounds: New TCF Column

[Hikohadon]

This conversation, between a bald Giant, a douche, a moron and a guy who writes about The Browns for fun is still going on?

Uhg.

I'm trying to avoid actually working, so I can talk horror movies all day.

Crappy 80's music? Meh. I've now got The Reflex stuck in my head, dammit.

[LarsHancock]

This conversation, between a bald Giant, a douche, a moron and a guy who writes about The Browns for fun is still going on?

Uhg.

Just to be clear, I'm the douche, right?

[justmebd]

Agree that Nightmare 3 (Dream Warriors) is awesome. It's great because the kids get to actually fight back throughout the movie.

My favorites (since we're here)

Halloween 1&2: Agree completely with Hiko, MM is just cold, and that's what make this franchise so awesome. Donald Pleasance OWNED his character. A very nuanced performance that gets overlooked because it was a horror film.

Freddie 1&3 (Freddy's Dead is entertaining, though)

Jason VI just because jason took someone in a sleeping bag and bashed them against the tree like he was chopping wood. I still get a chuckle out of that one.

HATED the Chucky movies, but felt obligated to mention them. That kid in the first movie was so offensivley stupid, I wanted him to die.

On a related note, the SCARIEST horror movie I've ever seen is Murneau's original Nosferatu. Still creeps me out to this day -- and yes I watched Shadow of the Vampire because if Nosferatu scares you, you HAVE to watch that movie.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

If you like werewolf movies, Dog Soldiers kicks serious ass. Stars Kevin McKidd (Lucius Vorenus).

[motherscratcher]

Lars,

What are the five best sandwiches?

[FUDU]

I don't think SOTL and Alien should ever be mentioned in the same breath as those other movies like Halloween, Ft13th, NOES etc. B/C both the former movies are just such good movies that can stand on their own without the genre label and obviously b/c of the vast array of characters.

Having said that I think the Halloween movie (1 & 2, and Zombies recut) are all better than all the NOES, F13s etc combined. The suspense and horror is so much more subtle and instinctive, esp with Michael.

Thing about Hannibal as Lars hit on was he was such an extremely intelligent character, more intelligent than any of the characters trying to capture him. While he was a psychopath he was refined, and had "rules" and manners. I think that is why he was so likable. He didn't have the road rage mentality of other psychopaths, he didn't need to kill everyone, would have been a waste of his time. You could say Hannibal almost had morals.

Lars likes him b/c he could cook.

[justmebd]

I don't think SOTL and Alien should ever be mentioned in the same breath as those other movies like Halloween, Ft13th, NOES etc. B/C both the former movies are just such good movies that can stand on their own without the genre label and obviously b/c of the vast array of characters.

Having said that I think the Halloween movie (1 & 2, and Zombies recut) are all better than all the NOES, F13s etc combined. The suspense and horror is so much more subtle and instinctive, esp with Michael.

Thing about Hannibal as Lars hit on was he was such an extremely intelligent character, more intelligent than any of the characters trying to capture him. While he was a psychopath he was refined, and had "rules" and manners. I think that is why he was so likable. He didn't have the road rage mentality of other psychopaths, he didn't need to kill everyone, would have been a waste of his time. You could say Hannibal almost had morals.

Lars likes him b/c he could cook.

I misread that last word with only one "O." Hilarity ensued.

[LarsHancock]

I don't think SOTL and Alien should ever be mentioned in the same breath as those other movies like Halloween, Ft13th, NOES etc. B/C both the former movies are just such good movies that can stand on their own without the genre label and obviously b/c of the vast array of characters.

Having said that I think the Halloween movie (1 & 2, and Zombies recut) are all better than all the NOES, F13s etc combined. The suspense and horror is so much more subtle and instinctive, esp with Michael.

Thing about Hannibal as Lars hit on was he was such an extremely intelligent character, more intelligent than any of the characters trying to capture him. While he was a psychopath he was refined, and had "rules" and manners. I think that is why he was so likable. He didn't have the road rage mentality of other psychopaths, he didn't need to kill everyone, would have been a waste of his time. You could say Hannibal almost had morals.

Lars likes him b/c he could cook.

I misread that last word with only one "O." Hilarity ensued.

And if you merge your misread with the original sentence, you get THIS ACTUALLY TRUE HORROR STORY -> http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... uests.html

[Hikohadon]

I disagree. I grew up a Freddy fan, he has personality. It may be cheesy, but he's more than a lumbering mute.

I think MM was more than a lumbering mute. He didn't indiscriminately kill (unless they got in his way), he had a specific target and used plenty of reason to try and accomplish the goal.

[FUDU]

Not to mention Michael showed his sensitive side with that cute little head tilt when he killed Bobby Sims.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

I disagree. I grew up a Freddy fan, he has personality. It may be cheesy, but he's more than a lumbering mute.

I think MM was more than a lumbering mute. He didn't indiscriminately kill (unless they got in his way), he had a specific target and used plenty of reason to try and accomplish the goal.

What goal?

Your statement has me baffled.

Jason had a goal too. To avenge the death of his mother.

Freddy? To avenge his own death by killing the children of the people who killed him.

[swerb]

You guys just talked me into buying Halloween on Blu Ray today on a trip to Best Buy.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

Original or Zombie's?

[FUDU]

Your kid's old enough to watch it yet? At least without you feeling guilty.

[swerb]

The original, and no, he's 7. Few more years.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

The original, and no, he's 7. Few more years.

10 is a safe age for Halloween. There's really no blood and a few tits. If it were released today, it would get a PG-13 rating if not for the tits.

[FUDU]

I saw it when I was 8.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

I saw it when I was 8.

Yeah I saw a lot of horror flicks when I was a little kid. Maybe i'm not the best endorsement.....

[FUDU]

Yep, that's my point. I took a liking to reveling in the fear of such suspense and horror.

[Hikohadon]

I disagree. I grew up a Freddy fan, he has personality. It may be cheesy, but he's more than a lumbering mute.

I think MM was more than a lumbering mute. He didn't indiscriminately kill (unless they got in his way), he had a specific target and used plenty of reason to try and accomplish the goal.

What goal?

Your statement has me baffled.

Jason had a goal too. To avenge the death of his mother.

Freddy? To avenge his own death by killing the children of the people who killed him.

Find sister. Kill sister.

Jason stopped avenging his mother (or his own death) pretty much right away. He killed indiscriminately just to kill, mostly "bad" teens.

I forget if Freddy was going after the children of people who killed him by the 2nd movie or if it was just anyone.

I too watched all of these movies when I was as young or younger than my kids are now. And yet I don't let them watch them.

Course with all the shit I was doing by the time I was my girls' age... don't be like your father.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

Remember the first time you watched Halloween 3 and asked "where the FUCK is Michael Myers"?

[justmebd]

I disagree. I grew up a Freddy fan, he has personality. It may be cheesy, but he's more than a lumbering mute.

I think MM was more than a lumbering mute. He didn't indiscriminately kill (unless they got in his way), he had a specific target and used plenty of reason to try and accomplish the goal.

What goal?

Your statement has me baffled.

Jason had a goal too. To avenge the death of his mother.

Freddy? To avenge his own death by killing the children of the people who killed him.

Find sister. Kill sister.

Jason stopped avenging his mother (or his own death) pretty much right away. He killed indiscriminately just to kill, mostly "bad" teens.

I forget if Freddy was going after the children of people who killed him by the 2nd movie or if it was just anyone.

I too watched all of these movies when I was as young or younger than my kids are now. And yet I don't let them watch them.

Course with all the shit I was doing by the time I was my girls' age... don't be like your father.

My son is 2. He not only looks like he's my clone, he already appears to have many of my personality traits, which means I can start showing him Halloween and NOES when he's 7-8 years old.

That's when I started watching those movies, and look how I turned out!!
(Notices wife giving him the evil eye)
Yeah, good point.

[RickNashEquilibrium]

Lars,

There's about a 95% chance my company will allow me to take on a consulting type position in Shanghai sometime in 2013. The assignment would be anywhere from 8 months to 2 years, perhaps longer but I would have to commute to our new rolling mill in Zhenjiang City which is about 3hr using public transit. What advice would you give a young imperialist like myself in terms of preparing for life abroad (both in China and in general) as well as whether I should demand over and above more pay for this type of career change? I thought about it all weekend and I can't find a reason not to do this. I don't want to get my MBA (its a diluted product and I trust my business sense more than 99% of the people my age who do have them) so having experience outside of the USA seems like a pretty damn good alternative. I've always wanted to travel and this is more than likely the best opportunity I will ever get to explore all of Asia. Anyone else who has suggestions or comments feel free to PM me or post here. Thanks!

[e0y2e3]

Dude? 3 hours of commuting a day? When the fuck are you going to explore?

I mean, you go if you get the chance, but fuck that noise.

My ex-roomate did a similar thing with Fidelity a few years back, they paid for his apartment in Tokyo as his "raise." I'd demand something similar if not more than that, because fuck 3 hours of commuting with a rusty poll.

[RickNashEquilibrium]

That is definitely a dilemma, but one I am willing to discuss with the company. I'm not sure how often I will need to be at the plant considering the core of the role is building the financial reporting tools and helping with our new Oracle integration. If I can work out of the Shanghai office most of the time, I don't mind a commute 2-3 times a week. I'd work a decent amount on the weekend and all I need is a laptop and crackberry. I don't sleep much (4-6 hours but eat healthy and exercise a lot) so traveling on the weekends on little to no sleep is something I look forward to. If 25% of my time out there is like Kip Pardue's Eurobender in "Rules of Attraction", I'll be more than satisfied.

[peeker643]

Definitely see if the details can be worked out or you can be compensated for the commute, but no way in hell I'd pass it up.

No effing way. Take it from a mid-40's dude with three kids, etc.

Do every single thing like this you can. Especially if you're doing it on someone else's dime.

[Sea Foam Green]

Anyone else who has suggestions or comments feel free to PM me or post here. Thanks!

My suggestions from what I've seen/experienced at a couple different companies:

- Get as much additional compensation as you can. You're going to run into expenses you aren't even considering. You may feel greedy, but get as much as you can while you've got some leverage because once you're over there, its going to be a lot harder to negotiate/change.
- Plan to be over there longer than they say. You say 8mos-2years, so maybe your company is being upfront with you by giving you a range, but in general; they're always going to find more that needs to be done, and it's always going to be easier to get you to do it, than send someone new.
-On the MBA, I think you're on the right track. At my current company, I don't know how much they value MBA's, as I'm not on the business side, but I do know that you can not climb the ladder without a stint abroad. It's a pre-requisite. As the workplace becomes more and more global, it stands to reason this type of thinking would increase.

[mattvan1]

That is definitely a dilemma, but one I am willing to discuss with the company. I'm not sure how often I will need to be at the plant considering the core of the role is building the financial reporting tools and helping with our new Oracle integration. If I can work out of the Shanghai office most of the time, I don't mind a commute 2-3 times a week. I'd work a decent amount on the weekend and all I need is a laptop and crackberry. I don't sleep much (4-6 hours but eat healthy and exercise a lot) so traveling on the weekends on little to no sleep is something I look forward to. If 25% of my time out there is like Kip Pardue's Eurobender in "Rules of Attraction", I'll be more than satisfied.

Before I can give any real advice I need to know if you work for a large multi-national company that does these relocations on a regular basis? If so then there are most likely policies and procedures in place somewhere that your local managemnet might not know.

If this is out of the ordinary, then you might have some flexibility. First thing is I would not let them know how bad you really want to go. I would tell them it seems like a good opportunity but you need to know a bit more. Next I would drop the "reasonable and customary" level of support for your industry (might take some research on your part). I am assuming IT but maybe financial/banking?

Anyway, I can tell you want is reasonable and customary in my industry
Transfer bonus depending on region
Salary uplift - China would be 25%
Housing allownace commensurate with your grade/position
Vacation allownace again based on your grade/position
Free US income tax return preparation
Company pays all of your local taxes and fees (except in the UK)
Sometimes shipping of hosehold items, but in this case I would opt for a furnished flat
Note that all the above is taxable by the US Feds, but check into the foreign earned income tax exemption and see how much it is


Also, be very careful with the 8 month "short term assignment". You will need to check this with a tax guy familiar with overseas income. Not sure if 8 months gets you any exemption or tax credit.

Good luck

[RickNashEquilibrium]

Before I can give any real advice I need to know if you work for a large multi-national company that does these relocations on a regular basis? If so then there are most likely policies and procedures in place somewhere that your local managemnet might not know.

If this is out of the ordinary, then you might have some flexibility. First thing is I would not let them know how bad you really want to go. I would tell them it seems like a good opportunity but you need to know a bit more. Next I would drop the "reasonable and customary" level of support for your industry (might take some research on your part). I am assuming IT but maybe financial/banking?

Anyway, I can tell you want is reasonable and customary in my industry
Transfer bonus depending on region
Salary uplift - China would be 25%
Housing allownace commensurate with your grade/position
Vacation allownace again based on your grade/position
Free US income tax return preparation
Company pays all of your local taxes and fees (except in the UK)
Sometimes shipping of hosehold items, but in this case I would opt for a furnished flat
Note that all the above is taxable by the US Feds, but check into the foreign earned income tax exemption and see how much it is


Also, be very careful with the 8 month "short term assignment". You will need to check this with a tax guy familiar with overseas income. Not sure if 8 months gets you any exemption or tax credit.

Good luck

We are a global recycling company with our main offices in Ohio, Zurich and Shanghai. I currently work in FP&A for one of our manufacturing segments and but this would be something more cross-functional with corporate finance/IT. Thank you for the input Matt. I will take all of those points into consideration prior to any further discussions.

[pod2dawg]

Dude, do it. That on your resume , killer!!!!!

Companies will pay you huge with the knowledge and insight you will gain from dealing with the Red Dragon.

As a recommendation, get your company to pay for on-line MBA course or combo.

[RickNashEquilibrium]

Dude? 3 hours of commuting a day? When the fuck are you going to explore?

I mean, you go if you get the chance, but fuck that noise.

My ex-roomate did a similar thing with Fidelity a few years back, they paid for his apartment in Tokyo as his "raise." I'd demand something similar if not more than that, because fuck 3 hours of commuting with a rusty poll.

Ha, I totally overlooked your assumption. Its 3 hours to the mill, 6 hours round trip. So yeah, I'd hit the Shanghai South Station which is a 2 hr 47min trip to the mill at 4:29am then head back at around 6pm to get home at 9pm. Those times are for the slower trains, the high speed rails can get me there in a little over an hour. That would be the way to go if I can schedule my days accordingly.

[e0y2e3]

Look, I'm all for sleeping your way across Asia for a year or two, but I might kill myself if I had to commute for six hours a day.

I'd ask for what Matt outlined above (fairly standard per my friends) and also play real fucking coy about that commute to both get a bit more and to try and limit the number or times you'd have to make the trip.

Also, I spent one year in FP&A, most boring shit ever. Gawd bless you.

[hebner20]

Dude, do it. That on your resume , killer!!!!!

Companies will pay you huge with the knowledge and insight you will gain from dealing with the Red Dragon.

As a recommendation, get your company to pay for on-line MBA course or combo.

RNE,

Let me offer a another view point to this. Companies love to pigeon hole people. If you want to be foreign traveler guy all your life then go for it. If not, then consider the fact that you might be always be getting the call when an int'l gig comes up. When you are married and have kids you might not like it so much and then it may hinder your progress through the company when you decline the travel. If that ultimately means you leave the company for a stable local job, the companies you are looking to going to go to may not value the foreign experience at all and might even discard you from the list of candidates because it will not make sense that foreign travel guy wants to work at boring stateside ABC Co. (pigeon hole)

Tough decision, good luck.

[pod2dawg]

Good point Hebs, but me thinks the wealth of experience/ knowledge gained from said opportunity trumps pigeon hole label potential.
If another foreign tour would arise I would think it would be one "up the ladder" which would only be offered to someone with that kind of experience. China is the GORILLA in the room.

Appreciating the state of the economy, most companies aren't really very sensitive as to if employee might be bored if offered a local/domestic position. They got 750 candidates if you don't want the position.

[FUDU]

Man Lars you really botched some questions today...

No kryptonyte and Superman dominates, the yellow sun makes him nothing resembling a man, especially since you can grab a hose and take out Iron Man, he'll rust.

... and the cars, you completely ignored the best car decade in US history, and you were born in it.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

Man Lars you really botched some questions today...

No kryptonyte and Superman dominates, the yellow sun makes him nothing resembling a man, especially since you can grab a hose and take out Iron Man, he'll rust.

... and the cars, you completely ignored the best car decade in US history, and you were born in it.

Doomsday killed Superman with no Kryptonite...

[FUDU]

Doomsday died too.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

Doomsday died too.

He woke up after Cyborg Superman threw him into space.

[FUDU]

Superman lived as well.

I'm beginning to think you know as much about comics as you do pizza.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

lol.

This is like arguing Dodge Darts with someone who doesn't know dick about Dodge Darts.....

You have NO idea what you're talking about and all the story arcs that happened while Superman was D-E-A-D. He died, this happened.

[FUDU]

Fuck off.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

I win.

[LarsHancock]

Man Lars you really botched some questions today...

No kryptonyte and Superman dominates, the yellow sun makes him nothing resembling a man, especially since you can grab a hose and take out Iron Man, he'll rust.

... and the cars, you completely ignored the best car decade in US history, and you were born in it.

The question was which car I would buy. I'm pretty sure I got that right...

You're a horespower freak. I'm a classic stylist less concerned with horsepower, especially considering how close I am to losing my license from the ridiculous amount of speeding tickets I've received. I'm built for comfort, not for speed.

Regarding the battle royal, there's strategy involved. That was the point. More often than not in life it isn't the best fighter that wins, but more the man that avoids the fight in the first place. Tony Stark would be cagey enough to recognize this and come out victorious.

[pod2dawg]

Regarding the battle royal, there's strategy involved. That was the point. More often than not in life it isn't the best fighter that wins, but more the man that avoids the fight in the first place. Tony Stark would be cagey enough to recognize this and come out victorious.

Ah.....the cagey thing. That would explain the only hope C.M. Punk has against Rybak & Cena in the upcoming 3-way match.

Seems the Browns, Cavs, & Tribe are forced to rely on being "cagey" way too often.

[That_Guy™]

Lars,

Should I start planning my move to Colorado now or wait for the legal challenges from the feds to die down?

[LarsHancock]

Regarding the battle royal, there's strategy involved. That was the point. More often than not in life it isn't the best fighter that wins, but more the man that avoids the fight in the first place. Tony Stark would be cagey enough to recognize this and come out victorious.

Ah.....the cagey thing. That would explain the only hope C.M. Punk has against Rybak & Cena in the upcoming 3-way match.

Seems the Browns, Cavs, & Tribe are forced to rely on being "cagey" way too often.

If the Steelers, Ravens, Bengals, and Browns could all play football at the same time, the Browns could come out on top because nobody would respect them. They could go three and out for an entire half of football while the other three beat the snot out of each other, completely disrespecting the Browns of course, and then we could come back in the fourth quarter and dominate with a fresh team. Except that we have an idiot for a coach who would run out with fire and get killed and also wither at the end like he usually does through constant ineptitude and lack of creativity.

Unfortunately the whole concept of battle royal does not translate to football. We actually did adopt this theory earlier this year vs. the Ravens and hoped they would overlook us. They didn't.

So we have to win the old fashioned way by wining 1:1 battles with a superior team and coaching. Maybe we can try putting both together next year for the first time since the Earth was believed to be otherwise to round.

But that will never happen under Forrest Shurmur...

[FUDU]

Lars,

Will you go fuck yourself?

PS - check your email.

[justmebd]

Lars,

Bigfoot. What's your take?

[LarsHancock]

Lars,

Will you go fuck yourself?

I would if I could, but I can't so I got married.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

Lars,

Bigfoot. What's your take?

He doesn't like being called "Bigfoot", Sasquatch please.