Mesquite MX Track Jump

THE MIND PLAYS TRICKS ON US

Have you ever had an inspection on your project and the inspector picked out the smallest and most trivial items to have you correct but missed the most important items that should have and needed to be addressed?

Have you ever heard the statement, "I've stepped over a dollar bill on the floor to pick up a dime I could see sitting there"?  It happens all of the time; believe me.  Then as an inspector returning to the scene of the crime so to speak and darn it there's an infraction or correction that I missed.  Then you have to explain to the contractor that, "Yes, Mr. Contractor, I missed it but now you're going to have to fix it".  

The brain allows us to see what the brain wants us to see.  Focus, focus and focus on the task yet sometimes we simply miss the train and get it wrong.

We know for a fact that we are trained to read from a early age and as we learn we then do it instinctively.  Speaking for myself I have a hard time focusing especially when reading building code books but if you think about it you'll find it almost impossible to look at a word and not really read it.

Have you heard about the Stroop Effect.  When words for one color are printed in another color and people are asked what color the words is printed in people get confused.  For instance if the word "green" is printed in blue ink, your eyes see blue, your brain will thinks green.  Okay, for some of us it takes us a little longer than others until we sort it out. So, in psychology, the Stroop Effect is a demonstration of interference in the reaction time of a task.

Here's a test for you:

THE PAOMNNEHAL PWEOR OF THE HMUAN MNID

"Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae.  The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm.  Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe."

So, the moral of the article is don't always blame yourself or the inspector if something is missed on your next inspection.  

YOU ARE A GOOD INSPECTOR IF YOU CAN ACTUALLY READ THIS

7H15 M3554G3

53RV35 70 PR0V3

H0W 0UR M1ND5 C4N

D0 4M4Z1NG 7H1NG5!

1MPR3551V3 7H1NG3!

1N 7H3 B3G1NN1NG

17 WA5 H4RD BU7

Y0UR M1ND 1S

R34D1NG 17

4U70M471C4LLY

W17H 0U7 3V3N

7H1NK1NG 4B0U7 17,

B3 PR0UD! 0NLY

C3R741N P39PL3 C4N

R3AD 7H15

Y0UR’3 4N 1N5P3C70R

Of course this is only this inspector's opinion. :)

PPE aka Personal Protective Equipment

Okay, I’m an official moron, idiot, and imbecile.  Why you ask.  Have you ever heard someone say that it is important to always wear your PPE?  Most likely you heard it around the workplace, at your employment but what about around the house or in my case playing racquetball at the local recreation center.

Personal safety is and should always be a major concern.  Day after day, month after month, year after year, injuries occur whether you are a policeman, a firefighter, a skilled laborer or simply working around the house with your tools and equipment.  You know what; most could have been prevented if you only would have donned PPE aka Personal Protective Equipment.  PPE can be anything from protective hard hats, safety eye glasses or eye protection, vests or clothing that make you visible to others, good safe work shoes or boots, sturdy harnesses if you are in danger of a fall and others such as a clean respirator.  Yeah, breathing fresh and clean air is somewhat important.

I don’t like hard hats!  But they are a necessity.  They are specifically designed to protect the noggin against anything from a falling or flying object or not ducking when you should have.  Accessories include cold weather inserts, protective face shields or protective hearing equipment.  Something that is not always checked is the date of the hard hat.  They actually have an expiration date on them as well as the insert.  Don’t they last forever; evidently not?  Take a look at yours.   

Take a good look at my picture and what happened to my eye.  It didn’t happen on a job site but I’ve witnessed numerous eye injuries over the years because someone didn’t take the time to go get their safety glasses and I don’t mean your polarized special ops sunglasses. But if you order now I’ll send you two pair for the price of one.  Just pay separate shipping and handling; just kidding.  Seriously your eyes are kind of important and wearing eye and face protection are just as important as putting on the hard hat.  Even playing racquetball! Watch out for the other guy.  Do as I say and don’t do what I do.  You’ve heard that said time and time again.  Why don’t we adhere to our own advice? Duh!

What is that smell?  It is enough to gag you.  I can’t handle changing diapers, period.  I always said I should have donned the PPE but respiratory equipment and protection is extremely important.  You can’t see the stuff in the air that can hurt or kill you.  Dangerous chemicals, saw dust, fumes from paint spray and even spraying your yard for pests and insects can cause permanent damage or even kill you.  Using respiratory protection is simply a preventative means of protecting yourself even if you think there is plenty of adequate ventilation.

My wife is constantly digging through her purse and grabbing the hand lotion.  Most guys wait until the hands are cracked and bleeding; right?  Rugged and calloused hands are a sign of a hardworking man.  Stupid, huh?  We need the use of our hands.  Did you know that every year hand accidents tally up over 150,000 and I

bet you more if they were actually reported?  And what about protecting the epidermis layer of our
body, the skin? Skin injuries, coming in contact with chemicals, skin diseases, skin cancer, burns and even skin eating infections are always a threat.  Find the right clothing for the job being performed.  Rubber gloves, those new gloves that are cut resistant, simple work gloves and heat resistant gloves are always important.  I know that I’m not the brightest guy in the world and believe me I’ve probably grabbed a hot pan more times than I want to admit but even around the house PPE is important.  Use the hot pad, dummy!

Listen to what I’ve got to say.  Whaaat?  You can’t hear me.  Okay, I grew up in the sixties and time after time I was told to turn down the music or it was going to make you lose your hearing.  I don’t know if it did or not but I do know that my hearing is shot.  The answer, PPE.  Nobody really can account for noise pollution because we really don’t recognize the danger.  Millions of workers in America are losing their valuable hearing due to high noise levels.  Everybody knows there is a problem.  OSHA established the standards and they tell us that anything above 85 dBA is dangerous.  Tell that to the kid with the car base rattling your teeth when he drives by.  He won’t listen. We didn’t. Again, this isn’t just a workplace issue.  I always make sure that when I’m at the range I pull out either the earplugs or the head gear to protect the hearing I have left.  PPE can protect you. 

It’s not impossible to teach an old dog new tricks but when the old dog is just plain stubborn it’s only going to hurt the old dog.  I need to follow my own advice and be smart about how to protect myself. 

I’m headed out the door to buy another pair of racquetball glasses aka PPE.

Government Hiring Practices are a JOKE!

Recently a good friend of mine with years of experience and knowledge interviewed for a position and wasn't hired for the government position.

• Was he the most qualified of the three interviewed? YES!

• Did he possess the most knowledge of the three interviewed?  YES!

• Did he actually perform the same job being offered at another jurisdiction YES!

• Was an inferior candidate hired because he was already in the department? YES!

• Was the candidate hired even though he wasn't qualified? YES!

• Was the candidate hired even before the other two were interviewed?  MOST LIKELY!

So what happens in the government hiring process?  Well, it's a total joke.  HR Departments are a total joke.  If they actually post a job if what should be the qualifications for the position they end up not being able to hire their friends who do not possess the minimum qualifications for the position.  If they dummy down the qualifications then they are able to justify the hiring of their friend because the candidate met the minimum.

Okay so I'm telling you right now as I type this article insider preference is also a problem that is not very transparent to the uninitiated applicant.  I guarantee that the majority of the local government jobs are not truly for fair and open competition. A department head in the city can keep pulling applicants beyond the recommended qualified batch until they find the person they have pre-identified and written the job description for. (their preordained joice) This is called "dummying" down the required qualifications.This happens more often than you can shake a stick at. The city's HR department will often work with the department head to pre-bake a job announcement for specific individual that they want hired. Also the veterans preference is a major obstacle if a position is truly for open-compete, because it adds so many points to a candidate that makes it hard for the rest to compete.  Yeah and being a veteran, I know for a fact that the extra points are never tallied correctly. 

Yes, I'm saying that the hiring practices of local government and possibly even higher up are corrupt!  You can quote me on that.  It's the good ol' buddy system!

So, if you really want to work for your local city you better be a friend of the Mayor, a City Councilman, a Department Head or a friend in the HR Department.  

...just this Inspector's opinion on the corrupt state of hiring practices in government!

In Today's Society

Another horrific event took place in Florida and the politicians line up in front of the microphones to justify their existence; blah, blah, blah.

Blame goes here, blame goes there yet nobody wants to take the blame.

Did you ever read or hear the Who's Job Is It story?

Who's Job is it?

This is a little story about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody, and Nobody.

There was an important job to be done and Everybody was sure that Somebodywould do it.

Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it.

Somebody got angry about that because it was Everybody's job.

Everybody thought that Anybody could do it, but Nobody realized that Everybodywouldn't do it.

It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done.

I actually found another one that is worth sharing as well.

Who wants Change?

Once there were four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody, Nobody who wanted change.

So, Everybody said "I want change".

Somebody said "If only anybody would start to change, I will join."

But nobody said "I will change."

Finally Everybody stayed same, blaming Somebody for waiting for Anybody to start changing. So, nobody changed. 

As a building inspector for quite a while I have noticed that respect is gone.  Respect for everyone is gone.  Respect for adults is gone.  Respect for authority is gone.  Respect for teachers, police officers, the elderly is gone.  Respect for law is gone.  

Every year state after state goes to the capital building to initiate thousands upon thousands of new laws from legislators with their own agendas or legislators who listen to the lobbyist that are paid to persuade them to vote this way or that way.  

We don't always need new laws.  We need to respect the laws.  We need to enforce the laws.

The laws are there.  How many people drink and drive?  How many people text and drive?  How many people are taking illegal drugs?  How many people are cheating on their taxes?  How many people are stealing other people's identities?  How many people run stop signs or traffic lights?  How many people j-walk and refuse to use the crosswalk or how many people refuse to stop for people in the crosswalk?  How many people are stealing packages off of peoples porches?  How many people are shoplifting?  How many people cross borders illegally? How many people rob banks?  How many people speed through school zones, neighborhoods, the streets, the interstate? How many people embezzle from their employers?  How many people scam each other?  How many people abuse each other, their children, other children, their spouses, their parents?  I could continue on and on but I think I've addressed the point.  The laws are there.  We just need to enforce them!

Have you ever witnessed something that was wrong and you looked the other way?  Have you ever witnessed something and said to yourself, I don't want to get involved?  Shame on you!  Shame on all of you that pull your head back in your shell and let bad things happen.

How many bad things over the years could have been prevented with the help of the people who witnessed something happening or had information pertaining to a particular event or situation?

Taking away our rights will not solve the problems.  Enforcing our rights will.  Utilizing our rights will.  Get involved and we can make a difference.  Don't be like Everybody, Somebody, Anybody or Nobody and sit on your derrière. Do something!

I'm hoping that this article offends somebody to a point that there is a positive action.

A Little Bit of History of Building Codes in the United States

A Little Bit of History of Building Codes in the United States

I know that there were problems with structures long before construction started in America and there were consequences for shotty workmanship; maybe even your life. Building regulations date back to the beginning of recorded history.

The Code of Hammurabi (2200 B.C.) Included a simple but effective building code provision; if an architect built a house so negligently that it fell down and killed the owner's son, and then the architect's son was put to death. Present-day building codes have evolved into a comprehensive system of regulations which define safety requirements for the built environment.

I don’t know how many roofs collapsed during bad winters on the early log cabins or how many teepees were blown away because they were not secured properly by high winds but now that we know about problems don’t we have an obligation to protect the innocent?  So where did it all begin?

Many great Americans such as George himself, that’s President 

George Washington, as well as the likes of gentlemen such Thomas Jefferson tried to get the tradesmen of the era to follow some type of minimum code or standards and building regulations that, would hopefully protect the people.

But it wasn’t really until the early parts of the 1900’s that codes really started to come about.  Earlier that that I’m sure that if the carpenter who built your project messed up there might have been a gunfight, a fistfight or possibly they may have found a lawyer and a judge that helped resolve the problem but again the nation was growing and people were moving so something had to be done.  Whala, the first codes.

So it appears that sometime in 1915 those that were somewhat  in charge and overseeing the building industry got together to simply ask, what the heck are we going to do?  It’s ironic that I’m still sitting in meetings and we are asking the same questions.  Well, as Americans, one thing we are good at is to create numerous groups and agencies to oversee what one group could do.  The very first group ended up being known as BOCA.  Okay, the Building Officials and Code Administrators International, Inc. was the actual name and they basically represented those who lived in the east and some who live in the mid-west portions of the United States.  So, they set up their headquarters at a Country Club, no, I’m sorry, in County Club Hills, Illinois and then proceeded to have offices in other areas such as the state of Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania and New York.  I wonder if they actually inspected the Statue of Liberty (September 1875) and what corrections the French needed to correct prior to sticking her on the island.

Well, we can’t be outdone if we lived beyond the Rockies so another group of building official type people formed the second organization in America which was formed around 1922.  They were calling themselves the men of ICBO or aka, the International Conference of Building Officials.  I actually started out with ICBO.  They decided that they were going to be based in Whittier, California.  Was this before or after President Richard

Nixon was born there? (January 9, 1913 – April 22, 1994)  I actually have a letter from him thanking me for my service in the Army (but he also signed the paperwork that drafted me into the Army).

The next to fall in line was the SBCCI aka the Standard Building Code Congress International.  They were gentlemen who thought that a voice from the Southern States needed to be heard and set up headquarters in Birmingham, Alabama.  I’m headed to Birmingham to rewrite and vet the questions for inspectors on accessibility but under the ICC aka the International Code Council; yep another one but one that combined all of the above.

What a nightmare!  Each group or organization believed in what they were doing and each was independent from the others.  And, there are others, the NFPA aka National Fire Protection Association since 1896, IAPMO aka the International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials, IAEI aka known as the International Association of Electrical Inspectors since 1928.  Then you have several states and even separate individual cities that decided that they knew better so established their own codes.

 Then finally in 1994 (yeah I was there when it started) the International Code Council (ICC) was established with a goal of developing a single set of national construction codes. Remember the groups I mentioned above; BOCA, ICBO and the SBCCI. They finally heard the voice of reason throughout the nation and met in nasty argumentative meetings and when the dust settled the ICC was formed. So from three national codes one single national code was written and somewhat without regional limitations.  Of course each state then amends the heck out of the national codes to better fit their individual situations.  If you want to know how I feel about that I wrote a previous post about the state of Utah and the conflict.

I believe in the codes, good or bad and there are substantial advantages in combining the efforts to produce a single set of codes. Across this great country, code enforcement officials, architects, engineers, designers and contractors can now work with a set of codes that can be used by everyone.  Certification programs can now be alike and be used to better educate those who are making inspections their career.

Codes are like a virus.  They appear to be a living organism that evolves.  If you ever want to be put to sleep or even entertained be a part of the national code hearings.  I’ve witnessed consultants, CBO’s and Fire Marshals argue on both sides, yea or nay, argue that the code change should take place.  Now states are bypassing adopting cycles of codes; some are on six year cycles.  Ironically, in this inspector’s opinion, we are back to where it all began.

A Good Idea on Sheds Denied by State of Utah

Have you ever owned your own piece of property and just wanted to build a small shed to store your camping equipment; maybe your ATV, tractor or other piece of equipment?

Well, practically the majority of people go ahead and build it and never get caught by the local building department.

I simply wanted to amend the IRC with a state amendment that would allow you to build the structure when it complied with the outlines of the code; meaning under 200 square feet, without having to get a permit.

I had purchased approximately ten acres of recreation property and got tired of hauling all of my equipment out to the property including my travel trailer every time we wanted to go have fun.  Being an inspector I did not want to get caught building a small, under 200 square feet shed, without permission.

Well, the local CBO, Chief Building Official, said that one could not be built without a permit and inspections.  Whaaaa!  The metal shed from the local building supply was only about $250.  The permit and inspection process was going to exceed that.

So, I went to do something about it and I thought it was a good idea.  It was DENIED! 

The following is the link to my attempt at amending the code in favor of property owners.

https://www.utah.gov/pmn/files/72199.pdf

Please tell me what you think about the amendment.