justplainbll
Recycles dryer sheets
Posting interest and dividends for income tax and prior year comparison.
what did you do today? (2008-2015) (closed)
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Lisa99
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
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Replaced my sprinkler controller box myself! Last time (in our last house) paid for someone to do it and it cost me $275.
Today it cost me $59.95 for the device and about 15 minutes of my time. It was incredibly rewarding as I tested each zone and they all worked perfectly!
Today it cost me $59.95 for the device and about 15 minutes of my time. It was incredibly rewarding as I tested each zone and they all worked perfectly!
ERD50
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Funny! I've done that numerous times when people walk by, talking to the air and saying things like "HI, How are ya!", or "Wanna meet for lunch?" and I look at 'em and say "I'm fine, how are you?", or "Sure, it's your turn to buy, right?"
I don't do that if they look to be big enough to be a Chicago Bears linebacker, nor small enough to want to carry a gun for protection.
-ERD50
We've been holed up in our house all weekend, in mortal peril from hailstones and tornadoes.
Well, maybe not in peril. But certainly a little paranoid.
I've been writing website copy for a friend. 10 beautiful products to be described in excruciating SEO keyword detail. Halfway done with the first and about a quarter of the way into the second. 20 minutes a day. The first one is hopefully the hardest, after that they should go more quickly.
Working up a second writing project. A blogger friend is starting a "call to action" about Roth IRAs. If you're a personal-finance blogger then you're invited to post on the subject in just two more weeks: Let’s Start a Movement (Roth IRA Style)
I plan to post about the process of starting a Roth IRA for your kid. Ironically it was almost seven years ago when Bob Clyatt faxed me an article on the same subject, and shortly after that we started one for our daughter.
If you're not planning to blog about it yourself then let me know what you'd like to see in my post.
Our college daughter reports that she shot herself down in flames on her engineering statics test. Classic case of test anxiety, which she's exceedingly familiar with, but still struggles to overcome. As a parent and a guy, I always have trouble figuring out when she's just venting, whether she's letting me know that she's about to drop out of college to become a shift worker at a Taco Bell, or whether she's asking me to tutor her through the problem-solving process (again). Luckily she's too stubborn & persistent to know when to stop beating her head against a brick wall. (I think she gets that from her mother.) I've told her that nuclear power school will seem pretty straightforward after this.
Well, maybe not in peril. But certainly a little paranoid.
I've been writing website copy for a friend. 10 beautiful products to be described in excruciating SEO keyword detail. Halfway done with the first and about a quarter of the way into the second. 20 minutes a day. The first one is hopefully the hardest, after that they should go more quickly.
Working up a second writing project. A blogger friend is starting a "call to action" about Roth IRAs. If you're a personal-finance blogger then you're invited to post on the subject in just two more weeks: Let’s Start a Movement (Roth IRA Style)
I plan to post about the process of starting a Roth IRA for your kid. Ironically it was almost seven years ago when Bob Clyatt faxed me an article on the same subject, and shortly after that we started one for our daughter.
If you're not planning to blog about it yourself then let me know what you'd like to see in my post.
Our college daughter reports that she shot herself down in flames on her engineering statics test. Classic case of test anxiety, which she's exceedingly familiar with, but still struggles to overcome. As a parent and a guy, I always have trouble figuring out when she's just venting, whether she's letting me know that she's about to drop out of college to become a shift worker at a Taco Bell, or whether she's asking me to tutor her through the problem-solving process (again). Luckily she's too stubborn & persistent to know when to stop beating her head against a brick wall. (I think she gets that from her mother.) I've told her that nuclear power school will seem pretty straightforward after this.
You're just hoping that the earpiece is connected to a phone. But there's really no way to tell whether the phone is even turned on, is there?
You're giving me a bad case of "Dang, I could SO do that job." Now I'm going to have to go surfing until that feeling dies off...
I didn't have to do that this year. Not enough snow to even use it!
So it will just stay in hibernation until next year.
Goonie
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
After a nice relaxing breakfast this morning at our hotel, I drove the last 270 miles home from our vacation. Good weather, very light traffic, and satellite radio made for an enjoyable ride! 
justplainbll
Recycles dryer sheets
Looking at alternatives to the ripoff I've been enduring with money held in TREXX.
The 3 yr T-note was auctioned today with a high yield of 0.456%.
The 3 yr T-note was auctioned today with a high yield of 0.456%.
pb4uski
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Went for a short snowmobile ride this morning. Riding was good overall but thin in some places and some icy corners in the softwoods. May be the last ride for the season as we expect temps in the 50-60s over the next few days and trails are already closed in the lower elevations. I put the sleds on the trailer so I don't have to run them over the lawn if the snow does melt.
Worked on stripping the finish off a couple doors to a cabinet that I am refinishing that will go in the powder room. Hopefully I can progress that tomorrow.
Also took a nice nap in the afternoon - trying to get over a minor cold.
Naps are definitely underrated.
Worked on stripping the finish off a couple doors to a cabinet that I am refinishing that will go in the powder room. Hopefully I can progress that tomorrow.
Also took a nice nap in the afternoon - trying to get over a minor cold.
Naps are definitely underrated.
M Paquette
Moderator Emeritus
Monthly Costco run, with my handy dandy credit card rebate check in hand. Heh... The rebate covered the shopping run and I got... significant... change back.
Ground through TurboTax with all my forms and data in hand. Eccch. Especially when it pops up an essay question like "Explain where the 2010 Foreign Tax Credit Carryover came from." I dunno... From somewhere inside this infernal software, I assume.
While I owe taxes this year, the first time since 2008 that I've had to pay federal taxes, the change from Costco should cover it. Yah, effective tax rate of well under one percent. Good grief. I'm one of The Little People. Leona Helmsley probably won't speak to me now, even if I use the good Ouija board...
Ground through TurboTax with all my forms and data in hand. Eccch. Especially when it pops up an essay question like "Explain where the 2010 Foreign Tax Credit Carryover came from." I dunno... From somewhere inside this infernal software, I assume.
While I owe taxes this year, the first time since 2008 that I've had to pay federal taxes, the change from Costco should cover it. Yah, effective tax rate of well under one percent. Good grief. I'm one of The Little People. Leona Helmsley probably won't speak to me now, even if I use the good Ouija board...
W2R has scared the heck out of me with her relentless stock-market cheerleading (http://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f28/wh-wh-wh-eee-party-like-its-1929-a-60276.html) so I sold it all.
Well, not quite.
Actually I just rebalanced by selling a little Berkshire Hathaway to buy an international ETF (EFV). Both were at the opposite ends of our asset-allocation bands. I don't think this tweak is going to cause either Whitney Tilson or Doug Kass to go nuts. I suspect I'll be selling more Berkshire Hathaway after the May annual meeting, when the analysts realize how much cash the company is spewing. I'll just keep selling call options to the hedgers until the share price forces the rebalance.
I also sold my Dad's final individual stock from his portfolio. It was the last tranche of his shares of Hanover Insurance which he received when they demutualized in 1996. I sold them for asset-allocation considerations, not fundamental valuation, because I've finished his 2011 tax returns and have a better tax handle on how much to liquidate this year. His long-term cap gains are measured in decades, not years, and he doesn't have any more losers to offset the gainers. He doesn't need any single-stock risk in his portfolio, and I'm also whittling down the expensive mutual funds like Fidelity OTC (FOCPX).
A year ago he was 85/15 equities/bonds. I'm moving him to about 25/25/50 stock/bonds/cash. He'll be there in about another year unless W2R goes from "Wh...whe..." to "Yee-haw!" and inspires me to move faster.
I'm also enjoying the heck out of doing our tax returns. Today I learned that TreasuryDirect has an online 1099-INT for the sale of education I bonds held electronically. What I didn't know (until it was almost too late!) was that sales of paper education EE bonds converted to electronic EE bonds are recorded on a separate 1099-INT that's hidden in a different section of the TreasuryDirect account. If you never converted paper bonds to electronic ones then you probably never see this issue. If you have 1099s mailed in hardcopy to you then you probably never see this issue. But it took me a long time to notice that the first online 1099-INT I found seemed to be all I bonds and no EE bonds. I would've caught it before I filed. Sure.
Now TurboTax is trying to persuade me to not exempt the education bond interest until after I do the college tax credits. If I max out the credits and have any expenses left over then I can go back and exempt the education bond interest. Simple, no?
Both our daughter and me will be really happy when college is finished and she's off the payroll!
Well, not quite.
Actually I just rebalanced by selling a little Berkshire Hathaway to buy an international ETF (EFV). Both were at the opposite ends of our asset-allocation bands. I don't think this tweak is going to cause either Whitney Tilson or Doug Kass to go nuts. I suspect I'll be selling more Berkshire Hathaway after the May annual meeting, when the analysts realize how much cash the company is spewing. I'll just keep selling call options to the hedgers until the share price forces the rebalance.
I also sold my Dad's final individual stock from his portfolio. It was the last tranche of his shares of Hanover Insurance which he received when they demutualized in 1996. I sold them for asset-allocation considerations, not fundamental valuation, because I've finished his 2011 tax returns and have a better tax handle on how much to liquidate this year. His long-term cap gains are measured in decades, not years, and he doesn't have any more losers to offset the gainers. He doesn't need any single-stock risk in his portfolio, and I'm also whittling down the expensive mutual funds like Fidelity OTC (FOCPX).
A year ago he was 85/15 equities/bonds. I'm moving him to about 25/25/50 stock/bonds/cash. He'll be there in about another year unless W2R goes from "Wh...whe..." to "Yee-haw!" and inspires me to move faster.
I'm also enjoying the heck out of doing our tax returns. Today I learned that TreasuryDirect has an online 1099-INT for the sale of education I bonds held electronically. What I didn't know (until it was almost too late!) was that sales of paper education EE bonds converted to electronic EE bonds are recorded on a separate 1099-INT that's hidden in a different section of the TreasuryDirect account. If you never converted paper bonds to electronic ones then you probably never see this issue. If you have 1099s mailed in hardcopy to you then you probably never see this issue. But it took me a long time to notice that the first online 1099-INT I found seemed to be all I bonds and no EE bonds. I would've caught it before I filed. Sure.
Now TurboTax is trying to persuade me to not exempt the education bond interest until after I do the college tax credits. If I max out the credits and have any expenses left over then I can go back and exempt the education bond interest. Simple, no?
Both our daughter and me will be really happy when college is finished and she's off the payroll!
Last edited:
W2R
Moderator Emeritus
Good! (whew!)
All you're supposed to do is and think about rebalancing to take some profits at some point.Nords said:
Like that.
Nords said:
I'll try to reform
My sympathies! I did mine early this year since I wasn't expecting to pay, but we just picked up TurboTax for Frank tonight. I'm so glad to be done with it for another year.Nords said:
BTW, I saw footage on national news of the tornados which hit Lanikai beach a few days ago (which were among those you mentioned in a prior post). Wow!
What an unusual event. I grew up less than a mile down the beach, and don't recall any tornados during that time.We've had two episodes of significant hail over there, and the tornado did some no-foolin' damage.BTW, I saw footage on national news of the tornados which hit Lanikai beach a few days ago (which were among those you mentioned in a prior post). Wow!
National Weather Service says there is no recorded history of any hail in Hawaii before this (let alone twice) and no substantiated tornado reports before this either.
You can tell that we Hawaii residents have no experience with tornadoes when someone's first thought is "Hey, wot dat! Eh, brah, hol' ma beer while I get one video camera!!"
It's driving our daughter nuts. Somehow she feels as if she should be here to share the excitement. But then she missed Hawaii's last hurricane landfall by 50 days, so she probably finds this more thrilling than scary.
I don't think it's going to make Lanikai real estate more affordable, but it's sure going to make the Secret Service nervous next Christmas!
W2R
Moderator Emeritus
mh
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Spartacus said:
Search for Edmar Castaneda. Awesome Venezuelan harp player.
fify
freebird5825
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
I slept, woke up, then slept some more.
I have an infected ear and possibly infected sinuses too. After 4 days of dealing with heavy duty sinus pressure and frequent nose blowing, I went to the clinic yesterday. The doc took one look in my ear, and prescribed 500 mg Amoxicillin, 2 horse pills 3x daily. Two nights ago I wanted to chop my head off, the ear pain was so intense.
I am having trouble chewing regular food, so I made myself some mashed potatoes. I have a orange glazed roast duck in the oven, but am not sure I will be able to eat it without chopping it into smaller pieces. I'm sure I'll manage.
I went outside [-]motivated my lazy b*tt[/-] for about 20 minutes to enjoy some sunshine and the most welcome 65F temperature. I saw tulips and crocus leaves just up, in my front garden. It is unusual to see both emerging at once.
I have an infected ear and possibly infected sinuses too. After 4 days of dealing with heavy duty sinus pressure and frequent nose blowing, I went to the clinic yesterday. The doc took one look in my ear, and prescribed 500 mg Amoxicillin, 2 horse pills 3x daily. Two nights ago I wanted to chop my head off, the ear pain was so intense.
I am having trouble chewing regular food, so I made myself some mashed potatoes. I have a orange glazed roast duck in the oven, but am not sure I will be able to eat it without chopping it into smaller pieces. I'm sure I'll manage.
I went outside [-]motivated my lazy b*tt[/-] for about 20 minutes to enjoy some sunshine and the most welcome 65F temperature. I saw tulips and crocus leaves just up, in my front garden. It is unusual to see both emerging at once.
travelover
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
- Joined
- Mar 31, 2007
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- 14,328
I slept, woke up, then slept some more.
I have an infected ear and possibly infected sinuses too. After 4 days of dealing with heavy duty sinus pressure and frequent nose blowing, I went to the clinic yesterday. The doc took one look in my ear, and prescribed 500 mg Amoxicillin, 2 horse pills 3x daily. Two nights ago I wanted to chop my head off, the ear pain was so intense.
I am having trouble chewing regular food, so I made myself some mashed potatoes. I have a orange glazed roast duck in the oven, but am not sure I will be able to eat it without chopping it into smaller pieces. I'm sure I'll manage.
I went outside [-]motivated my lazy b*tt[/-] for about 20 minutes to enjoy some sunshine and the most welcome 65F temperature. I saw tulips and crocus leaves just up, in my front garden. It is unusual to see both emerging at once.
Hope you are feeling better soon.
freebird5825
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Thanks.Hope you are feeling better soon.
Between not being able to drink beer (on antibiotics) and the trouble with chewing, I'm figuring 3-5 lbs will be gone by the next Wed weigh-in. There's always a silver lining somewhere.
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- Apr 14, 2006
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Thanks.
Between not being able to drink beer (on antibiotics) and the trouble with chewing, I'm figuring 3-5 lbs will be gone by the next Wed weigh-in. There's always a silver lining somewhere.
Emily: Andrea, my God! You look so chic.
Andy Sachs: Oh, thanks. You look so thin.
Emily: Really? It's for Paris, I'm on this new diet. Well, I don't eat anything and when I feel like I'm about to faint I eat a cube of cheese. I'm just one stomach flu away from my goal weight.
The Devil Wears Prada (2006)
ls99
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
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Today skated as usual, over the weekend started some cleanups at the camp/mancave.
OP
OP
Khan
Gone but not forgotten
- Joined
- Aug 23, 2006
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Visited the dentist to have a temporary crown re-glued. He is a wonderful dentist, no charge for this visit.
tangomonster
Full time employment: Posting here.
- Joined
- Mar 20, 2006
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- 757
Went to the gym and took two classes: Zumba and water aerobics. Lost my locker key in the process----and they are charging me $50 for the lost key!
Organized a Meetup tonight for one of my social groups. twenty people came. Dinner at a Vietnamese restaurant and then coffee at a Korean place. Fun to meet new people, but organizing sort of felt like w*rk.
Organized a Meetup tonight for one of my social groups. twenty people came. Dinner at a Vietnamese restaurant and then coffee at a Korean place. Fun to meet new people, but organizing sort of felt like w*rk.
W2R
Moderator Emeritus
Went to the gym and took two classes: Zumba and water aerobics. Lost my locker key in the process----and they are charging me $50 for the lost key!
Wow! That's insane! My gym just switched from the built-in locks on lockers, to hasps and now we have to bring our own locks. Actually this is pretty nice, because we can pick any locker we want. I put my initials on my lock so it is easy to identify.
Today I talked to a man at my gym who is 90 years old! He still comes to the gym every single day. Pretty inspiring.
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