Minor victory thread

Dave

Dave

Staff member
Found out yesterday that my biological sister (and executor of my bio mom's estate) has included me with the payouts for the kids. I talked to her yesterday and let her know that it is completely unnecessary and that she should keep that money. But she insists that I take it so I didn't fight that hard. It's only* $2000 so it's not life changing or anything. In fact, it's more than I got from either of my parents thanks to having to liquidate all assets to pay for full-time memory care in a long-term facility.

I'm going to put it all on the credit card and just let it sit there. Only thing I use the card for is vacations (the two I've had in the last decade), emergencies, and things like that. I'm still paying off our July vacation to Washington so this will help a lot. Pay down the card, make our monthly payments less, and help with credit. It would be a win-win if it didn't require Julie to die for it to happen.
 
CrimsonSoul

CrimsonSoul

Got a call back to the job that I want to have (not a nursing home)! They were suppose to call back around this time to give a offer (so they said at the interview) or an e-mail for a decline. I got called back for a secondary interview, which is still huge. So I'm assuming they are down to just a few people they are deciding on and that means I'm on the short list I can't wait! wish me luck on Tuesday Forumites!
 
Tinwhistler

Tinwhistler

Taxes are done. And we're getting a refund, whee!

Was a colossal PITA this year. My wife made enough money this year that TurboTax added the "self employment tax deferral form" to our taxes. But after expenses, she didn't make enough money to actually owe any self employment taxes. So, TT wouldn't get past that point (because the self employment worksheet wouldn't let us put 0 in the deferral line, because it was higher than the tax owed--a negative amount).

I ended up having to spring for live chat, and they were able to show me how to access the area where I could delete that form manually and actually get TT to finalize my taxes. But it wasn't in an intuitive location, and the non-live help was no help.

I chalk it up to paid training (kind of like the first time I had to file a Schedule C and paid HR Block $300 to do my taxes)..I'll never have to ask for that help again. But it was still annoying.
 
Squidleybits

Squidleybits

In Canada there are free versions of TT and various other programs. Now that you know that workaround, you could likely use those going forward if such a thing exists in the US. I had no idea there was a free version here until CRA told me last year. For obvious reasons, they don’t advertise. There is no live advice.
 
Tinwhistler

Tinwhistler

Squidleybits said:
In Canada there are free versions of TT and various other programs. Now that you know that workaround, you could likely use those going forward if such a thing exists in the US. I had no idea there was a free version here until CRA told me last year. For obvious reasons, they don’t advertise. There is no live advice.
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I have Schedule C items (business form)...I can't use the free version ever :(

Usually, I just buy the cheapest Business Tax option they offer: $90....but I had to add more to get the live help option when I got stuck.
 
Squidleybits

Squidleybits

Tinwhistler said:
I have Schedule C items (business form)...I can't use the free version ever :(

Usually, I just buy the cheapest Business Tax option they offer: $90....but I had to add more to get the live help option when I got stuck.
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I didn't realise that there was a free version so I had been paying $30/year. Not the end of the world, but I used to work in a tax pool, so I know the forms and can use the free version.
 
Squidleybits

Squidleybits

We have been matched with our baby kitten. It’s the baby buddy she sent pictures and video of last week. She originally offered us the pick one of the boys, but I wouldn’t have known how to pick.

He has opened his eyes and is about two weeks old. He is either seal or blue point. And smushy cute!
 
jwhouk

jwhouk

Because of Cheeto's insipidness, the tax credit I used last year to cover part of the cost of my Healthcare Marketplace premiums will need to be repaid by me... in full.

Which is roughly half the price of the late-model used car I purchased back in April. :fu:
 
Dave

Dave

Staff member
CrimsonSoul said:
Got a call back to the job that I want to have (not a nursing home)! They were suppose to call back around this time to give a offer (so they said at the interview) or an e-mail for a decline. I got called back for a secondary interview, which is still huge. So I'm assuming they are down to just a few people they are deciding on and that means I'm on the short list I can't wait! wish me luck on Tuesday Forumites!
Click to expand...
 
Tinwhistler

Tinwhistler

So, I think I mentioned that I replaced my snowblower this year.
Got to use it yesterday. Was able to do the entire driveway and sidewalks in like 6-7 minutes. Big improvement!
The mechanism to move the chute angle works so much better, too. And I really love not dragging a cable behind me through the snow.

1612204739319.png
 
Dei

Dei

Tinwhistler said:
So, I think I mentioned that I replaced my snowblower this year.
Got to use it yesterday. Was able to do the entire driveway and sidewalks in like 6-7 minutes. Big improvement!
The mechanism to move the chute angle works so much better, too. And I really love not dragging a cable behind me through the snow.

View attachment 37024
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Hah, we have a mower and weed whacker from this same brand.
 
Tinwhistler

Tinwhistler

chris said:
That thing looks like it's running on Monster Energy.
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I kinda thought the same thing
Post automatically merged:

Dei said:
Hah, we have a mower and weed whacker from this same brand.
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Of all the machines I could get 'right now' from Lowes, this one seemed to have the highest reviews/ratings across the internet. There was an asian knock-off that looked just like it, but had a lot of 1 star reviews saying the impeller blades would break after 5-6 uses.
 
CrimsonSoul

CrimsonSoul

Tinwhistler said:
So, I think I mentioned that I replaced my snowblower this year.
Got to use it yesterday. Was able to do the entire driveway and sidewalks in like 6-7 minutes. Big improvement!
The mechanism to move the chute angle works so much better, too. And I really love not dragging a cable behind me through the snow.
Click to expand...
I love my Ego equipment! I have the lawn mower, leaf blower, weedeater, but not the chainsaw (yet)
 
Bones

Bones

My problem with the battery snowblower is they just can't handle the kind of snow we get here. Went through 3 last winter. This winter got an Ariens pathpro 21. Jesus fuck its a beast!
 
CrimsonSoul

CrimsonSoul

Ok, so did my interview today. I feel like I'm hired I was told I "check all the boxes" yadayada. Then about an hour after my interview, the interviewer called me and told me I need to apply to another position (about 0.5 miles from where I applied) so he could close that application. So I'm assuming he wants to hire me for that position. Wish me luck!
 
PatrThom

PatrThom

Bones said:
My problem with the battery snowblower is they just can't handle the kind of snow we get here. Went through 3 last winter. This winter got an Ariens pathpro 21. Jesus fuck its a beast!
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We have an Ariens Compact 24. It's an older model, which means it "only" has a 208cc 9.5hp motor instead of the current 223cc, but yeah. It'll eat whatever you feed it and then throw it, like, 25' out into the street without even flinching.

--Patrick
 
Tinwhistler

Tinwhistler

I don't know how this compares to gas, having never had one.
I will say that it dug through the icy/slushy snow much better than my previous model. It advertises itself as being as or more powerful than similarly sized gas models, but I couldn't find any actual specs on torque.

This review and video matches my experience with the machine.
techaeris.com

EGO POWER+ Snow Blower review: More than enough power to get the job done

If you're tired of dealing with gas, oil, and small internal combustion engines. Then going electric might be for you, enter the EGO POWER+ snow blower.
techaeris.com techaeris.com

I got it for around $200 less than the price in the review (including batteries and charger). I love a good sale/bargain ;)
 
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bhamv3

bhamv3

I am about to totally brag about something.

So last week I went on a tour around some scenic spots in Taiwan with my wife, her parents, and a tour group comprising mostly her parents' friends. There were around 30 of us in total. I was the youngest guy there. One part of the tour involved a guided hike up a mountain to see some interesting endemic plants and animals. On the way down, a member of the group, a lady in her 60s, slipped on some leaves or tree roots and fell down, injuring her foot. She couldn't walk, but we were only halfway down the mountain, so we were a bit stuck.

So, as the youngest guy in the group, I carried her down.

She protested at first, because she said she's around 60kg (approximately 130lbs in freedom units) and she was afraid she'd be too heavy to carry. But we couldn't really wait there for help to arrive, partly because she was in a lot of pain, and partly because we had to get to the next stop of the tour. So after some persuading, she got on my back and I slowly carried her the rest of the way. It took around an hour in total, and involved taking lots of breaks, but I got it done.

After we reached the bottom of the mountain and she could finally get into a vehicle, the tour leader took her to a hospital for some x-rays. She'd suffered some hairline fractures in her foot, which meant it was a good thing she didn't come down the mountain on foot, partly because it could've exacerbated her injury, and partly because she could easily have had another fall.

I think this is the highest my stock has ever been in the eyes of my wife and her parents.
 
DarkAudit

DarkAudit

Just a whole lot of little things accomplished. Supplies for the first batch of baked beans in literally years: acquired. Colors laundry: done. Dishes: washed.

My W-2 was waiting for me at work. So my taxes are done, awaiting IRS and state acceptance. Not only did I get a refund where over the last few years I've owed thanks to the Marketplace, but the amounts were way higher than I expected. Whether I actually see that money thanks to student loan BS going back 30 years remains to be seen.
 
DarkAudit

DarkAudit

The rest of the laundry for the week: done. Car registration renewal: done. DL change of address: done (finally). Beans: cooking. Beans dishes: washed.

I'm on a freaking roll here. :cool:
 
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