As most of you know today is April 15th, marking the deadline for tax season. Accountants, CPAs, and other like employees can breath a sigh of relief as they see this year come to an end.
We all know that we hate paying taxes. For the majority of us (the working class) we make up the most of America and pay in the most taxes. For some of us our return was smaller than in previous years due to Obama's stimulus plan last year and for some of us we had to pay in for the first time.
It always amazes me to hear about celebrities who fail to pay on their taxes. One of my favorite actors of all times, Wesley Snipes, has been a variety of action movies has decided to quit pay taxes. Wesley quit paying in 1997 and after his $58 million dollar income from that year, demanded that the IRS pay him back the $7 million he paid in. That amount of money just blows my mind. $7 million dollars. Most of us will be lucky to even make a million in our lifetime, but $7 million? And just to taxes?
Wesley Snipes refused for so many years that he eventaully was called to court and was charged on three accounts of refusing to pay his taxes. He was sentenced to pay the IRS back taxes and serve three years in prison. He is now walking the streets on bail.
You want to think that this kind of protest is worthy of admiration and respect, but I think otherwise.
I do not believe in paying ungodly amount of taxes. Each year my personal property tax goes up, our food taxes increase, and the amount we have to have withheld from employment checks keeps increasing, but I don't sympathize with this man. He made so much money and while $58 million to us seems so incomrehensible, the amount he paid in taxes is pocket change to him. I think it all boils down to greed. A greedy man wants all his money. And because of his money he doesn't have to servce jail time or pay the consequences of his behavior.
Laying that all aside, it was appealing to know that some retailers and food-chains are taking into consideration the poor people's pocketbook by offering discounts or free food on this particular day. If you call your local McDonalds you could get a second Mcdouble or Big Mac for just a penny. Worth the phone call if you ask me!
Don't forget about Starbucks free coffee day. Bring in a reusable mug for a free cup of joe.
And then comes in the advice about how to spend your return (if you got any...). Most of us would like to think we are pretty savy with our money, but truth and the economy proves that most of us live off of credit cards and loans.
My wife and I have started the Total Money Makeover and since that we have accumulated a nice savings and have paid off some large items and have less than $400 on a credit card. Though the recent change in situations (i.e. pregnancy) things have changed slightly, our goal does not: pay off everything, live minimally, and enjoy things in life that are free. So far we are doing okay and rarely deviate off that path.
Okay so go pay your taxes and try to enjoy doing it by partaking in freebies and thinking about how you are going to spend your refund.
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Family Drama
Apparently growing up I was oblivious to the whole family dynamics/drama aspect because I never realized it existed. Until I met my wife's family. Anyone who has seen the movie "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" would see things how it is in her family (except for the Greek part). I remember meeting her family for the first time and being sufficiently overwhelmed -- they were loud, laughing, in-your-face kind of people who loved to eat, drink (sweet tea), and be merry. I wasn't used to this kind of behavior. I was used to having a quiet family dinner at special occasions, but even then my family is absent in almost every form so seeing the broad contrast between the two almost gave me an anxiety attack. Almost. Now that I've been in her family for 6 years I have witnessed things first hand. The family who almost always has something dramatic going on: runaway sister, abusive brother-in-law, mouthing off little brothers, just to name a few. There is always something. But in the end I realize something about them. Despite the bickering, opinion filled lunches and dinners we almost always laugh and have a good time. Yes they are up in our business, yes they annoy me, and yes, I will go crazy because of them one day, but in the end they really do all love each other. I have witnessed this time and time again.
As for my family, drama still exists, just in the silent dinners and family gatherings where we all pretend everything is kosher and no one has any problems with anybody. They just are better at keeping their mouths shut.
I think I prefer the loud-mouthed ways myself.
As for my family, drama still exists, just in the silent dinners and family gatherings where we all pretend everything is kosher and no one has any problems with anybody. They just are better at keeping their mouths shut.
I think I prefer the loud-mouthed ways myself.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Fat Melting Injections
Once again our fat obsessed society has fallen for an injection that supposedly is given to decrease the amount of adipose tissue in various parts of your body.
This form of fat removing involves no surgical procedure or anesthesia. It is called a lipodissolver that if injected into the fattest parts of your body (arms, legs, abdomen) it causes the fat to breakdown and decrease the amount of fat in those particular spots of the body. Thie type of fat dissolver has been promoted as being safe and effective at getting rid of excess body fat.
Lipodissolving injections have been routinely used in spas and other non-medical areas all over the country. People have been paying large amounts of money to get these particular injections with the hopes that it will help the battle the bulge.
However, the FDA is putting out a warning to people who have been using these injections. They are claiming that these injections are not necessarily safe or effective to use and not be treated for their danger.
However, recent claims are showing that some of the people who have been using the injections as form of fat burners have had adverse reactions to them. Most of the negative side effects include: burning at the injection side, hard lumpy areas where injected, and brownish spots at the infected site.
I say there's no way to get ride of your large amounts of adipose tissue unless you cut back on the food you consume and increase the amount of exercise you get. There is no other way of trimming down. We all look for quick fixes and something that is easy for us to do (diet pills, extreme diets, etc) and that just isn't how our bodies work. For some of us fat naturally clings to us. Our society is so inactive now it's not surprising that a large amount of us are suffering from being overweight. Cut out your calories and get moving...that's the safe answer for all of us.
This form of fat removing involves no surgical procedure or anesthesia. It is called a lipodissolver that if injected into the fattest parts of your body (arms, legs, abdomen) it causes the fat to breakdown and decrease the amount of fat in those particular spots of the body. Thie type of fat dissolver has been promoted as being safe and effective at getting rid of excess body fat.
Lipodissolving injections have been routinely used in spas and other non-medical areas all over the country. People have been paying large amounts of money to get these particular injections with the hopes that it will help the battle the bulge.
However, the FDA is putting out a warning to people who have been using these injections. They are claiming that these injections are not necessarily safe or effective to use and not be treated for their danger.
However, recent claims are showing that some of the people who have been using the injections as form of fat burners have had adverse reactions to them. Most of the negative side effects include: burning at the injection side, hard lumpy areas where injected, and brownish spots at the infected site.
I say there's no way to get ride of your large amounts of adipose tissue unless you cut back on the food you consume and increase the amount of exercise you get. There is no other way of trimming down. We all look for quick fixes and something that is easy for us to do (diet pills, extreme diets, etc) and that just isn't how our bodies work. For some of us fat naturally clings to us. Our society is so inactive now it's not surprising that a large amount of us are suffering from being overweight. Cut out your calories and get moving...that's the safe answer for all of us.
Sacrifices
Some of you read a recent blog of mine about my wife's pregnancy and lack of health issurance. I thought I would give you an update (if you are interested...).
When we found out we were pregnant we had no health insurance. We were very scared. My wife's jobs all are on a prn basis so that means all benefits are given up to get paid more. We had been living okay without them and were planning on getting private benefits when she took a pregnancy test and it was positive.
Thankfully we have been blessed and have been provided for by our gracious God. Each day He seems to remind us that He is in charge of our lives and will take care of us. After we were turned down for Medicaid we were devastated, but we knew something would work out. This last year we started following the David Ramsey debt method and had saved up enough money to buy my truck cash (we sold our car with the car payment). Right now we own both our vehicles. We decided last week to put my truck up for sale and then use that money to pay for all our medical expenses. Our OBGYN office has been extremely gracious and we are making payments to them and also arranging payments for Freeman.
We will have to go get another vehicle (eventually) that will require a payment each month, but we are thankful for the opportunity to be able to sell a vehicle we own and use that for her maternity leave and medical costs.
That being said I have come to realize that things I valued 5 years ago really don't seem that important anymore. When you are required to sacrifice things (especially material objects) you come to realize their poor value. Most of the time I don't mind giving up stuff I once thought was so important, but seems to small to me now. Maybe it's because my wife and I have had to give up several dreams and objects :) for the birth of our first child and we are getting used to the thought of giving up everything for the people you love. Honestly we put so much value into materialistic things and to realize their lack of value is enlightening. There is so much more to our earth than the things we can't take to heaven with us. It's about investing into our families, our children, our friends. Investing into things we can take to heaven.
Our journey has slowly begun, but sometimes I look at my wife and think "I wouldn't do this with anybody else."
Oh and P.S. Another praise report we found out my lack of employment will give me grants for the fall so I'm probably transferring to PSU and then will be a stay-at-home dad to my soon to be 2 kids while going to school.
When we found out we were pregnant we had no health insurance. We were very scared. My wife's jobs all are on a prn basis so that means all benefits are given up to get paid more. We had been living okay without them and were planning on getting private benefits when she took a pregnancy test and it was positive.
Thankfully we have been blessed and have been provided for by our gracious God. Each day He seems to remind us that He is in charge of our lives and will take care of us. After we were turned down for Medicaid we were devastated, but we knew something would work out. This last year we started following the David Ramsey debt method and had saved up enough money to buy my truck cash (we sold our car with the car payment). Right now we own both our vehicles. We decided last week to put my truck up for sale and then use that money to pay for all our medical expenses. Our OBGYN office has been extremely gracious and we are making payments to them and also arranging payments for Freeman.
We will have to go get another vehicle (eventually) that will require a payment each month, but we are thankful for the opportunity to be able to sell a vehicle we own and use that for her maternity leave and medical costs.
That being said I have come to realize that things I valued 5 years ago really don't seem that important anymore. When you are required to sacrifice things (especially material objects) you come to realize their poor value. Most of the time I don't mind giving up stuff I once thought was so important, but seems to small to me now. Maybe it's because my wife and I have had to give up several dreams and objects :) for the birth of our first child and we are getting used to the thought of giving up everything for the people you love. Honestly we put so much value into materialistic things and to realize their lack of value is enlightening. There is so much more to our earth than the things we can't take to heaven with us. It's about investing into our families, our children, our friends. Investing into things we can take to heaven.
Our journey has slowly begun, but sometimes I look at my wife and think "I wouldn't do this with anybody else."
Oh and P.S. Another praise report we found out my lack of employment will give me grants for the fall so I'm probably transferring to PSU and then will be a stay-at-home dad to my soon to be 2 kids while going to school.
Thursday, April 1, 2010
April Fool's Day
Everyone tries to think up a good trick for April Fool's day and I am no exception. I remember growing up trying to "fool" my family into something that I saw in the sky or something that I did.
April Fool's Day started back in 1539 because of a hilarious poem by Flemish who wrote about sending his servant on a series of wild-goose chases on April 1st. Since the start with this poem people all over the world have been attempting to fool people around them on the first day of April.
In the list of "Top 100 April Fool's Jokes" you get to read all about some of the larger scale hoaxes that were played on many people.
Swiss farmers were viewed on television harvesting spagetti pieces from trees while the broadcaster boasted "Swiss farmers harvesting spagetti from the spagetti tree." Viewers were captivated and call the television channel to which there reply was simple: "place a sprig of spaghetti in a tin of tomato sauce and hope for the best."
Taco Bell announced that they had purchased the Liberty Bell and had renamed it to be the "Taco Liberty Bell." This caused an outrage from the general public in which later Taco Bell admitted to their false information and apologized.
In 1989 in London many people gathered around a field to see the much talked about UFO that was circling the city. When it landed and the police came up to it they ran after seeing a small man in a tin suit come out of the UFO. Turns out the 36-year old inventor of this UFO-looking hot air balloon was forced to land after being drifted off course making his April Fool's joke come one day early.
Burger King anounced in 1999 for the first time ever a left-handed whopper. This ad was published in USA today and Burger King had to rebuttle there statement telling of it's falseness.
So what would be your best idea of an April Fool's joke? Get on this website for a list of practical jokes that would surely be for a good laugh.
April Fool's Day started back in 1539 because of a hilarious poem by Flemish who wrote about sending his servant on a series of wild-goose chases on April 1st. Since the start with this poem people all over the world have been attempting to fool people around them on the first day of April.
In the list of "Top 100 April Fool's Jokes" you get to read all about some of the larger scale hoaxes that were played on many people.
Swiss farmers were viewed on television harvesting spagetti pieces from trees while the broadcaster boasted "Swiss farmers harvesting spagetti from the spagetti tree." Viewers were captivated and call the television channel to which there reply was simple: "place a sprig of spaghetti in a tin of tomato sauce and hope for the best."
Taco Bell announced that they had purchased the Liberty Bell and had renamed it to be the "Taco Liberty Bell." This caused an outrage from the general public in which later Taco Bell admitted to their false information and apologized.
In 1989 in London many people gathered around a field to see the much talked about UFO that was circling the city. When it landed and the police came up to it they ran after seeing a small man in a tin suit come out of the UFO. Turns out the 36-year old inventor of this UFO-looking hot air balloon was forced to land after being drifted off course making his April Fool's joke come one day early.
Burger King anounced in 1999 for the first time ever a left-handed whopper. This ad was published in USA today and Burger King had to rebuttle there statement telling of it's falseness.
So what would be your best idea of an April Fool's joke? Get on this website for a list of practical jokes that would surely be for a good laugh.
Running
Running has never been one of my favorite types of workouts especially with my especially small 5'5" frame, but lately I have been exploring the idea of incorporating running into my regular routine.
I used to go to the Y and lift weights and work on machines, but since I've gotten married and had a child (not me personally, my wife!) I've noticed this bulge coming from the abdominal area (aka dunlap's disease).
Back in highshool I was smaller than most of my friends, but topped the scale at 200 pounds...a pretty hefty amount for a guy my size. I lifted weights in highschool and was bulky, but once I graduated and stopped my weights class my muscle went bye-bye.
At 20 I decided it was time for a change and right after I moved into my own home I started the Adkin's diet and working out. Some days I would get on the treadmill for over an hour and then lift weights. Pretty soon I had trimmed down and became a nice 150lbs. My wife even said the first thing she noticed about me was my big muscles. :)
So imagine what life and stress will do for most...I stopped the Adkin's diet and slowly became less and less active with the increased responsibilities in my life. Now I'm topping the scale at a 170lbs.
So that is why I am back running. Only this time I'm running outside -- with a friend -- on a daily basis and we are both trying to trim down our spare tire and train for the Boomtown day's 5K run. Eventually I would like to be in a half-marathon then a marathon. I'm not quite there yet, but I am getting there. Being physically active is essential for our health, physically and mentally.
I used to go to the Y and lift weights and work on machines, but since I've gotten married and had a child (not me personally, my wife!) I've noticed this bulge coming from the abdominal area (aka dunlap's disease).
Back in highshool I was smaller than most of my friends, but topped the scale at 200 pounds...a pretty hefty amount for a guy my size. I lifted weights in highschool and was bulky, but once I graduated and stopped my weights class my muscle went bye-bye.
At 20 I decided it was time for a change and right after I moved into my own home I started the Adkin's diet and working out. Some days I would get on the treadmill for over an hour and then lift weights. Pretty soon I had trimmed down and became a nice 150lbs. My wife even said the first thing she noticed about me was my big muscles. :)
So imagine what life and stress will do for most...I stopped the Adkin's diet and slowly became less and less active with the increased responsibilities in my life. Now I'm topping the scale at a 170lbs.
So that is why I am back running. Only this time I'm running outside -- with a friend -- on a daily basis and we are both trying to trim down our spare tire and train for the Boomtown day's 5K run. Eventually I would like to be in a half-marathon then a marathon. I'm not quite there yet, but I am getting there. Being physically active is essential for our health, physically and mentally.
Friday, March 19, 2010
Legal Marijuana Use
We have all heard about it: marijuana used strictly for medical purposes only.
Currently we have 14 states that have in some form or another legalized marijuana.
Interestingly, since the beginning of time marijuana has had many, many uses. The plant itself is used for fabric (hemp), rope, food, and even incense. It has also been viewed as a useful plant for many different things and only in the recent decade has it been considered a potential danger to people.
Marijuana has helpful for many things over time and was not ever used in terms of smoking until more recently.
Which brings me to the recent topic seen on msn.com: Wal-Mart employee fired for marijuana use. The 29 year-old fellow, a 5 year native to this particular Wal-mart suffers from an inoperable brain tumor and sinus cancer. Making just $27,000 he supports his two children on that income. After multiple attempts at routine pain medication this man was not responding well to it's typical pain relief. His physician used his last resort: prescribed him regular marijuana use. The fellow always carried his medical card stating he had a prescription for marijuana use, however he was only to use it at home and away from work.
This young man claims he never went to work high and was always careful when using and never ever smoked while on the job. However, after looking at Wal-Mart policies, the manager of the store opted for a random drug screen on him and fired him on the spot once finding the results.
The kicker is: can a medically prescribed drug prevent you from getting a job? It can in most states. If employers believe that you are potentially going to violate a policy that states "all employees who are a potential safety hazard or may cause negligence to customers must not remain employed" (I paraphrased) they may fire you.
Sadly enough, this man has spoked with many different lawyers and despite their own personal furry for his tragic situation they are unwilling to take on his case because of federal law. Federal law is held above state law. So this leaves this particular man in a sad predicament: he can't work because he has been given medical marijuana, but now he can't pay his bills. What do you do in a situation like this?? Live in constant pain while working or lose everything to be pain free?
I hope I'm never in this situation.
Currently we have 14 states that have in some form or another legalized marijuana.
Interestingly, since the beginning of time marijuana has had many, many uses. The plant itself is used for fabric (hemp), rope, food, and even incense. It has also been viewed as a useful plant for many different things and only in the recent decade has it been considered a potential danger to people.
Marijuana has helpful for many things over time and was not ever used in terms of smoking until more recently.
Which brings me to the recent topic seen on msn.com: Wal-Mart employee fired for marijuana use. The 29 year-old fellow, a 5 year native to this particular Wal-mart suffers from an inoperable brain tumor and sinus cancer. Making just $27,000 he supports his two children on that income. After multiple attempts at routine pain medication this man was not responding well to it's typical pain relief. His physician used his last resort: prescribed him regular marijuana use. The fellow always carried his medical card stating he had a prescription for marijuana use, however he was only to use it at home and away from work.
This young man claims he never went to work high and was always careful when using and never ever smoked while on the job. However, after looking at Wal-Mart policies, the manager of the store opted for a random drug screen on him and fired him on the spot once finding the results.
The kicker is: can a medically prescribed drug prevent you from getting a job? It can in most states. If employers believe that you are potentially going to violate a policy that states "all employees who are a potential safety hazard or may cause negligence to customers must not remain employed" (I paraphrased) they may fire you.
Sadly enough, this man has spoked with many different lawyers and despite their own personal furry for his tragic situation they are unwilling to take on his case because of federal law. Federal law is held above state law. So this leaves this particular man in a sad predicament: he can't work because he has been given medical marijuana, but now he can't pay his bills. What do you do in a situation like this?? Live in constant pain while working or lose everything to be pain free?
I hope I'm never in this situation.
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