Author: James

Posted on

1099: The New Queen of Forms

“New law. For payments made after Dec. 31, 2011, notwithstanding any IRS reg issued before Mar. 23, 2010, for information reporting purposes, “person” includes any corporation that is not exempt from tax under Code Sec. 501(a) . ( Code Sec. 6041(h) , as amended by Health Care Act Sec. 9006(a)) Thus, a business must file an information return for all payments aggregating $600 or more in a calendar year to a single payee (other than a payee that is a tax-exempt corporation), notwithstanding any reg promulgated before Mar. 23, 2010.
This information-reporting provision will increase the amount of paperwork by businesses and farms. It looks like the days of doing your bookkeeping by hand is coming to an end after 12/31/2011. Unless, you want to track payments to each vendor by hand…”
It appears businesses will be having to report a lot more to the IRS.  I just hope our new software is up to the task.
Posted on

Closet Project


Returning to the original purpose of the blog, here is a project three years in the making.  Our house was built in 1961 before central A/C became popular.  As such, when they built them, they did not have a dedicated space for the HVAC like contemporary houses do.  When the A/c was put in here, they put it in the master bedroom closet which also happen to be right on an outside wall between houses.  The drawback of course is you loose a closet.  There is a hall closet, probably originally designed for linens, that was modified for holding clothes.  It had one bar along the top and random shelves and hooks.  The shelves left me about 4′ for all my things.  It’s ok, but all my clothes get bunched in so tight I can barely get them in or out.  I simplified as much as I could, but I still needed space.  

When we had the A/C replaced, I asked if it could be moved to the attic so I could reclaim my closet.  Again, unlike the contemporary homes, the attic space is tight, so the A/C was left in the same spot.  I had a similar problem in our last home and I cured it with two stacked hanging bars, one for pants one for tops.  I have spent more time and effort creating organizing “systems”, but for my purpose here, simple was best.  The materials needed were pretty minimal.  I needed two bars since the one that was in there was too short.  They compensated by stacking wood, but that’s ugly and not near as strong.  Next I needed paint to cover up the flat, stained(?) white and places where I took out the old shelf railing.  Finally, a small light so I can see whats in there, one that required no wiring.

2 – 5′ lengths – 1-1/2 in. Pine Round Dowel – @ 2.17/ft
1 – Can clearance paint – $5.00 Behr one-coat eggshell some version of off white.
1 – package Moon Lite – $9.49
4 – 1 X 6 X 27 wood – to hold rails – stock reclaimed from pallets.
1 – Tie and belt rack gift from X-mas
reclaimed rails and shelves

Project Total = $39.17
The whole project took about 4 hours.  

  1. I removed all the contents and placed them on the bed.  
  2. Next, I took out all the rails, shelves and left over nails, making sure not to poke holes in the sheet rock and keep the rails as intact as possible to reuse.  
  3. I patched the holes with plaster compound I already had and did a quick sanding once it dried to get a relatively smooth surface.  
  4. Once that was all done, I put in the pole supports and railing for the shelves.  I placed them at 39″ from the floor and the other pole so there was plenty of space for my longest items.  
  5. When all was in and I was sure it was the right size, I put down some plastic and painted.  The stuff was enamel and in a small space, so the fumes were pretty strong.  Thankfully, I was not in there long.  
  6. I took a nap, went to the park with the family and when I got back made sure t was all dry and started filling.  At once I realized I had not completely accounted for the hanger sliding under the shelf.  Rather than remove everything, I just cut out a notch with a hole cutter.  
  7. Everything was put back and I put the light in.  
  8. When I was happy with that, I added the tie rack in the back and snapped pics of the final project.
Now all my clothes fit, there is a small light that won’t wake up the girls if I turn it on to see what I’m after and the hanging stuff is no longer dangling from the door making noise when I open it.  I plan on doing something with that old nasty floor at one point, but for now I’m done.

Posted on

It’s April 15th at midnight…Do you know where your taxes are?

The date is not upon us yet, but it will be sooner than many like.  Every year many filers wait until the last moment to do their taxes and then, thinking they are too hard, take them to a tax preparer.  This just is not the best way to do it.

I’m an accountant by trade and many people assume I know a lot about taxes.  I don’t.  Like other disciplines, many accountants specialize in some area.  My expertise is job costing and more specifically for the construction industry.  I understand taxes as they relate to these areas, but only have a working knowledge with regards to personal taxes.  The personal tax code is a huge book and it changes all the time.  In fact, my filing this year was delayed two weeks in order for the federal government to get its act together.  So if an accountant doest not know that much about taxes, what hope is there for people who care nothing for numbers and accounting?

You could take them to a CPA specializing in tax, but they cost a lot and most people just don’t need that level of expert.  You could take them to a preparer like H&R Block or Jackson Hewitt, but while they cost less than a CPA, they are still expensive if you go visit them.  They have also started offering loans on your return so you can walk out that day with the money, but in the end you will probably drop about $100 for the privilege.  Another little know secret is that preparer is not necessarily an accountant or even well trained in taxes.  I’m sure the noted companies make every effort to hire qualified people, but ti it not required.  Another is that no matter who prepares your taxes, you have to sign them.  You are responsible for whatever is on there and if you get audited, the preparer cannot go with you.

So, I recommend doing your own taxes.  Tax software has come a long way over the years.  There are a lot to choose from including online services from H&R Block and Jackson Hewitt.  Looking at their sites, it will cost you about $30 for decent service.  Quicken is another well known name and connects to many personal finance software.  Assuming you use MS Money or Mint.com to track your money, this may work to help ease your tax filing.  My personal favorite is Taxact.com.  It is free to start, but the $9.95 make sure you can get to your previous years data and prefill of many of the forms.  It runs you through a lot of questions, has tons of help and alerts at the end to make sure you did not miss something.  You also get to e-file, which is now preferred by the IRS.  I have used if for a few years and never had a complaint.

So get your forms and receipts in order, take an hour and get your taxes done.

Posted on

Beat your ticket? Probably not.

So I got busted speeding a few months back.  Apparently I was going 76 in Haltom City where they prefer you to only travel at 65.  I was pretty sure that was not right, so I decided to challenge the ticket.  

Haltom City has a great method for making sure you just pay your money and be done with it.  If you want to plead anything other than guilty, you have to make a trip to the courthouse.  If you decided to plead not guilty, you have to come back and tell the judge in person a couple of weeks later.  The room is packed.  They love to give out tickets for speeding.  Still want to plead not guilty?  Fine, come back for the pre-trial in a month and we’ll discuss it.  You show up to a prosecutor whose bored and cannot believe all of you made it this far.  They’ll knock $20 bucks off the fine.  What?  You want to plead not guilty?  Fine, come back to trial in two months.  

Funny side note.  The person right before me was made an offer and turned it down.  When he went before the judge, she mentioned that up till the date of the trial, he could accept the plea and walk away.  When I came up, she started to say the same thing, but stopped when she noticed the prosecutor had left that part blank for me.  She seemed surprised, but was professional enough to recover quickly.

So I decide to take this all the way.  I have had maybe 6 tickets for speeding in all the years I have driven.  Each time I did the lawyer (rip off) or just deferred adjudication.  I was curious what happens when you fight the ticket.  So here it is.

I show up for my trial and the prosecutor once again tries to get you to take a deal.  He’s got a lot of cases and he just wants to get this done quickly.  The deal is for $128 (the original fine was $188).  I ask for half that amount and he shows me that the State of Texas gets $102, and the city needs its cut, so $128 is the best he can do. I decline at which point he gets visibly upset and tells me that fine, I can wait hours to get to my case.  I sit down and watch as the same thing happens and additional four times.  There are not that many people here.  In fact, there are more cops showing up in the back than defendants.  They call the docket and half don’t show.  Warrants are issued.  The few deals that were accepted go up and finish.  There are two people left and only one has a speeding ticket.  Finally, I am called and the case begins.

Let me pause here.  In my research, I had found some instruction on doing this on www.beatmyspeedingticket.com.  I will not go into the specifics as this is how the guy makes his living.  The info is generally very good and I am sure in capable hands they can get you out of a ticket.  I got the packet after I went to pre-trial, which may have been a mistake.  Also, I could not get any info on the type of device that was used against me.  While the material covers all forms, I based my defense on the most used and was wrong.  This through me and likely lost my case.

So I ask to approach the bench and deliver the case law that was pertinent to my case.  The judge tells me to just sit down, so I do.  The Judge took the time to explain how everything works, reads me all the legalese and the trial begins.  The prosecutor starts asking the cop questions, division of work, years of service, type of device, training in using it, etc.  The guy is bored and has clearly done this a lot.  I realize, too late, that I was suppose to question the use of laser as a measuring device.  I was thrown when I heard it since I had based my defense on radar.  The state rest and I get to question the cop.  I start asking questions about how the device is tested and used.  I’ll skip the epic failure and skip to the funny part.  The laser is tested by pressing a button which test the internal circuits and then aimed at a stationary object.  Not a moving target?  No.  How do you know it is accurate?  The green light tell you.  I say that only tells you it is working inside and that something external is needed to show accuracy.  The stationary post does this.  Sigh.  The officer also says that he can tell a car is traveling at precise speeds.  He knows from personal experience that I was going 76 and the laser only confirms this.  I ask if he means he can tell the difference between 74, 75 and 76.  He says yes.  I ask what kind of training is required for that.  10 years on the force.  Does that work with baseballs too or just cars I ask.  Just vehicles (smirk)  Sigh.  I ask for dismissal for lack of evidence.  Denied.  I ask to introduce case law as to the need to test a measuring device.  Denied. 

By now, I am so thirsty I can barely talk.  Water is not allowed, so I am up a creek.  I rest my case and make closing arguments that the state failed to shoe the accuracy of the devise used against me.  The judge makes a show of considering my arguments before predictably finding me guilty.  So I get to pay the $188 and have a mark on my record, but I have a very personal understanding of the money machine know as speeding tickets.  Why did I do it?  I don’t mind taking a few chances.  Also, I like to try and stick it to “The Man” if I can.  It irritates me to no end that cops are rarely there to catch that person weaving in and out of traffic at a high rate of speed.  They don’t usually set up at rush hour, but during those time when few people are on the road.  At least for that little while, I prevented one cop from giving out tickets.


So, what did I learn:


Fighting it Pros:

  1. You may win and not pay anything.
  2. You delay action against you for a while
  3. You stand up for yourself and can take pride in that fact.
  4. You occupy the court for a while and make them earn their money.
Fighting it Cons:
  1. The emotional distress.  I cannot emphasize this enough, it will eat away your time and energy.  It take a lot of fortitude to go through this.  Be prepared.
  2. Money.  It will cost you if you loose.  Time, the fine and your insurance.
Taking the plea Pros:

  1. You get it done quickly.
  2. You keep it off your record, provided you don’t get caught speeding again.
Taking the plea Cons:
  1. You are accomplice to the ticketing money machine.
  2. Not knowing if you could have beat it.
However, it is best to just not speed.  I am not entirely sure what I will do if it happens again in the far distant future for that momentary lapse.  I might push it all the way to trial and just plea out at the last second.  Or I might go ahead and prepare better and try again.  I’ll just have to live in the moment and see.
Posted on

My how your garden grows

So back to the original intent of the blog which was to show projects you’d see on HGTV, but with all the reality left in.  The project here was making raised garden beds for our front yard garden.  I had suggested this about 2 years ago, but my DW did not want to incur the cost and there was something about the aesthetics she did not like.  After a season of getting run over by grass and weeds, over grown tomato plants that turned into ground creepers and a husband willing to pay the price in dollars and hours we are now doing raised beds.

Materials used:

48 – 1 in. x 4 in. x 6 ft. D.E. cedar fence panel – ($1.49ea)
3 – 2 in. x 3 in. x 8 ft. rough cedar fence rail – ($3.77ea)
2 – boxes Deck Mate #8 x 1-5/8 in. Coarse Wood Screws – ($8.69 ea)
8  cu yds compost ($30 cu yd + $65 ship)
~10 cu yds hardwood mulch – Apparently free

Project total = $431.84 after tax

Step one was to cut 16 of the fence panels in half and then cut the rails into 7″ pieces.  Why 7′?  4″ in wood talk is actually 3.5″.  The width is always 1/2 in thinner.

Step two was to assemble the long sides.  Two long panels and two rail pieces with an added rail in the middle for support.  The planters were stacked two boards tall to give us 7″ beds.

Step three, assemble the boxes by putting your longs rails on the ground, standing on their sides and attaching the short panels to one corner then the other.

Sounds easy right?  Well, the notes to self are as follows:

  1. Don’t pre-drill all your holes.  Sounds like it would same time and it might if you assemble one box all the way and take measurements from that one to pre-drill all the other boards.  I ended up with the holes too close to the edge to sink a screw in the rail, so I had to redrill the holes anyway.
  2. Get two boxes of screws.  I only got one to begin with, but I was putting two screws in each panel where it connected to the rail.  These need to last, so I wanted them tight.  That’s 40 screws a box and that is over a pound.
  3. Assemble all the long sides and add then add the short panels.  It took me a bit of trial and error with getting the boxes together.  I assembled a couple of short sides then tried to put the long sides on on the ground.  The was a lot of back ache and knee pain.  It is easier to assemble the heavier long sides on your bench then set the two sides up on the ground and attach the short pieces.
  4. Hide them from your DW so she cannot start putting them on the ground without your help and hurt her back.  :^)
Now the garden will have 8 raised beds with mulch paths running in between.  This will keep our good soil in one place uncompacted.  I will post further pics as the season goes.
Here are the pics of the finished beds set:

Beds laid out, Mel is putting down the mulch for paths

Mulch in place (what we had) and compost filled beds. 

Started with 8cu yds of compost.  That was…a little too much. 

What was left.  Still finding places in our yard to put it.

Posted on

The least of these…

The weather is getting bad again and I am again reminded of those poor souls left on the streets to get through this without a roof over their head.  I was looking for a quote about the measure of a society is not how we treat the rich, but how we treat the poor.  That precise quote does not exist, but there are others that are very close. 
Mathew 25:35-40 is a goo example:
35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40 And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you did it to me.’
I also found one attributed to Mahatma Gandhi:
“A nation’s greatness is measured by how it treats its weakest members.”
In either case, you get the point that it is important for the haves to help the have-nots.  In looking for the quote though I found some ignorant thinking.  One person pointed out the the poor here would be considered rich in other countries.  Fair enough, but a burn victim with burns over 50% of their body is better off than one with 90% burns.  It does not make the 50% any less painful.  So to say to our poor “at least you have good garbage to eat” does not reflex well on us as a society.  In fact, it should shame us that we have stores devoted to useless plastic crap and so much food we throw away about 35-50% of it. 
“In a country well governed, poverty is something to be ashamed of. In a country badly governed, wealth is something to be ashamed of.” ~ Confucius
The other ignorant statement I hear is that the poor will game the system and just live off the kindness of others.  They will be users and leeches.  First of all, this already happens, not just with the poor, but from every level of society.  The rich are especially adept at getting stuff for little or nothing.  The last few years has shown the very wealthy can commit terrible crimes that ruin the lives of thousands and still get a handout from the government (Thank you Pres. Bush and Obama).  They have taken so much in comparison to the pittance that might be taken by those few who just want to live off handouts instead of being productive. 
It is much like our ideal justice system.  It was created to put bad people away and keep innocent people out.  There are controls put into place to help make sure that happens.  It is unfortunate, but a consequence of trying to keep innocents out also allows guilty to go free.  I’m sure if you found yourself wrongly accused, you would be hoping we made some good decisions as a society to make sure you are set free.  The same can be said of social programs.  The rich and wanna be rich bitch about how the “others” are taking their “stuff” but if the time every came, I am quite sure they would be grateful for programs to help get them back on their feet or a house of worship opening its doors to give them a place to sleep.  
Think I’m a socialist?  That’s fine, but carefully consider why you think that is a bad thing.  Unfettered capitalism is bad for democracy and it is bad for society as a whole.  Think of those less fortunate.
Posted on

Snowmageddon 2010

Yet again, Texas is hit with normally heavy amounts of snow.  My job has shut its doors again today which means I have the perfect opportunity to get on my liberal soapbox about what all this snow means to me.  How can snow be political?  Well, consider that in the US today, there are basically two main factions, the rich and the rest of us.  Many of “us” worship the rich, we want to be them, so we belong to their political party.  This same party was smart enough to leverage religion to further its agenda and bring in more followers.  This part is the group of the rich, wanna be rich and religious.  
On the other hand, you have those with a more liberal (in Texas thats pronounced Leeeeberal ) bent.  These people think that we should all strive to be better as a whole race; the distribution of wealth should be a little more even.  They believe that good healthcare and shelter should be a right. We should take care of our planet since it is the only one we get.  Finally, churches should not have a say in secular social contracts.
I hear you asking…but what about the snow?  The way we treat out planet, burning fossil fuels at a high rate, causes the environment to become unbalanced.  While this can cause and overall rise in the temp of the entire planet, it can also cause unusually cold conditions in others.  The more “conservative” group are climate change deniers since it is generally bad for business (aka the rich).  These type are also generally christian in the US and most of those have an Armageddon view of the world.  It will all end, so why bother taking care of it now. 
The snow also brings very tough conditions for those less fortunate, especially those without a home at all.  I watched a story yesterday of a man who was sleeping in a dumpster to stay warm and was almost killed when the trash truck came to pick it up.  We was treated, at a high cost no doubt to the hospital, but sent out in a patients gown.  It’s not the hospitals responsibility to make sure the person they just treated stays healthy. That’s bad for business.  So, what do we do with so many without homes?  I mean, it not my fault they are homeless, right?  Why should I be forced to pay higher taxes to make sure EVERYONE has decent healthcare (like our elected officials who generally could afford to buy it privately) and a roof over their head? These are humans and we are watching idiots drive sports cars in the snow.
Finally, one of the ways to fix much of this are churches.  It is a strange world where churches can be polling places for voting, be exempt from taxes and be politically active, yet don’t have to give back to the community where they are in equal measure.  So, how about making it mandatory that if a church is to be tax exempt, it should be required to open its doors to make sure no one has to sleep in the cold or rain or suffer under the Texas heat.  They should also not be able to enforce any candidates for political office or serve as polling places in secular elections.  
Think about the warm and dry place you are right now.  Enjoy every sip of your warm beverage, but be mindful of your fellow travelers.  They are people too and but for some twist of fate, it might have been you.
Posted on

Healthcare? What’s that?

I recently received a bill for $275 from Cook’s Children’s.  One of my daughters was playing in the yard and got knocking in the noggin by a swing.  It was a pretty ugly lump, so Mel rushed her off to the urgent care to get it looked at.  The nurse spent 15 minutes taking a look and told them to go home and keep an eye on her.  That’ll be $275 please.  I am ashamed that for a moment I wanted Mel to wait a bit before taking my daughter in because I knew it was going to cost a few bucks, but of course I’d spend a million more to make sure my kiddos are alive an healthy.
I now see people (read Republicans) that want to repeal “Obamacare”.  Forgetting for a moment that the healthcare “overhaul” was heavily watered down and did not change much, it was a step towards making healthcare a right in this country.  As a group of citizens, we need to take care of those who cannot take care of themselves.  To many people avoid getting regular checkups at the doctor or forgoing treatment because they cannot afford it.  In the end, it costs us, as a society even more than if we had cooperated to begin with.  
Think I’m being a socialist?  What do you think we do right now?  Insurance is a capitalist attempt to implement socialist ideas.  The risk is spread among policy holders with some drawing more out than others.  The biggest problem with all of this is the profit motive.  I fully agree that I want my doctor well trained and well paid.  When she is happy and not worrying too much about making ends meet, she can spend time with me and make sure I am healthy.  Unfortunately, most doctors work for hospitals, that want to make a profit.  They get their drugs and equipment from companies that want to make a profit.  We pay for insurance from companies that want to make a profit.  The actual cost of healthcare goes way down when fewer want to make a profit.  
So, what’s the solution?  This is a very simple list, but our country is smart enough to make it work.

  1. Have the public pick up the tab for doctors education.  The loans those people have to take out (for schools trying to make a profit) are enormous.  If that is not a concern, doctors cost less.  We will also get a lot more doctors since it will be a more attractive profession without all the current hassles.  No waiting lines.
  2. Get rid of insurance companies and replace them with a healthcare tax with no loopholes.  Think you already pay too much in tax, think about what you pay for insurance, make it a % and have everyone pay that percentage.
  3. Cancel free healthcare for Congress and other “public servants”.  We are in this together, we need to be on the same page.
It really should not be too hard.