My state and local governments are WAY more corrupt than the federal government. If you think they're going to be any better, you are laughably mistaken.
I was referring to open containers on the streets...like the Quarter and downtown, etc.
Yep...I know the daiquiri shop thing....that's a reason they don't put a straw in it when getting through the drive through.
It was only just before Katrina that the open container law in the car was more liberal...only applied to the driver...in that if you were getting pulled over, you just handed your drink to the passenger.
This seems to work better for local politicians than for national level ones but with enough people writing and calling it would probably still work.
This is why most of the power in the US is supposed to reside with the states and not the Feds.
Your state and local governments are the people that are more sensitive and responsive to the needs of you and your fellow state citizens.
Think of it on a broader scale...what is good for someone in CA is not necessarily in the best interests of those living in LA. The geographic differences alone merit a great deal of that, not to mention culture.....seen many drive through daquiri shops or cities without open container laws in San Diego lately? Plenty of them to be seen in New Orleans. Different needs and wants of the people in different states.
But in the long run..with HSA and all...I come out ahead because I have that money building, rolling over and over annually pre-tax...and could even invest it if I wanted (when market gets a little more stable).
The thing is...if EVERYONE went back to more of the model where you as the consumer, shopped around for doctors (best, cheapest, etc)...and only used insurance for emergencies (it used to be called major medical for a reason), the prices would come back down due to more competition.
Not that long ago back....before HMO's and all the bean counters became the middlemen in medicine, it wasn't all that expensive.
Why should a person save for routine medical needs...just like he saves part of his paycheck for mortgage/rent, food, gas....etc.?
Hmm...could be quality of life? Friendliness of the people, knowing your neighbor and all? Living near the Gulf, and getting great seafood? Not freezing your ass off for 3/4 of the year? The food in general?
I dunno...but whatever it is, there certainly is NO shortage of yankees moving here down south to live in recent decades.
I set up my own "S" corp....I set up my own retirement vehicles, medical insurance is no big deal, I got a high deductible insurance policy ($1200) for emergency care (heart attack or the like)..and socked away $3K a year (more now I think) for my own HSA (Health Savings Account) pre-tax....which is not a use it or lose it fund like FSA's.....this is for routine medical visits, etc. Also, when I told my Dr's that I was paying on my own, they gave me a 15% discount on procedures and office visits...
And when contracting...you get paid for EVERY hour you work, which is my main point.
Even when I do W2 salary...I negotiate up front that I get a least straight time paid for anything over 40 hours a week. It is a matter of negotiations.
I've always worked strictly within the rules and limits....I mean, if there is a tax break or advantage that is legal, is it not foolish to take full advantage of it ? I mean, it is YOUR money after all.
That being said....why not have everyone take more responsibility for their own job, pay, medical and needs. A lot of the problems today is because of so many others involved in the process, every one with a hand out...driving up prices for everything.
Doesn't sound like they will be making money...unless all these companies was to drop their business plans, and reprogram a ton of code...just to cater to the lowest denominator.
And if they did that...they'd likely start losing customers from the rest of the world...
Tell all of the countries that want to 'censor or block' these sites to fuck off...
Who needs these stupid motherfuckers on these sites anyway, if they don't want to play with the rest of us who want freedom to speak and do as we wish (such as it is right now here these days).
But really....fuck'em. These sites all got along just fine before China and India were 'invited' to the party anyway....
Actually...it puts more incentive for people to try to opt for the contractor paradigm.
I don't mind working....but I do NOT work for free. If I do work at any time, I bill for it, and yes, it definitely makes the employer think twice about calling or bothering you after hours.
This, and considering that there is such thing as employer loyalty nor job security....hell, just about everyone should opt (if possible) for the contractor route.
If you're gonna get the loyalty and job security from an employer that a contractor gets, you might as well get the freedom, tax breaks and bill rate that a contractor gets....no?
...but like a lot of retirees say after they retire, life just gets kind of boring. You start losing track of basics like what day of the week it is...
LOL...I'm not rich, nor anywhere NEAR retired, and honestly, I rarely know what day of the week it is...I really do lose track.
Except for Fridays....I usually get clear headed about that.
Admit it, you spent all your time handing out beads to see the pretty girls' boobies!
Duh.....
Of course I do....one year I got some good looking, early college babes jumping on my bike driving down Bourbon St. during the Mardi Gras season...lots of nice boobs there...especially when they're pressed right up against you riding down Bourbon St.
Well, I need it daily to get to work, then to gym..then home....and running errands (have to take dog to groomers, etc).
Since we don't have anywhere near door-to-door public transportation where I live, it is a moot point anyway...but I was asking how you do everything you need to do...using a bus?
Last time I checked..they didn't let you take dogs on the bus....how do I get her to the groomers, or where I board her when leaving town...?
I do not expect to get laid off with zero notice. I do not expect my company to fuck me over.
Who is kidding who here? Well...your company might not, but that's not reality in this day in age in the US.
Companies have no loyalty to their employees...and there is no such thing (99% of the time) of the job for life anymore.
That's why I prefer the contracting life if I have to work. I'm currently having to do W2....and money is good, but honestly, I feel the company no longer respects or cares about workers...and there is NO such thing as job security in this day in age...look at what's happening out there in thie economy...and the economy wasn't the start of this breakdown in job respect.
If I'm going to be expendable...I'd just as soon get the bill rate for a contractor to make it worthwhile.
I think the hardest thing I've had to get used to again, was 'earning' vacation hours. Much easier and better to figure in taking about 3-4 weeks off a year for sick and vacation into your bill rate, and take it when YOU wanted throughout the year....
Honestly, if I won the powerball this week...I might stay long enough for them to try to replace me...maybe 2 weeks. But I'd sure have the attitude if they gave me any grief, that I do have plenty of fuck you money and can walk out right now. Ahh...that would be a nice feeling to have.
But really...to me..work is work....my life and friends are outside those doors, and the second the door hits my ass on the way out every afternoon....work and all it entails completely leave my mind. They don't pay me to think about them on MY time.
If you had nothing to do all day, you'd get bored soon enough. Also, don't get me started on what kind of women you would find yourself chasing (as an non-working and bored millionaire). Could be fun, but not in the long run.
I don't understand you can say that...why would you guess I'd have 'nothing to do all day'?
I was between gigs for 7 months a few years ago...I live in New Orleans. My typical day..get up, walk the dog around the neighborhood...eat breakfast, jump on my motorcycle, hit the gym for a couple hours...home...do some job searching, research, reading..etc...then when weather was nice, I'd hop on my bike and go all around the city. I saw things new every day...being a tourist in my city...all the art museums, hit some bars to listen to bands and run around the Quarter all day. When it got to about 3pm or so, I'd call and plan to meet some friends of mine getting off of work to have some beers....and ride a bit more around the city, and then home...cook dinner, then watch tv or play with my home toys (computers, tv, audio, etc).
I frankly almost hated that I landed another gig (and unfortuantely this time had to go W2)...I have a good job. I make a ton of money....but I sure would rather be doing what I was doing.
There is SO much to do in my city...and when I want a break, if I was powerball winner...I'd take vacations!! Travel...how can you get tired of that? Meeting new people, seeing new places, trying new foods....getting plowed on a new beach..?
I guess there are just a lot of people out of there that don't have enough imagination to figure out all the fun things to do in the world. I could easily spend the rest of my life doing just that if I didn't have to worry about money.
Hell...likely as not, after I'd settled down from the initial fun with all that money...is drop my dog off at my parents'....and jump on my motorcycle...and ride across and around the USA. So much of it I've not seen yet....
Seriously...if you didn't have to work...you don't think you could keep yourself occupied?
I don't like to work. Period...there is NO job out there that I'd like to do if I didn't have to earn a living..nothing. I easily fill my limited time away from work having an adventure in life....if I had the money, I could easily fill each and every day doing something fun and really having an adventure.
I honestly have no comprehension on how anyone else could think differently.....I guess it comes to that other concept I can't grasp...someone being defined by their work that I hear about. I guess that's why some peope really LOSE it...when they lose a job (not considering just loss of income)...but from what I understand...they actually get depressed because somehow...their job is THEM.
How many people do you think really enjoy their jobs ?! The only reason many people work is simply for the paycheck.
Hear Hear!!
I mean, it isn't black or white...I enjoy my job enough...I'm not unhappy. I wouldn't do it if there wasn't some pleasure in it, HOWEVER, if I won the powerball tomorrow, I doubt I'd even go back in to collect the few personal things I keep at my desk.
I, like I think most would do...would never work again a day in my life!!
I'd be way too busy travelling, chasing women and generally having fun. Would part of my fun be playing with computers? Sure....but only for fun or interesting projects.
I've heard that some people are almost 'defined' by their jobs. I personally can't understand that. I am SO much more than that...
I ONLY work, in order to support the lifestyle I enjoy (which of course takes money) that I enjoy outside the office. And...I do need time out of the office to enjoy MY life and doing things I enjoy....and play with the toys I buy. If I didn't have to worry about a paycheck, you can bet your sweet ass I'd never work again at a 'job'. Why would anyone?
As I wrote earlier...I generally do my weeks worth of shopping in cooking on Sunday...sometimes Sat, like for this bbq. This food will last me the week...I cook, in general, on Sunday..for my whole week as that I don't have time to run to the grocery stores (multiple ones to get the best bargains) daily...not and work and workout at the gym...etc.
But this is about what I had to buy last time I fired up the smoker and did BBQ and made cole slaw and baked beans one day....
If your car is like mine was, they wouldn't need to do sniff tests. They'd hear you coming. My catalytic converter was cut out of my 4Runner while in the parking lot at work. I left work at around 4pm, started it up, and nearly shit a brick. It was the loudest vehicle I'd ever heard, I thought it was broken, lol!
Well, I guess I was thinking ahead...and just figuring to weld in a straight pipe in its place.
I guess a larger question of mine is..how do they manage to do this in public? I mean...someone in a parking lot under a jacked up car with a blowtorch to cut the thing out...would likely raise alarms anywhere I could think of....
I mean..is there no security in your work parking lot? Or at least..other people usually around? I just have a problem thinking of where my car would ever be parked where someone could come in, an cut my exhaust system apart to get pieces of it...I'd seriously never heard of this till this thread.
Christchurch, New Zealand has a bus system where 95% of the population lives within 500m of a bus stop. They have buses that go into the City Center and also around the suburbs. You can get just about anywhere in the City within 30 minutes. A day pass was a couple of dollars. Having an efficient system does not reduce your quality of life. Sitting in your vehicle in traffic does. This was pre-earthquake....
Interesting..ok, even with that...how does one get home with a ton of food. Let's say like one of my days with the smoker for BBQ.
12lb brisket
4 cans beans (for baked beans)
2 onions
bacon
case of beer (bottles)
wood for smoking (easily 40-50lb bag)
charcoal (about 11 lbs if only one bag, I usually buy a pack of two at Sam's Club)
head of cabbage
and let's take it I have most of the other ingredients. Now..I can go in my car and hit the 2-3 stores I need to get all my supplies in one pretty quick trip. Now do I do this on a freakin' bus??
Granted that's a large example, but is to make my point. Hell, even on normal grocery day, I fill the truck up in my small car with bags and often a few to put in the front passenger seat too (2x seater car). And..I go often to 2-3 grocery stores to get the best deals in town that week. How do you do that riding a bus or a train? I can't physically carry that much....
I originally couldn't think of what I'd use a tablet for...but a friend of mine showed me his 'hacked' Nook Color 7" with Android on it.
I thought, hell..fun project...and I got one new on a deal for $130...so, no real investment why not?
Well, this thing is CONSTANTLY with me at home. I carry it around to most every room I'm in. I look things up on the web a lot, especially when cooking....I keep up with email all the time, etc.
This thing is so cheap..I'm thinking of getting a couple more...and keep them throughout the house like I have done in the past with laptops.
Is it the end of my computer usage? Certainly not...but for around the house it is great.
Oh..and for travel...perfect for watching movies and reading on the go..much easier than having to lug a laptop and case all around.
It has definitely hit a useful spot for me too...and as you get older, well....those phones get hard to read after awhile...much easier to see and use something a little larger in format.
. Catalytic converter thefts have been very high because they contain various mixtures of platinum, palladium, rhodium and prices for those precious metals were very high.
Hmm...now, I'd not have a problem with them taking my catalytic converter off the car (leave me the car)...with less air restriction, I'd likely have more performance!!
And, not like I live where they do sniff tests on inspections....I've never lived where they do that..sounds like a PITA.
Slashdot Mirror
Move out of Chicago then...
For things like that...then yes...the Feds do get to step in for the most part.
But really, that argument is such old history, I wish people would quite trying to still keep using it...
I was referring to open containers on the streets...like the Quarter and downtown, etc.
Yep...I know the daiquiri shop thing....that's a reason they don't put a straw in it when getting through the drive through.
It was only just before Katrina that the open container law in the car was more liberal...only applied to the driver...in that if you were getting pulled over, you just handed your drink to the passenger.
*sigh*...I miss those days.
This is why most of the power in the US is supposed to reside with the states and not the Feds.
Your state and local governments are the people that are more sensitive and responsive to the needs of you and your fellow state citizens.
Think of it on a broader scale...what is good for someone in CA is not necessarily in the best interests of those living in LA. The geographic differences alone merit a great deal of that, not to mention culture.....seen many drive through daquiri shops or cities without open container laws in San Diego lately? Plenty of them to be seen in New Orleans. Different needs and wants of the people in different states.
I mean, code is code..it works or it doesn't. It is efficient or it is not.
What difference does gender make with who writes the code?
The thing is...if EVERYONE went back to more of the model where you as the consumer, shopped around for doctors (best, cheapest, etc)...and only used insurance for emergencies (it used to be called major medical for a reason), the prices would come back down due to more competition.
Not that long ago back....before HMO's and all the bean counters became the middlemen in medicine, it wasn't all that expensive.
Why should a person save for routine medical needs...just like he saves part of his paycheck for mortgage/rent, food, gas....etc.?
CA == California??
Did you discuss this when negotiating your terms of employment? Did you push for OT to be included when negotiating for you job?
Hmm...could be quality of life? Friendliness of the people, knowing your neighbor and all? Living near the Gulf, and getting great seafood? Not freezing your ass off for 3/4 of the year? The food in general?
I dunno...but whatever it is, there certainly is NO shortage of yankees moving here down south to live in recent decades.
I set up my own "S" corp....I set up my own retirement vehicles, medical insurance is no big deal, I got a high deductible insurance policy ($1200) for emergency care (heart attack or the like)..and socked away $3K a year (more now I think) for my own HSA (Health Savings Account) pre-tax....which is not a use it or lose it fund like FSA's.....this is for routine medical visits, etc. Also, when I told my Dr's that I was paying on my own, they gave me a 15% discount on procedures and office visits...
And when contracting...you get paid for EVERY hour you work, which is my main point.
Even when I do W2 salary...I negotiate up front that I get a least straight time paid for anything over 40 hours a week. It is a matter of negotiations.
Why?
Those positions usually pay quite well...
I've always worked strictly within the rules and limits....I mean, if there is a tax break or advantage that is legal, is it not foolish to take full advantage of it ? I mean, it is YOUR money after all.
That being said....why not have everyone take more responsibility for their own job, pay, medical and needs. A lot of the problems today is because of so many others involved in the process, every one with a hand out...driving up prices for everything.
And if they did that...they'd likely start losing customers from the rest of the world...
Tell all of the countries that want to 'censor or block' these sites to fuck off...
Who needs these stupid motherfuckers on these sites anyway, if they don't want to play with the rest of us who want freedom to speak and do as we wish (such as it is right now here these days).
But really....fuck'em. These sites all got along just fine before China and India were 'invited' to the party anyway....
I don't mind working....but I do NOT work for free. If I do work at any time, I bill for it, and yes, it definitely makes the employer think twice about calling or bothering you after hours.
This, and considering that there is such thing as employer loyalty nor job security....hell, just about everyone should opt (if possible) for the contractor route.
If you're gonna get the loyalty and job security from an employer that a contractor gets, you might as well get the freedom, tax breaks and bill rate that a contractor gets....no?
LOL...I'm not rich, nor anywhere NEAR retired, and honestly, I rarely know what day of the week it is...I really do lose track.
Except for Fridays....I usually get clear headed about that.
Duh.....
Of course I do....one year I got some good looking, early college babes jumping on my bike driving down Bourbon St. during the Mardi Gras season...lots of nice boobs there...especially when they're pressed right up against you riding down Bourbon St.
Since we don't have anywhere near door-to-door public transportation where I live, it is a moot point anyway...but I was asking how you do everything you need to do...using a bus?
Last time I checked..they didn't let you take dogs on the bus....how do I get her to the groomers, or where I board her when leaving town...?
Who is kidding who here? Well...your company might not, but that's not reality in this day in age in the US.
Companies have no loyalty to their employees...and there is no such thing (99% of the time) of the job for life anymore.
That's why I prefer the contracting life if I have to work. I'm currently having to do W2....and money is good, but honestly, I feel the company no longer respects or cares about workers...and there is NO such thing as job security in this day in age...look at what's happening out there in thie economy...and the economy wasn't the start of this breakdown in job respect.
If I'm going to be expendable...I'd just as soon get the bill rate for a contractor to make it worthwhile.
I think the hardest thing I've had to get used to again, was 'earning' vacation hours. Much easier and better to figure in taking about 3-4 weeks off a year for sick and vacation into your bill rate, and take it when YOU wanted throughout the year....
Honestly, if I won the powerball this week...I might stay long enough for them to try to replace me...maybe 2 weeks. But I'd sure have the attitude if they gave me any grief, that I do have plenty of fuck you money and can walk out right now. Ahh...that would be a nice feeling to have.
But really...to me..work is work....my life and friends are outside those doors, and the second the door hits my ass on the way out every afternoon....work and all it entails completely leave my mind. They don't pay me to think about them on MY time.
I don't understand you can say that...why would you guess I'd have 'nothing to do all day'?
I was between gigs for 7 months a few years ago...I live in New Orleans. My typical day..get up, walk the dog around the neighborhood...eat breakfast, jump on my motorcycle, hit the gym for a couple hours...home...do some job searching, research, reading..etc...then when weather was nice, I'd hop on my bike and go all around the city. I saw things new every day...being a tourist in my city...all the art museums, hit some bars to listen to bands and run around the Quarter all day. When it got to about 3pm or so, I'd call and plan to meet some friends of mine getting off of work to have some beers....and ride a bit more around the city, and then home...cook dinner, then watch tv or play with my home toys (computers, tv, audio, etc).
I frankly almost hated that I landed another gig (and unfortuantely this time had to go W2)...I have a good job. I make a ton of money....but I sure would rather be doing what I was doing.
There is SO much to do in my city...and when I want a break, if I was powerball winner...I'd take vacations!! Travel...how can you get tired of that? Meeting new people, seeing new places, trying new foods....getting plowed on a new beach..?
I guess there are just a lot of people out of there that don't have enough imagination to figure out all the fun things to do in the world. I could easily spend the rest of my life doing just that if I didn't have to worry about money.
Hell...likely as not, after I'd settled down from the initial fun with all that money...is drop my dog off at my parents'....and jump on my motorcycle...and ride across and around the USA. So much of it I've not seen yet....
Seriously...if you didn't have to work...you don't think you could keep yourself occupied?
I don't like to work. Period...there is NO job out there that I'd like to do if I didn't have to earn a living..nothing. I easily fill my limited time away from work having an adventure in life....if I had the money, I could easily fill each and every day doing something fun and really having an adventure.
I honestly have no comprehension on how anyone else could think differently.....I guess it comes to that other concept I can't grasp...someone being defined by their work that I hear about. I guess that's why some peope really LOSE it...when they lose a job (not considering just loss of income)...but from what I understand...they actually get depressed because somehow...their job is THEM.
Hear Hear!!
I mean, it isn't black or white...I enjoy my job enough...I'm not unhappy. I wouldn't do it if there wasn't some pleasure in it, HOWEVER, if I won the powerball tomorrow, I doubt I'd even go back in to collect the few personal things I keep at my desk.
I, like I think most would do...would never work again a day in my life!!
I'd be way too busy travelling, chasing women and generally having fun. Would part of my fun be playing with computers? Sure....but only for fun or interesting projects.
I've heard that some people are almost 'defined' by their jobs. I personally can't understand that. I am SO much more than that...
I ONLY work, in order to support the lifestyle I enjoy (which of course takes money) that I enjoy outside the office. And...I do need time out of the office to enjoy MY life and doing things I enjoy....and play with the toys I buy. If I didn't have to worry about a paycheck, you can bet your sweet ass I'd never work again at a 'job'. Why would anyone?
As I wrote earlier...I generally do my weeks worth of shopping in cooking on Sunday...sometimes Sat, like for this bbq. This food will last me the week...I cook, in general, on Sunday..for my whole week as that I don't have time to run to the grocery stores (multiple ones to get the best bargains) daily...not and work and workout at the gym...etc.
But this is about what I had to buy last time I fired up the smoker and did BBQ and made cole slaw and baked beans one day....
Well, I guess I was thinking ahead...and just figuring to weld in a straight pipe in its place.
I guess a larger question of mine is..how do they manage to do this in public? I mean...someone in a parking lot under a jacked up car with a blowtorch to cut the thing out...would likely raise alarms anywhere I could think of....
I mean..is there no security in your work parking lot? Or at least..other people usually around? I just have a problem thinking of where my car would ever be parked where someone could come in, an cut my exhaust system apart to get pieces of it...I'd seriously never heard of this till this thread.
Interesting..ok, even with that...how does one get home with a ton of food. Let's say like one of my days with the smoker for BBQ.
12lb brisket
4 cans beans (for baked beans)
2 onions
bacon
case of beer (bottles)
wood for smoking (easily 40-50lb bag)
charcoal (about 11 lbs if only one bag, I usually buy a pack of two at Sam's Club)
head of cabbage
and let's take it I have most of the other ingredients. Now..I can go in my car and hit the 2-3 stores I need to get all my supplies in one pretty quick trip. Now do I do this on a freakin' bus??
Granted that's a large example, but is to make my point. Hell, even on normal grocery day, I fill the truck up in my small car with bags and often a few to put in the front passenger seat too (2x seater car). And..I go often to 2-3 grocery stores to get the best deals in town that week. How do you do that riding a bus or a train? I can't physically carry that much....
I originally couldn't think of what I'd use a tablet for...but a friend of mine showed me his 'hacked' Nook Color 7" with Android on it.
I thought, hell..fun project...and I got one new on a deal for $130...so, no real investment why not?
Well, this thing is CONSTANTLY with me at home. I carry it around to most every room I'm in. I look things up on the web a lot, especially when cooking....I keep up with email all the time, etc.
This thing is so cheap..I'm thinking of getting a couple more...and keep them throughout the house like I have done in the past with laptops.
Is it the end of my computer usage? Certainly not...but for around the house it is great.
Oh..and for travel...perfect for watching movies and reading on the go..much easier than having to lug a laptop and case all around.
It has definitely hit a useful spot for me too...and as you get older, well....those phones get hard to read after awhile...much easier to see and use something a little larger in format.
Hmm...now, I'd not have a problem with them taking my catalytic converter off the car (leave me the car)...with less air restriction, I'd likely have more performance!!
And, not like I live where they do sniff tests on inspections....I've never lived where they do that..sounds like a PITA.