Done last week (20171015Su - 21Sa)

[mdlbear]

Not a bad week, I guess. Right now I'm feeling pretty down and hopeless, partly because of this article about Trump plus the fact that my family's economic future depends largely on Social Security and Medicare, which Trump's government seems hell-bent on destroying; and partly... I don't know what. I don't think depression and anxiety need a reason.

I did manage to figure out approximately what I should have been withholding for taxes; I also found out that the deadline for the second quarter's estimated tax payment was last month, so I'm slightly more screwed than I thought I was. Only slightly. That adds to the anxiety, of course.

N. and the kids have been away since Wednesday morning, with N and g at OVFF. It's been a bit lonely. I have, however, been getting things done, including putting up shelves and a little artwork, and setting up my desk with what amounts to a dual-monitor setup with the external monitor above Cygnus. I'm using the traditional makeshift monitor stand: a ream of printer paper. I actually did find my other Thinkpad keyboards, but with Cygnus on the desk I don't need them.

Our second week of prepared menus has worked out pretty well, though I did end up going out shopping Tuesday for some things that I'd missed on Sunday, and a little bit on Friday. It does seem as though we're spending less. I've also determined that I have to go grocery shopping alone -- it's impossible for me to stick to a list if there's someone else along. I really have difficulty saying "no" to anybody, and it's stressful.

Yesterday Colleen and I went to the Bayview farmer's market after picking up the bike helmet we'd ordered. Bought lunch (samosas) and some jam. See above about saying "no".

I did manage to say "no" to the life insurance agent. Yes, it's great that I was able to qualify for the lowest possible rate, which means I'm a lot healthier than most septuagenarians. But my financial advisor, who I consulted last Friday, pointed out that since my social security, IRA, and pension between them are enough to keep us going; unlike the situation in Seattle, we're not relying on my salary to pay the mortgage. (Colleen's SS payment is half of mine and will go away after I die; it does make a difference but the family would still get by without it.)

The thing that still scares the hell out of me is what would happen if I don't die, but simply get incapacitated, or if either Colleen or I end up needing more expensive care. Then we're hosed.

Notes & links:

1015Su
  * up 6:35; W=199.4;
  : tablet appears to be completely dead.  Again.  It was plugged in all night, so that's
    not the problem.  (thermal?)  Anyway, it's been reset, so the heck with it.
  @ ThinkPad USB keyboard with TrackPoint  (review)
    ThinkPad USB Keyboard with TrackPoint - Overview
    Sadly, these are no longer being made, and appear to be unobtainable even on eBay.  I
    have two and can't find either of them.
  : Interestingly, xrandr can see all three of Raven's video interfaces.  And the arandr
    GUI front-end can set them up side by side, but I stil can't get the main and external
    screens to show up at the same time.  So this probably _is_ a BIOS problem.  Way to
    tell is try booting from a USB stick.  Windows doesn't even see it.
  : Meanwhile, Cygnus works just fine with two monitors.  If I raise the second monitor it
    will be better.
  & Some garage spelunking turned up the keyboards (in the box of larger percussion
    instruments!) and some blank CDs (for the BIOS reflash).  So I'm happier.  Still
    haven't found the drill or the router.  Also, the two scooters take the same key, so
    we have enough keys to go around.
  * Menu (see below) and shopping.  What kind of grocery store doesn't carry pork
    shoulder? 
  * ginger preserve, stick butter, marmalade, blackberry jam, winter squash, steak (or
    cross-rib roast), mushrooms, 1/2 lb Boar's Head liverwurst, chicken, 2 loaves
    bake-at-home bread, ground beef, pork shoulder, tofu, 2 lamb chops, crumbled blue
    cheese, basil, fresh mozz, bacon, beef summer sausage. 
    -> somehow I managed not to get tofu, despite having it on the list.  :P
       Omitting the chicken was deliberate -- it's not on the menu.
  & minor cleanup.  Well, two, because there was also a leak in C's external plumbing.
  % I seem to be doing better the last few days.  Possibly due to resuming buspirone.
  % I'm currently using Cygnus with the external monitor.  It's really nice to be double-
    headed again.
  * 15min:  I have resorted to the "traditional" monitor stand:  a ream of printer paper.
    It is just exactly enough for me to see the bottom edge of the screen over the top of
    Cygnus's lid.  Not as good as having Cygnus actually to the left of the screen, and
    nowhere near as good as Raven would be in that position, but the latter wouldn't be
    physically possible and I'm not really used to the older keyboards anymore.
  * The "dining room" area between the desk and sewing table, and N's big chair, is
    looking distinctly clean.  Still some debris along the edges, and a box or so of mail
    to go through.  But definitely progress.
  * 15min: laundry.  Dishes.  I often leave dishes for morning, but it really is better to
    do them in the evening, and we were pretty much out out of bowls.
  * 23:10 bed
  
1016Mo
  * up 5:30; W=199.4;
  * Updated BIOS on Raven, or attempted to.  Says it's 2.52, which is the latest.
    -> still no two-headed support.  Windows has "failure configuring update"; reverted.
  @ Some ThinkPad models only support two display modes. CRT only or LCD only. :P
    Manual says it works, though.  May just be driver; will try that.
    -> well, it certainly didn't have the AMD driver installed.  So maybe.
    -> worked!  So presumably a reinstall will fix Ubuntu as well.
    ... and now I can't find any of my usb sticks.
    ... ok, they were all packed in a box in the essentials bin.  Found Xenial installer.
    -> nope.  Apparently it needs a proprietary or updated driver, which may not even
       exist for kernels after the one in Ubuntu 12.04.  Growf!
  * W/F:  shelf standards up in back closet.  Needs a bracket (which I can borrow from the
    hboard) and to have two 2' sections cut down by one segment (1/2")
  * W/F:  Finished cutting down wire shelves, installed in bathroom closet.
  * Monday: Steak with -mashed potatoes- _bread_ and mushrooms; -caprese- _green salad_
    -> steak came out underdone for g, probably about right for C.
  : When Ticia is announcing that she has a crinkle ball in her posession she sounds
    remarkably like a duck.
  $ Worked out what my missing withholding should have been:  ~1200/month

1017Tu
  & woke up ~2:30 to a sound like knocking; checked doors; went back to sleep.
    -> May have been the wind blowing something over -- it was *very* windy at times. 
  * Up 6:30; W=198.4; 
  * Filing deadline for 2016 tax return after extension -> filed the 13th
  * Estimate incremental tax liability, pay estimated tax for last quarter.
    A decent approximation is probably 20-25% of my non-withheld income.
    You don't send the estimated tax through TaxCut; get vouchers or pay online at IRS.gov
    -> Actually the due dates are 4/18, 6/15, 9/15, and 1/16.  So I don't have to do this
       now because I'm already late.  Pay online: EFTPS The Electronic Federal Tax Payment System
    -> pay electronically at least one calendar day before the due date.
  * j:  one last day of math (puts him a day ahead _after_ he gets back) plus working on
    his Halloween costume, a Rubik's Cube.  Which suggests a possible assignment.
  * Looks like Linus has a girlfriend!  (N and I both immediately came up with Paula)
  * noon:  appointment with a solar panel saleman
    -> somewhat pushy; we're now looking at Tesla because it's more expensive than
       conventional panels, but not as expensive as panels *and* a new roof.
       Unfortunately we may not be doing this in time for the tax credit to apply to 2016
  * out shopping for a few of the things we missed making the list on Sunday.
  * T took almost all the recycling from the van.  I'd gotten a call a little earlier from
    SWAH to find out if I still needed that done.  Someone apparently _did_ call, but my
    cell phone is highly unreliable.
  * Chatted with the Chevy Bolt advisor about how to disable the stupid safety message
    popups.  Apparently this is a "safety feature" that can't be disabled.  In spite of
    the fact that it's NOT SAFE to have them up while the car is in motion.  Idiots!  Next
    time I want a car with an open-source dashboard.
  * Tuesday: pasta with meat sauce; _caprese_
  @ jesse_the_k | Brian Fies' Heart-rending & beautiful comic
    Mom's Cancer by Brian Fies for Apr 20, 2015
    The Fies Files: A Fire Story, COMPLETE
  $ HSX:  bought caravan-massage.com for N

1018We
  & Awake 4:30; went back to bed at 5; couldn't sleep
  * up 5:30; ;
  @ The great nutrient collapse Nutrient depletion in plants due to increased CO2
    (archangelbeth)
  @ Grief Questionnaire - The Wordsmith's Forge I don't need it right now, but...
  * H/W: put in (yet another) Container Store order for shelf brackets, wall clips, and a
    hanging shoe organizer.
  * assign something (CS-related, preferably) over OVFF weekend
    -> He's going as a Rubik's Cube for Halloween; assign some group theory.
    Group theory Facts for Kids | KidzSearch.com basic definition; not much theory.
    Solve the 3x3 Rubik's Cube | You CAN Do the Rubiks Cube easy; used in education
    Rubik's Cube Solution - Zero memorization includes a section on group theory.
    Illustrated with animations.
    Rubik's Cube - Wikipedia  Way more detail than anyone could want, but some fun
    parts.  The history is interesting.
    Group (mathematics) - Wikipedia much more advanced; links to the Rubik's
    Cube article.  There are some great examples in the first section.
  : windy to very windy
  * schedule a vet appointment for Bronx, Friday or Saturday -> 11:20 Friday
  * 15min: H/W: brought in the metal tree and the Rainbow Room diptych.  Mounted the tree
    over the stove chimney -- the base is almost exactly the width of the wall plate.
  : 4:27 slight power glitch
  : Apparently I have no combination of adapters that will let me connect my Mac mini to a
    VGA monitor.  There are at least 3 different incompatible flavors of DVI connector.
  * Wednesday: hamburgers (crumbled blue cheese for me and C) on English muffins
  * several minutes of Bronx cuddle after scooping him off of my desk chair.  Time for
    another round of burgers.
  * music:  Lily et. al. couple of bad flubs, but I remembered the right words,
    went back, and sang them right, so not too bad.  I'm starting to like the way it
    sounds.  Need to apply that kind of concentrated effort to some of my songs.
    Although QV, WItC, Millennium's Dawn, and Toolmakers are pretty close; Stolen Child
    was but I haven't done it recently.  And of course Ship of Stone and Riverheart.
  @ List of paradoxes - Wikipedia
  : Bronx has spent about ten minutes -- he's still at it, so who knows how long he'll be
    -- playing with a ballpoint pen.  Brooklyn has been looking on in bemusement.  Fun!!
    ! happy.  !!  Cats can make me laugh.  Hardly anything else can do that.
  & made real garlic butter.  Two cloves plus one stick.  Saved what we didn't use; it'll
    be much easier tomorrow once it's hardened.
  : As it turns out, I already own The Hobbit on kindle.  Don't know whether
    I also have LotR -> I do.  I apparently bought them in 2012.  I just bought the
    "Reader and Educator Guide", because j.

1019Th
  * up 6:30; W=199; 
  * good time to rename the 5GHz SSID to rainbows-end-west5
  * 15min:  brought in a couple of music books, the big art bin that's been on the floor
    of the garage, and the third UPS.  At least I had sense enough to use the dolly for
    the art bin; brought it up to the house as well.  Win.  Still injured myself a littel31
  * Started reading The Hobbit
  * H/W: shelf hanging strip to the left of the window in MBR; hung standards.  I'll put
    up probably one wire shelf and the rest narrower.  Probably not too many of them; I
    may put the shoe bag there.
  # will put up the screwed-on standards on the other side of the window.  Found studs.
  % some bad lifting; took two aspirin around 4pm, and will take naproxen with the evening
    meds.  Which I should take around 6.
  % starting to wonder whether I have an inguinal hernia on the right side.  Ugh.
  ~ Thursday: Beef enchiladas? -> leftovers
  * Read the workbook for j's language arts unit.    

1020Fr
  * up 6:25; W=199;
  @ Tesla tiny house integrates solar with Powerwall, towed by Model X : TreeHugger
  @ Uncertainty, Anxiety, Indecision, and Procrastination | Psychology Today (ysabetwordsmith)
    Procrastination | Psychology Today links to other articles
  : The kittens managed to disassemble the pen they were playing with yesterday.
  * 11:20 SWAC Bronx -> almost missed it -- my alarm didn't go off.  WTF?
    -> Temp normal, no nasal discharge, weight up 0.19lbs.  Some nice kitten cuddle.
  * change litterboxen
  * bagels and lox for brunch
  * life insurance agent called; I told him I'm not interested.  Yes, it's impressive that
    I qualified for it at the "healthy" rate, but I don't need it.  (In any case, there's
    $70K in my Mass Mutual policy.)
  : callback from Tesla about solar roofs -- right now they're installing only on
    employees' homes; they will start in CA next year; won't be in WA for another two
    years at least.  :P
  : GoMobile found a bus for N. at $35K
  : C's purple bike helmet is in -- I can pick it up Saturday morning (the call came in
    just as I was turning on to Melody Lane; if it had come in before I left Payless I'd
    have picked it up on the way home.)
  % Hmm.  More likely a pulled muscle, in the groin region, toward the thigh, which would
    make it one of the hip adductor muscles
  % headache, too; mostly on the right.  Almost certainly sinus.
  * Friday: lamb chops; veg. -> baked potato and acorn squash.
  & discovered that I do, in fact, have a Mac-to-VGA connector:  the Mini has both large
    and small Apple video ports, so the VGA-to-mini cable works.
  % Sat for quite a long time after dinner, reading The Hobbit with Bronx curled up in my
    lap.  Now that he's gone I'm feeling a lot colder.

1021Sa
  * up 6:15ish; W=199;
  @ ysabetwordsmith |
    Poem: "Death Whispers at the Tip" c.f. QV -> wikipedia dive into linguistics by
    way of Making Sense of Nonsense Inscriptions Associated with Amazons and Scythians on
    Athenian Vases
    I had not realized that things like subjects and objects are collectively called the
    arguments of a
    predicate; this corresponds directly to the arguments of a predicate in logic, and of
    a function in math and computer science.
  * with Colleen to Bayview Corner to pick up her new purple bike helmet; side trip to the
    adjacent Farmer's Market.  Bronx in N's room with Cricket; Brooklyn in ours with Ticia
  * spent some time reading The Hobbit in N's room with Cricket and the kittens.  All very
    quiet.
  * 5:20ih started rice; released kittens.  Bronx seemed reluctant to leave his nice cozy
    nest on N's Irish sweater, but eventually came out.  Both attacked the wet food; Bronx
    finished sooner, but I expect him to go back to it.
    " Fee, Fie, Foe, Fitten!  I hear the sound of a hungry kitten! "
  * Saturday: Ma Po tofu  * will require going out to get some tofu, since I forgot it.
    -> well, garlic ginger tofu, anyway.
  
1015Su-1021Sa menu:
  * Sunday: leftovers; winter squash
  * Monday: Steak with -mashed potatoes- _bread_ and mushrooms; -caprese- _green salad_
  * Tuesday: pasta with meat sauce; _caprese_
  * Wednesday: hamburgers (crumbled blue cheese for me and C) on English muffins
  ~ Thursday: Beef enchiladas? -> leftovers
  * Friday: lamb chops; veg. -> baked potato and acorn squash.
  * Saturday: Ma Po tofu  * will require going out to get some tofu, since I forgot it.

Comments

[madfilkentist]

The problems of Social Security are largely inherent in increasing longevity, which increases the ratio of recipients to payers. I don't think anyone's going to fix it. But yes, getting incapacitated and having all my savings wiped out by medical costs is a very scary prospect.

[mdlbear]

The problems with Social Security would almost certainly be solved by taking the ridiculously low cap income cap off the tax and making it 10% for everybody. With the Republicans in power, that won't happen.

[madfilkentist]

Which would effectively mean 20%, since employers pay an equal amount, and self-employed people like me pay the double amount. On top of what's more honestly called income tax.

[johnpalmer]

That's really not the problem - increasing longevity has long been built into the system. Remember, when Social Security goes "bankrupt", it means it will only be able to pay some percentage - 70%? 80%? - of promised benefits - forever. If increased longevity was looking to swamp the system, the shortfalls would be projected to increase.

One problem *is* the income cap - it used to capture 95% of ordinary wage income and now captures about 90%, IIRC, and that's because there's been a much faster increase in higher incomes than in the wage cap.

Another problem is the taxable base. People have been squeezing money out of employees for decades, so there are a lot more people earning a lot less money - people who would never have hit the cap. If a lawyer makes $250k in one year, and $150k in all subsequent years, the social security cap is still hit. But if a person who used to be able to earn $70k is now making $45k, that's taxes on $25k that aren't coming in.

The reason it's risible to call Social Security a Ponzi scheme (you didn't do that - but many do!) is that it's not at all based upon building a pile of money, then absconding with it. It's based on sound principles: the economy will grow, productivity will grow, and the population will grow, building up an ever-increasing cash flow. The Baby Boomers put a big, one (long) time stress on the system, but, assuming the remaining factors continue, it's workable.

It would be better if there was some way to gather better earnings on the surplus (if there is still a surplus!) than the rates on government bonds... but when I think of the logistics of investing that much cash, in accordance with fiduciary responsibility, without turning into a slush fund, I blanch. (And then I sometimes deep fry. But that's me.)

[johnpalmer]

Re: being screwed, I'd been told that estimated tax payments can't get you in actual trouble, so long as you get paid up by April 15th, and even then, there are auto-extensions and such.

Which I suppose is a way of saying, if you're actually nervous about this, talking to a tax accountant or lawyer might provide information and (I hope!) a reduction in tension. The big worry about missing an estimated tax payment I'd heard most prominently explained was "now I have to swallow the backlog in a quarter, which plays havok with my budget!"

[mdlbear]

The problem is that there's a penalty for not making estimated payments on time (i.e. quarterly). I think it's roughly equal to the interest due, though I'm not certain. I'm not hugely worried; more very annoyed at myself for not getting it set up last year or earlier when I should have.

[johnpalmer]

Okay, that makes sense. It also explains a bit more about why the friend I'd discussed this with was wholly unconcerned - there was no money to make the payments, but the goal was merely to keep making minimal payments on a plan to get paid up on years of back taxes, until there was an opportunity to get the debts discharged in bankruptcy, which was a known possibility. So for that person, having to pay additional didn't matter, except insofar as it bumped up the payments on the plan.

I was 95% sure that you knew what you were doing, but I know some people who are brightly competent in many areas of their life get intimidated by dealing with a government agency, especially one that doesn't have the friendliest of reputations.

[mdlbear]

Yeah; there's that. I just hate paperwork and put it off much longer than I really should. Stupid of me, and every so often it bites me in the ass and costs me a lot of money.

[jcfiala]

I thought the traditional monitor stand was a pile of out-of-date computer manuals. You know, PHP 3, mysql 4... Cold Fusion :)

[mdlbear]

Those work, but they're getting hard to find. Hardly anyone had paper manuals at Amazon, which is kind of ironic for a company that started as a bookstore.

[alatefeline]

*soothing purrs*

Mrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

[mdlbear]

*skritches*

thoughts

[callibr8]

Have you ever explored Re-PC or Interconnections? We have found them to be excellent sources of adaptors, power bricks, and other hardware for older gear.

Ohhhhhhhh!!!!! Just had a light-bulb moment. A month or so ago there was a seminar at the Bellevue branch of KCLS about aging in place. I have a bunch of handouts from that, as well as a writeup that I did for my relatives in Bellingham. I can forward the writeup to you if you like, and you are welcome to the handouts and books and such. Some of the resources are specific to King County but *not* all of them, by any means, and you are welcome to look over all the stuff I picked up and have whatever you think would be useful to you. The seminar happened because there was an interview with Atul Gawande, who wrote "Being Mortal", an excellent book which delves into the topic. I've read several of his books; that one might be most immediately relevant to you, but my favorite is "The Checklist Manifesto", which gets a 5-star recommendation from me. As in, if I had an extra $500 or so I'd order Checklist in case lots and hand it out to people I know and like, I think it's *that* good.

Re: thoughts

[mdlbear]

Many thanks; I'll look for Checklist - Gawande started the Village movement; there's a branch of it here called South Whidbey at Home; we're members, and I may try volunteering as well. The write-up would be useful; thanks. What format are the handouts and books in? If they're eBooks or PDF they'd be welcome as well.

Re-PC and Interconnections both look interesting; right now I have rather a surplus of power bricks (in part thanks to a couple of trips where I forgot to bring one -- iGo makes the best ones). I also have a surplus of laptops, though only a few of them are modern enough to run my preferred window manager configuration, which relies on using the logo/windows/apple key to keep from stepping on Emacs's use of Alt. And I finally found the adapter I had been looking for. But it might be worthwhile looking for a tablet, and maybe a slightly newer small laptop.

Re: thoughts

[callibr8]

The material from the seminar is hardcopy form. I can bring it to Conflikt, it sounds like that would be soon enough.

Will send my writeup, which is on my laptop, in a little while. Will ".odt" format work for you?

Re: thoughts

[mdlbear]

Yes; Conflikt would be fine. .odt works perfectly.