just my thoughts

So it’s 2009. That time of year when you’re filling out forms or signing checks and you accidentally put ‘1/6/08′ instead of ‘09′, and it makes you feel like a complete moron. Don’t worry, everybody does it. It’s also the time of year those of us who are financially responsible start getting things together for taxes. Hopefully everybody realizes the benefit of doing your taxes as soon as possible, unless of course you are under specific circumstances.

The sooner you file your taxes, the sooner you get your tax refund, the sooner your money is in your hands, and not in the hands of the government. Not that I’m anti-government or something, I’m just saying your money is certainly much better off in your bank account/savings account/under your mattress.

So if you’re a working citizen, go ahead and fork over the $29.95 for TurboTax or just do it online, however you wish… but it’s quick and easy, and if you’re a full-time worker, you’ll probably get a decent amount for a refund, so go ahead and just save yourself the headache and file with TurboTax.

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This past weekend I played in my first racquetball tournament since October. It was definitely good to be back playing, but somewhat bittersweet, as due to the fact that I have only played once since October, I’m definitely A) out of shape, and B) not playing very well. So it was slightly frustrating to not play very well, but I had to keep pushing it upon myself that I had a decent excuse, considering it had only been 20 days since my clavicle surgery, and had only played once in the last 3 months. I was under ridiculous pressure from Kristi and my parents of course to not even play at all, which of course would have been smarter, but I’m stubborn and couldn’t not play. So I sort of compromised and bowed out of playing for third place with Robert in doubles on Sunday, and took a forfeit. No big deal, I was just glad to have made it through the tournament without screwing anything up, I was just really sore. I blame that on doing nothing but purposefully doing absolutely nothing physically for the last month.

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I’m back working full time at work now, I worked this whole past week. It’s been pretty rough getting next to nothing for my paychecks, seeing as they’re back-dated by two weeks, I’m now getting the paychecks of nothingness from the time that I was in Italy. So in a couple weeks here I’ll actually get a normal paycheck again, and feel a little safer financially. Thankfully I didn’t pursue purchasing a new car at this time or I’d probably be somewhat hosed… props to dad for letting me use his car for a while.

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You know that stupid commercial where the people are shouting “IT’S MY MONEY, AND I NEED IT NOW!” over and over… it’s about some structured settlement thing, where you have some money coming, but you have to wait for some kind of settlement before anything will be sent your way. I was the first to point and laugh at this ridiculous commercial. However, as ridiculous as the commercial is, it applies somewhat to my situation! The car accident was August 25th, 2008, and I’m not going to see any money from any part of this (aside from my supplementary insurance payout from Aflac) until I’m entirely healed up and done with doctor checkups. Which sucks for me, because that could still be a couple more months… so that’ll be a good 6 months before I see any kind of retribution from the accident. Now that commercial still seems really stupid, but if I were in more of a financial bind, the service it advertises could certainly prove beneficial.

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Mmmmmm I have a guilty pleasure I’d like to share with you. I’m a big fan of American Idol. There, I said it. Ridicule me all you like… but what could be better than watching half a season of tremendously untalented people who think they’re ‘all that’ attempt to impress us with their antics, then the second half of the season watching a decent group of somewhat talented people be widdled down to a select few very talented singers? If you just get over yourself, and realize the first half of the season is funny, and the second half is impressive, then it’s a great show. SO that’s my shpeal on why I like American Idol, and America’s Got Talent. Just enjoy the morons, and be impressed with the stars… it’s that simple. Then go ahead and just record it on your DVR so you can skip the commercials and make the painful commercial experience that much less.

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My parents are leaving February 15th for 9 weeks to go to Indonesia for a mission trip. Well, really it’s not much of a mission trip. Okay it is, but not what you would normally think of. Back in 2000, my parents and I, along with 3 others from our church went to Indonesia for two weeks as a ‘normal’ mission trip, taking equipment over, talking with people, and helping build stuff. However, this trip they’re taking is a little different. They’re going to the middle of nowhere, to join a small group (4 people) who are running an orphanage and an entire villiage on a remote island in northern Indonesia. They will essentially be caring for 9-12 orphans, for 9 weeks. There is hardly electricity, no running water, no medical anything other than the medic who is one of the 4 people already there, and no real way to contact the outside world, as even satellite phones are not functional in the area. I’ll keep updates posted here as they’re able to get me any information or pictures.

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I’m watching “24″ this season. My dad’s trying to get me hooked. It’s pretty cool, it’s just tough to jump into a show that you didn’t watch early on… so I’m trying. It’s neat, and I’m at least following it, so that’s a start to liking it and being a fan I suppose, so I’ll give you a shot, Mr. Jack Bauer.

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My mom has been doing pottery for a while now, maybe a year or so.. and frankly her work is getting pretty amazing. Last Christmas she got a kiln, and can now do everything from start to finish from her pottery wheel to firing, to glazing and the likes. At first it was a bit shaky, but now her work is pretty amazing, and definitely top of the line. I’m supposed to be building her a site to sell her pieces on, but it’s pretty far on the back-burner right now, obviously freelance work and projects will take precedence. She had a shop on etsy.com for a while, but I wasn’t going to take my time to keep it updated for her, and she slacked off, so there’s nothing in her store any longer! I recommend the Etsy community to anyone with knick-knacks or products of interest to sell, it’s definitely a great resource.

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I’m hoping for much to happen this year… so you’ve got a standard to live up to, 2009. Let’s see it. Hopefully StayValid (my web application project) will develop into something lucrative, but that’s an investment risk I’m taking, so we’ll see how that pans out. Something has to happen with my parents and all of ours’ living arrangements will probably need to take a drastic change. If that happens… I’m forced to decide between moving into Anchorage (probably with TJ and/or Ryan), or moving out of state, which requires getting a new job, which isn’t at the top of my list because GeoNorth despite not being exactly the perfect job for me right now, is a great place to work, and pays better than probably most places I’d be able to find outside or even inside Alaska. I’ll be healing here in the next couple months, so hopefully get back to being able to work out, which has been driving me insane… having to just sit on the couch all the time, as even running or other cardio workouts pained my collar bone.

Quick Tip

- - Find a Design Job - -

Krop.com is a great resource to find all kinds of design jobs. Whether it be graphic design, print design, web design, or even development, this site has a great number of ‘good’ jobs in the field. The jobs are run through a screening process for validity so they’re not just random junk jobs. Bookmark.

Beautiful Site

- - Ageless Beauty Makeup - -

Yes I’m putting a site I made as the Beautiful Site for this week. I’m going to go ahead and say it’s beautiful, and is deserving of my choice spot. The content (somewhat sketchy images of closeup tattoos and faces) is a bit much at times, but disregarding the photos of choice, I like the way the site turned out, and will gladly prove worthy of a beautiful portfolio piece for me for a long time.