Working unreported? Should I worry about taxes?by LikeASet, February 28
So yeah, I work at restaurant that pay's me in 100% cash. They do not report my hours and I don't have any other form of reported income. Tax season is comin up and I'm not sure wether I should actually report my hours or not. The owner of the restaurant says she'll report my hours whenever I want to have them reported but for now it's a mutually agreement that I'm not reported. So I'm not gonna have that W2 form.
I used to work at this restaurant long before, then I came back starting around a year ago as a server and I make around 900-1250 a month just working weekends. Should I be worrying about the IRS getting on my shit? How would they find out?
Ok this has been driving me crazy dont know if it's a good idea to post it here but w/e.
As some of you know i've lived in the Netherlands for some time, and also in Belgium before I moved to Croatia.
I'm in Belgium atm visiting some friends and there has been a crazy competition on the radio.
There is a sound they play every hour, and you need to send a text message. They call one person every hour, and the one who guesses the sound gets 67800€. Each hour someone doesnt guess it, 100€ is added to the prizepool.
People from belgium can confirm this.
So since only resident of Belgium can participate, no one here that isnt from Belgium so i will give 2K to the person that gives me the right answer, but i'm afraid no one will guess it.
you need to click on: KLIK HIER OM HET GELUID TE BELUISTEREN.
The hint is: I play cards alone, with two but never with 4. Dont look too far because this could be based on belgian cardgames
If you are right it will be on the site so I wont be able to hide it. I know i dont have any 100% guarantee that i can give you that you will get your 2K, but why wouldnt I if I just won 67K thx to you.
I know this is al kind of lame but i thought i'd just give it a shot
I have had this old school CRT 26" widescreen TV for years now. Its done me proud. But I think its time to get a new TV. One reason that spurred this was playing game on Xbox360 and realizing how crappy the resolution is on it, that I have to sit really close to read text and stuff because its not very crisp.
So with that being said I started doing some research, and hmmm seems to be alot of different views on each of the TVs on the market at the moment. Its pretty confusing!
Some important points for deciding TV;
- I like playing racing games and fast paced games on my Xbox360 - I have read on some sites that LCD is bad for this, and plasma is hands down better. Others say LED is similar to LCD and you still get picture lag?
- It does not have to be huge. I could live with 32", 42" would be amazing.
- Price range - Probably do not want to spend much more than 500 pound sterling, but anything less than that would be good.
- Needs to have a stereo mini jack audio output. Will still use onboard speakers though
- Would like it to have 1080p, afaik xbox only uses 720 ? But for future If i change to PS3 or something, I want to have the 1080p there.
What sort of specs should I be looking for? Refresh rates, colour ratio thing, resolutions etc? Regarding LED, I read that many are just backlit LED and are really no difference to LCD except use less energy. The full LED ones, I cannot seem to find these. I presume they are super expensive?
If you know any models or personal experiences with of these 3 types, please do reply
I am a movie fan, thus I couldn't have missed this year's Oscars (didn't watch it live, because of the time difference, though).
I have to say that I am pleasantly surprised that The Social Network didn't win the Best Picture. Despite all the positive reviews on the film, I found it not as good as most of the other nominees this year. I loved Inception and greatly enjoyed True Grit and Black Swan. As for the winner, The King's Speech, I feel that the prize is deserved, mainly due to very good acting by all three main characters (applause for Colin Firth - a truly great, Oscar worthy, performance) and a fresh, well written script (who would have thought that a history of a stammering king can be so interesting?).
Natalie Portman played her role very well in the Black Swan and I couldn't see anyone else being the winner, although I'd like to honor Michelle Williams for her role in Blue Valentine. She was also very good.
Supporting roles: The Fighter took both and, for me, the Academy made the right decision. Both performances are powerful, convincing and realistic.
There was absolutely no doubt that Toy Story 3 will take the Best Animated Picture award (how could it not - it was nominated for the Best Picture). As for Best Foreign Language film, I haven't seen the winner yet, so I can't elaborate on this one.
It is said that the biggest loser of this year's Academy Awards is True Grit. Ten chances and no win. I wouldn't say this is a big surprise. Although the movie itself is very good in almost every aspect, it is brilliant almost nowhere. The competition was simply better. I wish the Coen brothers more luck next time. They are extremely talented and nearly all of their films are hits, so I'm looking forward to Gambit, which is due to release in 2012.
All in all, I think the year 2010 abounded in several good films and was better for movie fans than the previous one. Hopefully 2011 can top that.
P.S. I saw Blue Valentine yesterday and Ryan Gosling really should have been nominated instead of Jesse Eisenberg or James Franco (haven't watched Biutiful). In this movie he proves that he is a great actor, even though he's still relatively young. I'm sure we'll hear about him in the future.
The blog that turns it aroundby Carthac, February 27
So I was listening to the 2+2 pokercast last week, and they had an interview with an online guy whom I had never heard of. His name was Foucault82, and apparently he has a pretty popular blog. One part of the interview caught me and made me think about LP and its blogs. Something so glaringly obvious, yet I would be amazed if more than a few people think it normally at our site.
When you make a blog, you have to remember you are not writing a blog as a way you can read about yourself. You are writing a blog in which OTHER people want to read. People generally don't want to read about your sick downswing, sick new item you bought, sick amount of VPP's you earned, etc.
Thus, I have decided that every time I make a blog from now on, I have to have a reason to do so. There has to be something entertaining that YOU READERS will be interested about. No more whine blogs(hopefully) about how bad I run, brag posts about how good I run, etc. etc.
I will start off giving a little update about myself, but since I am still relatively unknown around LP, I am going to put it in a spoiler and those that wish to read it can, and those that do not can pass on by.
It may be a huge coincidence, it may be a super sick heater, it could be a lot of things, but from what I can tell FTP is just amazingly softer than PS.
Here has been my start so far at NL50. Running good and bad, but I feel like I am playing well enough to beat the stake so far. Need to put in more volume to see how well I am playing, so lets hope I can keep playing well enough to keep the BR going up.
Not as good as the previous two, but still very good in my opinion. This series is really starting to become something I look forward to. So many quality poker references, a fresh story line, well developed comedy, etc. I can go on for days with the compliments. If you have not seen The Micros yet, I recommend watching it from the beginning. Each episode is about 10 minutes, so it won't take you too long to catch up. I promise you that you will not regret watching them.
News article of the day: Creepy story about man being eaten by spiders, termites, and other various creatures
Seriously, how can shit like this happen? This is something that would be straight out of a horror movie. The line “They were coming out of his nose and his mouth.” really got my skin crawling.
For those of you SC1 purists that feel SC2 can't hold a candle to BW, I beg of you to make the transition. I admit that SC2 does not have as high of a skill cap as the original, but the opportunities, tournaments, and community additions to SC2 are what people that played BW dreamed of.
Let me start by recommending a podcast to you. It is hosted by a guy named JP that works with Major League Gaming, along with 3 old SC1 pros: Nony, Incontrol, and Day9. The podcast is well done in my opinion, and the 3 of them together produces an amazing amount of hilarity. Here is a quick snippet for you. I hope you enjoy and check them out
For those of you that have not heard, there will be a SC2 tournament beginning in a month or two called the NASL. The prize pool is currently $400,000 USD, and will be spread over 4 tournaments. There will be daily casts of the games, which will be hosted in a studio in Los Angeles, capped off by a live 16 player finals for each tournament. This really is going to be huge, and may branch off into more opportunities for SC2 pros to make legitimate jobs out of playing the game they love. If you want to learn more, here is a thread to check out and read up on.
Now the only question is what challenge? $50 deposit @ NL2? $1 HUSNG's? 180 man's? Learn micro-PLO? I havent put any effort into poker in quite awhile, just splashing around with whatever random idea to run it up comes to my head. I'm busto and have this entire week off, so figure I might as well make it a grindathon. Hopefully I dont waste too much time sleeping in, watching netflix, and playing vidya games.
I'm looking for $30 on paypal to continue my subscription to leggopoker. I can trade money on FTP.
I have lots of previous trades from a few dollars to a couple hundred on here. So I'll send first if you're reputable on here. If I don't know you then you send first.
You may think the only people capable of snooping on your Internet activity are government intelligence agents or possibly a talented teenage hacker holed up in his parents’ basement. But some simple software lets just about anyone sitting next to you at your local coffee shop watch you browse the Web and even assume your identity online.
“Like it or not, we are now living in a cyberpunk novel,” said Darren Kitchen, a systems administrator for an aerospace company in Richmond, Calif., and the host of Hak5, a video podcast about computer hacking and security. “When people find out how trivial and easy it is to see and even modify what you do online, they are shocked.”
Had pretty good session today.by ChrisKim47, February 27
I still called off on some retarded spots, plus the obvious spew that comes with being a 25NL reg. But for the most part I value bet well, and up 385$ so like 15BI in a little over 6 hours of 12 tabling. So that puts me at little over 1600$. My rake should kick in to about 350$ for the week, and when that ships on Friday I will probably take a shot at 50NL with 2k. Although I still think its quite funny that I'm still down a 60$ overall at the stake, plus 797$ under ev, and I'll be moving up to 50NL
Also pretty stoked about having a coaching session with a DC coach. We had to cancel our first one because he just had his kid not to long ago. I've watched his video series and enjoyed them, but I really do enjoy his British accent.
after having a lot of success in live games in florida, i've decided to move to vegas in 4 days with a friend.
going to give this poker thing a real shot.
as for the 100 bi challenge, i'm only up 20 bi and the half way mark is in about 5 days, and that's largely due to rake back :<
i'm a fairly critical/realistic person. i'm not the best player, but online has been a sufficient teacher in crushing live opponents.
also i figure going to vegas will expedite things by either a) making me realize i can't do this, or b) i can in fact do this. don't want to waste more than 2-3 months figuring this out
i'm getting over the stigma and lack of recognition/respect from my peers and actually quite enjoying life. i feel like so many things we were taught as kids isn't for everyone. ie living off of 40k is just fine (a bit tight with a family) (and also not what i'm hoping to make) but i think i really enjoy my personal leisure time. and poker is extremely flexible.
anyway, looking forward to dedicating a good 5-6 hours a day either playing or actively working on my game in order to get better.
@ times this game can be brutal, but lately i've been enjoying my self while playing and really feel @ peace playing. i think my mindset has finally come full circle and somewhat expect to do well.
ty to all the posters, esp as of late. posting hands @ 4 am and having huhu, oly, redrain post comments was solid solidarity. ty to everyone whose ever helped me including but not limited to jolin, edzwoo, tt, midian, hero's, mariuslol as well as entertaining/respectful/meaningful posters in byrne, maynard, baal, loco
30 of the most famous questions and my answersby Mariuslol, February 26
Some thought provoking questions, or questions designed to make you really think. They are not made up by me, some are classics, some are new. Taken from bloggers here and there. I thought it might be funny to answer them as truthfully as I could.
I'll put my answers in spoilers not to disrupt in case you don't care for my answers =]
1. If you dislike your family, are you obligated to spend time with them? Show up at family functions? Help them out in their time of need? Is a family even relevant anymore – especially when you have a close circle of friends? + Show Spoiler +
A: Not obligated, show up to the ones you feel showing up to. Depends if it really is "their time of need" and the history you've had. If closest family, siblings mom and dad, sure help them, if further out, don't do it if you don't feel like it. It's relevant for people it's relevant to.
2. Is it better to eat healthily all the time, or should we allow ourselves to indulge once in a while? Similarly, does this argument apply to drug use – even illegal drug use? + Show Spoiler +
A: Make the homeostasis pattern as healthy as possible, any stray is either an experiment or adventure, and you go back on the path and fuel yourself with what makes you run the best.
3. Why do we call some religions “mythologies” (ancient Greek, Norse, Egyptian, etc.) and others religions? Is this fair? What does this show about how relevant certain ideas are as society progresses? + Show Spoiler +
A: It doesn't feel imporant, religion, the word of God, saying it, thinking about it has lost all it's power a few thousand years ago. It holds the same value as a toothpaste commerical to me.
4. People often talk about the growing gap between the rich and poor. However, today’s poor (in the United States, at least) are much better off than most people (not just the poor) were a century ago. Does it matter that there’s an increasing gap between the rich and the poor if the standard of living for the poor keeps going up? + Show Spoiler +
A: It's a travesty that a lot of the brightest minds on the planet spend their time filling their heads with greed, corruption and manipulation. Saw a chart once that 1% in the us had more money than the rest 99%.
The concept of money, compared to sentences, meters, anything else "man made" is flawed in design and not working anymore. (People won't go in a depression if there's not enough meters). No matter if a guy is a genius, he shouldn't be making more than half a country. There should be some regulations, some laws, or something more profoud, even a new system for money. I like the idea where people work to become what they want to be, the money would be the same if you were a guy working on wallstreet, or if you were a fireman, a teacher or an engineer. Or ranges in close proximity.
5. How would you live your life if you had a week to live? How would you live your life if you had 5 years left to live? How would you live your life if you were going to live forever? + Show Spoiler +
A: I'm not sure.... I might write something on how it feels, then travel or do something extravagant, that seem to be what people usually do.
If I was going to live forever I hope I would just start aquiring as much knowledge as possible, and kept at it and have that as a passion. It's wonderful and awesome to learn, why not do that forever.
6. Is it truly worth it to die for a family member or friend? Yes, you’d be a hero, but that person would feel guilty for your death for the rest of their lives. Is that “brave” act actually cowardly because you’re transferring the guilt that you’d have felt if you did nothing and watched them die to your friend, who has to deal with the guilt of causing your death? + Show Spoiler +
A: Depends on the situation, if my sister's daughter would die unless I sacrificed myself, I would, but i'd attempt it in a way so she wouldn't find out, and/or if she lives a path filled with agony, despair and depression, have someone contact her and read a letter to her that I have written the last day of my life, from me to her. (That way I could double save her <3)
7. Is a day spent watching movies when you could’ve been working a day wasted or well spent? + Show Spoiler +
A: If it's a rare occation, it's well spent, unless the movie was terrible, then again if the company was awesome it might go back to well spent. If someone who watches tv 3-8 hours a day spends an evening watching movies it's wasted.
8. What’s more important to a relationship: common values or other commonalities (like tastes in music, interests, etc.)? + Show Spoiler +
A: The ability to love eachother endlessly and stay faithful but not depend on eachother. So there can be no attachement, thus no love turning into hate when or if the relationship ends.
9. What’s your opinion on love? Are there different types? Can we separate love from infatuation? Are there any qualifiers to make love “true” (rather than “fake”)? + Show Spoiler +
A: It feels like there's 3 types of love, and all 3 types can turn into something real, something fake or break.
Infatuation is the most common, something that dies out when the "love" comes on a plateau, genuine interest and "love" where it keeps growing adding to what's allready there when it reaches the "plateau" and the feeling of love coming not from an emotion but from within, like peace or joy, which has the best chance of making it, and not turning into anything vicious after a breakup
10. Can we ever be sure that our perception of things is right – without consulting other people? If we do consult others, how are we to know whether theirs is true or if we’re both deluded? + Show Spoiler +
A: Only your mind can be sure, but that's just the identification of yourself being sure so doesn't hold any real meaning. Atleast I think it don't. Not sure if we can be 100% sure as an absolete, but I think the more knowledge and more in depth we come to whatever it is we're percieving, we can be more sure.
11. Would your life be better or worse if you knew the day, time, and place that you were going to die? + Show Spoiler +
A: I don't know, I do know roughly when I'll die, give or take a few decades.
13. Is it reasonable to have a sense of delusional confidence in your abilities, or would you rather build confidence by performing well in the past? If you choose the latter, doesn’t that mean that a single bad performance can shatter your confidence in yourself? + Show Spoiler +
A: It's dysfunctional to have a delusion, I would have neither. I try to dwell or spend as little time as possible in the past, and when I do it's only for a brief moment, and then I return to the present.
14. What should be the role of sex in society? Is it a big deal? A small deal? Somewhere in-between? + Show Spoiler +
A: Natural thing which we don't embaress over, but then again, something important and dear which we don't flaunt.
15. Would you be a martyr and give up your reputation amongst your peers to do what you know is right? Or is it better to be pragmatic and sit and do nothing? + Show Spoiler +
A: Probably do what you know is right.
16. Would you rather be insane in a functional society, or one of the people running a profoundly dysfunctional society? + Show Spoiler +
A: At the moment I'm considered insane in a functional society, but feels like most of society is dysfunctional i'm the sane one. This question confuses me, I don't have a propper answer.
17. Could you be persuaded to kill? If your answer is no, then how much money would it take to get you to change your mind? + Show Spoiler +
A: I wouldn't have to be persuaded to kill, and it wouldn't take any money. But i'd only commit the act in severe circumstances weighing a life up against another or certain circumstances. (Like I know a murderer would murder again, and only I could end it type of scenario's).
18. If saving the human race required the sacrifice of yourself and everyone you love, who would you choose to save – you and your loved ones or humanity at large? + Show Spoiler +
20. Are the stories we tell ourselves about our past true, or do we bend the truth so we can create our stories? If the latter is true, than what worth is there in the stories if they aren’t true? + Show Spoiler +
A: No story ever told is true, something is added or substracted. The worth is what we make it.
22. What would happen if you never wasted another minute of your life? What would that look like? + Show Spoiler +
A: Like someone swimming upstream, quite bizarre.
23. Some say that striving for perfection is unhealthy. What if striving for perfection made you improve faster than you would have if you had lower expectations for yourself? Which way would be better? + Show Spoiler +
A: How can you strive for perfection if you've have low expectations for yourself?
24. Would you rather live for 10 years in excellent health, or 30 in “average” health, assuming that period started on your 18th birthday? + Show Spoiler +
A: Depends on my surroundings, if I had kids, family, obligations I would live 30, if It was just me I'd be selfish and take the 10 years.
25. Is open-mindedness really a virtue if truly destructive ideas are spreading in society? + Show Spoiler +
A: Truly destructive ideas aren't spread by open-mindedness.
26. What would crush you more: seeing the love of your life die by getting hit by a car, or getting the call from your doctor that told you that you had cancer and had 6 weeks to live? + Show Spoiler +
A: I guess seeing myself die getting hit by a car would be worst.
27. How do you think of yourself – hero or villain? Is the worst identity to have not the villain, but the person who is powerless? + Show Spoiler +
A: Continue on the path of justice was one of the best compliments I've ever gotten. So i'll go with hero.
28. How much control do you really have over yourself? + Show Spoiler +
A: Not as much as i'd like, as most people on the planet I still suffer a great deal since i'm still a bit of a slave to my mind, because I subconciously identify myself with it. But i'm entering more and more into the present for everyday that goes. So i'm gaining more and more control.
29. What do you think of white lies? Why do we tell others them? What if we went without them? + Show Spoiler +
A: I think white lies are great. It can be for kindness, to save face, for fun and various other reasons. Ugh, wouldn't be all that fun without them
30. Who are you? Names, nationalities, and virtually any other socially-defined attributes do not count. Deep down, who are you? + Show Spoiler +
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