I don't usually do these things, but this was pretty funny. From David at Better Living Thru Blogging, type your name and "needs" into google and see what comes up.
So, here's what I got:
1. Sara needs...a loving, playful home (hmm, playful?)
2. Sara needs to discover the experts in the area. (Experts in what? In what area? Why?)
3. Sara needs...you (that's rather vague)
4. Sara needs...your vote (I cannot imagine even wanting to run for office)
5. Sara needs to hand him one of those weapons (I don't have any weapons, unless you count pocket knives)
6. Sara needs...something more than the well-established love of her companion (I don't think Laura would like this one)
7. Sara needs...a caesarean section (I'm wondering what they would find in there. Does someone know something I don't?)
8. Sara needs...further surgery (More surgery? After the caesarean? OK, I am staying away from people with knives for a while!!)
9. Sara needs to quit whinin (I'll quit "whinin" when you learn how to spell!)
10. Sara needs to shut the hell up (Um, no. Sorry. I will NOT shut the hell up)
I did 10, but there were a few more down the list that I found funny:
Sara needs...insoles (well, my feet do tend to hurt a lot. I hate buying shoes)
Sara needs...sleep (always!)
And let's end with the most bizarre:
Sara needs...to mate with a comparable alien, not human, to keep her new perfect species alive (er, what?)
Saturday, October 15, 2005
Monday, October 10, 2005
Taxes, Domestic Partners, Marriage
Conservatives like to claim to be all in favor of tax breaks, except of course when those breaks might benefit gay couples. Likewise, they are all about getting government's nose out of private business, except for when private business wants to actually help out gay couples.
See, I'm currently in the process of enrolling in my medical benefits for next year, which is a great way to get a "nice" reminder that, while domestic partner benefits may be a lot better than nothing, they are not anywhere close to "marriage." I should probably point out that my company was acquired last year, so this is the first time I'm enrolling in the new company's plan.**
So, I go to add Laura as a dependent and I get a reminder that I need to provide additional documentation on our relationship. Funny, I strongly suspect that the married folks don't need to fax copies of their marriage certificate to someone two states away, but OK, whatever. We'll fill out the form and track down a notary public.
Then there is the tax issue. Most people don't think about the portion of their health benefits that the employer pays--they only worry about the amount taken out of each check. In our case, we need to worry about both.
First, the payroll deductions that cover MY part of the benefits are all nicely pre-tax, thus lowering my overall tax burden a smidge. The deductions for Laura's part, however, are not. They will be deducted post-tax. OK, it isn't a huge amount and it isn't as though it would put me in a different tax bracket, but still, it is a difference. I suspect this difference would become even greater if we were to throw a kid or two into the mix.
Then there is the matter of the premium that the company pays for our benefits. You know, the part that you never see, that you don't even think about. Can you even name the amount your company spends on your health benefits each paycheck? Anyway, for my part of that premium, all is fine and I can pretend it isn't there. But the amount my employer pays for Laura's benefits will be conveniently tacked on to my taxable income and reported to the IRS, so I get to pay taxes on it. How exciting. At the present moment, I have no clue how much this will amount to, but given the rising cost of healthcare I keep hearing about, I suspect it won't be a tiny amount. If my employer's share of the premium is equal to my share, it will be at least $1,500 for the year. I strongly suspect that my employer and I are not splitting the cost of the benefits 50/50, so it will probably be more than that.
And all the "small government conservatives" out there are perfectly happy with this arrangement. More taxes! From certain people, anyway.
Oh, and the part about the government's nose in private business? While poking around to figure out exactly what the DP benefit requirements are, I stumbled across a page indicating that DP benefits were not available in certain states due to state law. That is, the same insurance company that is perfectly happy to cover domestic partners in Illinois is forbidden by state law from providing those benefits to employees in, say, Virginia. There were four or five states on the list -- fortunately not including Montana where we will be living in less than a month. It did look like some of the plans could still be used in those states, but not others.
What do you want to bet that the people behind those particular state laws call themselves "small government conservatives" (also sometimes known as "republicans") when they're not busy passing legislation forbidding insurance companies from selling insurance to certain types of people?
**I should also point out that my complaint here is NOT with my company. I do appreciate the DP coverage and I'm glad it is there. My employer isn't trying to be unfair, they are just constrained by this:
I am also amused / horrified / saddened by this description of the bill from a so-called "pro-family" site (emphasis mine):
No, I won't provide a link. Just google the full name of the bill ("Tax Equity for Health Plan Beneficiaries Act") and I'm sure you can find it.
See, I'm currently in the process of enrolling in my medical benefits for next year, which is a great way to get a "nice" reminder that, while domestic partner benefits may be a lot better than nothing, they are not anywhere close to "marriage." I should probably point out that my company was acquired last year, so this is the first time I'm enrolling in the new company's plan.**
So, I go to add Laura as a dependent and I get a reminder that I need to provide additional documentation on our relationship. Funny, I strongly suspect that the married folks don't need to fax copies of their marriage certificate to someone two states away, but OK, whatever. We'll fill out the form and track down a notary public.
Then there is the tax issue. Most people don't think about the portion of their health benefits that the employer pays--they only worry about the amount taken out of each check. In our case, we need to worry about both.
First, the payroll deductions that cover MY part of the benefits are all nicely pre-tax, thus lowering my overall tax burden a smidge. The deductions for Laura's part, however, are not. They will be deducted post-tax. OK, it isn't a huge amount and it isn't as though it would put me in a different tax bracket, but still, it is a difference. I suspect this difference would become even greater if we were to throw a kid or two into the mix.
Then there is the matter of the premium that the company pays for our benefits. You know, the part that you never see, that you don't even think about. Can you even name the amount your company spends on your health benefits each paycheck? Anyway, for my part of that premium, all is fine and I can pretend it isn't there. But the amount my employer pays for Laura's benefits will be conveniently tacked on to my taxable income and reported to the IRS, so I get to pay taxes on it. How exciting. At the present moment, I have no clue how much this will amount to, but given the rising cost of healthcare I keep hearing about, I suspect it won't be a tiny amount. If my employer's share of the premium is equal to my share, it will be at least $1,500 for the year. I strongly suspect that my employer and I are not splitting the cost of the benefits 50/50, so it will probably be more than that.
And all the "small government conservatives" out there are perfectly happy with this arrangement. More taxes! From certain people, anyway.
Oh, and the part about the government's nose in private business? While poking around to figure out exactly what the DP benefit requirements are, I stumbled across a page indicating that DP benefits were not available in certain states due to state law. That is, the same insurance company that is perfectly happy to cover domestic partners in Illinois is forbidden by state law from providing those benefits to employees in, say, Virginia. There were four or five states on the list -- fortunately not including Montana where we will be living in less than a month. It did look like some of the plans could still be used in those states, but not others.
What do you want to bet that the people behind those particular state laws call themselves "small government conservatives" (also sometimes known as "republicans") when they're not busy passing legislation forbidding insurance companies from selling insurance to certain types of people?
**I should also point out that my complaint here is NOT with my company. I do appreciate the DP coverage and I'm glad it is there. My employer isn't trying to be unfair, they are just constrained by this:
The Internal Revenue Service has ruled that domestic partners cannot be considered spouses for tax purposes. Thus, employers are obligated to report the fair market value of the domestic partner coverage as income to the employee. The employee must pay income tax on that money.Although I did not know until visiting the above FAQ that legislation was introduced to fix this inequitable situation in 2003. It appears to have been referred to the Ways and Means committee. I've no idea if it ever has hope of seeing the light of day. I do find it interesting that the vast majority of co-sponsors are Democrats. I thought Democrats were the ones who want to make us all pay more in taxes. They must have been confused to co-sponsor a bill that would reduce my taxes!
I am also amused / horrified / saddened by this description of the bill from a so-called "pro-family" site (emphasis mine):
Tax Equity for Health Plan Beneficiaries Act of 2003 attacks the institutions of marriage and family. Current federal law excludes the benefits of employer-provided health coverage for spouses and children from being included as taxable income. However, if those benefits are offered to someone other than a spouse or child, they are taxable. H. 935 seeks to provide special rights for homosexuals by amending the Internal Revenue Code to treat homosexual partners as married spouses so that an employee whose company is providing health insurance for a homosexual domestic partner is no longer taxed on the value of that insurance.Did they really write that with a straight (ahem) face? They describe (correctly) the inequity in taxation, then state that removing that inequity is giving homosexuals special rights? They have a funny definition for "special." And I don't even want to think about how self-centered you must be to see a change in taxes that doesn't affect you as an "attack" on yourself.
No, I won't provide a link. Just google the full name of the bill ("Tax Equity for Health Plan Beneficiaries Act") and I'm sure you can find it.
Saturday, October 08, 2005
We Must Be a Stop on the Migratory Superhighway
There was a bit of a ruckus in my neighborhood this morning.
This was the view out my back door. The roofs are my neighbors off our alley.
This was the view from my front porch of the houses across the way.
The pictures don't do it justice. Stepping outside was to step into a cacophony of noise. The birds were gathered on every single roof I can see from my house.
Ten minutes later, they were all gone. Not a single one left in the neighborhood.
Have I ever mentioned how much I love autumn? So much better than the hot, humid summer.
This was the view out my back door. The roofs are my neighbors off our alley.
This was the view from my front porch of the houses across the way.
The pictures don't do it justice. Stepping outside was to step into a cacophony of noise. The birds were gathered on every single roof I can see from my house.
Ten minutes later, they were all gone. Not a single one left in the neighborhood.
Have I ever mentioned how much I love autumn? So much better than the hot, humid summer.
Wednesday, October 05, 2005
Does it Look Like Someone Might be Moving?
A small sampling...
Boxes in family room...they are taking over...creating a wall between the living and family rooms
Breakables waiting to be packed
Boxes in the loft
Boxes in family room...they are taking over...creating a wall between the living and family rooms
Breakables waiting to be packed
Boxes in the loft
Sunday, October 02, 2005
Snow!
Didn’t I just comment about getting used to winter in Montana?
Laura was talking to her parents this morning, and apparently it snowed in Bozeman last night. As I’ve now confirmed at bozeman-mt, thanks to the tip from Big Sky Blog.
I’ve been told by Laura that snow this early in the season usually melts with a day, but still.
My various friends and co-workers here in Chicagoland think I’m crazy for looking forward to living in a place where it snows in October. Although I would have preferred to move during the summer, I’m still looking forward to this. I have a couple pairs of old cross-country skis in the garage that haven’t been used in years. Once we move, I plan to get new boots, replace the bindings, and find some good cross-country trails in / near Missoula. According to this, it shouldn’t be hard to find a few good spots.
I’ve never done downhill, and Laura doesn’t like it, so I don’t expect to do much downhill skiing. We’re thinking of checking out something like this, though.
This site seems to be a pretty good starting spot for finding Montana weather. The web cams of the various mountain passes are cool, too.
Laura was talking to her parents this morning, and apparently it snowed in Bozeman last night. As I’ve now confirmed at bozeman-mt, thanks to the tip from Big Sky Blog.
I’ve been told by Laura that snow this early in the season usually melts with a day, but still.
My various friends and co-workers here in Chicagoland think I’m crazy for looking forward to living in a place where it snows in October. Although I would have preferred to move during the summer, I’m still looking forward to this. I have a couple pairs of old cross-country skis in the garage that haven’t been used in years. Once we move, I plan to get new boots, replace the bindings, and find some good cross-country trails in / near Missoula. According to this, it shouldn’t be hard to find a few good spots.
I’ve never done downhill, and Laura doesn’t like it, so I don’t expect to do much downhill skiing. We’re thinking of checking out something like this, though.
This site seems to be a pretty good starting spot for finding Montana weather. The web cams of the various mountain passes are cool, too.
Some Good News from Connecticut
As reported by The Zero Boss. Civil unions were passed back in April and went into effect Oct. 1.
As the Zero Boss notes, the gripe that somehow gays are thwarting democracy won’t work this time, since this was passed by the elected legislature and was not compelled by the courts. Not that that will prevent the inevitable whining from the right, I’m sure.
Incidentally, I think creating something “separate” but “mostly equal” from marriage for gay couples is silly and somewhat wasteful – why not use the perfectly good laws we already have? But, from a purely practical standpoint, civil unions are better than nothing.
As the Zero Boss notes, the gripe that somehow gays are thwarting democracy won’t work this time, since this was passed by the elected legislature and was not compelled by the courts. Not that that will prevent the inevitable whining from the right, I’m sure.
Incidentally, I think creating something “separate” but “mostly equal” from marriage for gay couples is silly and somewhat wasteful – why not use the perfectly good laws we already have? But, from a purely practical standpoint, civil unions are better than nothing.
Saturday, October 01, 2005
OK, Another Test
Still trying to figure out if the Blogger for Word thing is worth bothering with. So, here is a post with a few pictures. A few weeks ago, we had another batch of bunnies show up in the yard (the link in this sentence should go to Laura’s blog).
Here’s Laura holding one of them:
And here is another hunkering down in the long grass:
We’ll see if this post shows up with links and pictures intact.
UPDATE: the links work. The pictures don't. Blogger for Word converts the brackets around the html to something else so they show up in the published post as code rather than as pictures. I had to manually fix them up in a text editor again. Maybe it is just a matter of using a special style or something in Word, but for the moment, it doesn't look particularly useful.
Here’s Laura holding one of them:
And here is another hunkering down in the long grass:
We’ll see if this post shows up with links and pictures intact.
UPDATE: the links work. The pictures don't. Blogger for Word converts the brackets around the html to something else so they show up in the published post as code rather than as pictures. I had to manually fix them up in a text editor again. Maybe it is just a matter of using a special style or something in Word, but for the moment, it doesn't look particularly useful.
Seems like a good idea, but…
So, Blogger now has this nifty “Blogger for Word” add-in thing. I installed it and tried to use it for my last post (the “Slacking Off”) one. It worked in the sense that it did publish my post. It completely failed in the sense that it mangled the HTML I had pasted in for the Flickr pictures. I finally copied the post in a text editor to repair it.
So, I’m trying it again with this post, with no pictures or links. Still, what is the point of using a tool that can’t handle pictures and links for blogging? Grrr.
So, I’m trying it again with this post, with no pictures or links. Still, what is the point of using a tool that can’t handle pictures and links for blogging? Grrr.
Slacking Off?
Think maybe it is time that I mowed the lawn?
I kept this up pretty well while the house was on the market, but now that we’ve got our offer and we’re just waiting to close, I’m finding it awful easy to slack off.
My gerbera plant has also seen better days:
I kept this up pretty well while the house was on the market, but now that we’ve got our offer and we’re just waiting to close, I’m finding it awful easy to slack off.
My gerbera plant has also seen better days:
Thursday, September 29, 2005
Banned Books
Got this from frogblog. A list of the top 100 most banned/challenged books. The idea is to highlight the ones you've read.
Scary Stories (Series) by Alvin Schwartz
Daddy’s Roommate by Michael Willhoite
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
Harry Potter (Series) by J.K. Rowling
Forever by Judy Blume
Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
Alice (Series) by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
Heather Has Two Mommies by Leslea Newman
My Brother Sam is Dead by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
The Giver by Lois Lowry
It’s Perfectly Normal by Robie Harris
Goosebumps (Series) by R.L. Stine
A Day No Pigs Would Die by Robert Newton Peck
The Color Purple by Alice Walker
Sex by Madonna
Earth’s Children (Series) by Jean M. Auel [only the first three]
The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
Go Ask Alice by Anonymous
Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers
In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak
The Stupids (Series) by Harry Allard
The Witches by Roald Dahl
The New Joy of Gay Sex by Charles Silverstein
Anastasia Krupnik (Series) by Lois Lowry
The Goats by Brock Cole
Kaffir Boy by Mark Mathabane
Blubber by Judy Blume
Killing Mr. Griffin by Lois Duncan
Halloween ABC by Eve Merriam
We All Fall Down by Robert Cormier
Final Exit by Derek Humphry
The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George
The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
What’s Happening to my Body? Book for Girls: A Growing-Up Guide for Parents & Daughters by Lynda Madaras
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Beloved by Toni Morrison
The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton
The Pigman by Paul Zindel
Bumps in the Night by Harry Allard
Deenie by Judy Blume
Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
Annie on my Mind by Nancy Garden
The Boy Who Lost His Face by Louis Sachar
Cross Your Fingers, Spit in Your Hat by Alvin Schwartz
A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Sleeping Beauty Trilogy by A.N. Roquelaure (Anne Rice)
Asking About Sex and Growing Up by Joanna Cole
Cujo by Stephen King
James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
The Anarchist Cookbook by William Powell
Boys and Sex by Wardell Pomeroy
Ordinary People by Judith Guest
American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis
What’s Happening to my Body? Book for Boys: A Growing-Up Guide for Parents & Sons by Lynda Madaras
Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume
Crazy Lady by Jane Conly
Athletic Shorts by Chris Crutcher
Fade by Robert Cormier
Guess What? by Mem Fox
The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende
The Face on the Milk Carton by Caroline Cooney
Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
Lord of the Flies by William Golding
Native Son by Richard Wright
Women on Top: How Real Life Has Changed Women’s Fantasies by Nancy Friday
Curses, Hexes and Spells by Daniel Cohen
Jack by A.M. Homes
Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo A. Anaya
Where Did I Come From? by Peter Mayle
Carrie by Stephen King
Tiger Eyes by Judy Blume
On My Honor by Marion Dane Bauer
Arizona Kid by Ron Koertge
Family Secrets by Norma Klein
Mommy Laid An Egg by Babette Cole
The Dead Zone by Stephen King
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison
Always Running by Luis Rodriguez
Private Parts by Howard Stern
Where’s Waldo? by Martin Hanford
Summer of My German Soldier by Bette Greene
Little Black Sambo by Helen Bannerman
Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett
Running Loose by Chris Crutcher
Sex Education by Jenny Davis
The Drowning of Stephen Jones by Bette Greene
Girls and Sex by Wardell Pomeroy
How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell
View from the Cherry Tree by Willo Davis Roberts
The Headless Cupid by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
The Terrorist by Caroline Cooney
Jump Ship to Freedom by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier
Scary Stories (Series) by Alvin Schwartz
Daddy’s Roommate by Michael Willhoite
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
Harry Potter (Series) by J.K. Rowling
Forever by Judy Blume
Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
Alice (Series) by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
Heather Has Two Mommies by Leslea Newman
My Brother Sam is Dead by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
The Giver by Lois Lowry
It’s Perfectly Normal by Robie Harris
Goosebumps (Series) by R.L. Stine
A Day No Pigs Would Die by Robert Newton Peck
The Color Purple by Alice Walker
Sex by Madonna
Earth’s Children (Series) by Jean M. Auel [only the first three]
The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
Go Ask Alice by Anonymous
Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers
In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak
The Stupids (Series) by Harry Allard
The Witches by Roald Dahl
The New Joy of Gay Sex by Charles Silverstein
Anastasia Krupnik (Series) by Lois Lowry
The Goats by Brock Cole
Kaffir Boy by Mark Mathabane
Blubber by Judy Blume
Killing Mr. Griffin by Lois Duncan
Halloween ABC by Eve Merriam
We All Fall Down by Robert Cormier
Final Exit by Derek Humphry
The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George
The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
What’s Happening to my Body? Book for Girls: A Growing-Up Guide for Parents & Daughters by Lynda Madaras
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Beloved by Toni Morrison
The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton
The Pigman by Paul Zindel
Bumps in the Night by Harry Allard
Deenie by Judy Blume
Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
Annie on my Mind by Nancy Garden
The Boy Who Lost His Face by Louis Sachar
Cross Your Fingers, Spit in Your Hat by Alvin Schwartz
A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Sleeping Beauty Trilogy by A.N. Roquelaure (Anne Rice)
Asking About Sex and Growing Up by Joanna Cole
Cujo by Stephen King
James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
The Anarchist Cookbook by William Powell
Boys and Sex by Wardell Pomeroy
Ordinary People by Judith Guest
American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis
What’s Happening to my Body? Book for Boys: A Growing-Up Guide for Parents & Sons by Lynda Madaras
Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume
Crazy Lady by Jane Conly
Athletic Shorts by Chris Crutcher
Fade by Robert Cormier
Guess What? by Mem Fox
The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende
The Face on the Milk Carton by Caroline Cooney
Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
Lord of the Flies by William Golding
Native Son by Richard Wright
Women on Top: How Real Life Has Changed Women’s Fantasies by Nancy Friday
Curses, Hexes and Spells by Daniel Cohen
Jack by A.M. Homes
Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo A. Anaya
Where Did I Come From? by Peter Mayle
Carrie by Stephen King
Tiger Eyes by Judy Blume
On My Honor by Marion Dane Bauer
Arizona Kid by Ron Koertge
Family Secrets by Norma Klein
Mommy Laid An Egg by Babette Cole
The Dead Zone by Stephen King
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison
Always Running by Luis Rodriguez
Private Parts by Howard Stern
Where’s Waldo? by Martin Hanford
Summer of My German Soldier by Bette Greene
Little Black Sambo by Helen Bannerman
Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett
Running Loose by Chris Crutcher
Sex Education by Jenny Davis
The Drowning of Stephen Jones by Bette Greene
Girls and Sex by Wardell Pomeroy
How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell
View from the Cherry Tree by Willo Davis Roberts
The Headless Cupid by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
The Terrorist by Caroline Cooney
Jump Ship to Freedom by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier
Good News in Michigan
This has no impact on my life, seeing as I have no plans to live in Michigan, but it still made me happy to hear:
At any rate, the good news is that the issue ended up in front of a judge, who ruled that the vague wording of the amendment did not bar domestic partnership benefits at all. From this article:
A judge in Michigan ruled on Tuesday that the state ban on same-sex marriage does not infringe on domestic partner rights.If you're not familiar with what happened in Michigan, here's a quick recap. Last November, Michigan passed a constitutional amendment defining marriage as between a man and a woman. The specific text of the amendment was this:
To secure and preserve the benefits of marriage for our society and for future generations of children, the union of one man and one woman in marriage shall be the only agreement recognized as marriage or similar union for any purpose.During the campaign for this amendment, the people proposing it insisted that they had no intention of taking away anyone's benefits. They were proved to be liars less than a month after the election when a state representative began pushing a resolution to block domestic partner benefits for state and city employees. I blogged about my outrage here.
At any rate, the good news is that the issue ended up in front of a judge, who ruled that the vague wording of the amendment did not bar domestic partnership benefits at all. From this article:
In the opinion, Ingham County Circuit Court Judge Joyce Draganchuk makes it clear that the constitutional amendment does not impact domestic partner benefits.Well, duh. Employers offer all sorts of benefits to their employees for all sorts of reasons. Some companies might offer DP benefits out of a sense of fairness, recognizing that gay employees also have families that matter to them, but that doesn't change the fact that the benefits are really just compensation, just like salary and any number of other "fringe" benefits. I recently learned that my employer will provide "pet insurance" next year. Does this mean they have somehow "elevated" my pets to the same level as children or spouses?
“Health care benefits are not among the statutory rights or benefits of marriage. An individual does not receive health care benefits for his or her spouse as a matter of legal right upon getting married,” wrote Judge Draganchuk. “Health care benefits for a spouse are benefits of employment, not benefits of marriage.”
Tuesday, September 27, 2005
Waiting
Laura has been complaining that I haven't posted much lately. So, here is a post.
We are waiting to find out if our buyer's financing is approved. This should happen by this Friday and all the parties involved (real estate agent, lawyer, etc.) tell me there is nothing to worry about. So naturally I am worried. I'll be glad when this is finalized.
Assuming all goes well, we will be heading to Montana at the end of October.
When we started planning this whole adventure, I had hoped to move during the summer so that I could enjoy nice weather before my first Montana winter. Alas, no such luck. Talk of snow in September? I have much to get used to.
We are waiting to find out if our buyer's financing is approved. This should happen by this Friday and all the parties involved (real estate agent, lawyer, etc.) tell me there is nothing to worry about. So naturally I am worried. I'll be glad when this is finalized.
Assuming all goes well, we will be heading to Montana at the end of October.
When we started planning this whole adventure, I had hoped to move during the summer so that I could enjoy nice weather before my first Montana winter. Alas, no such luck. Talk of snow in September? I have much to get used to.
Tuesday, September 13, 2005
House Notes (Both Old and New)
Things are moving along on the house selling front. We're ticking off the various contingencies on our buyers' contract and counting down to our October close date. Everything is going well so far. The inspection only turned up a few minor issues that we need to fix. The appraisal has been done. I think the buyers are fairly close to having their financing officially approved.
I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this will all work out and we'll be hitting the road to Montana by the end of October.
We have tentatively lined up a place to live until our new townhouse is completed, which should be in December or possibly early January if anything slips. This is still a little shaky, as it is actually a small house (one bedroom!) owned by our Montana realtor. The house is currently on the market and could sell between now and when we sign our lease. It will be interesting being renters again -- even for a short time -- and living in such a small home! Our new house will seem huge in comparison!
Speaking of the new house, it is progressing nicely. Laura flew out to Missoula yesterday to pick out all of our custom stuff -- paint colors, flooring, light fixtures, etc. Today she called me repeatedly with various questions and updates. She also took lots of pictures of the progress...apparently the house is fully framed and roofed already!
We decided on red for the siding and a light beige color for the trim. The paint they use is Sherwin-Williams, so I pulled up their nifty
"color visualizer" to see how the colors will look on an arts and crafts style home. If you're curious, the red is "fireweed" and the trim will be "antique white." Our house will also have a third accent color, which will be "camelback."
I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this will all work out and we'll be hitting the road to Montana by the end of October.
We have tentatively lined up a place to live until our new townhouse is completed, which should be in December or possibly early January if anything slips. This is still a little shaky, as it is actually a small house (one bedroom!) owned by our Montana realtor. The house is currently on the market and could sell between now and when we sign our lease. It will be interesting being renters again -- even for a short time -- and living in such a small home! Our new house will seem huge in comparison!
Speaking of the new house, it is progressing nicely. Laura flew out to Missoula yesterday to pick out all of our custom stuff -- paint colors, flooring, light fixtures, etc. Today she called me repeatedly with various questions and updates. She also took lots of pictures of the progress...apparently the house is fully framed and roofed already!
We decided on red for the siding and a light beige color for the trim. The paint they use is Sherwin-Williams, so I pulled up their nifty
"color visualizer" to see how the colors will look on an arts and crafts style home. If you're curious, the red is "fireweed" and the trim will be "antique white." Our house will also have a third accent color, which will be "camelback."
Saturday, September 10, 2005
Flowering Herbs
My basil and mint plants have both sprouted flowers. I'm hoping that pruning them back will help make them useful for a little while longer -- my mom has actually volunteered to take them in when we move (my parents have a nice sunroom which is great for wintering plants).
Anyway, the basil flowers are a pretty shade of purple:
The mint, on the other hand, is not particularly attractive:
For reference, some much earlier photos of the plants are here
Anyway, the basil flowers are a pretty shade of purple:
The mint, on the other hand, is not particularly attractive:
For reference, some much earlier photos of the plants are here
Recommended Reading
Watermark has been posting some narratives from a person volunteering at an evacuee center in Raleigh, North Carolina. Very detailed accounts that give me a great deal of hope:
Friday, September 09, 2005
Great Big Bugs
A couple evenings ago, I leashed up the dogs for their evening walk. I stepped out on the porch, looked up, and saw this:
Cool! Well, I thought it was cool, but Laura doesn't like insects much, and she REALLY doesn't like huge insects like this. I just left it alone, since praying mantises eat other insects and pests (although according to this, "larger species have been known to prey on small lizards, frogs, birds and even rodents.")
The next morning, the praying mantis was gone and there were very few insects hanging around my porch. The next evening I checked again, and sure enough, the insect was back, this time creeping up the side of the porch:
I haven't seen it again this evening, so maybe it has decided to lurk around someone else's house. Laura finds it disturbing, but I think it is kinda cool!
Minor update - there are a bunch of cool praying mantis photos on flickr here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tags/prayingmantis/clusters/
Cool! Well, I thought it was cool, but Laura doesn't like insects much, and she REALLY doesn't like huge insects like this. I just left it alone, since praying mantises eat other insects and pests (although according to this, "larger species have been known to prey on small lizards, frogs, birds and even rodents.")
The next morning, the praying mantis was gone and there were very few insects hanging around my porch. The next evening I checked again, and sure enough, the insect was back, this time creeping up the side of the porch:
I haven't seen it again this evening, so maybe it has decided to lurk around someone else's house. Laura finds it disturbing, but I think it is kinda cool!
Minor update - there are a bunch of cool praying mantis photos on flickr here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tags/prayingmantis/clusters/
Tuesday, September 06, 2005
Scooped Again!
Once again, I have been scooped by Laura. In the event that you don't visit her blog (she gets more traffic than me, so chances are you do visit her blog!), here's the deal:
We sold our house.
That is, we got an offer, which we accepted. Obviously it isn't over till we close, but still, this is working out far better than I expected. We actually got TWO offers on the same day (yesterday). Since it was a dual-offer situation, both buyers offered more than the asking price. We are actually getting pretty much what I had hoped to get way back at the end of April when we first put the house on the market.
So apparently all my anxiety about owning two houses will go to waste. What a relief! Instead of owning two houses, we will be temporarily homeless!
The buyers we accepted said they would prefer an October close date, but were flexible and didn't want that to be a sticking point. As it happens, October works out fine for us -- more time to finish packing, and less time in temporary housing while we wait for the new house to be finished. Our Missoula real estate has a small house she will rent to us for the two months until the house is done in December.
At the moment, I still have trouble believing this has really happened. Months of showings with little interest, and then two on the same day! I will never understand the real estate business!
We sold our house.
That is, we got an offer, which we accepted. Obviously it isn't over till we close, but still, this is working out far better than I expected. We actually got TWO offers on the same day (yesterday). Since it was a dual-offer situation, both buyers offered more than the asking price. We are actually getting pretty much what I had hoped to get way back at the end of April when we first put the house on the market.
So apparently all my anxiety about owning two houses will go to waste. What a relief! Instead of owning two houses, we will be temporarily homeless!
The buyers we accepted said they would prefer an October close date, but were flexible and didn't want that to be a sticking point. As it happens, October works out fine for us -- more time to finish packing, and less time in temporary housing while we wait for the new house to be finished. Our Missoula real estate has a small house she will rent to us for the two months until the house is done in December.
At the moment, I still have trouble believing this has really happened. Months of showings with little interest, and then two on the same day! I will never understand the real estate business!
Sunday, September 04, 2005
Back from Montana (a Little Late)
One of the problems with living in a two-blogger-household is that it is very easy to just never get around to posting about certain topics. Sometimes I may start sketching out a post in my head, but long before I can get to it, Laura has already discussed it. A natural tendency towards laziness rears up, and the post I had been composing wanders off and ends up in that stack of "meant to do this" in some back corner of my brain. This happens quite a bit, especially since Laura currently has much more time on her hands for blogging than I do.
So I realized this morning that, other than my post yesterday about Katrina, the last time I posted was from a hotel room in Missoula, Montana! I've been back from that way-too-short trip now for a week and a half and I never posted about how it ended up, or all of our pictures!
If you do read Laura's blog, you probably already know most of this. We decided to go ahead and buy a townhome in a new neighborhood called Hellgate Meadows. The foundation for our lot already exists:
The house should be ready sometime in December, which means we really must sell our current house soon. We did get some good news last weekend -- we had two showings the same day, and one of the groups had our house on their "short list" of three. I am still holding out some hope that they will buy it. In the meantime, we're probably going to drop our price a bit more so that we can stay competitive with all the other houses in the neighborhood. Supposedly the real estate market tends to pick up after Labor day, so I have high hopes.
Back to the Montana trip. I was there just a few days -- arriving very late Saturday night (Aug. 20) and leaving in the afternoon on the following Tuesday (Aug. 23). In that time Laura showed me around several of the neighborhoods and houses she had rejected. We also visited the Hellgate Meadows place several times. I "tested" how it would be to walk over to the Barnes & Noble -- as noted here, walkability is an important consideration for me. I still mourn the loss of mature trees, but in my long list of "wants" and "needs" for the new house, the Hellgate Meadows townhome met more of them than most of the other places. So, we took a deep breath, went back to the real estate agent's office, and wrote up the offer.
A few pictures from the trip. Some of these were previously posted on Laura's blog:
This is an existing house similar to ours, although ours will be a different color (we haven't chosen the color yet):
These two pictures are from the alley behind the above house, showing what lies to the immediate south of our new neighborhood:
I hope the people who own that land hang on to it and resist the temptation to sell. I love the idea of all that open space so nearby! And no, the smell of the horses does not worry me in the least. It isn't as though there is a huge herd of cattle living there.
This one was taken from where the front porch of our new house will be:
There are some lots immediately across the street that will have houses, so this view won't stay quite like this. Hopefully it should still be pretty good from the second floor room looking in this direction. I plan to use that room as my home office.
I admit I am nervous about this. I would have felt better selling our house first, before committing to buying a new house, but it just wasn't practical. There aren't many lots left in this particular neighborhood, and apparently they are very popular. The green house shown above was built in 2003. The owners put it on the market and it sold in less than a week!
At any rate, we did try to just do a few vacation-like things during the way-too-short trip. We went for a short walk in Greenough Park where I took this shot:
We stayed at the Holiday Inn Parkside, which is right next to Bess Reed park and has great views of Mount Sentinel:
Finally, I made Laura pull into a parking lot so that I could get a shot of this -- apparently, despite the name, this is NOT a gay bar:
So I realized this morning that, other than my post yesterday about Katrina, the last time I posted was from a hotel room in Missoula, Montana! I've been back from that way-too-short trip now for a week and a half and I never posted about how it ended up, or all of our pictures!
If you do read Laura's blog, you probably already know most of this. We decided to go ahead and buy a townhome in a new neighborhood called Hellgate Meadows. The foundation for our lot already exists:
The house should be ready sometime in December, which means we really must sell our current house soon. We did get some good news last weekend -- we had two showings the same day, and one of the groups had our house on their "short list" of three. I am still holding out some hope that they will buy it. In the meantime, we're probably going to drop our price a bit more so that we can stay competitive with all the other houses in the neighborhood. Supposedly the real estate market tends to pick up after Labor day, so I have high hopes.
Back to the Montana trip. I was there just a few days -- arriving very late Saturday night (Aug. 20) and leaving in the afternoon on the following Tuesday (Aug. 23). In that time Laura showed me around several of the neighborhoods and houses she had rejected. We also visited the Hellgate Meadows place several times. I "tested" how it would be to walk over to the Barnes & Noble -- as noted here, walkability is an important consideration for me. I still mourn the loss of mature trees, but in my long list of "wants" and "needs" for the new house, the Hellgate Meadows townhome met more of them than most of the other places. So, we took a deep breath, went back to the real estate agent's office, and wrote up the offer.
A few pictures from the trip. Some of these were previously posted on Laura's blog:
This is an existing house similar to ours, although ours will be a different color (we haven't chosen the color yet):
These two pictures are from the alley behind the above house, showing what lies to the immediate south of our new neighborhood:
I hope the people who own that land hang on to it and resist the temptation to sell. I love the idea of all that open space so nearby! And no, the smell of the horses does not worry me in the least. It isn't as though there is a huge herd of cattle living there.
This one was taken from where the front porch of our new house will be:
There are some lots immediately across the street that will have houses, so this view won't stay quite like this. Hopefully it should still be pretty good from the second floor room looking in this direction. I plan to use that room as my home office.
I admit I am nervous about this. I would have felt better selling our house first, before committing to buying a new house, but it just wasn't practical. There aren't many lots left in this particular neighborhood, and apparently they are very popular. The green house shown above was built in 2003. The owners put it on the market and it sold in less than a week!
At any rate, we did try to just do a few vacation-like things during the way-too-short trip. We went for a short walk in Greenough Park where I took this shot:
We stayed at the Holiday Inn Parkside, which is right next to Bess Reed park and has great views of Mount Sentinel:
Finally, I made Laura pull into a parking lot so that I could get a shot of this -- apparently, despite the name, this is NOT a gay bar:
Saturday, September 03, 2005
Reality Check
"Unfortunately, that's going to be attributable a lot to people who did not heed the advance warnings," Brown told CNN.I am getting really tired of the constant refrain of "why didn't they leave" in reference to the victims of Katerina. John Scalzi has a couple great posts addressing this.
"I don't make judgments about why people chose not to leave but, you know, there was a mandatory evacuation of New Orleans," he said.
CNN Article
I don't have the personal experience to completely relate to the "Being Poor" post, although I suspect that Laura does. But still, I thought maybe I could play a little reality check game here...bear with me.
Back in late 1993/early 1994, I was a new college grad with a "professional" job with a now-defunct accounting firm in downtown Chicago. I had a somewhat overpriced studio apartment in a fairly posh neighborhood (Lincoln Park). My salary was not phenomenal, but it was enough to pay the bills and rent. I suspect my means were typical for people my age, in their early twenties, getting started at their first "real" jobs after years of school and summer work. I came from a comfortable, middle-class background.
I did not own a car. At the time, this seemed like a wonderful benefit of living and working downtown -- no car payments, no insurance payments, no need to even notice gas prices. I took the bus or the "L" to work. I was not, by any stretch of the imagination, poor.
I want to emphasize that I was exceedingly "responsible." I did not live off the government or my parents. I took care of myself.
Now, lets pretend that one day it was discovered that a great calamity was about to hit Chicago, and everyone started evacuating. What would I, a college-educated, middle-class, and far from poor single woman do?
I had no car, so driving away was not an option. I had just moved to the city so I didn't have any city friends to catch a ride with. My co-workers mostly lived in the suburbs and commuted to work via train, so they weren't available either.
Aha! Trains! I could take a train out of the city! Except, lets say that the Metra stations shut down due to the impending calamity, much as the Greyhound stations, trains, and airlines in New Orleans:
"Delta Air Lines' decision to end its regular passenger air service out of New Orleans just after midnight Saturday was based on assessing the safety of its planes, employees and passengers, the accessibility of the airport and the projected course of the weather....OK, now I'm here stranded in my fancy studio apartment, with no car or train transportation out of the city. City buses and Greyhound follow the same model as Metra and shut down. Now what do I do? Walk? I suppose I could call my parents, who live about an hour away in a suburb, but what are the odds of them being able to drive in here, pick me up, and drive back out in all the evacuation traffic on time? We could all end up stuck out on the road together when the calamity hits!
...Other airlines considered the conditions operable longer. American flew its last plane out at 1 p.m. Sunday. And US Airways flew two-thirds of its schedule Sunday, with its last plane departing at 1:30 p.m...
...Other transportation modes also cleared out of New Orleans at least 24 hours before the hurricane hit...
...Amtrak had no choice; its tracks run through the city's levees. Once officials in Louisiana put the floodgates in place across the levees, said spokesman Marc Magliari, "we had no usable route in and out of the city."...
...And Greyhound, which ended service in New Orleans late Saturday, said safety was its priority. "We operate as long as it's safe," said spokesperson Anna Folmnsbee."
Not knowing exactly how bad the impending calamity might be -- after all, in this scenario Chicago has faced this sort of thing before and survived OK -- wouldn't it be somewhat reasonable to just hunker down and hope for the best, rather than endangering even more people in a last-ditch attempt to flee? And heck, maybe this calamity is coming when my parents are off in Wisconsin on vacation or something. Now what? Should I just start walking out of the city? And be caught by the calamity out in the open, unprotected?
Remember, in my little scenario, I already have more options and resources available than most of those folks trapped down in New Orleans. I have a little money in the bank, assuming I can get to an ATM of course. I am not quite living paycheck to paycheck, although it is close. I have family nearby that could, possibly, manage to help. I don't need to take care of any young children. I'm not elderly and frail. I'm in good health.
Even with all those advantages I would have had difficulty getting away in time.
Maybe all the judgmental morons criticizing the citizens of New Orleans should shut up for a bit and reflect on the blessings in their own lives.
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