The IRS really needs to use better terms on its tax forms.
Specifically, "head of household" is such a vague term that it can ostensibly refer to anyone who leads their household, whether or not they actually have any dependents. If you live by yourself, you basically are the head of that household, no?
Anyways, that's what I thought, and as such, put head of household as a deduction on my tax form when I first started working. Well, it turns out that head of household is really only for people who have dependents and claiming head of household status is apparantly illegal.
I was wondering why I had to pay so much in taxes this year. Maybe this will fix it.
Thursday, March 23, 2006
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
i hate the ipod
FYI: When you're trying to put more songs on your iPod, and it flashes the big red circle with the cross saying "Do Not Disconnect," don't disconnect it from your computer! It's not just a suggestion; it will erase all the songs from your iPod, and make you copy them all again. Trust me - it's a bad idea.
Sunday, March 12, 2006
St. Patrick's Day
Went to the St. Patrick's Day festivities on Greenville this weekend. It was pretty awesome to see this vast sea of green everywhere you looked up and down the street. Block parties for like 4 or 5 blocks with alcohol freely flowing, live music, and beads for all. The parade itself was better/longer than I expected, but I'm a sucker for parades and it doesn't take much for one to impress me. The best part of the parade was all the free stuff they gave out: beads, ashtrays, frisbees, t-shirts, etc. It was great.. I scored about 10 strands of beads, and an ashtray.
From there it was on to the "hashing"; not sure if I mentioned this in a previous post, but it's this event where you follow a trail marked by flour to a point (the "beer check") where you stop, drink some, and then continue on the trail until you get to another spot (the "on-in") where you drink some more. After it's all over, everyone heads to a bar or restaurant to drink some more. Their slogan is that they're a "drinking club with a running problem." Normally, the trail is kinda tricky and can take you across highways, through forests, and even trodding through water. This one was decidely less complicated (mostly due to the fact that most ppl were already drunk before the hash even started), and we ended up just calling someone and asking the address of the on-in.
So, by the time it was like 3 pm, most of us were already drunk and pretty tired. Yeah, that's insane. That's the earliest I've ever been drunk. Hooting and hollering (at the parade) combined with a lot of walking and a lot of drinking ends up really tiring you out. I would guess that I walked about 5 or 6 miles yesterday, and we were just on one street!
We finished the night off with karaoke (and more drinking) at a hole-in-the-wall bar. This is only the second time I've done karoake, and the first time was in a private room, so everyone sucked and it was a lot of fun. This time, it was in out in public, and everyone who performed besides our group was freakin' awesome. We decided that they were probably part of some professional singing group that goes to karaoke nights in various bars across Dallas just to embarass everyone else. Oh well. We still went up there and made fools out of ourselves. I sang The Real Slim Shady with my friends' help. I'm surprised how much of that song I remember. Haven't heard it in a long time.
Fun, but exhausting weekend. Oh, and made about 20 bucks in poker on Friday. Best I've ever done.
From there it was on to the "hashing"; not sure if I mentioned this in a previous post, but it's this event where you follow a trail marked by flour to a point (the "beer check") where you stop, drink some, and then continue on the trail until you get to another spot (the "on-in") where you drink some more. After it's all over, everyone heads to a bar or restaurant to drink some more. Their slogan is that they're a "drinking club with a running problem." Normally, the trail is kinda tricky and can take you across highways, through forests, and even trodding through water. This one was decidely less complicated (mostly due to the fact that most ppl were already drunk before the hash even started), and we ended up just calling someone and asking the address of the on-in.
So, by the time it was like 3 pm, most of us were already drunk and pretty tired. Yeah, that's insane. That's the earliest I've ever been drunk. Hooting and hollering (at the parade) combined with a lot of walking and a lot of drinking ends up really tiring you out. I would guess that I walked about 5 or 6 miles yesterday, and we were just on one street!
We finished the night off with karaoke (and more drinking) at a hole-in-the-wall bar. This is only the second time I've done karoake, and the first time was in a private room, so everyone sucked and it was a lot of fun. This time, it was in out in public, and everyone who performed besides our group was freakin' awesome. We decided that they were probably part of some professional singing group that goes to karaoke nights in various bars across Dallas just to embarass everyone else. Oh well. We still went up there and made fools out of ourselves. I sang The Real Slim Shady with my friends' help. I'm surprised how much of that song I remember. Haven't heard it in a long time.
Fun, but exhausting weekend. Oh, and made about 20 bucks in poker on Friday. Best I've ever done.
Saturday, March 11, 2006
Lunchtime Quotes
"So yall are like foreign exchange students or something?"
~ our hot Albanian waitress at the Italian restaurant where our company went to lunch
Yeah, so there were a few white people, some Romanians, an Asian and me, so I suppose you could confuse us for foreign exchange students?
The waitress was definitely crazy though.. she's almost as crazy as our secretary.
~ our hot Albanian waitress at the Italian restaurant where our company went to lunch
Yeah, so there were a few white people, some Romanians, an Asian and me, so I suppose you could confuse us for foreign exchange students?
The waitress was definitely crazy though.. she's almost as crazy as our secretary.
Sunday, March 05, 2006
Oscars
Jon Stewart's sarcastic style makes him a great Oscar host.
"I'm surprised Cinderella Man didn't win in the Makeup category. It must take a lot of effort to make Russell Crowe look like he got in a fight."
"I think it just got a little easier to be a pimp." - after "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp" won for Best Original Song
"For those keeping track, Martin Scorcese: 0 Oscars. 3-6 Mafia: 1 Oscar."
"I'm surprised Cinderella Man didn't win in the Makeup category. It must take a lot of effort to make Russell Crowe look like he got in a fight."
"I think it just got a little easier to be a pimp." - after "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp" won for Best Original Song
"For those keeping track, Martin Scorcese: 0 Oscars. 3-6 Mafia: 1 Oscar."
Friday, March 03, 2006
Happy Hour Part Deux
Had our second happy hour yesterday. Most of the same people showed up, with the addition of a few new faces.
We (well, fine, I) decided to try Humperdink's this time instead of Fox & Hound since the service was so slow last time. Pros: non-smoking section, cons: not so much of the bar scene that you'd get elsewhere at a real happy hour place. I think there may be one or two other bars in the area, so we'll have to pick a new place for next time.
After most people had left, the remaining folks headed over to the nearby bowling alley. Yeah, so we're cheap/poor and it would have cost a lot of money to actually bowl, so we ended up just lounging at the bar. That's right, we left the happy hour at Humperdink's to drink some more at the bowling alley bar.
Anyway, the happy hour with the 10+ people was a lot of fun. The part at the bowling alley - not so much. I've been drunk before (bet you didn't know that), but if everything happened as I vaguely remember it, then last night was definitely one of those times when I probably said way more than I should have. It almost felt like an intervention, and I didn't even know that I had a problem. Note to self: drink less at next happy hour/post-happy hour.
We (well, fine, I) decided to try Humperdink's this time instead of Fox & Hound since the service was so slow last time. Pros: non-smoking section, cons: not so much of the bar scene that you'd get elsewhere at a real happy hour place. I think there may be one or two other bars in the area, so we'll have to pick a new place for next time.
After most people had left, the remaining folks headed over to the nearby bowling alley. Yeah, so we're cheap/poor and it would have cost a lot of money to actually bowl, so we ended up just lounging at the bar. That's right, we left the happy hour at Humperdink's to drink some more at the bowling alley bar.
Anyway, the happy hour with the 10+ people was a lot of fun. The part at the bowling alley - not so much. I've been drunk before (bet you didn't know that), but if everything happened as I vaguely remember it, then last night was definitely one of those times when I probably said way more than I should have. It almost felt like an intervention, and I didn't even know that I had a problem. Note to self: drink less at next happy hour/post-happy hour.
Monday, February 20, 2006
Shopping Expedition
I wish I had worked at a clothing store, like in the mall or something, during high school. I would know so much more about fashion and style and probably would have met some cool people as well.
I went shopping for some nice sweatshirts/sweaters, but found out that most stores only carry hoodies and these weird zip-up jackets that don't even appear to be that warm. The "sweaters" at the Gap were paper-thin. Next store!
Finally, I found a store that carried normal sweaters, but it was kinda big, so I asked if they had it in a small. Somehow, the "small" ended up being bigger than the medium. Not sure how that even works out, so I ended up just keeping the medium. It still looks pretty pimp.
When I was paying, the (hot) girl remarked that there was a guy at her high school who has the same last name as me. That's not something I hear every day. So I asked what school she went to. Her response: go fuck yourself, you pedophile. JK! Wylie. Where the hell is Wylie?
I went shopping for some nice sweatshirts/sweaters, but found out that most stores only carry hoodies and these weird zip-up jackets that don't even appear to be that warm. The "sweaters" at the Gap were paper-thin. Next store!
Finally, I found a store that carried normal sweaters, but it was kinda big, so I asked if they had it in a small. Somehow, the "small" ended up being bigger than the medium. Not sure how that even works out, so I ended up just keeping the medium. It still looks pretty pimp.
When I was paying, the (hot) girl remarked that there was a guy at her high school who has the same last name as me. That's not something I hear every day. So I asked what school she went to. Her response: go fuck yourself, you pedophile. JK! Wylie. Where the hell is Wylie?
Thursday, February 09, 2006
happy hour
my company has made some improvements this past week to finally move closer to becoming a real software development firm.
the most significant step: happy hour!
i was honestly surprised at how many people showed up today. normally, i try and organize events and they either are pretty successful or fall compeletely flat. luckily, happy hour seemed to be an enjoyable evening for all. it was an eclectic mix of co-workers, friends, ex-co-workers, and friends of friends. i told people that we'll try and do it once a month. fox and hound proved to be somewhat of a disappointment with the service though. maybe we can find some other bar that'll actually get you more than a drink an hour.
we're having an official company party tomorrow as well... so basically, it'll be somewhat a repeat of tonight, except the drinks will free and there will be pool and bowling to boot!
so yes, that's two company parties and a happy hour for 2006 and it's not even valentine's day! i knew you had something left to prove 2006, and it looks like we're on our way...
the most significant step: happy hour!
i was honestly surprised at how many people showed up today. normally, i try and organize events and they either are pretty successful or fall compeletely flat. luckily, happy hour seemed to be an enjoyable evening for all. it was an eclectic mix of co-workers, friends, ex-co-workers, and friends of friends. i told people that we'll try and do it once a month. fox and hound proved to be somewhat of a disappointment with the service though. maybe we can find some other bar that'll actually get you more than a drink an hour.
we're having an official company party tomorrow as well... so basically, it'll be somewhat a repeat of tonight, except the drinks will free and there will be pool and bowling to boot!
so yes, that's two company parties and a happy hour for 2006 and it's not even valentine's day! i knew you had something left to prove 2006, and it looks like we're on our way...
Saturday, February 04, 2006
Friday, February 03, 2006
New Job(?)
Today I officially moved out of the company that has employed me for the past year and a half.
Where am I now? you ask. Across the hall, working with the same people and under the same CEO as before.
Depending on who I ask, the two companies will either be entirely separate entities focusing on different tasks, or basically one company with two divisions.
The great part is that it's essentially agreed that my team will definitely still be working with the old company.
One of the reasons I was so excited about leaving was that I wouldn't have to work with certain people ever again, but the realization that I probably will have to work very closely with those people is slowly sinking in.
Yikes.
Where am I now? you ask. Across the hall, working with the same people and under the same CEO as before.
Depending on who I ask, the two companies will either be entirely separate entities focusing on different tasks, or basically one company with two divisions.
The great part is that it's essentially agreed that my team will definitely still be working with the old company.
One of the reasons I was so excited about leaving was that I wouldn't have to work with certain people ever again, but the realization that I probably will have to work very closely with those people is slowly sinking in.
Yikes.
Thursday, February 02, 2006
Breakfast
One of my new year's resolutions was to start eating breakfast more regularly.
So I've tried that, but it seems that whenever I do have something to eat, I get even more hungry when it gets close to lunchtime.
I dunno if I'm not eating enough in the morning, or maybe just the wrong type of food.
So I've tried that, but it seems that whenever I do have something to eat, I get even more hungry when it gets close to lunchtime.
I dunno if I'm not eating enough in the morning, or maybe just the wrong type of food.
Wednesday, February 01, 2006
The Good and the Bad
The Good:
http://www.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/TV/02/01/people.spears.ap/index.html
The Bad:
http://www.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/Movies/02/01/people.lindsaylohan.ap/index.html
(not really sure why this is news, but you can relax; it sounds like she'll be fine)
http://www.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/TV/02/01/people.spears.ap/index.html
The Bad:
http://www.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/Movies/02/01/people.lindsaylohan.ap/index.html
(not really sure why this is news, but you can relax; it sounds like she'll be fine)
Tuesday, January 31, 2006
Sucky sucky
wow.. january 2006 really sucked (except for meeting kristen bell in austin).
i guess the year can only get better from here..
it still has a chance to be the best year ever, it's just got to work a lot harder.
come on 2006. i have faith in you!
i guess the year can only get better from here..
it still has a chance to be the best year ever, it's just got to work a lot harder.
come on 2006. i have faith in you!
Wednesday, January 18, 2006
Veronica Mars-athon (UPDATE)
I forgot to mention that I got Kristen Bell's autograph at the event.
She signed my poster "For Sumeet, (heart) Kristen Bell."
Hells yeah, how do you like dem apples?
She signed my poster "For Sumeet, (heart) Kristen Bell."
Hells yeah, how do you like dem apples?
Tuesday, January 17, 2006
Wow
At work today:
Manager-to-be: "I know things have been really bad lately. I hope you're not looking for another job, but if I was in your situation, I would be."
I was pretty optimistic about 2006. But then I came into work on Jan 3, and realized that the year might not be so great. Every day, it seems that there's just more bad news.
2006 probably won't be the best year ever :(
Manager-to-be: "I know things have been really bad lately. I hope you're not looking for another job, but if I was in your situation, I would be."
I was pretty optimistic about 2006. But then I came into work on Jan 3, and realized that the year might not be so great. Every day, it seems that there's just more bad news.
2006 probably won't be the best year ever :(
Sunday, January 15, 2006
Veronica Mars-athon and drunkenness
A white guy, an Indian guy, and a black guy walk into a bar.......
No, not the beginning of a bad joke; just the start of a pretty memorable weekend ;)
It was the "white" guy's last day at our company, so we decided to all go out for drinks. Good times. We've been working pretty late hours for the past two weeks, so it was a nice way to relieve some stress and just kick back and relax. We went to the bar around 8 pm, and I think we stayed until closing, around 2 am.
The next day, I had to drive to Austin for the Veronica Mars-athon. I've driven long distances under bad circumstances before - once with no sleep the night before, once after a horrendous day that included allergies, an interview, and a midterm - but driving with a hangover is probably the worst condition possible. Paying attention to the road, while trying not to vomit on yourself or fall asleep and also trying to ignore the massive headache is just a recipe for a horrible accident.
Finally, I couldn't take it any more, and decided to get some Tylenol. Ahhh, much better. The rest of the drive was actually bearable, and best of all, I made it there alive.
The Mars-athon was awesome! For those of you who don't know, Veronica Mars is a show about a high-school detective (guess her name) who works for her father who's a private investigator. There's lots of suspense and intrigue (who's Veronica's real father? did she get raped by her brother? who killed her best friend?) and the writing is very witty and well-done. It's definitely one of the best shows on TV.
I really wish the band had played fewer songs so the cast could answer more questions though. It also would have been nice if the cast had picked out some of their favorite clips instead of just the producer. And the highlight: at the end of the event, the cast signed autographs and posed for pictures!
If you had told me last fall that I would be in Austin this weekend, literally 2 feet away from Kristen Bell, I would have laughed at you. And yet, there I was.
Oh, and yeah, Kristen Bell is definitely the new hotness.
No, not the beginning of a bad joke; just the start of a pretty memorable weekend ;)
It was the "white" guy's last day at our company, so we decided to all go out for drinks. Good times. We've been working pretty late hours for the past two weeks, so it was a nice way to relieve some stress and just kick back and relax. We went to the bar around 8 pm, and I think we stayed until closing, around 2 am.
The next day, I had to drive to Austin for the Veronica Mars-athon. I've driven long distances under bad circumstances before - once with no sleep the night before, once after a horrendous day that included allergies, an interview, and a midterm - but driving with a hangover is probably the worst condition possible. Paying attention to the road, while trying not to vomit on yourself or fall asleep and also trying to ignore the massive headache is just a recipe for a horrible accident.
Finally, I couldn't take it any more, and decided to get some Tylenol. Ahhh, much better. The rest of the drive was actually bearable, and best of all, I made it there alive.
The Mars-athon was awesome! For those of you who don't know, Veronica Mars is a show about a high-school detective (guess her name) who works for her father who's a private investigator. There's lots of suspense and intrigue (who's Veronica's real father? did she get raped by her brother? who killed her best friend?) and the writing is very witty and well-done. It's definitely one of the best shows on TV.
I really wish the band had played fewer songs so the cast could answer more questions though. It also would have been nice if the cast had picked out some of their favorite clips instead of just the producer. And the highlight: at the end of the event, the cast signed autographs and posed for pictures!
If you had told me last fall that I would be in Austin this weekend, literally 2 feet away from Kristen Bell, I would have laughed at you. And yet, there I was.
Oh, and yeah, Kristen Bell is definitely the new hotness.
Wednesday, January 04, 2006
Holidays!
It was nice to get out of town for a couple of weeks.
Spent the first week (from the 21st til the 28th) at my parents' house in Virginia. Pretty relaxing overall.. saw some family friends that I hadn't seen in like 4 or 5 years, and watched at least 3 or 4 Hindi movies. My dad's laptop has a DVD burner too, so we made copies of every movie too (even the bad ones).
For Christmas, my sister and I got my parents a home entertainment audio system. Unfortunately, we couldn't get it to work with their big-screen TV, so they ended up returning it (they said they'd rather get a couch instead). Christmas was pretty good to me too - I only asked for one gift and got it - the oh-so-sacred ipod.
So then, it was off to New York City. I ended up staying in 3 different places over the next 4 nights (2 nights at my friend's uncle's house; the next night at his aunt's place, and the last night at his friend's brother's apartment). I also took every possible form of transportation: ferry, bus, train, subway! It was a pretty fun trip overall. Got to meet some new people, see some people I hadn't seen in awhile, and ring in the new year NYC-style!
For New Year's, we went to my sister's place for a pre-pre-party, a high school friend's penthouse suite for the pre-party, the No Idea bar for open bar (including champagne toast at midnight), and finally to a karaoke bar to welcome in 2006.
Spent the first week (from the 21st til the 28th) at my parents' house in Virginia. Pretty relaxing overall.. saw some family friends that I hadn't seen in like 4 or 5 years, and watched at least 3 or 4 Hindi movies. My dad's laptop has a DVD burner too, so we made copies of every movie too (even the bad ones).
For Christmas, my sister and I got my parents a home entertainment audio system. Unfortunately, we couldn't get it to work with their big-screen TV, so they ended up returning it (they said they'd rather get a couch instead). Christmas was pretty good to me too - I only asked for one gift and got it - the oh-so-sacred ipod.
So then, it was off to New York City. I ended up staying in 3 different places over the next 4 nights (2 nights at my friend's uncle's house; the next night at his aunt's place, and the last night at his friend's brother's apartment). I also took every possible form of transportation: ferry, bus, train, subway! It was a pretty fun trip overall. Got to meet some new people, see some people I hadn't seen in awhile, and ring in the new year NYC-style!
For New Year's, we went to my sister's place for a pre-pre-party, a high school friend's penthouse suite for the pre-party, the No Idea bar for open bar (including champagne toast at midnight), and finally to a karaoke bar to welcome in 2006.
Sunday, December 11, 2005
Office Christmas Party
Had my work Christmas party on Saturday. The company has changed a lot since last year (3 out of the 5 employees at my table were new). There were lots of new faces, especially since the people from the startup came too.
Last year's party was held at Dave & Buster's, so it was a pretty chill affair, with pool and shuffleboard.
This year, the party resembled more of a typical office Christmas party, with a country club as the venue. At first, I thought it might be kinda ghetto, since it was in a suburb 20 minutes north of work. It turned out to be a really nice place though. This year's agenda was more organized too, with speeches, a photo slideshow, and even a company sing-along!
I wonder how next year's Christmas party will be handled; I hope that even after the split, the two companies will still have social events together.
Last year's party was held at Dave & Buster's, so it was a pretty chill affair, with pool and shuffleboard.
This year, the party resembled more of a typical office Christmas party, with a country club as the venue. At first, I thought it might be kinda ghetto, since it was in a suburb 20 minutes north of work. It turned out to be a really nice place though. This year's agenda was more organized too, with speeches, a photo slideshow, and even a company sing-along!
I wonder how next year's Christmas party will be handled; I hope that even after the split, the two companies will still have social events together.
Thursday, December 08, 2005
Year-end Musings
I love this time of year, with all the parties and the chilly weather and the holiday movies on TV and the two weeks off. It's great.
It's been an interesting year overall, and next year (and the next few years for that matter) should hold even more surprises and unexpected turns.
I'm going to start working at a new company in January with many of the same people that I've been working with for the past 1.5 years. This was something that was brought to my attention only a month ago, but I think it's for the better. The new company will focus primarily on commercial customers, and I'm looking forward to learning how a successful startup is run.
I also hope to start flying lessons in February or March, when the weather gets a little nicer, and I have more money ;)
It's been an interesting year overall, and next year (and the next few years for that matter) should hold even more surprises and unexpected turns.
I'm going to start working at a new company in January with many of the same people that I've been working with for the past 1.5 years. This was something that was brought to my attention only a month ago, but I think it's for the better. The new company will focus primarily on commercial customers, and I'm looking forward to learning how a successful startup is run.
I also hope to start flying lessons in February or March, when the weather gets a little nicer, and I have more money ;)
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