60+ year old thread.

Good eye! It’s a 1648 MV when I put the duck blind on it then the trac fills up. That picture is a couple years old. I have a new Yamaha 25 on it. Got rid of that pig of a 40 that was on it. Ran great but with no TT if was hell tilting it up when needed.

 

I like the 1648 MV for the river and running rapids, but the 1654 FB with the normal Jon boat hull is a great boat to fish out of.
Used to fish out of V hulls, but being up on the narrow bow in shallow water and having to jump onto shore got old, SO nice to be able to just step right onto land from the bow of those Jon boats.

 

It turns out that the tax problem was a software problem, not a state tax problem. I went through the laborious process of doing a married-filing-separately file for my dad, and when TurboTax got to the state section it STILL barfed. So I went back to the very beginning, this time putting my mom's name in first, and did another joint tax return. Presto! But still, gee TurboTax couldn't you just tell me that when I hit the 'deceased in 2020' checkbox? Save me some time??

I'm typing this by braille method because I can't see a lot. Had my first cataract surgery today. The surgery was no big deal but they supersize your pupil for it, and I'm super-sensitive to dilation, and so even though I've been home for hours I can't hardly see a thing out of that eye. We swung by the optometrist on the way home and had them put a faux lens in that side of my eyeglasses, so I will still be able to use them until I get the other eye done in a few weeks. People keep telling me good stories about getting cataracts removed so I'm looking forward to the whole thing being over and getting to that 'good story' part.

I saw some chat about colons back there earlier. But it's all behind me now. Seriously, my dad had colon cancer and wound up with an ostomy bag at age 59. He only lived for 34 more full, active, happy years.

 

The newer pellet grills can achieve a temperature of 600 degrees. Bring the internal temp os the steaks up to 105 degrees, remove them from the grill, put in a set of grill grates then up the temp to 600 for the sear marks.

I too am a Weber guy. I have 3 of them. Sounds like you have a first generation Smoke Fire. The second generation Smoke Fire took care of the problems. Weber was offering replacement parts at no charge. You might want to look to Weber to see if the replacement part offer is still in effect. I will probably purchase a Smoke Fire because it can get up to 600 degrees. None of the lesser priced pellet grill can get into that temperature range. If you have not looked into setting up the grill properly check out Harry Soo's Youtube channel. He cooks a ;lot of fantastic meals with the Smoke Fire. (2) Harry Soo - YouTube

 

Got my first dose Pfizer vaccine shot yesterday, hospital has a drive through they made it so easy and I had no wait. No side effects today, injection site arm is only very slightly tender really don’t even notice it doesn’t hurt at all.

 

That is a purty truck Ken!

 

So is yours Kurt. I just went through your build “album” and WOW! Very impressive, lot of work but it looks like a labor of love. Well done. Mine is mostly stock but it’s a TRD 4x4 edition and came with most everything I wanted. I had a shell put on (I sleep in the back on many of my hunting/fishing trips), bull bar, off road lights and auxiliary back up lights. Put bilstein shocks on it and upgraded rear leaf springs. Hercules Terra Trac AT’s. I want to put a light bar on the front, thinking of mounting it on top of the bull bar. I want more light when driving down back country dirt roads at night.

 

It has been a labor of love and accidental "did I just do that?" If I'd known some of the folks I know now back than, I might have found a 4WD, but I'm just as happy not running around breaking stuff like my younger friends. It will go darn near anywhere, and I really like just county road trails more than the on-purpose off road abuse!

 

the nice thing about a 200K, decade + old truck is that once you do something, and you know it doesn't hurt it, it's something you can actually enjoy working on!

 

I usually have some glitch due to TurboTax. It's always something on their end. Maybe because I file early and they don't yet know about that comma, extra space, no space, syntax error, whatever. I always hold my breath until my returns are accepted. This year it worked great.. or maybe I just got used to it.

 

Good Morning folks.
My experience with turbo tax was always a good one until I screwed up and got audited. Got a CPA to straighten it out and have used one ever since. The money it cost is minimal when getting a refund. They are supposed to launch a Space X rocket tonight at 8 and we should be able to see it from our beach (if its not called off because of expected rain tonight). Time will tell. 11 more days and we head home to the homestead. Fortunately we get our second shot on the 7th before we leave.
Hope you all have a great day. As always be safe and careful.

 

Thank you for the all the C19 shot updates. You guys are the best.

 

Good morning, all!!

 

Morning all:
TAXES , I take mine to a tax preparer who is reasonable.
I recently gave her everything needed for my 2020 taxes, THEN I receive an amended statement, that's the second time that has happened!

 

Good morning all,

I have been using a CPA ever since I went into business for myself. I do my monthly and quarterly filing and estimated tax payments to state and fed but she set all that up and everything I do is online with the two entities so I can pre populate and set dates of distribution which makes it so easy. My CPA takes a copy of my QuickBooks and 1099's I send out plus she has access to all my tax accounts so it is easy for her and cheap for me - not to mention ease of mind it is done right and backed by her agency. Already filed as nothing to claim in 2020 and refund is being processed as I write.

Cold morning yet going to get into the low 40's today before the next storm rolls in. Snow & Ice is slowly melting so mud season right around the corner then late spring.

We have two new neighbors moving in, the place to the north of us was a second home and rented out as a weekend escape - glad that is over with. Can't believe the final sale price - the owners were asking $375K, sold for $400K and is only a two Bedroom, one bath no basement and detached two car garage. The house across the street sold for $550K - no views, boxed in with no buffer lots. We purchased the lot south of us (2.95 acres and highest lot in neighborhood with a great view of the western slope of Pikes Peak) and the lot directly north of us is part of the new neighbors purchase. Makes me wonder what our property is worth now. I would say sell and collect the profits but with prices rising around here where would we go? We have considered Idaho - central - where property is still reasonable as it is hard to get to. No major interstates so California and Texas influx has not bumped those property prices like northern Idaho and western Montana. But then reality slaps me in the face, all of Alice's family are on the east coast and we are not getting any younger.

No offense to our Californian and Texas friends here it is just a fact that the influx has raised property prices in key areas with easy access.

Good morning all - be safe

 

On the other hand they are a great way to do your taxes.

My brother talked me into using an accountant he uses, after I'd used Turbotax for several years, and the bill was $800. I did the taxes on Turbotax and the difference in final result was $15 in my favor with Turbotax.

I told the accountant to stick it. But my brother pays it gladly and refuses to learn. One of those guys that likes to brag about how much money he spends.

 

What camper shells are you guys running? I was reading up on how many people experience leaks. I can deal with a little (let the water have a place to run out) but thinking raised bed (storage underneath) and footwell, tiny galley (dry place to make coffee). Shipbuilding (water-resistant, lightweight).

I have my recumbent trike that will normally be transported back there. I can pull out when sleeping, otherwise secured while on the road. Blue Ridge Parkway, Katy Trail, and Northern Arkansas bike loops (400 - 700 multiday rides) still on the bucket list.

Covid - Got my second Maderna vaccine Satuday. Sore arm, worked out yesterday in the gym. The arm is fine; I still need to fix my knees (I'll try fluid injections before replacing both). I've given up running, walking/hiking, and cycling. Swimming when it gets warmer.

I hear you on property values. I'm near Austin, TX. Just insane to watch houses. Kids paid $250K two years ago. The same house today is $380K. Insane. I lucked out in finding a "fixer-upper" in 2001. The market crashed, three-bedroom. Remarried with four kids. We tore into the 1800 sq ft house. It had a 700 sq ft garage, so poured the slab level, had a mason locate brick the match the rest, and divided it into two bedrooms, a mudroom, and a small office area. Added 3/4 bath. 2500 sq ft 5 bedroom. 1.5 acres. Added a pool and detached 1,500 sq ft garage with 80 sq ft office space. Twenty years later, we are empty-nesters, time to downsize but to stay in the area has gotten crazy. We have about $350K in the house, needs a little TLC, but probably worth $700K. First, out of college, I worked in San Jose, CA. My old boss tried to talk me into buying a four-bedroom for $80K. I was making $36,000 a year (good money back then), so he explained if I had three roommates paying $600 a month and an $1800 mortgage, the house would pay for itself (my portion going into repairs/taxes). It made sense, but I took a job in Germany (Automotive Electronics). Five years later, that house for $400K, but I moved to Portland as the house was $121K (1991). We haven't seen wages keep up with housing, so a huge squeeze on our kids.

 

WOW, don't let that rate get out. I only paid $550 for business and accompanying personal filing and that incudes business Form 1120-S (5 pages) Schedule K-1 (3 pages), Form 8879-S (1 page), Form 1102S (1 page), Form 4562 (1 page), Form 1120S (3 pages) and electronic filing for both business & personal.

I do have to admit when I set up my business it did cost me more initially to get everything in line where I do the monthly and quarterly filings and payments so I really only use her for questions on changes as the business income varies due to the nature of my business and year end filing for a LLC-S corporation. When I was employed I always completed my own taxes but a business is a whole different animal, I do not have time to educate myself on the annual changes and time to fill out all these forms.

There are a lot of good software packages out there now to use. I haven't found one that can adjust with the ebb-n-flow of my business yet. Heck $550 is cheaper than my Annual CAD subscription and is still a write-off.

 

It is amazing to me that more people aren't fleeing the cities due to economic reasons. Especially entrepreneurs. In my town you can buy a nice home for less than 200K, a commercial property to start a business for 10% of what it costs in an urban environment, and you will still make at least half of what an urban location will generate. The costs are low enough to more than make up for any loss in income. Taxes are lower, few people lock their doors, and the kids play safely in the streets.

I bought my retirement home for less than 50K and it needed some work, but I moved right in. Taxes are $50 a month and the county gives it all back if you are retired and apply.