Well I recently bought a new TV, and now it is time to have the old one hauled away.
Just as background, the old TV is a 52 inch rear projection model. Bulky, yes. But immovable? No. My wife and I can easily push this thing anywhwere we need it to go.
The first thing I do is check my township's rules on what they will take at the curb. After reading every brochure they sent to me and reviewing the web site, I know I am going to need to pay extra to have this TV hauled away. The township sells bulk item tags for large things like couches and refrigerators. I check my files and note that I don't have any bulk item tags. Actually I do have a bunch but they all have past due expiration dates on them. Funny how money and credit can actually expire with some organizations. Whatever. I digress.
So per the instuctions of my township, I call Waste Management. A very nice lady on the phone helps me to schedule the pick-up for one projection television. This goes down with no problem. They advise me to affix a $10 bulk item tag for pickup. Understood.
Since I have no legitimate bulk item tags, I run down to the township building to get one.
I walk in to the township office. "Can I help you?" says the lovely lady behind the desk.
"Yes, I’d like to buy a bulk item tag please."
A brief pause. It is very brief, but long enough to make me uncomfortable about my request.
"What are you throwing away?"
"A television," I reply. "What kind of a question is that?" I think to myself.
Another brief pause. "How big is it?"
"52 inch," I said.
Another pause. The woman shakes her head slowly. She gives me a look as if I should already know what’s coming. She's giving me the "not gonna happen" eyes.
"I’m sorry sir. The largest TV we can authorize is 44 INCHES."
Pause.
"It’s in our contract not to take anything bigger. It’s always been that way, even with Vogel [the previous garbage collector before Waste Management]." She pulls out a binder and points to a printed table of what they can and cannot collect.
"You’ll need to contact Waste Management to see if they have a service that you can pay for independently, or call around to find the best price for hauling that TV away."
So by now I'm getting kind of upset. I took time out of my day to make a special trip to the township building to buy a tag for an item that Waste Management is expecting to pick up at my house tomorrow. And now I've been denied said tag.
I made some kind of remark that included the number 44 and the word arbitrary. I was getting slightly heated and I think the lovely lady was sensing that, but I quickly calmed down and wished her a pleasant day.
From the township building, I got back on the phone with Waste Management. A friendly female voice answers the phone. I identify myself and ask if they could still take the TV despite the township contract.
"Sir, could you please hold?"
"OK, sure."
About five minutes later, which seemed like an eternity, the friendly voice returns.
"Sir, if you take the TV apart and put the pieces it in a box or boxes that way no more than 40 pounds each, then put the $10 tag on one of the boxes, we will take it."
I could not believe my ears. At this point, I cancel the pickup, citing that I don't know when I will have time to dismantle a projection television.
I told my wife of this conversation and she could only laugh. You see, the exact same thing happened to me over a couch in another township about 14 years ago. My garbage company would not take my couch, so my solution back then was to take a hand saw and a hack saw to the couch, break it into pieces, and bag the pieces and put the bags to the curb.
Other folks that I talk to have had similar experiences with our township and all their crazy rules on what they will and will not take. Some of their rules are no doubt legit, but why does it seem like we're always on the wrong side of the contract? PITA!!!
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Monday, June 7, 2010
sleepless Sue in Berlin
For Sue, who is sleepless in Berlin. I wrote this a few years ago when just getting started with social media. You probably didn't see it then, but it's worth repeating:
May 21, 2007
Today it occurred to me, not for the first time, that I owe a big thanks to Sue.
21 is such a formative age. There are so many choices you can make at that age that could easily shape the rest of your life.
Sue and I had lots of classes together in college. I liked Sue because she was intelligent, competitive, and motivated to succeed, moreso than most college-aged kids I knew at the time.
And thank goodness she was so motivated. I tended to follow Sue as she blazed a trail early in her career. I was a beneficiary of her early work experience, as she introduced me to many early career opportunities.
There was a time when I thought I could be a teacher, and so I followed Sue through a teaching assistant program and taught math for four sememsters. This turned out to be a great experience for me because it gave me public speaking experience, and forced me to improve my organizational skills. I also made some good friends in the program.
There was a time when I was looking for a summer job, so Sue put in a good word for me and I landed my first tech job at the university. I learned a great deal about technology and I gained valuable skills that I still use today.
Upon graduation, I sought out the private company that had also hired Sue out of college, and I was fortunate that they hired me. I spent many years there learning the business of software development. I made many new friends, too, whom I still hang out with today.
I am where I am today largely because of the choices available to me in my early career. So thanks Sue. I wonder where I would be today if I had not known you.
May 21, 2007
Today it occurred to me, not for the first time, that I owe a big thanks to Sue.
21 is such a formative age. There are so many choices you can make at that age that could easily shape the rest of your life.
Sue and I had lots of classes together in college. I liked Sue because she was intelligent, competitive, and motivated to succeed, moreso than most college-aged kids I knew at the time.
And thank goodness she was so motivated. I tended to follow Sue as she blazed a trail early in her career. I was a beneficiary of her early work experience, as she introduced me to many early career opportunities.
There was a time when I thought I could be a teacher, and so I followed Sue through a teaching assistant program and taught math for four sememsters. This turned out to be a great experience for me because it gave me public speaking experience, and forced me to improve my organizational skills. I also made some good friends in the program.
There was a time when I was looking for a summer job, so Sue put in a good word for me and I landed my first tech job at the university. I learned a great deal about technology and I gained valuable skills that I still use today.
Upon graduation, I sought out the private company that had also hired Sue out of college, and I was fortunate that they hired me. I spent many years there learning the business of software development. I made many new friends, too, whom I still hang out with today.
I am where I am today largely because of the choices available to me in my early career. So thanks Sue. I wonder where I would be today if I had not known you.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
a ride in the life
This is an example of what goes on in my head in the car. Inspired by W. Kowalski; I think he posted a similar stream-of-conscience-while-driving note awhile ago on FB.
This is a 30 minute continuous drive, reduced to a handful of discrete thoughts, reduced further to a handful of words.
(Car start)
WHOA! Never saw the oil pressure light flicker like that before. A rapid, random progression of flashing red. It's off as quickly as it flashed on. Maybe it was a message in Morse code. Don't know Morse code, but would bet the message was I NEED OIL!
Oh joy. Now the Check Engine light is on. At least it is solidly lit. What a dumb name for an idiot light. Check Engine. Do you suppose if I got out and checked the engine, it might be MIA? Need to cover that little light with a piece of electrical tape.
The spiral descent out of the parking garage makes me feel like I'm driving down a big piece of dry rotini pasta.
Even if this is the "city of bridges", there are simply not enough river crossings in downtown. Major highways merge together right before a bridge for the sole purpose of sharing the bridge, then split apart after the crossing. And it seems like the majority of bridge traffic needs to change lanes while on the bridge. Who designs this stuff? Must be the same people who put on-ramps and off-ramps right before each tunnel.
Hey there's a truck from that plumbing company we hired. That was way too expensive to swap out a bathroom faucet. Next time it will be DIY.
Ooh cool the WPXI helicopter blades are rotating as it sits on it's pad.
Dee Thompson gets the crappiest assignments from their news directors. They always shuffle his ass out to the most remote corners of the viewing area to cover the most mundane stories. Haven't seen him in awhile. Is he still on channel 11?
WHOA (again!): 30 gallon Rubbermaid trash can bouncing and rolling on its side towards me. Fortunately it's in the far right lane! OK! Glad I was in the far left.
You bastard. Cut me off in the left lane? Bastard!
Engine sounds kind of like a lawnmower. Yeah, better add oil soon.
Sometimes Hannity sounds like a shrill whiner. Sometimes. He's talking about health care. We need to get this right. Costs are way out of control. Something is out of whack, but I'm pretty sure I don't want a government solution.
Why the F does PennDOT block off miles upon miles of perfectly usable highway?
Better get over to the right lane. Apparently 75 in a 55 is not fast enough for some of my fellow suburbanites.
Oh crap. Forgot to text Ed about Pens game.
No dek hockey going on at the I-279 DekStar hockey dek. Why is the dek in dek hockey not spelled with a C in the work dek?
Wonder who will run on the Republican ticket for president in 2012? Palin? Condi? Hip is in, so the Republicans will need to "out hip" the incumbent, somehow.
Darn it's hot in here. Guess we can turn down the heat that we had blaring from this morning.
That bastard is passing me. But again? When did I pass him?
Loving the redesign of the I-79/I-279 merge point. Maybe they could let these engineers solve the bridge problems dahntahn (that's Pittsburghese for downtown).
Too many commercials on talk radio. Time to flip around the radio dial.
Country? Nope. Flip.
More country? Nope. Wait that's the same song that was just on the last country station. What are the odds? Flip.
Classic rock? Eh. Flip. Southern rock? Eh. Flip. Rolling Stones? Eh. Flip.
Oooh, the Jesus channel. Not really in the mood. Flip.
Reach out and touch faith. Personal Jesus? Ironic to find this after the Christian channel. I think this is Depeche Mode. Will do for now.
Well, maybe not. Keep flippin'.
Oh this sucks. Flip.
Sucky. Flip.
WHOA (yet again!): an 8 foot section of 4 by 4 on the ground, laying across my lane. Easy for me to avoid, but not the case for the guy behind me. Oops. He didn't see it in time. Ran right over it but it didn't seem to slow him down at all.
More construction. It's getting old.
Hey - no cop at the usual spot in Cranberry Township. Proceed at 75.
Fiip. Flip. Flip. She's a maniac maaaaniac. Eh, Pass.
Total eclipse of the heart. Turn around, bright eyes... oh that SUCKS! Flip.
Who listens to BOB-FM? Amazing it stays alive.
Flip. Ah, Queen. Bohemian Rhapsody. Love it. He's just a poor boy from a poor family/Spare him his life from this monstrosity.
Will never be able to listen to this song without thinking about Wayne's World.
My exit coming up. Finally.
Flip. Rap.
Flip. Suck.
Flip. Metallica. They get so much air time nowadays. So different than from 1986.
The best radio in Pittsburgh is out of Youngstown, Ohio. 93.3 FM. The WOLF.
There's the lawnmower sound again. I'm now a bit more worried about that.
Ichiban Steakhouse! Would love to have dinner there again. Wonder how the kids would do there? Would they sit though it? They might like the culinary performance, but would they eat the food there? Do they have a Japanese steakhouse happy meal?
Gas prices are up.
More Metallica. Must be a "double shot" or two-for-Tuesday deal on this station.
(Car stop)
This is a 30 minute continuous drive, reduced to a handful of discrete thoughts, reduced further to a handful of words.
(Car start)
WHOA! Never saw the oil pressure light flicker like that before. A rapid, random progression of flashing red. It's off as quickly as it flashed on. Maybe it was a message in Morse code. Don't know Morse code, but would bet the message was I NEED OIL!
Oh joy. Now the Check Engine light is on. At least it is solidly lit. What a dumb name for an idiot light. Check Engine. Do you suppose if I got out and checked the engine, it might be MIA? Need to cover that little light with a piece of electrical tape.
The spiral descent out of the parking garage makes me feel like I'm driving down a big piece of dry rotini pasta.
Even if this is the "city of bridges", there are simply not enough river crossings in downtown. Major highways merge together right before a bridge for the sole purpose of sharing the bridge, then split apart after the crossing. And it seems like the majority of bridge traffic needs to change lanes while on the bridge. Who designs this stuff? Must be the same people who put on-ramps and off-ramps right before each tunnel.
Hey there's a truck from that plumbing company we hired. That was way too expensive to swap out a bathroom faucet. Next time it will be DIY.
Ooh cool the WPXI helicopter blades are rotating as it sits on it's pad.
Dee Thompson gets the crappiest assignments from their news directors. They always shuffle his ass out to the most remote corners of the viewing area to cover the most mundane stories. Haven't seen him in awhile. Is he still on channel 11?
WHOA (again!): 30 gallon Rubbermaid trash can bouncing and rolling on its side towards me. Fortunately it's in the far right lane! OK! Glad I was in the far left.
You bastard. Cut me off in the left lane? Bastard!
Engine sounds kind of like a lawnmower. Yeah, better add oil soon.
Sometimes Hannity sounds like a shrill whiner. Sometimes. He's talking about health care. We need to get this right. Costs are way out of control. Something is out of whack, but I'm pretty sure I don't want a government solution.
Why the F does PennDOT block off miles upon miles of perfectly usable highway?
Better get over to the right lane. Apparently 75 in a 55 is not fast enough for some of my fellow suburbanites.
Oh crap. Forgot to text Ed about Pens game.
No dek hockey going on at the I-279 DekStar hockey dek. Why is the dek in dek hockey not spelled with a C in the work dek?
Wonder who will run on the Republican ticket for president in 2012? Palin? Condi? Hip is in, so the Republicans will need to "out hip" the incumbent, somehow.
Darn it's hot in here. Guess we can turn down the heat that we had blaring from this morning.
That bastard is passing me. But again? When did I pass him?
Loving the redesign of the I-79/I-279 merge point. Maybe they could let these engineers solve the bridge problems dahntahn (that's Pittsburghese for downtown).
Too many commercials on talk radio. Time to flip around the radio dial.
Country? Nope. Flip.
More country? Nope. Wait that's the same song that was just on the last country station. What are the odds? Flip.
Classic rock? Eh. Flip. Southern rock? Eh. Flip. Rolling Stones? Eh. Flip.
Oooh, the Jesus channel. Not really in the mood. Flip.
Reach out and touch faith. Personal Jesus? Ironic to find this after the Christian channel. I think this is Depeche Mode. Will do for now.
Well, maybe not. Keep flippin'.
Oh this sucks. Flip.
Sucky. Flip.
WHOA (yet again!): an 8 foot section of 4 by 4 on the ground, laying across my lane. Easy for me to avoid, but not the case for the guy behind me. Oops. He didn't see it in time. Ran right over it but it didn't seem to slow him down at all.
More construction. It's getting old.
Hey - no cop at the usual spot in Cranberry Township. Proceed at 75.
Fiip. Flip. Flip. She's a maniac maaaaniac. Eh, Pass.
Total eclipse of the heart. Turn around, bright eyes... oh that SUCKS! Flip.
Who listens to BOB-FM? Amazing it stays alive.
Flip. Ah, Queen. Bohemian Rhapsody. Love it. He's just a poor boy from a poor family/Spare him his life from this monstrosity.
Will never be able to listen to this song without thinking about Wayne's World.
My exit coming up. Finally.
Flip. Rap.
Flip. Suck.
Flip. Metallica. They get so much air time nowadays. So different than from 1986.
The best radio in Pittsburgh is out of Youngstown, Ohio. 93.3 FM. The WOLF.
There's the lawnmower sound again. I'm now a bit more worried about that.
Ichiban Steakhouse! Would love to have dinner there again. Wonder how the kids would do there? Would they sit though it? They might like the culinary performance, but would they eat the food there? Do they have a Japanese steakhouse happy meal?
Gas prices are up.
More Metallica. Must be a "double shot" or two-for-Tuesday deal on this station.
(Car stop)
Thursday, June 11, 2009
funny feeling
Today, in a moment of introspection, I was overcome with emotion as I had a vision of my mother meeting my son for the first time. I've never experienced a feeling like this before. At that moment, it felt like my heart skipped a beat. I have heard people use that expression before but never fully appreciated it until today. And during this moment, for just two seconds, I could not breathe. I felt like I was suffocating. It was beautiful and scary all at the same time. I suspect Mary-Alice has had similar feelings at times, maybe even more frequently.
Friday, April 24, 2009
Classlessness
I'm not even sure if classlessness is an A-OK word in English. I hope it is because how often do you get to write a word with three pairs of the letter S?
Regardless, today I just want to brieflly comment on classlessness. Specifically, the classlessness displayed by Philadelphia Flyers fans in games 3 and 4 of the NHL Eastern Conference quarterfinal playoff series against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
I've been going to Penguin games for over thirty years. Not once have I ever heard a crowd at Mellon Arena chant in unison the name-calling and vulgarities that are so commonly spewed forth by the Flyer fan collective. When I hear it, it takes me back to second grade. CROSBY SUCKS! CROSBY SUCKS! Twenty thousand people saying CROSBY SUCKS!
Two words Philly: grow up.
I can't pretend to understand this. Maybe it's out of jealousy. Maybe it's anger. Whatever. I know there are smart people in Philadelphia, but the intelligence just seems to give way to mob-like behavior, especially this time of year, in the building formerly known as the F-U Center. Ah, such is the way of the Broad Street. I guess they are just a different kind of animal.
Regardless, today I just want to brieflly comment on classlessness. Specifically, the classlessness displayed by Philadelphia Flyers fans in games 3 and 4 of the NHL Eastern Conference quarterfinal playoff series against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
I've been going to Penguin games for over thirty years. Not once have I ever heard a crowd at Mellon Arena chant in unison the name-calling and vulgarities that are so commonly spewed forth by the Flyer fan collective. When I hear it, it takes me back to second grade. CROSBY SUCKS! CROSBY SUCKS! Twenty thousand people saying CROSBY SUCKS!
Two words Philly: grow up.
I can't pretend to understand this. Maybe it's out of jealousy. Maybe it's anger. Whatever. I know there are smart people in Philadelphia, but the intelligence just seems to give way to mob-like behavior, especially this time of year, in the building formerly known as the F-U Center. Ah, such is the way of the Broad Street. I guess they are just a different kind of animal.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Political pissing contest
A few weeks ago a friend sent me the following link.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/paul-abrams/winning-the-economic-argu_b_167301.html
OK, I don't read the Huffington Post ever, but there's a first time for everything and I'm up for it.
This article, by Paul Abrams, attempts to defend the policy of spending our way out of a recession. Mr. Abrams makes some empirical references to FDR's New Deal and asks critics to explain the following chart (reposted here without permission):
He argues that if the New Deal was such a bad policy, why did GDP grow so rapidly during the 1930s?
I bet in high school, Mr. Abrams was taught (as was I) that FDR's New Deal saved the country from the brink of financial ruin. Now surely there were some nationwide benefits under this program. I don't think anyone could deny that the massive increases in government spending had a positive effect on GDP. Further, the nation saw an increase in the number of job opportunites and the unemployment rate shrank from 25% to 14%.
Unfortunately, when the government commits to huge spending increases, it has to raise taxes in order to pay off the debts it incurs. I believe this is where the criticisms kick in. Theoretically, it then becomes every American's burden to foot the bill for the spending spree. I say "theoretically", because today the lowest 40% of wage earners don't really pay Federal income tax after deductions.
You might have heard conservatives complain that with this new round of Obama/Pelosi/Reed legislation, "we are spending our children's and grandchildren's money". Well, they aren't saying this willy-nilly; they are making this remark based on historical facts and empirical evidence.
And now, let me step into the pissing contest. Have a look at this chart.
The data for this chart comes from the link below.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Income_tax_in_the_United_States#History_of_progressivity_in_federal_income_tax
Notice the Federal income tax rates in the post New Deal era (after 1939). As you pan from left to right, from World War II to modern day, note that the country's lowest marginal tax rate has NEVER recovered from FDR's tax hikes.
So I say to Mr. Abrams: while GDP increased, so did our marginal tax rates. It has been nearly 70 years and they have never returned to normal. Therein lies the chief complaint.
It is truly sad, because our generation is part of an era where tax obligation is a birthright; it is commonly accepted that a significant portion of our hard-earned dollars goes to the government. It wasn't always like this as you can see from the chart.
There are a few takeaways from this, but I think the biggest one is this: Once you commit to big government spending, there is effectively no way out of it. Once you're in, you're in permanently.
So with that in mind, what do you think will be the impact of the latest stimulus legislation? My guess: take a look at your Federal withholdings on your pay stub. I would venture that it is likely to double in the next four years.
And what of Obama's campaign promise of a tax cut to 95% of Americans? Answer: I just don't see it ever really materializing. Not with the kind of spending that's going on right now.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/paul-abrams/winning-the-economic-argu_b_167301.html
OK, I don't read the Huffington Post ever, but there's a first time for everything and I'm up for it.
This article, by Paul Abrams, attempts to defend the policy of spending our way out of a recession. Mr. Abrams makes some empirical references to FDR's New Deal and asks critics to explain the following chart (reposted here without permission):
He argues that if the New Deal was such a bad policy, why did GDP grow so rapidly during the 1930s?
I bet in high school, Mr. Abrams was taught (as was I) that FDR's New Deal saved the country from the brink of financial ruin. Now surely there were some nationwide benefits under this program. I don't think anyone could deny that the massive increases in government spending had a positive effect on GDP. Further, the nation saw an increase in the number of job opportunites and the unemployment rate shrank from 25% to 14%.
Unfortunately, when the government commits to huge spending increases, it has to raise taxes in order to pay off the debts it incurs. I believe this is where the criticisms kick in. Theoretically, it then becomes every American's burden to foot the bill for the spending spree. I say "theoretically", because today the lowest 40% of wage earners don't really pay Federal income tax after deductions.
You might have heard conservatives complain that with this new round of Obama/Pelosi/Reed legislation, "we are spending our children's and grandchildren's money". Well, they aren't saying this willy-nilly; they are making this remark based on historical facts and empirical evidence.
And now, let me step into the pissing contest. Have a look at this chart.
The data for this chart comes from the link below.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Income_tax_in_the_United_States#History_of_progressivity_in_federal_income_tax
Notice the Federal income tax rates in the post New Deal era (after 1939). As you pan from left to right, from World War II to modern day, note that the country's lowest marginal tax rate has NEVER recovered from FDR's tax hikes.
So I say to Mr. Abrams: while GDP increased, so did our marginal tax rates. It has been nearly 70 years and they have never returned to normal. Therein lies the chief complaint.
It is truly sad, because our generation is part of an era where tax obligation is a birthright; it is commonly accepted that a significant portion of our hard-earned dollars goes to the government. It wasn't always like this as you can see from the chart.
There are a few takeaways from this, but I think the biggest one is this: Once you commit to big government spending, there is effectively no way out of it. Once you're in, you're in permanently.
So with that in mind, what do you think will be the impact of the latest stimulus legislation? My guess: take a look at your Federal withholdings on your pay stub. I would venture that it is likely to double in the next four years.
And what of Obama's campaign promise of a tax cut to 95% of Americans? Answer: I just don't see it ever really materializing. Not with the kind of spending that's going on right now.
Friday, January 16, 2009
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