October 15, 2008
Has anyone else received this email? My spam filter is easily fooled, I guess:
From: Tax_Refund@IRS.gov
Subject: IRS : Tax refund value is $252.60
Date: October 15, 2008 9:46:17 AM PDT
To: undisclosed-recipients: ;
Reply-To: do-not-reply@IRS.gov
Dear Applicant:
After the last annual calculations of your fiscal activity we have determined that you are eligible to receive a tax refund under section 501(c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Tax refund value is $252.60.
Please submit the tax refund request and allow us 3-6 days in order to IWP the data received.
▪ If you distribute funds to other organization, your records must show wether they are exempt under section 497 (c) (15). In cases where the recipient org. is not exempt under section 497 (c) (15), you must have evidence the funds will be used for section 497 (c) (15) purposes.
▪ If you distribute fund to individuals, you should keep case histories showing the recipient’s name and address; the purpose of the award; the maner of section; and the realtionship of the recipient to any of your officers, directors, trustees, members, or major contributors.
To access the form for your tax refund, please click here
This notification has been sent by the Internal Revenue Service,
a bureau of the Department of the Treasury.
Sincerely Yours,
Director, Exempt. Organization
Rulings and Agreements Letter
Internal Revenue Service
Note:
▪ If you received this message in your SPAM/BULK folder, that is because of the restrictions implemented by your ISP
▪ For security reasons, we will record your ip address, the date and time.
▪ Deliberate wrong imputs are criminally pursued and indicted.
© Copyright 2008, Internal Revenue Service U.S.A.
Obviously, inputting ANY data in the form they provided would be a mistake, as the IRS doesn’t typically evaluate your fiscal records nor contact YOU to give you a refund. File under: scam, spam and too good to be true.
October 14, 2008
Wow. I was having a really bad morning plagued with doubts, insecurities and a desperate need not to be at work/around negative people so we decided that the solution to my problem was to eat the rest of my birthday cake. There was about a quarter of a round, three-layer cake left and so I dug in.
Someday, I thought, I’ll learn that eating sweets is not the answer. “Someday” might be today…. I’ve had too much cake. But at least my mind’s in a different place now. A really sugared-up, distracted sort of place, but a wholly different place.
October 13, 2008
on Major Announcements: we’ve had a wedding, a new baby has been born, another baby is in gestation, and two engagements have been announced. That’s this year alone. At least all the actual events will occur next year. In the meantime, I have to be sure to have travel money to attend the baby’s birth, vacation time for nannying (this is my best friend/practically sister, after all), and travel money for at least one of the two weddings to the MidWest which looks to be $500-$700 for airfare alone. My pocketbook weeps. At least it weeps in a lovely new bag?
on all things lips: no more lip gloss, lip color, lip stains, lip balms, lip anything may be purchased, acquired or brought home. Not even if it’s free. Not even if it sits up and begs, with puppy dog eyes. Which would be weird, and all the more reason to leave it there.
on negativity: Monday is bring the dog to work day, summer weather is leaving us for a whole five days before we see the 90s again and I have a brand new fuzzy sweatshirt for just the occasion, I’m having delicious chicken-pasta-tomato basil soups for lunch. Also, ten fingers, ten toes, full mental (ok, arguable) capacity, and enough mobility to get around. I have every reason to be happy!
on cruising slickdeals.net “just looking” at electronics deals: duh.
October 12, 2008
My darling friend is curled up asleep as I scan my next to last batch of files. I’m calling it quits here because I feel bad that she’s been hosting me for the last 3.5 hours on Leg Two of the Scan-a-thon. Planning on treating her to dinner, if she’ll let me. In the meantime, a seven-day spending report:
Monday: $6 lunch, necessary but unsatisfying. A shame, but I hadn’t any time to grocery shop over the weekend. C’est la vie.
Tuesday: Managed some leftovers, and received both the latter half of the $400 I loaned my dad, and another $130 in reimbursements for some of their spending. Notice that he’s been a lot more on the ball with that sort of thing.
Wednesday: $3.79 sandwich, quite satisfying. There’s a place we can get enormous burritos and sandwiches which are totally worth the price [the sandwiches even come with sprouts as part of their extensive veggie selection] but if I eat there too often, my stomach gets accustomed to their serving sizes.
Thursday: office lunch to belatedly celebrate my birthday. That evening, shopping [$17.68, two white tank tops] and a dinner to see an out of town friend cost and $11 after tax and tip. I had a coconut veggie curry at PF Cheng’s and was pleasantly surprised. Was also quite pleased that my friend “stole” my order option of the Szechwan tofu and broccoli because it was hothothot. Received another lovely purse, this time a green and olive tote by NineWest that I cannot locate a picture of to share. Nonetheless, it’s lovely and holds everything I need in a day, and is smaller and lighter than the red leather behemoth I’ve been toting. Note on the tank tops: I probably could have gotten them at Old Navy for cheaper but I already knew that these tops fit perfectly. Coupled with the need to find skirts for friend before dinner, we didn’t have time to waste. Y’all should be impressed: we checked three stores, bought two items each, and were on our way to dinner within 20 minutes.
Friday: Leftovers for lunch, went straight home after work and stayed there: no spending!
Saturday: Lots of spending – $11, eyebrows: they look smashing now. Previously: awful.
$13, hair cut: not so smashing. She cut it too short and didn’t manage the bangs well. Am glad I have nearly two weeks before anything important.
$9, soups and pasta at the grocery store. These will make for some very cheap lunches this week. The Progresso veggie soups will be bases, combined with penne pasta, either in the soup or separately, and chicken. We’ve been getting whole chickens for about 79 cents a pound, so for a dollar/can of soup, and < $1 per serving of chicken, the lunches will be something like $3 per. I might get some broccoli to throw in the pasta or soup midweek as well.
Sunday: No spending of money, spent time working on work-stuff, helping a friend with homework, and scanning. I’ve a pile a foot high ready for shredding. Sweet!
All in all, about $71 in personal spending all week. And the eyebrows were totally worth it. The hair? Not so much.
October 8, 2008
So if colleagues are wearing something like this (no sparkles, though):
or this:
Is it really so bad that I want to wear this? (It’s a t-shirt.)
I know, I know. One unprofessional outfit should not beget another. But my new shirt is so cute. Can you see the radish that was ninja-starred right in the “head”?
September 29, 2008
Some months ago, a friend and I discussed how buying banks is currently A Bad Idea. Considering Wamu had dropped to about $12/share, it definitely seemed like banks were in for a wild ride. Friend recently confessed to buying more financials: more Wamu, Citigroup, Wachovia, Amex. Given our conversation and conviction with which “banks are bad” was previously stated, I couldn’t resist ribbing Friend today.
Revanche: Did you hear about Citi + Wachovia?
Friend: Don’t remind me about Citi + Wachovia.
R: Why, isn’t this a good thing? Doesn’t this mean at least one set of stocks won’t be worthless? *blink blink*
F: I hate you.
R: Hey, good news: current bailout plan voted down! (Friend was unhappy about the bailout.)
F: Hm, modified bailout (less money) will probably come up for vote soon. Maybe they’re waiting for my financials portfolio to become insolvent first.
R: That’s not going to take long. Are you really going to hold on to them?
F: What choice do I have?
R: Do you have a good reason to hold on? “Hope” isn’t really a strong strategy.
F: Locking in my losses isn’t a good strategy, either. Any other advice, Ms. Buffett?
R: My logic sucks less than yours, Wamu.
F: Grrr…..
I wanted to point out that selling at a loss and having a tax credit seems better than having more worthless stock (a la the Wamu shares) at the end of the day. Buuut I think Friend was no longer in the mood to chat. And what do I know, anyway? I don’t play in the stock market.
September 19, 2008
What does it say about my sense of money when my reaction to this was: ooh! A bowl of ramen? Yummy!
Ohhhh. Pack of ramen. Bad raise. I get it.
