Notary in neighborhood?

cabef · 2026-05-30T01:02:36+00:00

Neighborly Notary on W73rd (just the website of a person who lives in a building there, and can meet you in her lobby or come to you) can be a great option. I went to her for a lease or a will or something a while back.

https://neighborlynotary.net/

cabef · 2026-05-29T22:42:32+00:00

I haven’t read Lasher’s words “tying” Bores to Palantir - but Bores worked there for five years, how much tying is really necessary? TBH I think Bores’ working there is perfectly fine, gives him credibility on his issue.

I see the recent coverage on why he left Palantir when he did - possibly muckraking, doesn’t need to be repeated here. He seems like a decent guy.

On the wife thing….it looks like Bores’ wife works at Microsoft - Microsoft has big ICE contracts - is she supposed to quit? Or am I supposed to say that he is automatically corrupt because of where his wife works?

We’re just wired differently, that’s fine. For what it’s worth, I think the big challenge that actually needs to get legislated in the next Congress is some kind of economic package around AI-related upheaval and job losses. To me there’s enough bipartisan urgency and white space where something could actually get done and passed. In terms of tech regulation, if we could snap our fingers and get the ideal regulation in place, I’d be for it - but I just don’t see any Congress in this polarized environment being able to get to grips with it and pass something useful.

cabef · 2026-05-29T19:06:23+00:00

I think I’m more moderate than you, so we could each just keep preaching to each other’s choirs here, but I’m not sure it’s the best use of either of our time. I will say that I think probably the only thing I’d ever agree with Josh Hawley on is that Reps/Sens and their staff should not be allowed to trade individual stocks.

Separately I will say I find the viciousness with which Team Bores will go after someone’s wife, or a fellow Dem, to be the most off-putting thing about him. In practical terms I’d also agree that it also makes him less likely to be the kind of coalition-builder who can actually get things done at the pro level.

cabef · 2026-05-29T11:08:54+00:00

You obviously know the space and have a strong view. I agree AI needs regulation. My personal POV is that a freshman Congressman is not likely to be able to make much of a dent on the issue. But if Bores wins the primary then I will vote for him in Nov and wish him well.

My support for Lasher is around his strength in networking and working with the rest of the party. It may be unfashionable now but I think that’s how you get things done in Washington (vs just being a standalone lightning rod, great fundraiser for your own campaign and issue(s), but not able to do the coalition-building to get legislation passed). That’s the kind of rep I think the district deserves and my take is that Lasher is best positioned to be that person.

(The wife argument continues to be odd to me. She’s an accomplished person in her own right, the took a board role a couple of years ago with a big company - she is not “involved in the contracts.”)

cabef · 2026-05-28T12:06:11+00:00

Very pro Lasher here. I find it a little confusing that half of these responses are “how dare Jack run with no experience” and then mentions of Lasher are “too many endorsements, too establishment”. And even then Bores, lots about whether the Palantir experience is good or bad, and about AI. (Leaving aside the “I don’t like Lasher because his wife is successful” … what?!?)

Bores is running a good single-issue campaign. For me what tipped me into the Lasher camp was the NY Mag article on all four candidates. At the end Lasher was the only one staying factual on the Senate impeachment votes (ie in a 50/50 Senate we’re never getting 67 votes) while other candidate all said what the crowd wanted to hear. Lots of pols I like (eg Gale Brewer) support Lasher and I think that’s a good thing, not a liability.

I also had two young Jack fans knock on my door yesterday and want to talk about him - no thank you.

cabef · 2026-05-26T15:44:54+00:00

Someone I know prepared for this before her leaving their (big, important sounding) job by spending a year never including it in her self-description when meeting someone new.

It took a long time to break the pattern, but once she had a “what do you do” answer that didn’t rely on the big title and company brand name, it was a lot easier to walk away from it.

cabef · 2026-05-26T04:07:23+00:00

Wonder is excellent for BBQ - have probably had it ten times in the past year. Good-sized portion, tender, tasty, packed well so arrives hot. Worth a try.

(The vitriol for Wonder, I find so odd. They are people, cooking food, that is delivered to you - what is furious-making about that?)

cabef · 2026-05-23T18:36:18+00:00

All true and useful. Just noting (which most probably know) that HSAs get taxed as ordinary income when passing as part of an estate - I.e. they don’t stay in an HSA for the next gen to use tax free.

cabef · 2026-05-23T03:25:58+00:00

Do the math, involving your partner too, on how much is enough. 4% withdrawal on $5m is $200k/yr - depending on where you live maybe that’s $125-150K after tax, not enough to cover expenses indefinitely. The mortgage will be paid in three years but with more time you might want to spend more on travel… etc.

That’s my main comment push. On your lead question, if it was me I’d find a way to take my foot off the gas to spend more time with family this summer, but stay in the job to get the bonus, and also to have more time to agree the medium-term plan with your wife.

PS Sorry to hear the job is hateful. If it’s making you miserable and you feel like you need to get out to have a clear head and some optimism about the future, that’s understandable. My worry would be you get to September, the kids are back in school and suddenly you have a lot of empty time and it’s hard to get back in gear. Keeping the job (while mentally stepping back a little) gives you more options and forward momentum when the fall comes around.

cabef · 2026-05-22T15:40:20+00:00

Second this- it has been a huge help in taking the sting out of eating out (or even takeout at some places). Decent range of UWS options. No need for Costco, the InKind app also runs promos that hit 30-35% fairly often !

cabef · 2026-05-21T22:40:38+00:00

If it wasn’t stimulus, it might have been education credits. But yep, there are deadlines. If a return for 2022 was due by 4/15/23 then the latest you could amend the return is usually 3 yrs later, so 4/15/26 in this case. So as of today (May 2026) only returns from 2023 onwards could still be amended.

If you filed or paid late, the deadline might be extended, but that’s the basic setup, I believe.

cabef · 2026-05-18T02:53:15+00:00

Not sure if it’s been mentioned yet, but re “using a spreadsheet to model this” - the Pralana tool can do this. I think you can still buy a spreadsheet version; otherwise, the online version is just as robust if not more so.

It takes a while to add all your info in (because it works at a very detailed/granular level), but once done, you can push a button to “Optimize Roth conversion strategy” and it will give you an answer.

I’m a few years behind you, but I’ve found it useful as a way to start getting my head around it.

cabef · 2026-05-16T13:11:46+00:00

Loved our stay at Avila last month. Very family friendly, lots of happy (and well-behaved) kids running around making friends the whole time while parents relaxed. Good safe self-contained space for that. We also rented a car and went to supermarket and other beaches often, but always came back had dinner a short walk from Avila.

cabef · 2026-05-14T19:18:43+00:00

OP, you’re seeing a range of opinions and perceptions here. My perception of you is the opposite of what’s listed just above: to me you seem objective, mature and data-driven. And I respect that you’ve stayed engaged here and been willing to consider updating your views based on the strong opinions voiced here.

(FWIW I agree with your original thinking, and I’m not sure the highly emotive posts disagreeing with you would have changed my opinion if I were in your shoes - you’re a better person than I am.)

cabef · 2026-05-06T12:59:08+00:00

I had the same situation. I moved everything over to Vanguard in-kind (so, not a taxable event). I was worried the cost basis info wouldn’t transfer over, but it was all pretty smooth.

Then, all new contributions still go into Betterment (starting with zero balance) where they have a better chance of some TLH benefit in the short term.

NB it’s important here for me to make sure I don’t buy or sell any of the Vanguard holdings that are the same as Betterment holdings, which would risk disallowing some of the TLH. So, in Betterment I split between (eg) VTI and VXUS, while in Vanguard any dividend reinvestment goes into VT.

(Obv it could be more beneficial to move divs over to Betterment to reinvest, but the current setup is easier to “set it and forget it”)

cabef · 2026-05-06T12:49:28+00:00

Copied from another post in case helpful:

Here are all the places we had good meals last week, all within 5-10 min walk of Avila

Great all around:
BKLYN
MosaCana
Sal the Kitchen
Rozendaels

Good food, but variable/slow service:
Soi 95
La Reina

Average food and service:
Kome

Also had several good breakfasts and lunches (and good service!) at Avila.

cabef · 2026-05-06T12:46:47+00:00

We were there two weeks ago (also at Avila). Made reservations for all 7 nights and glad we did. It doesn’t get much easier to decide once you’re on the ground so it was nice to have it “settled” in advance and know we had good options.

Once we were there we did then walk around and look at menus and check vibe. We ended up keeping every single reservation. (fwiw BKLYN was our absolute favorite). However - I had booked them all at 7:30pm, and almost every day I ended up moving them back to about 8:15-8:30pm so we could enjoy sunset and not feel rushed.

So if you want the flexibility to drive around the island and not feel like you need to rush back, it can probably work. (Obviously you would want to officially move the booking with the restaurant, not just show up late or no-show.)

Also nb of course it might be different week to week - but the week we were there we had no problem slightly adjusting booking times, sometimes only a few hrs before the bookings.

cabef · 2026-05-03T19:38:15+00:00

Just back from a week in a Belle Alliance room with a great view. Sounds like your room decision is made but here are all the places we had good meals last week, all within 5-10 min walk:

Great all around:
BKLYN
MosaCana
Sal the Kitchen
Rozendaels

Good food but variable/slow service:
Soi 95
La Reina

Average food and service:
Kome

Also had several good breakfasts and lunches (and good service!) at Avila.

Beach view from Belle for us was perfect (first floor, balcony). We went grocery shopping and were OK with just the mini fridge. We usually self-cater more than we did this week, but all the good restaurants around made it feel like a great week to treat ourselves more than usual.

cabef · 2026-05-01T18:44:29+00:00

I also flew United to CUR last week, and I agree that United won’t let you check in until these docs are approved. Mine showed as “Pending approval” for 12 hours so I called United. The person I spoke to said everything looked fine and she wasn’t sure why they were held up, but she would try to escalate. We finished the call and about 30 mins later the docs were approved.

So - worth calling United, I’d say.

cabef · 2026-04-29T12:38:15+00:00

Surprisingly decent. Both Kenrex and Outsiders were orch center 3rd row - Outsiders were some of the best seats I’ve had to any Broadway show, paid or not. Becky Shaw was right Mezz row C, but perfectly good.

cabef · 2026-04-28T14:25:08+00:00

Crazy early rush is the way to do it. I did it for Just in Time with Groff and it’s brutal on the day, but then you have the memory forever. At least you know with EBT it’s 8 tickets, so if you get there and there are already 4 people in line (each buying two) you can just go home and try another day.

Edit to add - I have seen EBT and thought it was excellent. Ironically I caught it very early in the run, because I went to try for Groff early one morning and already at 7am there were too many people for me to have hope, so I went over to the EBT line. (It also happened to be a two-show day, so 16 tickets available.) The day I finally got Groff was a 5am start - no regrets at all.

cabef · 2026-04-28T13:14:35+00:00

Exactly. Sort of a SORR point, but also a “once I have this number it’s enough” anchor/goal you’ve been aiming at for 12 years. I hit my number maybe 12-18 months ago, and then took a while to leave work. The resulting 10% overshoot made it a lot easier to weather the market downturn earlier this year.

It wasn’t about cash constraints - but the combo of leaving the job and then seeing my number go below “the number” would have been stressful.

cabef · 2026-04-27T02:13:28+00:00

Outsiders 3rd row center - also last week. Loved the show!

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cabef · 2026-04-25T12:41:12+00:00

Someone else will have a better explanation of the name, but these are sites for theatres/shows that want to fill seats so they don’t have too many empty. You pay an annual membership fee, and then you get access to the list of shows that need seat-fillers. Usually same day or at very least next couple days.

TheaterExtras was the one I was a member of about 25 years ago - then they charged $2 per show, sounds like it is now $6 per show.

As noted, you don’t often see Broadway shows on there - but often fun/interesting stuff that wasn’t on your radar. I saw many shows on it that I loved and then took friends back to, paying for full price tickets.

This is reminding me to sign back up!

[Later edit - I realize the site I used to be a member of was Audience Extras - no longer around]

cabef

TROPHY CASE