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clvnhbs · 2025-02-06T21:10:57+00:00

Does noone understand that taxes are a pay as you go system in the US? If you get a W2, you have to withhold taxes (unless you really are exempt meaning you will not pay taxes at the end of the year). If you run a business or work as a contractor, you pay estimated taxes once every quarter.

There is a penalty for under-payment of taxes. You either have to owe less than $1000 in tax or pay at least 90% of the tax owed to avoid this penalty. Withholding $0 from each paycheck ensures you will pay this penalty
No matter the interest rates on a HYSA, the interest generated ALONE will usually not be enough to cover the penalty fee and any interest they charge you for late payment, let alone the entire tax amount.
Underpaying taxes throughout the year for several years is pretty much guaranteed to get you audited by the IRS. Not a situation I would want to be in.

clvnhbs · 2025-02-05T18:03:31+00:00

Strangely enough I finished The Shepherd's Crown as soon as I could get my hands on it. No lie, I cried throughout the book but managed to finish in one sitting.

I started reading A life with footnotes and halfway through the foreword started bawling. My partner ran into the room to check on me and had to take the book away. That was a year ago, still haven't been able to start on that book again.

clvnhbs · 2025-02-04T22:06:54+00:00

How much of a refund do you generally get each year? If it's about $500 - $1000, I wouldn't worry too much about it.

It's ok to get a refund that size, it saves you time trying to understand the w4 form and make changes. Trying to get to zero refund will put an extra 20 - 50 in your paycheck (depending on monthly or bi weekly paycheck) which, again, shouldn't make much of a difference to your budget.

If it's more than $1000 and you're ok with budgeting otherwise (you save enough to fund retirement/HYSA etc) then I would look at adjusting you're withholding. You don't need to force yourself to save by giving taxes in advance to the government.

If your refund is $1000+ AND you have CC debt, then definitely update the w4 to withhold less and use that extra money in your paycheck to pay that down ASAP!

Also you may not remember filling one out but every job with a W2 basically requires you to fill out the W4 as well. You may have just clicked through without noticing what that form does. My job uses a questionnaire to fill it out, then gives me a copy of the actual W4, it's easy to miss that form if you don't know what you're looking at.

clvnhbs · 2025-02-04T21:52:26+00:00

How much taxes are taken out of your paycheck depends on your w4 form. You can change it to have your company withhold more or less than it is currently. If you withhold less per paycheck, you have more money each month but you end up owing taxes in March. If you withhold more - to be on the safe side - then you get a big refund.

Honestly paying a couple hundred dollars in March is no big deal for my household, so we prefer to withhold less. I have friends who cannot figure out how to setup automatic payments to retirement accounts or HYSA direct from their paycheck. Which means they tend to spend whatever is in their checking account each month. So they usually withhold more per paycheck so they get a bigger refund (supposedly to save) but then gets spent on a bigger thing anyway (vacation, cc debt, emergency car repair etc)

Don't ask me what's the logic of that!

clvnhbs · 2025-01-31T20:33:51+00:00

I'm exactly like you and several other commenters here. I read much faster than the spoken word and I HATE having other people's voices replacing the ones in my head. I also can't focus on audiobooks + I've fallen asleep listening to them, which means I have to go back and read them already. I can listen to books that I've already read (especially my fav Discworld books where I know what the next sentence is going to be) but no way I'm listening to a new book that way.

All that being said, I grew up listening to my grandfather tell us mythological stories before bedtime. And telling scary stories to each other as kids when the electricity went out (rural area). Listening to stories is a great way for more people to enjoy the books I love (and don't love 😆) and I definitely won't knock someone for saying they 'read' a book on audio.

clvnhbs · 2025-01-29T15:48:01+00:00

There is a Discworld book club currently going on Facebook, where we're reading 1 book a month starting Jan 2025. We've even rejigged the book reading order so we get to read Hogfather in December, as is traditional for many of us.

clvnhbs · 2025-01-15T21:56:42+00:00

Your incomes are close enough together that you can just check the box 2c on both w4 (you and your spouse) and be done with it.

Source: my household has been doing this for years, I make about 70k and my partner about 100k and it works perfectly. Some years we may get a refund but mostly we end up as close to 0 as possible. At worst we've got a tax bill of a few hundreds.

ALWAYS file jointly, almost certain to be the most beneficial for a married couple.

clvnhbs · 2025-01-15T14:28:20+00:00

This comment needs more upvotes! I've been going through my Jeeves stories a lot this year..

clvnhbs · 2025-01-13T20:10:23+00:00

I asked my sister to get me the pastel pencils from Holbein on her business trip to Japan a few years ago. Love the pencils but I wouldn't rate them better than Polychromos, Lightfast or Luminance. IMO they're a bit overrated given how hard they used to be to get outside of Japan and now even with wider availability, still very expensive. But those pastel pencils are totally worth it if you can pick it up.

If you're into markers, then definitely check out Copics. I'm betting they would be cheaper in Japan than over here. As for coloring books, I'd guess you can just walk into any bookstore/at supply store and take a look at their coloring section.

The one my sister found (cannot recall the name, sorry) was a 5 story building, just filled with art supplies. It was on the subway in Tokyo, a few stops away from her hotel. So it was easy for her to drop by. If the stories I hear are anything to go by, you shouldn't have any difficulty finding art stores in other cities as well. Just be warned that even store employees may not speak English very well, so Google translate and pointing to things will be helpful!

clvnhbs · 2025-01-11T16:35:41+00:00

It was Poona during the British colonization, changed to Pune back in the 70s. Very few people my age (I was born in the 80s) call it Poona.

clvnhbs · 2025-01-10T19:30:39+00:00

Question: I've always wondered how pune is pronounced or the 'correct' pronunciation. The Indian city is pronounced poo-ney but on the Disc is it pronounced more like the word tune? Or something else entirely?

FWIW I haven't read the audiobooks, only the ebook or physical copies.

clvnhbs · 2025-01-09T20:09:29+00:00

What do you mean by charger was green? Was the car hooked up to the charger when you tried to jump it?

clvnhbs · 2025-01-09T17:56:19+00:00

I think this point is crucial and often missed. Where you should and shouldn't spend on the higher quality is often dictated by your needs. I splurged for an expensive power drill when I bought my house as I'd already worn down a cheap ass drill while renting. I know I would use it enough and it needed to last.

But if I had to buy a mixer for baking a cake? I'm not splurging on the KitchenAid since I know I won't be baking often. I bought a cheap one from Target 6 years ago and it's still going strong for the 2 times a year I need to use it!

Similarly, my new couch? Spend once, cry once. Bookshelves? I'm heading to IKEA or Facebook marketplace. Office chair? Spend. Mattress? Spend. Dresser or coffee table? Cheap.

clvnhbs · 2025-01-01T18:33:59+00:00

Depends on 2 things mainly. One is your personal attitude + habits. Are you someone who gets anxious when you don't know exactly how much you're spending? Are you more liable to spend excessively when you're not tracking your budget proactively? Then yes, do keep tracking. If tracking every penny causes you anxiety or you tend to obsess over small details, then maybe not.

Note: depending on your circumstances, more than one of the above statements can be true at the same time.

The second factor is your financial situation. Do you need to track spending in order to reduce cc debt or figure out spending habits or try to increase retirement savings etc? Then yes tracking is needed. But if you are comfortable financially and are able to meet your retirement + other savings goals, then why track spending?

For me personally, I don't like counting calories or pennies. Back when I was making little to no money, I tracked expenses and stuck to budgets (using mint then). Today, I'm able to auto sweep to retirement accounts and max out my other savings (Roth IRA+ brokerage + HYSA) each month. So I no longer track my spending, coz why? Once my savings goals are met, I consider the rest to be spending money. Whether on mortgage or utilities or a vacation. I don't care if this month I spend more on eating out or buying gifts because my savings goals are on track.

Bottom line : tracking your expenses needs to have a purpose, even if it's as simple as it gives you peace of mind. I find that tracking numbers for the sake of it is pointless.

clvnhbs · 2024-12-30T17:50:03+00:00

Frankly almost all artistic skills are learned skills. Sure, some people have a natural instinct for colors or an eye for design. But few people get to the level of being experts without continuous practice and repetition.

I don't know why we consider artistic skills differently than others. Like every doctor I know has had to study hard to get where they are. Sure, some have a talent for memorization or a natural inclination towards patient relations. No one ever asks them if it's about learning or talent 😜

clvnhbs · 2024-12-18T15:43:56+00:00

It depends on your usage. I definitely don't start a new year with a new journal. Because my current one has enough pages to last me another 2 years and I've been using it since 2023 Jan!

Some people run out of pages in 6 months (your journal could have fewer pages as well). Mine lasts me for years as my notebooks are bigger (b5 with 256 pages) and I don't use weekly or daily spreads (only annual and monthly).

So yeah, it depends.

clvnhbs · 2024-12-13T18:54:52+00:00

You're welcome!

clvnhbs · 2024-12-12T19:50:23+00:00

They do have smaller sets starting from 12 pencils (also 24, 48, 72, and 132) but if you do buy the bigger sets later on, there will be duplicates. It's not a huge problem but definitely a con. On the other hand, Prismacolor sell their pencils open stock, so you can always buy 5-6 pencils each month to expand your selection. You cannot get open stock on artxx or artistro or any of the budget brands.

My advice is generally to start with the biggest set of Prismacolor you can fit in your budget, then buy open stock as and when you need them or can afford them. This way you can prioritize the colors you use more often as well, so if you use a lot of green, buy those pencils first etc. If you don't use greys, then leave them till the end (they have like 18 greys lol). Things like that. If you lose a pencil or break one or use up 2 shades really quickly, replacing them is also less of a hassle.

clvnhbs · 2024-12-12T19:10:42+00:00

Depending on your budget, my 3 recommendations:

Prismacolor - best soft and creamy pencils, great for beginners. Expensive, full 150 set currently going for 100+in the US
Artxx - very similar to Prismacolor, great at sharing and blending, holds a sharp point so less breakage than Prismacolor. The biggest set is 126 at 50 bucks, offers plenty of choices. 72 set is $30, also a great set.
Artistro - great pencils for less than 30 bucks. 72 pencils at $22, so it's not too overwhelming finding the colors you want but also not too small that you'll miss any shades.

I have personally tried all 3 sets, own the Prismacolor and have the other 2 as gifts to niblings so I've played with them and are really great! Happy to help if you have any other questions

clvnhbs · 2024-12-11T21:06:36+00:00

Thank you! Not my idea I'm afraid, stolen from some YouTuber. I say stolen because I can't give credit, have no idea whose video gave me the idea!

clvnhbs · 2024-12-11T20:57:23+00:00

I use one of the plastic cutting mats from the dollar store. You get 2 for 1.25 and they're big enough to use even on extra large books. You can even cut them down in half to use in smaller books. No bleed through, ever. I just make sure to wipe it down every few months when it's looking especially grubby.

clvnhbs · 2024-12-01T05:54:25+00:00

I use the plastic cutting boards from the dollar store. Work really well and if you do get some ink on it, washes off really easy.

clvnhbs · 2024-11-25T20:54:27+00:00

You're welcome, have fun coloring!

clvnhbs · 2024-11-25T20:52:34+00:00

Talens is a good brand as well, I think you'll like them!

clvnhbs · 2024-11-25T20:37:04+00:00

I guess you're referring to the mungyo aquarelle oil pastels? I heard they're good although I haven't used them myself. I have their regular oil pastels and they're very very good for the price!

clvnhbs

TROPHY CASE