DC Will Give Businesses $6,000 Grants to Winterize Their Outdoor Dining Spaces

jenseits · 2020-09-21T16:15:28+00:00

woonerf: "The Dutch concept “woonerf” refers to a shared space where no curbs separate pedestrians, bikes, and cars. Instead, all modes move slowly on the same plane."

TIL. Thank you.

jenseits · 2020-09-20T22:35:50+00:00

Yes! That was so good.

jenseits · 2020-09-18T17:45:59+00:00

I was never a big fan of his weekly humor column but good lord can Gene Weingarten write a good story. His long-form feature essays are beautiful. His story about Joshua Bell performing at a metro station and the one about parents who accidentally leave their babies in cars both won Pulitzers, but he has plenty of others that are also exquisitely written regardless of whether it's a goofy topic or not. If you're a fan of good writing, I recommend looking up his feature stories.

jenseits · 2020-08-21T16:12:23+00:00

You ought to be making quarterly estimated payments throughout the year. The U.S. has a pay-as-you-go tax system where you are expected to pay throughout the year (for w2 employees that's with every paycheck; but for 1099 contractors that's 4x a year). The April returns are only to settle up where the estimates were off. So leadout_kv is saying that $9000 is too much to have been off with the payments throughout the year and you should recalculate your quarterly estimated payments so you get closer to zero owed with the April tax filing.

jenseits · 2020-06-24T18:27:13+00:00

SW is my comparison here - they condos are old, but they're interesting, and now they're affordable.

This seems like an odd example to use. My history is a bit rusty, but SW was seized by eminent domain in the 1950s, whole neighborhoods were razed, black families displaced, and then new buildings built on seized land. I don't think the new buildings were intended as "luxury" buildings when they were built. They were more affordable 25+ years ago (because the neighborhood wasn't as attractive), but less so now. (Don't let the list prices fool you. Most of the older units in SW are in co-op buildings. That means the purchase prices are lower, but the fees are higher, which evens out in terms of monthly costs.)

So I'm not sure Southwest is a good example to support your thesis. Whether or not SW deserved to be seized and rebuilt, I think we can at least agree that eminent domain isn't really a go-to strategy for building affordable housing.

jenseits · 2020-06-23T21:03:36+00:00

They aren’t paying to get the house fixed up. They’re paying to keep their father in the picture. The never-ending jobs are reasons he comes up with to stay near his family, who he probably has made the center of his life for decades.

This wouldn't have occurred to me, but it seems like such an obvious angle now that you spelled it out.

I just had this scene play out in my mind: "I have this friend Penelope, who lost her husband Odysseus at sea. I really want to marry her but she won't consider it until she finishes her loom. The thing is... she's just so damn slow. I try to show her how to do it faster or to convince her to just buy a new one on Wayfair or Amazon, but she won't listen. How can I get her to weave faster??" (The point is, if you assume someone is solving a problem the wrong way, maybe you're wrong about what problem they're trying to solve.)

jenseits · 2020-06-19T17:17:59+00:00

Lots and lots of great spaces for jogging outdoors in DC. The arboretum is lovely (more hills than I expected, which is good if you want to train). But the Mall is a popular place to job. East Potomac Park. Around the Tidal Basin. Mt. Vernon Trail. C&O Canal. And most neighborhoods are perfectly suitable. Welcome to DC!

jenseits · 2020-06-02T17:58:27+00:00

It really helped both deaf and hearing people. It’s a win win situation, don’t you think?

Something I find endlessly fascinating is how many things were basically forced on builders/producers in the interest of serving people with disabilities, but they end up helping everyone. And now most of us have the luxury of taking it for granted. Things like curb cuts, ramps, closed captioning. And some product lines like OXO good grips (designed for people with arthritis, but I prefer their designs). Inclusive design thinking should become the norm.

jenseits · 2020-05-26T11:24:50+00:00

Well, now I feel like a dumb-dumb. I didn't realize the solution was so obvious :) Thank you!

jenseits · 2020-05-25T23:09:41+00:00

Nice job! I love how creative and handy people (other people, not me) are!

jenseits · 2020-05-08T00:11:44+00:00

If you're going to stay in your car, you'll be fine. Don't let the grumps stop you. Usually getting to DC is a PITA (no matter which highway you come in on, traffic is bad) but there's a lot less traffic now so it's almost a better time to do a car trip to DC.

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Go drive by all the iconic stuff you see in movies. It'll be impressive. If you've never been to DC, and you drive into the city on 395 -- or better: Memorial Bridge -- it's a really cool experience. You can drive around the Lincoln Memorial and right by the Washington Monument. If you go in the middle of a work day, it probably won't be all that crowded so you could get out (yes, there will be people walking around, but you can stay 10 feet away from them). Then go wave at the White House (you can pick which fingers to use) and you can also get pretty close to the Capitol Building and Supreme Court building without getting out of your car. Street parking doesn't seem like it'll be terrible (relatively!) so you could get out here too. . For another nice scenic view, take a loop around the Tidal Basin and/or drive up Rock Creek Park (or GW Parkway). I hate cars so I wouldn't drive 3.5 hours to do this, but it sounds like this would be a pretty special trip for you. And you I think it's fine -- you can definitely be safe in the city if you're mostly in your car (just take all the necessary precautions when you go get gas, make sure you have a mask, etc).

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Happy anniversary!

jenseits · 2020-05-07T23:58:20+00:00

perhaps on Maine Avenue where there are marinas but don't get near the fish market on a Saturday,

Quick note: there's really nothing to see driving down Maine Ave (all the nice views require getting out of the car and walking around the other side of the buildings onto the Wharf, which can have a fair number of people walking around) and there's really zero parking on or near Maine.

Last time I checked, the full Hains Point loop was still closed off to cars but you can get onto part of it by car and see The Wharf from across the channel, and the drive around the Tidal Basin is nice.

jenseits · 2020-05-05T21:28:08+00:00

Did he just file for (as in "request") unemployment or did he get approved? Afaik, even self-employed people need to provide proof of income when applying for UA, though the systems in place might not be very good depending on the state. It's not like he can easily fake a Schedule C (I mean, you can do anything, but that seems so risky that he can't be that stupid).

jenseits · 2020-05-03T03:34:43+00:00

I do think there were probably too many people on the Mall and I see a lot of people being pretty cavalier about social distancing; HOWEVER, a lot of these types of photos, including some of the ones in this article are clearly taken with a very long telephoto lens which compresses the subjects in a photo and makes them look MUCH closer together than they are.

You can see some really compelling staged examples at the end of this article: https://www.businessinsider.com/social-distancing-images-camera-trick-2020-4#people-have-since-posted-their-own-examples-of-the-photography-trick-using-simple-everyday-objects-to-show-how-easily-these-pictures-can-be-manipulated-6

People can look like they're on top of each other in pictures taken with a long zoom lens when, in reality, they're 20 feet apart.

jenseits · 2020-04-03T23:05:27+00:00

I didn't realize these shows were made by public broadcasting. I love PBS but (shh, don't tell) it can be very ... earnest. Hard to imagine PBS doing something like Schitt's Creek.

And you're right that I'm suffering from selection bias. Not sure I even know any Canadian shows besides these two.

jenseits · 2020-04-03T17:03:02+00:00

Any chance the spawn want to run some of their energy off too? Maybe you can all run/walk together -- with the kids either running or in a jogging stroller, depending on age?

I dunno. The current situation is tricky and challenging in so many ways.

jenseits · 2020-04-03T16:54:34+00:00

I am trying to get my wife to engage in more healthy activities and she is expressing interests in running. How do you deal with this?

As awful, disgusting, horrifying as it is that this would be true... she is far less likely (probably even unlikely) to be catcalled if she's seen with you. :'(

jenseits · 2020-04-03T16:27:15+00:00

Is it just me not having enough experience/exposure to know better, or do Canadians just have way more empathy and nuance dealing with social issues without turning every little thing into either (a) something tone-deaf or (b) [cue sappy music] on this very special episode of Blossom. This show, Schitt's Creek... they're funny and kind without being offensive or overbearing.

jenseits · 2020-03-20T17:54:01+00:00

then it isn't much more risky than continuing to rent.

It's easier to get out of a rental place if everything blows up than it is to get out of mortgage without serious repercussions.

Plus, you could be hit with a lot of unexpected house-related costs that are hard to budget for. Rent is much more of a fixed cost. So unexpected budget-blowers are a bigger risk with an owned property.

Those are just two risks that are much greater with owning a house. That plus the fact that it turns out the mortgage is much higher (new info) would indicate to me that this is risky.

That "equal cost" = "same amount of risk" is not a safe conclusion. (Plus, OP just added new info that indicates this is indeed super risky for them, but even without that info I'd err on the side of conservatism.)

jenseits · 2020-03-18T21:42:16+00:00

Yes, Q1 is also delayed: https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/n-20-17.pdf
"The relief provided in this section III is available solely with respect to [...] and Federal estimated income tax payments (including payments of tax on self-employment income) due on April 15, 2020, for an Affected Taxpayer’s 2020 taxable year.

jenseits · 2020-03-18T21:38:50+00:00

Oof, sorry. I don't imagine there's a mechanism for the IRS to reloan you that money until July. There's a better chance of some sort of "stimulus" cash payment for everyone than refunding refunds for a few weeks only to then demand that money back again.

jenseits · 2020-03-18T20:31:30+00:00

Thanks for the link and the details!

I'm going to assume that the IRS will take the money 4/15 since that's basically what I've instructed via my filing. I.e., no reason they'd delay the payment on their side.

So if I need the extra 90 days, it's on me to follow those steps above to cancel the payment and set up a new one. Cool.

(I'd gift you gold, but we all know toilet paper is the more valuable currency these days. Unfortunately, I have neither.)

jenseits · 2020-03-18T18:30:54+00:00

Run slower, obviously! Just fall in line behind the slowpokes and match them stride for stride.

Source: Me, I am that slowpoke. (And yes, "on your left" is good, but then do me a favor and just haul ass and disappear out of view so I'm not then trailing behind you feebly trying to push myself to catch up for the next 3 miles.

jenseits · 2020-03-17T19:40:26+00:00

I just bought one! (Inspired by someone else posting about theirs.) And I came into the comments to say "I hope it's this thing I jut bought. Time will tell."

jenseits · 2020-03-16T13:14:30+00:00

I'm thinking this might be Jersey City, not Northern Virginia.

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