The $ (dollar sign) is a combination of the letters "P" and "S", "PS" being the abbreviation for pesos, the principal coin in circulation in the U.S. until 1794.
Showing posts with label money. Show all posts
Showing posts with label money. Show all posts
February 7, 2017
April 1, 2013
Where's My Refund?
Check your refund status at the IRS website.
Easy enough to do; input your SS#, your filing status and the exact amount of your refund and a graph will appear telling you the status of your refund.
I filed electronically last week (the first time I've ever filed online; it's also unusually early for me - I almost always wait until the last minute), so my refund isn't too far along in the process. The site says that checks will be mailed (or credited to your bank account, which is, from what I've read, how it will be done in the near future) within 21 days.
The IRS also says to check only once a day.
Where's My Refund?
Easy enough to do; input your SS#, your filing status and the exact amount of your refund and a graph will appear telling you the status of your refund.
I filed electronically last week (the first time I've ever filed online; it's also unusually early for me - I almost always wait until the last minute), so my refund isn't too far along in the process. The site says that checks will be mailed (or credited to your bank account, which is, from what I've read, how it will be done in the near future) within 21 days.
The IRS also says to check only once a day.
Where's My Refund?
March 1, 2013
Making Money Is a Snap!
Anyone who knows me or has followed this blog for any length of time knows I am a Dallas Cowboy fan. (there's a Cowboys news module in the right-hand side column) I don't post much about them because frankly, it's been hard to be a fan for the last decade or so and I don't want or need trolls coming in and blasting my favorite team. I know they've sucked for a long time, I don't need to be reminded of it.
That said, I'm still a fan, although not as much of one as I once was. As I've grown older, I've become less and less interested in football...and all sports, for that matter. I try to watch the Cowboys on TV, but if they're playing badly I have no problem changing the channel. I've done that a lot over the last 15 years. I'm no fair-weather fan, but I'm also not a glutton for punishment.
I still keep up with them, however, reading articles about them on the Dallas Cowboys website and subscribe to a few fan sites in my reader. I was glad to see this article yesterday: Cowboys Sign Long Snapper LaDouceur To Five-Year Deal. I couldn't find the exact terms of the contract, at least none that sounded correct. Most sources said it was a five-year deal for $4 million, but LaDouceur has been in the league long enough to get at least the veteran minimum wage and the math doesn't work for that number.
Doing some quick research, I found that he made $790,000 for the 2012 season. Considering that all he does is "long snap", I decided to research a little more to see how much he made per actual play he was on the field. I figure he played during 31 field goal attempts, 68 punts and 38 PAT (subtracting three 2 point tries) for a total of 137 plays....without making a bad snap. That works out to $5,766.42/play. Not bad wages, huh?
That made me wonder about other player's wages per play. I thought about figuring what certain of my favorite players made, but the task would have been daunting, trying to find out the exact number of times they were on the field, taking off their substitutions, injuries, etc. It was fairly easy to calculate the number for the team's highest profile player and quarterback, Tony Romo.
(and I don't care what other people think of him, he's a favorite of mine and a good player. I don't care if anyone disagrees with me on his worth to the team; you can point out his mistakes, but I'll point out your lack of football knowledge.)
According to the Cowboy website's statistics, Dallas ran 1,049 offensive plays in 2012. The site says the backup QB Orton attempted 10 passes, but there's no breakdown of how many times he handed off the ball. So, let's just say for the matter of simplicity that Tony Romo was on the field for 925 plays, taking off the extra point kicks, adding back the 2 point tries, taking away the punt plays and estimating however many times Orton handed off. 925 is close enough for me.
Romo's listed salary for 2012 was $9,000,000. Now, I'm not sure, what with the signing bonus and the "funny money" salary cap implications, if it was more or less than that amount, but again, for the sake of simplicity, let's go with the figure of nine million. That means he got paid $9729.73 per play.
(for all you anal-retentive stat freaks: if you have a problem with my figures for that or any of the other calculations I've done, send me an email with detailed corrections, screen captures of your calculations and verified links to your sources to: idonotgiveadamn@buzzoff.net)
That's a pretty decent wage, wouldn't you say? Especially considering that a good percentage of those plays were just handing off the ball and not getting touched. Then again, there were far too many plays like this one:
That wasn't even close to the worst hit he took this last year, but I'm sure he would have given up part of his per-play salary to have avoided that hit. Hell, I would have given it ALL back, plus another couple of play's worth. LaDouceur might make only half of what Romo does per snap, but it's a wonder Romo's neck hasn't been snapped.
That said, I'm still a fan, although not as much of one as I once was. As I've grown older, I've become less and less interested in football...and all sports, for that matter. I try to watch the Cowboys on TV, but if they're playing badly I have no problem changing the channel. I've done that a lot over the last 15 years. I'm no fair-weather fan, but I'm also not a glutton for punishment.
I still keep up with them, however, reading articles about them on the Dallas Cowboys website and subscribe to a few fan sites in my reader. I was glad to see this article yesterday: Cowboys Sign Long Snapper LaDouceur To Five-Year Deal. I couldn't find the exact terms of the contract, at least none that sounded correct. Most sources said it was a five-year deal for $4 million, but LaDouceur has been in the league long enough to get at least the veteran minimum wage and the math doesn't work for that number.
Doing some quick research, I found that he made $790,000 for the 2012 season. Considering that all he does is "long snap", I decided to research a little more to see how much he made per actual play he was on the field. I figure he played during 31 field goal attempts, 68 punts and 38 PAT (subtracting three 2 point tries) for a total of 137 plays....without making a bad snap. That works out to $5,766.42/play. Not bad wages, huh?
That made me wonder about other player's wages per play. I thought about figuring what certain of my favorite players made, but the task would have been daunting, trying to find out the exact number of times they were on the field, taking off their substitutions, injuries, etc. It was fairly easy to calculate the number for the team's highest profile player and quarterback, Tony Romo.
(and I don't care what other people think of him, he's a favorite of mine and a good player. I don't care if anyone disagrees with me on his worth to the team; you can point out his mistakes, but I'll point out your lack of football knowledge.)
According to the Cowboy website's statistics, Dallas ran 1,049 offensive plays in 2012. The site says the backup QB Orton attempted 10 passes, but there's no breakdown of how many times he handed off the ball. So, let's just say for the matter of simplicity that Tony Romo was on the field for 925 plays, taking off the extra point kicks, adding back the 2 point tries, taking away the punt plays and estimating however many times Orton handed off. 925 is close enough for me.
Romo's listed salary for 2012 was $9,000,000. Now, I'm not sure, what with the signing bonus and the "funny money" salary cap implications, if it was more or less than that amount, but again, for the sake of simplicity, let's go with the figure of nine million. That means he got paid $9729.73 per play.
(for all you anal-retentive stat freaks: if you have a problem with my figures for that or any of the other calculations I've done, send me an email with detailed corrections, screen captures of your calculations and verified links to your sources to: idonotgiveadamn@buzzoff.net)
That's a pretty decent wage, wouldn't you say? Especially considering that a good percentage of those plays were just handing off the ball and not getting touched. Then again, there were far too many plays like this one:
That wasn't even close to the worst hit he took this last year, but I'm sure he would have given up part of his per-play salary to have avoided that hit. Hell, I would have given it ALL back, plus another couple of play's worth. LaDouceur might make only half of what Romo does per snap, but it's a wonder Romo's neck hasn't been snapped.
February 18, 2013
The Gourde
Did you know that the official currency of Haiti is known as gourde, named after the gourd? (botanically classified as a fruit) In the early 1800's the ruler of northern Haiti declared all gourds to be state property and had them rounded up and brought to the state treasury where they were then reissued as currency. Eventually banknotes and coins replaced the gourds, but gourde has remained the name of Haiti's official currency.
I first discovered this fact when I read The Black Sun as a young man. My folks were big fans of the Mandingo series of books, as well as others written by Kyle Onstott and his partners. The books were really too adult for my age but I guess my parents thought it better for me to find out about sex that way instead of them having to uncomfortably explain it to me.
There were gourds growing in the pastures surrounding the house where I grew up; not sure what specific type of gourd they were, but they usually didn't grow much larger than a baseball and, in fact, throwing them was the most fun I had with them. The vines and fruit smelled to high heaven when crushed, with an odor like day-old B.O. After working hard all day during a hot summer, I often heard my dad say "I smell just like an ol' gourd vine."
I first discovered this fact when I read The Black Sun as a young man. My folks were big fans of the Mandingo series of books, as well as others written by Kyle Onstott and his partners. The books were really too adult for my age but I guess my parents thought it better for me to find out about sex that way instead of them having to uncomfortably explain it to me.
There were gourds growing in the pastures surrounding the house where I grew up; not sure what specific type of gourd they were, but they usually didn't grow much larger than a baseball and, in fact, throwing them was the most fun I had with them. The vines and fruit smelled to high heaven when crushed, with an odor like day-old B.O. After working hard all day during a hot summer, I often heard my dad say "I smell just like an ol' gourd vine."
November 7, 2012
Victory!
Of the Pyrrhic sort.
national debt
Since the election was called for Obama several hours ago, I've been doing a little research on the national debt, the most pressing issue facing our country and the next term of the President. I won't give links or explain my math - I'm tired from the tension of following the returns, plus if you want to double-check the figures, you can look 'em up yourself, but from what I could find out, each single U.S. citizen owes over $50 thousand as our share of the national debt.
That figure is staggering, but the figure that's alarming is that Americans under the age of 18 inherit over 200 thousand as their share of the national debt.
That's what's so distressing about the election results. I saw people gloating over Obama's win, but I don't think they realize the implications. I'm not saying a Romney presidency would've been any better; he has a history of being a big govt. politician, too.
I wouldn't have been overjoyed if Romney had won; to me, he was the lesser of two evils. I don't understand the celebrating, esp. by those people with children. Thanks to the last half-dozen presidents (actually more than that), we've saddled the next several generations w/ a mountain of debt and if Obama's first term is any indication, it will only get worse.
The National Debt has continued to increase an average of $3.86 billion per day. Let that sink in; nearly four billion a day increase. (or will be four billion very soon) Listening to a radio show just now, I heard that our debt is over 30% more than Greece's...and they're on the verge of collapse.
The only way to even begin digging our way out of this crushing debt is by raising taxes...not just on the rich, but on the main body of taxpayers, the middle class. Sure, corporations can have (and probably will have) their taxes raised, but anyone with even the most basic understanding of economics should know that cost is passed along to the consumer. From there it becomes a vicious circle - taxes go up, prices go up, the consumer has less money to spend on other things, other industries suffer, etc. and so forth.
Just raising taxes won't cut it, however. The military budget can be cut, but I don't see that helping much, so...that leaves only benefits to be pared and who thinks that will be done? History shows it won't. So, that puts the burden on the taxpayer and it will be impossible to retire this debt in ours or our children's lifetime...and in fact, the debt will even grow larger until our economy collapses.
So, celebrate while you can, "congratulations" on your "win". Eat, drink, and be merry, fiddle while Rome burns. The bar tab will come due sooner than you think.
I think I'll go on to bed. I'm sure the sun will come up tomorrow and the world won't end on Dec. 22.* I just hope my country can survive the people we've elected and the fools that elect them.
What I'm really afraid of is when the Chinese come to collect on the I.O.U.'s we've been giving them.
*Edit to add: That's the Mayan calendar date the world is supposed to end. The official Inauguration Day is January 20th. However, as that date falls on a Sunday in 2013, the public swearing-in ceremony will be held on Monday, January 21, 2013.
Sorry for any confusion. I just woke up after a few hours of fitful sleep. I thought I'd feel better after resting. I don't.
national debt
That figure is staggering, but the figure that's alarming is that Americans under the age of 18 inherit over 200 thousand as their share of the national debt.
That's what's so distressing about the election results. I saw people gloating over Obama's win, but I don't think they realize the implications. I'm not saying a Romney presidency would've been any better; he has a history of being a big govt. politician, too.
I wouldn't have been overjoyed if Romney had won; to me, he was the lesser of two evils. I don't understand the celebrating, esp. by those people with children. Thanks to the last half-dozen presidents (actually more than that), we've saddled the next several generations w/ a mountain of debt and if Obama's first term is any indication, it will only get worse.
The National Debt has continued to increase an average of $3.86 billion per day. Let that sink in; nearly four billion a day increase. (or will be four billion very soon) Listening to a radio show just now, I heard that our debt is over 30% more than Greece's...and they're on the verge of collapse.
The only way to even begin digging our way out of this crushing debt is by raising taxes...not just on the rich, but on the main body of taxpayers, the middle class. Sure, corporations can have (and probably will have) their taxes raised, but anyone with even the most basic understanding of economics should know that cost is passed along to the consumer. From there it becomes a vicious circle - taxes go up, prices go up, the consumer has less money to spend on other things, other industries suffer, etc. and so forth.
Just raising taxes won't cut it, however. The military budget can be cut, but I don't see that helping much, so...that leaves only benefits to be pared and who thinks that will be done? History shows it won't. So, that puts the burden on the taxpayer and it will be impossible to retire this debt in ours or our children's lifetime...and in fact, the debt will even grow larger until our economy collapses.
So, celebrate while you can, "congratulations" on your "win". Eat, drink, and be merry, fiddle while Rome burns. The bar tab will come due sooner than you think.
I think I'll go on to bed. I'm sure the sun will come up tomorrow and the world won't end on Dec. 22.* I just hope my country can survive the people we've elected and the fools that elect them.
What I'm really afraid of is when the Chinese come to collect on the I.O.U.'s we've been giving them.
*Edit to add: That's the Mayan calendar date the world is supposed to end. The official Inauguration Day is January 20th. However, as that date falls on a Sunday in 2013, the public swearing-in ceremony will be held on Monday, January 21, 2013.
Sorry for any confusion. I just woke up after a few hours of fitful sleep. I thought I'd feel better after resting. I don't.
March 26, 2012
Mega Wages
The Mega Millions lotto had no winner this last drawing, so it's rolled over again, making the jackpot of $365 million one of the largest ever.
The amount is staggering, isn't it? Over a third of a billion dollars. It would be nice (an understatement) to win it, but even nicer (read:greedy) to be the sole winner.
The $365 million is for an annuity which would be paid out over 26 years. When you purchase a ticket, you have the option of the annuity or taking a lump sum, which for this drawing would be $255.1 million. After federal taxes, that figure would be $165.815 million. (No state tax in Texas!) I've always thought I would opt for this method of payout, considering what my age would be after 26 years. I have to face the fact that I most likely wouldn't live to see the last yearly payments. (or wouldn't remember my name or that I had ever won the lottery) That's not the only depressing fact to take into consideration - the interest on certificates of deposits is pathetically low. They vary all the time and from bank-to-bank, but some yearly CDs pay less than 1% a year and 5-yr CDs anywhere from 1.7- 2%.
Let's say you blew through 10 million right off the bat and allotted another million a year to spend until your jumbo 5-yr CDs matured. (of course, you could make a dab of interest on unspent money, but let's disregard that for the sake of simplicity.) $150 million @ 2% would, with simple interest (not figuring compound rates) get you $3 million per year. (15 million+ over the five yr. period) Of course, Uncle Sam would want his 35%*, so the yearly net would be $1.95 million. I think most people could live on that.(You could also make some interest on the earned interest if you reinvested it.) You could then leave the huge sum of money - the 150 million- to your family. (Although in some cases, you *might* want to lie to them and tell them you're leaving most of it to charity. Otherwise they might want the will to be read a little early, if you get my drift. It's happened.)
On the other hand, if you did opt for the annuity, the income is much better. Before taxes, the yearly payout would be $13.692+ million a year with a net of $8.9 million. That would give you a monthly take-home income of a little more than $741, 666, a weekly income of $171, 153 and change - which works out to $24,383.56 a day.
Or, you could look at it this way: $1015.98 an hour. You could afford to pay someone minimum wage (Federal min. wage is $7.25) - along with some basic benefits - just to screen your calls from all the distant kinfolk and scam artists who would want some of your new-found riches.
That leaves you with a thousand bucks an hour for 26 years. That's $1000 per hour, every hour of every day of every week of every month for 26 years. Rain or shine, asleep or awake, it's going into your bank account.
Not bad wages, huh?
*I've read that 35% federal tax rate might soon go up to 39% if the current administration has its way. It's not just the President and the Democrats in Congress - a growing percentage of the population is of the mind that the rich don't pay enough taxes. Winning the lottery wouldn't just change your life, it might also change your political affiliation. -wink-
Edit: I don't mean to insult anyone w/ the political reference. I expect you...or I...would keep our same core political beliefs as we had before winning the lottery, BUT I'd think...would hope...we would be more "liberal" in regards to charity and more "conservative" fiscally.
UPDATE: The announced jackpot is 363 million. I guess the 365 number was the estimate. Usually, though, when a jackpot is this large, the number goes up because the prize is tied into a percentage of tickets sold. So, my calculations are incorrect. They were, anyway. I don't know what caused me to make the mistakes, but I did. (I used my computer calculator, but I guess you need to be semi-smart to use it. That lets me out.) So sue me. Wait until I win the lottery, though, because you damn sure wouldn't get anything now.
I read an article this morning which mentioned "lottery fever" - when people get excited by the huge jackpot and buy more tickets, often more than they can afford. It also touted some "expert" who said a lottery player should always pick their own numbers, not allow the machine to choose them. That doesn't make any sense, because one number is just as good as any other. (the winning number notwithstanding! -grin-) I always get a "quick pick" because my old set of numbers never did much good. I also had a fear that if I ever did quit playing them or change to another, they would come up. That could happen anyway, I suppose.
I also bought but one ticket. Buying two tickets doesn't do much to increase your odds of winning, not by my thinking. If the odds are one in ten million, then an extra ticket would make it two in ten million. I suppose you've doubled your chances, but....
The amount is staggering, isn't it? Over a third of a billion dollars. It would be nice (an understatement) to win it, but even nicer (read:greedy) to be the sole winner.
The $365 million is for an annuity which would be paid out over 26 years. When you purchase a ticket, you have the option of the annuity or taking a lump sum, which for this drawing would be $255.1 million. After federal taxes, that figure would be $165.815 million. (No state tax in Texas!) I've always thought I would opt for this method of payout, considering what my age would be after 26 years. I have to face the fact that I most likely wouldn't live to see the last yearly payments. (or wouldn't remember my name or that I had ever won the lottery) That's not the only depressing fact to take into consideration - the interest on certificates of deposits is pathetically low. They vary all the time and from bank-to-bank, but some yearly CDs pay less than 1% a year and 5-yr CDs anywhere from 1.7- 2%.
Let's say you blew through 10 million right off the bat and allotted another million a year to spend until your jumbo 5-yr CDs matured. (of course, you could make a dab of interest on unspent money, but let's disregard that for the sake of simplicity.) $150 million @ 2% would, with simple interest (not figuring compound rates) get you $3 million per year. (15 million+ over the five yr. period) Of course, Uncle Sam would want his 35%*, so the yearly net would be $1.95 million. I think most people could live on that.(You could also make some interest on the earned interest if you reinvested it.) You could then leave the huge sum of money - the 150 million- to your family. (Although in some cases, you *might* want to lie to them and tell them you're leaving most of it to charity. Otherwise they might want the will to be read a little early, if you get my drift. It's happened.)
On the other hand, if you did opt for the annuity, the income is much better. Before taxes, the yearly payout would be $13.692+ million a year with a net of $8.9 million. That would give you a monthly take-home income of a little more than $741, 666, a weekly income of $171, 153 and change - which works out to $24,383.56 a day.
Or, you could look at it this way: $1015.98 an hour. You could afford to pay someone minimum wage (Federal min. wage is $7.25) - along with some basic benefits - just to screen your calls from all the distant kinfolk and scam artists who would want some of your new-found riches.
That leaves you with a thousand bucks an hour for 26 years. That's $1000 per hour, every hour of every day of every week of every month for 26 years. Rain or shine, asleep or awake, it's going into your bank account.
Not bad wages, huh?
*I've read that 35% federal tax rate might soon go up to 39% if the current administration has its way. It's not just the President and the Democrats in Congress - a growing percentage of the population is of the mind that the rich don't pay enough taxes. Winning the lottery wouldn't just change your life, it might also change your political affiliation. -wink-
Edit: I don't mean to insult anyone w/ the political reference. I expect you...or I...would keep our same core political beliefs as we had before winning the lottery, BUT I'd think...would hope...we would be more "liberal" in regards to charity and more "conservative" fiscally.
UPDATE: The announced jackpot is 363 million. I guess the 365 number was the estimate. Usually, though, when a jackpot is this large, the number goes up because the prize is tied into a percentage of tickets sold. So, my calculations are incorrect. They were, anyway. I don't know what caused me to make the mistakes, but I did. (I used my computer calculator, but I guess you need to be semi-smart to use it. That lets me out.) So sue me. Wait until I win the lottery, though, because you damn sure wouldn't get anything now.
I read an article this morning which mentioned "lottery fever" - when people get excited by the huge jackpot and buy more tickets, often more than they can afford. It also touted some "expert" who said a lottery player should always pick their own numbers, not allow the machine to choose them. That doesn't make any sense, because one number is just as good as any other. (the winning number notwithstanding! -grin-) I always get a "quick pick" because my old set of numbers never did much good. I also had a fear that if I ever did quit playing them or change to another, they would come up. That could happen anyway, I suppose.
I also bought but one ticket. Buying two tickets doesn't do much to increase your odds of winning, not by my thinking. If the odds are one in ten million, then an extra ticket would make it two in ten million. I suppose you've doubled your chances, but....
February 4, 2010
Funny Money
From Dark Roasted Blend, this fascinating article:
Funny Money: Unusual and Fascinating Currency
Graphical Marvels, Forged Notes, Hyperinflation "Riches" and Propaganda Bed Sheets
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value - zero."
(Voltaire, 1694-1778)
For years I've been collecting foreign coins. Thanks to one of my Brit friends I met online, I have one of these coins:
50 pence or "p".It was also fascinating to me to learn that they also have no one pound paper note. Several times we (Americans) have tried with little success to convert to dollar coins. I like the idea and would use them, DID use them when they came out.
I once worked in a convenience store and during the shift change, when the register was being counted, the girl I was relieving proudly showed me three Mexican coins she had taken in payment for one of the store's specials, 3 burritos for a dollar. She took them as fifty cent pieces, which they resembled. but were 20 peso pieces. She took $1.50 of her own money and told me she was taking the coins home, she now had "60 Mexican dollars!". I took a quarter out of my own pocket, walked outside to the newspaper vending machine, purchased an Amarillo paper (75 cents now!!!), took it inside and opened to the paper's financial pages where I showed her that a peso - at the time- was worth something like one-fourth of a US cent, which made her investment come to the sum total of about fifteen cents. (she gave out more change with the burritos than that)
She looked so distressed that I put the buck and a half in the register and took the coins. Checking today's rate, my 60 pesos are now worth $4.58. I also have quite a few other Mexican and South American country coins, plus some from various European nations. I've researched them and found that a few are worth more than face value because they have become collector's items.
November 21, 2009
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
