A segment of the Portland Rose Festival, each year there is the Starlight Parade at night, with some lights and some fun. It opens with a short race/run of the parade route. The tradition of the run is to be in ridiculous costumes.
We sat down to a surprising bonus view to go along with the parade.
We chose a well protected corner.
Some good timing on this shot.
Happy Birthday Oregon!
There's more pictures in the gallery. Not a whole lot of shots of the "Starlight" part, hard to take shots of lights moving along a parade. I went with a few friends, and if we can come up with a costume theme, we just might run the parade next year. And not to worry, there's a bus that comes up behind the runners if they can't make it.
Exam: AUD
29 05 09 - 15:46. Category:
After taking the audit it exam, I think i might have passed.
When I was doing my last written part for the exam, I hit the power cord for my computer and killed it. Thankfully the test was entirely retrievable. Apparently it's a common problem they have.
I won't find out my score until about six weeks after the end of June (lame!). At least I can be lazy for a couple weeks and I got the longest test out of the way (hopefully).
Full schedule
27 05 09 - 15:37. Category:
This almost never happens to me, since when is my free time all taken up?
Friday: CPA Exam
Saturday: Music in May concert and Starlight Parade
Monday: Lasik consulatation with Clearly Lasik
Tuesday: Lasik consultation with Lasik Plus
Oh, I also get to have my mid-year, post-tax season, review next week.
I'm supposed to sit on my butt and do nothing with my free time! Although I am seriously excited for the consultations. I think it's more than marginally sadistic to be excited for a hour and a half eye exam, two days in a row. But in three weeks I could be glasses free, and that is definitely exciting.
Safety and security
22 05 09 - 17:09. Category:
As some of you may already know, there was a fatal stabbing that occurred in the early hours this morning at the MAX stop located on 1st and Davis. We have not received any additional information, other than what you may have seen or heard on the news. We wanted to assure everyone that the building was secure at all times during this altercation with our guard present and the building was not
connected to this crime.
This was the letter from my building's management. Frist and Davis is the tram stop right in front of our office, where I get off when I ride. It sits right between my building and my parking garage. Here's a link to an article in the Oregonian.
Makes me feel real safe. I saw a guy getting arrested and searched just outside our building a couple months ago. Old Town/China Town (both the stop and the Portland neighborhood) has cleaned up a lot over the past couple years, but god damn it can still be pretty sketch. But wait, there's more!
Reason #427
21 05 09 - 15:48. Category:
Not only does David tolerate my monologues on any topic that happens to be occupying my mind at any given time with the best of poise, but he reads and understands me amazingly well.
Last night, rather than try to fall alseep like a reasonable human being, I started talking about Lasik some more... eventually he just said "Stop. I can tell by the way you're talking that it would make you happy. Get it done."
It's not a puppy, or a new phone, or a kitten, or a new car, or a new couch, or a fancy apartment, but I really think it will make me happy by eliminating a tiny bit of misery out of my daily life. I love how glasses can look, but even the current pair I have that I loved have grown heavy and irritating (and broken). I was happiest when I wore contacts.
I have my first consultation with a company Tuesday, June 2nd. We shall see what happens.
Eye surgery?
19 05 09 - 20:59. Category:
My glasses are breaking, and they get irritating as the day goes on.
Replacement ear pieces to fix break: discontinued
Replacement frames in their entirety: discontinued
New frames, old lenses: not possible
So I'm stuck with potentially getting new glasses...
Minimum cost for glasses I would like: $765
Maximum cost for glasses I would like: $890
In short... fuck that shit. It will cost me in the neighborhood of $800-$900 a year to wear glasses. To get new replacements now would be a substantial upfront cost. Good thing I have insurance! Wait... no eye care coverage. The ONE thing I need good coverage on and a lot of insurance companies still don't provide it.
so I started calling Lasik places today.
Depending on what surgery I had and how extensive the correction to my eyes (I imagine it would be fairly extensive for my poor vision), it will cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $800-$2,000 an eye. I'm looking at a maximum cost of $4000, with costs more realistically being somewhere around $3,600.
The thing is, depending on the company, that's paid w/out interest over 12 to 24 months. It's a lot easier to afford $330 or less a month than it is to pay damn near a grand up front. And there are tax season bonuses coming up... as much as I would like a new couch...
Study study study
18 05 09 - 15:21. Category:
I've seen every multiple choice question for the audit segment of the CPA exam that my review software can offer. Now I'm going through some again at work. Over the next two weeks I'll be looking at the comprehensive (essay, calculations, etc.) questions.
My test is a week from Friday, my average score is a 69%, and I'm scoring 60-93% on multiple choice now. It's a fairly large, somewhat worrisome, spread. It takes a 75% to pass. I just might make it.
I have two issues with this: First, There is more to a bridge crew than captain, first officer, commedic relief, and tech support! You gotta give us helm and con and all the standard options! Gah.
Secondly, I can't pick! There is a special place in my heart for the crew of TNG, and I always enjoyed Voyager and thought it had some strong (if sometimes lame) characters. And the new movie is just. so. good.
I can't pick, I haven't voted. I'm so torn!
So who's your dream team?
12 of 12, May
13 05 09 - 00:47. Category:
As we all well know 12 of 12 is the project initiated by Chad Darnell. Twelve photos on the twelfth of the month. And "twelfth" is a really weird word to try and figure out how to spell/type. Lets get started:
05:42:05 - I emerge unto the world freshly showered!
05:58:15 - Hopefully not going to be one of those days, cutting off the headache before it evolves to something dangerous.
06:04:01 - Time to gather up my junk... "Where's my wallet?" It was in my jacket, and the funky plastic pointy things go in the collars of my shirts. Bent dress shirt collars = pet peeve.
06:50:09 - Hahah... just caught the time stamp difference on my camera versus the clock. I got in early, good time to catch up on some Internets reading.
07:12:14 - Work! There's some work! Easy stuff too!
07:55:30 - Poof! There went the work, it was shaping up to be one of those "keep up on my reader" days.
08:04:09 - Following a "I have time available" email per office policy I was officially cleared to do some CPA exam studying.
09:58:03 - Some more work arrived that I could do, it didn't take too long but it was an enjoyable challenge.
15:16:35 - After finishing some tax returns, doing some more studying, and attending a planning meeting, I got to pack up some client files to take out for fieldwork tomorrow. I'm only going to this fieldwork were I will be mostly useless because it's better than me sitting around on my butt.
16:20:44 - I went for a haircut (sorry forgot to change the lighting setting on my camera). The lady offered to style my hair... this is what I got.
17:05:44 - Per my usual evening schedule. It was followed by Spore since nothing was going on in the world of Azeroth tonight.
18:59:14 - More studying while rocking my completely awesome Star Wars pajama pants.
From there it was some more gaming, some blogging, and Rachael Maddow.
Smile!
10 05 09 - 00:03. Category:
I shop wine by the label.
Quickies
08 05 09 - 16:15. Category:
ave
Quickies
The firm's Brittish partner refered to a client being "tardy" about something. My first thought was that he was calling the client retarded.
Is there anything more unpleasant than your alarm going off just after you roll over into a new cumfy position in bed?
Go see Star Trek. I loved it, and basically spent the whole time in the theater giddy. At one point I got excited and when I leaned over to whisper to David I bit his shoulder in excitement.
Another way my college professor was awesome: Gernally Accepted Accounting Principles is switching to one authoritative indexing system, the FASB Accounting Standards Codification. The official switch happens July 1 and everyone is in a tizzy learning how it works. My professor had us using the early beta system for all our projects early on in college.
Every time we do a tax return, we run a diagnostic. They return any errors, incorrect inputs, balance issues, etc. that the computer finds in the return. Working on a partnership, I input the last number to get it to balance and hit my diagnostic...
There was nothing there! The screen was completely blank. I thought it was something broken. Even when I return is completed correctly, there are usually misc. cautionary diagnostics that aren't problems, but something to be aware about. I didn't even have those!
So I call our IT person, and she thinks it's weird so she calls the software provider and gets me on the phone with them. A couple tests later she goes "Congratulations, it looks like you've prepared a perfect return!"
I told her I didn't believe it and we enjoyed some good banter. Usually partnerships and such are at least out of balance by a couple dollars due to rounding, so you get that diagnostic. I didn't even have that!
I prepared a perfectly balanced, error free, tax return! I deserve a gold star.
I'm sure once it's reviewed there will be something wrong though. I'm not perfect yet, but I have felt it's touch, and it is glorious.
Mmmmm jamies
04 05 09 - 18:51. Category:
While having to study on my own time rather than work time kinda sucks, studying in my awesome Star Wars pajama pants on the couch is far superior than studying in my dress clothes at my desk.
Oh, and May the Fourth be with you.
Quickies
01 05 09 - 17:24. Category:
Quickies
In order to combat the possible swine flue pandemic the office bought several things of Lysol disinfecting wipes. These are placed strategically through the office for our easy access.
You gotta love Microsoft: My gaming mouse wasn't working. Just a simple mouse, nothing to complicated. After an evening of trouble shooting the only way to fix it turned out to be installing the entire operating system.
You gotta love Microsoft again: As of April 14 support for Windows XP is now "extended" support since it's not their current OS. What's this mean? If you want to talk to their tech people it costs $60, it's either that or the help Q&A online.
