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Sorry, I’ve been tied up with Statewide Mandated PARCC testing this week, and haven’t had time to write a post (let alone do ANYTHING worthy of posting).

So here’s a video of an asshole driver from NJ.

<iframe width=”560″ height=”315″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/UZUN02Jj1SE” frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen></iframe>

My upcoming to-do list includes:

  • Writing some templates for Zabbix
  • Testing Confluence
  • Making a page to determine the amount of coffee grind to use based on how much water you want (and how much coffee you want) based on the type of brewer you’re using.

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On 3/17 I was driving home from work and I got cut off by a Comcast van.

I sent a request in to their support company to let them know (I’m not a customer so I didn’t expect to hear anything back). I did get a reply, but it was a boilerplate response.

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Today on the way home from work I was listening to the radio (NJ 101.5) discussion about the proposal to change the minimum wage in NJ from $8.38/hour to $10.10/hour.  The question presented was whether or not this made sense for NJ.  I sat in my car thinking, who on earth could possibly be opposed to giving people who are working any form of job a little extra money to help make their lives a little easier.

Boy, oh boy, did I sorely overestimate the people of NJ on this one.  The calls were (overwhelming) against it with the standard cry being “How can small business afford to pay their employees anything more than what they’re currently being paid?” – to which my response is: what?  A friend pointed out that businesses can deduct payroll as tax exempt, potentially saving on the difference in cost.  This is a valid point to consider, but I am taking a more person-oriented approach to this as a problem.

I am starting with a few base assumptions here:

  • No student loans.
  • No credit card debt.
  • No car payment (beyond insurance).
  • No TV/Internet/Phone Line for home use.
    • This would likely result in higher cell-phone data use charges.  This is not factored into the calculations.
  • Not a realistic rent (for even a 1 Bed Room rental in a larger apartment; good luck finding $500/month rent in NJ).
  • Not really the best in terms of monthly groceries (lots of fast foods and/or unhealthy but calorie-dense foods).
  • Cell Phone
    • Please do not tell me that a cell phone of SOME kind is not a necessity in this day and age.  And if you’re going to suggest it, then I suggest you turn your phone off for a full day, let alone a week, let alone an entire month, and god forbid the entire damn year.
  • Health Insurance (hourly employees are typically not granted insurance via employer, and the alternative is to take a tax penalty at the end of the year).
  • Doing anything other than surviving every month; no entertainment, no hanging out with friends anywhere other than at home (or mooching off of friends for everything).  This is as bare-bones as I can think.

I came out with the following numbers (and I will post a copy of the sheet for you to look at if you wish):

For someone facing:

  • $500/month rent
  • $75/month power/gas
  • $275/month groceries
  • $40/month cell phone
  • $65/month car insurance
  • $100/month health insurance
  • $100/month gasoline purely for travel to/from work

They would need to work:

  • At $8.38 / hour
    • 34.5 hours / week NOT factoring in taxes
    • 36.5 hours / week factoring in just federal taxes
      • does not factor in state taxes, unemployment insurance, etc, etc, etc.
  • At $10.10 / hour
    • 28.5 hours / week NOT factoring in taxes
    • 30.5 hours / week factoring in just federal taxes
  • At $13.50 / hour (what I would probably need to pay for my current living expenses)
    • 21.5 hours / week NOT factoring in taxes
    • 22.5 hours / week factoring in just federal taxes

Now, let’s examine my living expenses:

  • $650/month rent
  • $125/month power/gas
  • $400/month groceries
  • $50/month cell phone
  • $78/month insurance
  • $88/month TV/Internet/Land Line
  • $225/month insurance (this is taken out of my salary currently)
  • $275/month gasoline

I would need to work:

  • At $8.38 / hour
    • 56 hours / week NOT factoring in taxes
    • 64.75 hours / week factoring in just federal taxes
  • At $10.10 / hour
    • 46.5 hours / week NOT factoring in taxes
    • 53.5 hours / week factoring in just federal taxes
  • At $13.50 / hour
    • 34.75 hours / week NOT factoring in taxes
    • 40 hours / week factoring in just federal taxes
    • This is why I use $13.50 / hour

So, clearly, there’s room for improvement here.  These numbers are all experimental guess work numbers, but I think you can see that that small bump in wages can make a minimum wage earner’s life MUCH easier.  At very little overall cost.  Well worth it in my opinion.

Have a heart, you cold bastards, and try to put yourself in their shoes for a goddamn minute before you try and discredit a decent idea.

You can view the sheet I used to calculate these numbers here.

-M, out

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Yay for NJ state government regulating something it has no business regulating!

I’m not talking about cars in general, since government regulations regarding safety and security in vehicles is pretty important in my opinion.  I am, however, talking about the government regulating and controlling how I spend my money.  Once the money enters my wallet, no one, anywhere, anyhow, EXCEPT ME, has a right to tell me how I can or cannot spend MY money (with the exception of blatantly illegal things).

To tell me that I cannot go to Tesla Online and buy a car directly from them is insulting to me and a slap in the face of Tesla directly.

NJ, I am ashamed.  What possible reason could you have for this?  There’s NO logical reason for this.  The only thing I could potentially think of is that Tesla didn’t pay off the right people.  It’s absurd.

I don’t have any plans (nor really the finances) to be able to buy one of these any time soon.  That being said, I still don’t believe the government has ANY right to tell me that I can’t or regulate them to have to be sold through some dealer instead of directly.  Ugh.

New Jersey Becomes Third State To Ban Tesla’s Direct Sales Model | TechCrunch.

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Today we bring you yet another bad driver of NJ, though it appears he’s really from NY.

Please people, remember to check your blind spots. Using the rear view and side view mirrors is not enough. You can seriously injure people and create a backlog of traffic, and no one wants that.

via ▶ December 17th’s Idiot Drivers of New Jersey – You Have Blind Spots! – YouTube.

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▶ December 16ths Idiot Drivers of New Jersey – YouTube.

Today we bring you another edition of Idiot Drivers of New Jersey!

This time we have a school bus driver running a red light to make a left turn.

The lead up (which you can’t see of course because it’s out of frame) is the approaching a yellow light at 35-40mph in order to run the light.

Very safe for the children, don’t you think?

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Following our last trip to the infamous Rutgers Grease trucks, we decided to go to Johnson Park and see what cool things we could find.

We found a few more birds, an orange dragonfly (!!!), a turtle, and a few other things.

Pictures in the view-more section below, with the exception of the following panorama.

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Rutgers Gardens.  A place of plants, farmers markets, and life in general.

When I was attending college at Rutgers University, the common joke from out-of-state students was that NJ was the armpit of the United States.  Some people (especially those from NY) considered NJ to be nothing more than the Parkway or the Turnpike: a place to travel through, not to.  I have to admit, I felt that way for a time; I hadn’t ever really left the state for any extended period of time.  The times that I had were fun experiences, and the people outside of NJ can be very different.  Going to Canada, for example, was a jaw dropping experience.  People are just… different.  It was weird.

Something changed recently.  I discovered just how beautiful NJ is.  This was thanks to a little slice of NJ called Rutgers Gardens.  Rutgers Gardens is a botanical garden of sorts, located on Ryders Lane in New Brunswick, nestled between Milltown and East Brunswick.  Oddly enough it is very close to Route 1.  This is very deceptive.  Very nearby to one of the busiest roadways in NJ lies a verdant forest garden full of all sorts of life.

And let me tell you: It’s gorgeous when you go at the right time of year.  Which is now, F.Y.I.  It’s gorgeous.

Better yet.  Let me show you.  View more to see just what you can find at the Gardens.  There’s a bamboo forest, ornamental rain garden, babbling brooks, giant green chairs, gorgeous plants, and a wide assortment of wildlife (including and not limited to: birds, fish, insects, and amphibians).

Side notes: Pictures taken with Canon Digital Rebel XSi (450D) with either a Canon EFSI 18-55mm or a Canon EFS 75-300mm lens.  Minor post processing in Photoshop (adjusting light/dark, color balance) was done.

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