Life is Beautifu!

2009 Stimulus Plan Benefits in a Nutshell

noreply@blogger.com (The Tax Man) — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 14:56:00 +0000

Deal Announced on Stimulus; Weekend Vote Likely

$40 billion to provide extended unemployment benefits through Dec. 31, and increase them by $25 a week; $20 billion to increase food stamp benefits by 14 percent; $3 billion in temporary welfare payments.

$14 billion to give one-time $250 payments to Social Security recipients, poor people on Supplemental Security Income, and veterans receiving disability and pensions.

$46 billion for transportation projects, including $27 billion for highway and bridge construction and repair; $8.4 billion for mass transit; $8 billion for construction of high-speed railways and $1.3 billion for Amtrak; $4.6 billion for the Army Corps of Engineers; $4 billion for public housing improvements; $6.4 billion for clean and drinking water projects; $7 billion to bring broadband Internet service to underserved areas.

$21 billion to provide a 60 percent subsidy of health care insurance premiums for the unemployed under the COBRA program; $87 billion to help states with Medicaid; $19 billion to modernize health information technology systems; $10 billion for health research and construction of National Institutes of Health facilities.

$8 billion in aid to states to defray budget cuts.

About $50 billion for energy programs, focused chiefly on efficiency and renewable energy, including $5 billion to weatherize modest-income homes; $6.4 billion to clean up nuclear-weapon production sites; $11 billion toward a so-called smart electricity grid to reduce waste; $13.9 billion to subsidize loans for renewable energy projects; $6.3 billion in state energy efficiency and clean energy grants; and $4.5 billion to make federal buildings more energy efficient.

$47 billion in state fiscal relief to prevent cuts in state aid to school districts, with great flexibility to use the funds for school modernization and repair; $26 billion to school districts to fund special education and the No Child Left Behind law for students in K-12; $17 billion to boost the maximum Pell Grant by $500 to $5,350; $2 billion for Head Start.

$2.8 billion for homeland security programs, including $1 billion for airport screening equipment.

$4 billion in grants to state and local law enforcement to hire officers and purchase equipment.

Approximately $115 billion for a $400-a-worker, $800-a-couple tax credit in 2009 and 2010. For the last half of 2009, workers could expect to see perhaps $13 a week less withheld from their paychecks starting about June. Millions of Americans who don"t make enough money to pay federal income taxes could file returns next year and receive checks. Individuals making more than $75,000 and couples making more than $150,000 would receive reduced amounts.

About $70 billion to spare about 24 million taxpayers from being hit with the alternative minimum tax in 2009. The change would save a family of four an average of $2,300. The tax was designed to make sure wealthy taxpayers can"t use credits and deductions to avoid paying any taxes. But it was never indexed to inflation, so families making as little as $45,000 could get significant increases without the change. Congress addresses it each year, usually in the fall.

About $13 billion to provide a $2,500 expanded tax credit for college tuition and related expenses for 2009 and 2010. The credit is phased out for couples making more than $160,000.

$3.7 billion to repeal a requirement that a $8,000 first-time home buyer tax credit be paid back over time for homes purchased from Jan. 1 to August 31, unless the home is sold within three years.

$5 billion to extend a provision allowing businesses buying equipment such as computers to speed up its depreciation through 2009.

$2.5 billion to makes sales tax on paid on new car purchases tax deductible.

Source: Associated Press

Bay Area Trusted

The Tax Man
Wil Chase Oliver
http://www.baytaxman.com

Gonzalo Rubalcaba at Yoshi's in March

noreply@blogger.com (The Tax Man) — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 09:22:00 +0000

Yoshis east bay jazz club and restaurant

Gonzalo Rubalcaba
* Mar 13, 2008 - Mar 16, 2008
* Thurs 8pm $18 & 10pm $12 Fri 8pm $22 & 10pm $16
Sat both shows $22 Sun 7pm $22 & 9pm $16

"Some of the most death-defying piano playing since Art Tatum."
New York Times

One of the most important figures to emerge from Afro-Cuban jazz in the '90s, Gonzalo Rubalcaba is an extraordinarily versatile pianist able to blend disparate strands of Cuban and American jazz tradition into a fresh, modern whole. Rubalcaba demonstrates why Cuban music has become so popular around the world. His lush tropical passion, rhythmic energy and sheer muscle on the piano have all combined to make him a truly unique artist. Rubalcaba returns to Yoshi's Oakland & San Francisco to perform mostly original music that encompasses his synthesis of Latin, Afro-Cuban and jazz musical styles. Rubalcaba displays a blend of technical virtuosity with contemplative interpretations of traditional Cuban themes and imaginative originals.

Kim Nalley Appearing Live this Weekend!

noreply@blogger.com (The Tax Man) — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 08:26:00 +0000

Jazz At Pearl's. Live Jazz Music in San Francisco. 1930s style jazz and supper club
Kim Nalley: The Heart of Lady Day

Nalley sings Billie Holiday

“[T]he difficulty of portraying Billie the singer and the woman has been solved by the presence of vocalist Kim Nalley, who not only sings Lady Day’s numbers wonderfully, but manages to convey something of the sense of her character, by turns demure and tough, as much through suggestion as through any kind of overly studied scheme.”

So said critic Ken Bullock, writing in the Berkeley Daily Planet, of Kim Nalley’s highly acclaimed performance in the recently concluded 8 week run and West Coast premier of C. J. Verburg’s play, Lady Day in Love, a play feelingly dramatizing Holiday’s early career which gave Nalley a chance to strut her stuff, singing fifteen of Lady Day’s best known songs.

For this very special weekend at Pearl’s, Kim Nalley brings the tender side of Holiday to life as she presents “The Heart of Lady Day.” Nalley, in her own unique and heartfelt style, will interpret the songs made famous by Holiday. She’ll be joined by sensitive, bluesy pianist Tammy Hall, swinging guitarist Josh Workman, cool-hand bassist Mike Zisman and steady-swinging drummer Kent Bryson.

Of course, the marvelous Miss Nalley is no stranger to the songs and personna of the great Billie Holiday. Her legion of fans have frequently enjoyed her performances channeling Holiday in her award winning show “Ladies Sing the Blues.” That’s in addition to Nalley’s recent series of triumphant concert tributes to the great Nina Simone, and her many shows in San Francisco and around the world, treating audiences to her own sweet and sassy personna and astounding talents. Tammy Hall piano Josh Workman guitar Kent Bryson drums Michael Zisman bass

Nurturing Mind Body & Spirit

noreply@blogger.com (The Tax Man) — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 01:44:00 +0000

DailyOM - Your Last Breath

April 4, 2007
Redefining Your Priorities
Your Last Breath

Procrastination is an almost universal human habit and one that infiltrates nearly every aspect of our lives. Modern existence is so complex, and much of what we long to do is left to wait by the side. We know what is important but tend to let the weight of worldly pressures lead us astray. To get back on track, however, we need only take a moment to consider where our thoughts will be as we take our last breath on this earth. More likely than not, at that instant, disagreements, bills, petty annoyances, and other frustrating elements of our lives will no longer seem as significant as they once did. Thoughts of loved ones and the positive impact we had on the world would no doubt occupy our remaining thoughts. Whatever we imagine ourselves musing upon during our last breath will almost always be representative of what truly matters to us.

This simple exercise introduces us to a new way of thinking. While our attention is drawn momentarily to the end of life, our contemplations serve to point out that we are masters of our own perspective and, consequently, our own existence. There is nothing preventing us from shifting our focus right now as we imagine we will in our final moments. We can choose to spend more of our time and energy on what gives our lives meaning. We can spend more time with loved ones and do more of what we enjoy. Doing so may not always prove easy, and there will inevitably be times when circumstances interfere with our resolution, yet we do not have to regard this as an indication that our priorities are not in alignment with who we really are.

Sometimes the only way we can see the beauty of life is to remind ourselves that it is finite. Gandhi said, "Live as if you were to die tomorrow." His words are a potent reminder that living life more fully is not about pushing ourselves harder or shouldering more burdens, but about experiencing all the wonderful richness life has to offer.

Healing * Educating * Loving *People

noreply@blogger.com (The Tax Man) — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 02:52:00 +0000

h-e-l-p : Promote

Click to join h-e-l-p

There is no end to what we can accomplish together!

noreply@blogger.com (The Tax Man) — Mon, 12 Feb 2007 02:49:00 +0000

Images from the Alameda County Office of AIDS - sponsored Black
HIV/AIDS Awareness Week event at Dorsey's Locker in Oakland on February
6, 2007. Brother2Brother Sister2Sister was in the house and we
will follow up with images we captured at the event very soon.

Peace and love,

Chase

SmugMug - The ultimate in photo sharing. Online photo albums, photo sharing, photo hosting and photo storage.

Web 2.0 ... The Machine is Us/ing Us

noreply@blogger.com (The Tax Man) — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 14:20:00 +0000

www.b2bs2s.org

Learn to Speak Body: Tape 5

noreply@blogger.com (The Tax Man) — Wed, 07 Feb 2007 10:50:00 +0000

Learn to Phone Phony: Tape 2

noreply@blogger.com (The Tax Man) — Wed, 07 Feb 2007 10:50:00 +0000

CLAS - Culture and Language Academy of Success

noreply@blogger.com (The Tax Man) — Sun, 04 Feb 2007 09:32:00 +0000

More than words

noreply@blogger.com (The Tax Man) — Sun, 07 Jan 2007 00:26:00 +0000

silent action says it all