Cell phone surprise

Time to upgrade your cell phone? Think you've found a great deal on a discounted phone by renewing your plan for another two years? Well, be aware that in California, you will pay sales tax on the FULL RETAIL VALUE of the phone, not the discount price.

Even though the tax code states that sales tax is based on "the gross receipts of any retailer from the sale of all tangible personal property sold at retail -- in other words, the amount the retailer received for the product -- Regulation 1585 says that when you get a discounted price by signing up for a service plan, then sales tax is based on the non-discounted price.

For heavens's sake, nobody walks in to the Verizon store and pays full price for a phone without getting a plan, and everyone knows it. The phones are priced accordingly.  Some people have even reported paying more in taxes than they did for the phone.

The state, however, argues thusly: if you were to go in and purchase a data plan without buying a phone, they would not discount the monthly rate for the plan, which "proves" that the plan does not subsidize the cost of the phone. But you pay tax on the plan as well, so this is totally bullshit. According to SFGate, the state rakes in over $181 million annually on this little gambit.

See also:  http://www.sfgate.com/business/article/Beware-California-s-hidden-cell-phone-tax-2349249.php

How the heck can the state be going broke?

Finally! A garage door opener

I've had quite enough of opening and closing the garage door manually.  Heave the door up, back the car onto the driveway, get out, pull the door back down from the inside, slide the lock over, go out the side door and lock it behind, get back into the car, and finally on my way.  I'm too old for this.

We've been wanting to get an opener for some time, but with all the other projects around here, it always got pushed to the back burner. But no more.

It was all pretty easy. I ordered this "internet" garage door opener from Sears.  You can even order installation as part of the order (a bit pricey at $129 but I was willing to pay a little extra for the convenience). Just pick a date and add it to your cart.  Free shipping too.  The opener showed up just a few days later, and the day before the installation was scheduled, the installer called to let me know when he was coming.  He showed up right on time, took about an hour, and it was done.

So far it's been great.  Opens the door rather slowly, but super quiet. It's chain-drive, yet barely noticeable from inside the house.

The controller shows you the date and temperature in the garage, and a motion detector that turns the light on whenever you enter the garage. Though frankly, that's a bit of a tradeoff because it's handy at night if I need something in the garage, but during the day if I'm just going out and open the garage door, I don't really need the light to come on.

The coolest part is that it comes with a gateway so you can control it remotely from a laptop or smartphone. If you're not sure you closed the door, you can always check. You could also let someone in to the garage, for instance, to drop someone off.  Log in is required each time to use the app, so if someone steals your phone they don't necessarily get access to your house. You can even set up alerts to notify you every time the door is opened. (I guess if burglars break in though the window then open the garage door from inside so they can load up your stuff, you'd know. And you know if your spouse has gotten home before you.)

When we first bought the house, we didn't live in it full time, but would come down for long weekends, roughing it with just a few kitchen supplies and a futon while we worked on some of the major remodeling. Even after we moved in, we worked little by little on the various projects, so it still didn't feel quite permanent. Funny, but it's the garage door opener that makes it feel "real" to me now.

Best household tip ever!

I was just holding a can of Minwax wood stain when I knelt down and accidentally banged my knee, which caused me to slip and slosh dark walnut stain onto the carpet. I thought it was done for--no way wood stain will come out of carpet once it has penetrated the fibers.

In desperation I turned to my trusty friend The Internet and found this clip on YouTube.  It works! Hallelujah! It works! WD-40, who'd have thought....

Non-apology apology from the Carmel Pine Cone

Remember All the Presidents Men, the book and movie about Watergate, and the "non-denial denial"? The Washington Post staff coined this phrase when a politician confronted with some accusation of wrongdoing, would issue a vague statement that sounded like a denial of some accusation or other but actually wasn't if you really thought about the words.

I was reminded of the non-denial denial when I read this week's Pine Cone. In response to a deluge of angry letters from readers offended by the smashed-Prius-at-least-it-wasn't-a-Bentley last week, the  Pine Cone printed a non-apology apology. To their credit, they did print the letters. At the end column, an Editor's Note explains that they thought this was a fun way to "gently poke fun" at the excesses of the Concours d'Elegance, which most people understood, and if you didn't get the joke, that's YOUR fault, you humorless drudge. You're not as smart as their other readers, and since your delicate little sensibilities were offended, well, OK, they apologize.

Here's the thing Carmel Pine Cone, you're not Stephen Colbert. You're not The Daily Show. You can't pull this sort of thing off.  Most of the letter-writers stated that they did understand it was a joke--they just didn't think it was funny.

Yes, comics do joke about tragic incidents (and can be quite funny), but it's really tricky to do well. Unfortunately your attempt flopped. I can see how, sitting around the news room, someone made a comment and it seemed funny. I was just surprised that they actually printed it.

Truth be told, the Pine Cone is not the only entity guilty of the non-apology apology. I see it all the time -- some public figure says something out of line, and when confronted, says "I apologize if anyone was offended."  In other words, I'm not sorry I said it, I don't think it was the wrong thing to say, I'm just sorry that you took offense to it.

We all suffer foot-in-mouth sometimes -- saying something that just doesn't come out the way you meant it. When it happens, just admit it...don't blame the other person.

So we'll let this one go Carmel Pine Cone. Now go forth and sin no more.

Click Read more for the full text

Another day Another salad

Bell peppers are in season and have been on sale, so I've got a bunch of them to use up. Last night I made a brightly-colored salad using red and green peppers and other fresh produce. I call it Fiesta Salad.

For 2 entree-sized salads:

1 head heart of romaine, chopped
1/4 c red bell pepper, cut into strips
1/4 c green bell pepper, cut into strips
1/2 c whole kernel corn
1/4 c carrot, julienne strips*
1/4 c shredded Cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese (or combo)
1/8 c thin sliced red onion, or to taste
handful of purchased tortilla strips, such as Fresh Gourmet salad toppings
fresh ground black pepper

To make it more filling, omnivores might want to add slices of cooked chicken breast, if desired.

Goes great with a red pepper vinaigrette or salsa ranch dressing.

*I like to use a vegetable peeler to quickly make thin strips of carrot

Carmel Pine Cone puts foot in mouth again

This week's Carmel Pine Cone has a front-page story about an averted disaster.  

(Carmel Pine Cone, Vol 99, No. 33, August 16-22)

Apparently a huge tree snapped at the base and fell across Highway 68 near the hospital Wednesday morning. As the article explains, Highway 68 is the main route out of Pebble Beach and is frequented by Pebble Beach residents driving expensive luxury cars. When the tree had the audacity to fall, at least it didn't hit a Ferrari or Rolls Royce...just some Prius. Near the end of the article, the Pine Cone finally remembers to tell us that no one was injured.

Some unfortunate soul had his or her car destroyed (and probably the scare of a lifetime), the highway was closed for hours, and work crews risked their own necks to cut and move the tree, but the important part -- and this is good news -- no luxury cars were damaged.
(If it had been a Hyundai, I suppose there would have been no story at all.)

Remember the "Sluts" controversy a few months ago?  Does anybody at the Pine Cone read the stories before they're published.

For full text of the story, click here.

Outdoor seating coming to Cafe Trieste

Cafe Trieste will soon have an outdoor seating area, using the two parking spots right in front. This is a pilot project as part of the downtown Monterey revitalization plan. Awesome idea. We have the weather for it, so why not take advantage? Looks like they are just about ready to go.

The little chocolate-toffee cookies are yummy -- don't think about the calories.